Community engagement
Engage with us
There are many ways in which our neighbours - and wider communities - can engage with the University of Leicester.
Attenborough Arts
The University's arts centre on Lancaster Road hash a mission to make contemporary art accessible for all. Welcoming 100,000 visitors per year, Attenborough Arts Centre produces a range of art exhibitions and performances including music, theatre, dance, spoken word and comedy.
Botanic Garden
Open to the public year-round, our beautiful Botanic Garden comprises sixteen acres of lovingly-cultivated grounds and greenhouses, displaying a wide variety of features and environments and a wide-ranging collection of plants from around the world. The nearby five-acre Attenborough Arboretum displays our native trees in the sequence in which they arrived in this country after the last ice age.
Popular events at the Botanic Garden include the Plant Sale and Family Day at the end of June (organised by Friends of the Botanic Garden) and the University's Community Festival at the Botanic Garden in early September.
Library
The David Wilson Library on campus is available for local people to use. Anyone aged 18+ and living in the city, county or Rutland can apply to join the University Library and can then borrow up to 10 books at a time.
Local researchers can contact the Library for access to our special collections and archives which include extensive material on local writers including Joe Orton and Sue Townsend.
Sports facilities
Both the Danielle Brown Sports Centre (on campus) and the Roger Bettles Sports Centre (in Oadby) are accessible to members of the public who take out a membership. As a member of either facility, you can access our wide range of equipment and extensive facilities.
Literary Leicester
Since 2008, up to 5,000 attendees each year participate in the University’s annual free book festival, Literary Leicester. Guests include Booker Prize winners, celebrated cultural commentators, novelists, poets, historians, biographers and more, discussing important, fun and fascinating contemporary topics across a wide range of subjects.
Heritage Hub
The University’s Heritage Hub facilitates collaborations that combine cutting-edge university research with public and community lived experience. The Hub supports people and organisations to explore, investigate and celebrate their heritage, undertaking innovative data gathering and research to inform strategy and maximise social and economic impact.
Outreach
Each of our academic Schools and Departments offers outreach activities to local schools and groups. Please contact the relevant School in each case.