During a packed afternoon agenda - celebrating student successes and meeting teams from around the University – local Bath MP Wera Hobhouse visited campus on Wednesday 28 May.
Innovative Projects
Her visit began with a tour of the annual Engineering Design and Project Exhibition, jointly hosted by the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. This year marked the Exhibition’s 60th anniversary, showcasing 78 student projects and involving over 200 final-year students.
Accompanied by Senior Lecturer Dr Elies Dekoninck, Wera met final year students exhibiting innovative engineering creations and developing new technologies to tackle key environmental and health challenges.
This included talks with the award-winning Team Bath Racing Electric student team, as well as Bath students who have created a device designed to help farmers improve pest management reducing the amount of insecticides.
Read more about this year’s Design and Project Exhibition.
University impacts
While on campus, Wera also took the opportunity to meet new members of the University’s senior management team, including Deputy Vice-Chancellor Prof Marcus Munafò, University Secretary & Registrar Ian Blenkharm, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Global Engagement) Prof Manuel Barcia and Corinne Evans (Vice-President External Engagement).
Later in the visit Wera received an overview of the University’s hydrogen engineering expertise from Prof Tim Mays and Prof Chris Bowen. They showcased Bath’s key hydrogen projects, including UK-HyRES, GW-SHIFT and ZENITH, as well as the University’s hydrogen facilities at IAAPS.
As a member of Parliament’s Energy Security and Net Zero Committee in Westminster, Wera was especially keen to hear about our work in ‘green hydrogen’ (where hydrogen fuel is produced using renewable energy sources).
During a tour of 10 West, she met researchers from the University’s Department of Psychology, with a focus on Bath’s new Mental Health Research Group, led by Dr Pamela Jacobsen, the Centre for Pain Research, with Deputy Head of Department Prof Ed Keogh, as well as VR-related research projects in the CREATE Lab.
With a keen interest in eating disorders, as Chair of the APPG on Eating Disorders, Wera also received a briefing from the Psychology team on outputs from Bath's 'Disorders of Eating and Body Image Research Group', which is based within the Department.
Student success and new facilities
At The Students’ Union (SU), Wera met incoming and outgoing SU Presidents Benji Thompson and Jiji Alamo, and was given a behind-the-scenes peek at the University’s award-winning student-led radio station, URB.
She then returned to the Design and Project Exhibition to present the 2025 Equality, Diversity and Inclusion team prize, awarded this year to Team Bath Heart. Wera also presented poster prizes for the winning entries.
Her final stop was at the Sports Training Village, where with University Director of Sports Stephen Baddeley she inspected the UK’s first fully recyclable 3G sports pitch on the day of its official unveiling.
Read more about our new 3G rubber-free pitch
Commenting, Wera Hobhouse MP for Bath said: “I am so proud of the incredible and innovative work being done across the University of Bath. It is no wonder that it is consistently in the top 10 across all major UK university rankings.
"I am particularly proud of its significant activities in sustainability, including in hydrogen, and in the field of eating disorders, both subjects very close to my heart. And I commend the Faculty of Engineering & Design for its world-beating work to create meaningful change, which was demonstrated so well through the Engineering Design and Project Exhibition.
"In a world facing immense challenges, from the climate crisis to inequality, it’s up to all of us to problem-solve our way out of it, and it is fantastic to see our very own engineers from the University leading the way. Congratulations to all the winners of poster prizes and to Team Bath Heart for winning the 2025 Equality, Diversity and Inclusion student team prize.”
New University of Bath Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Marcus Munafò added: “We were really pleased to welcome Wera to campus for a packed afternoon of activities taking in the Engineering Design and Project Exhibition, as well as meetings with our new senior management team, researchers and students.
“Across the board – whether in relation to education, research and innovation – the University of Bath is involved in so many projects with real impact and we are very grateful to our local MP for all her help in championing the work that goes on here.”
Incoming Students’ Union President, Benji Thompson said: “Meeting Wera is always a pleasure and a great opportunity to voice student concerns and ensure that there is representation of student issues at the highest levels of government.
“As we look to the next academic year and our new sabbatical team take over, I'm really keen to further build and enhance the SU's connections externally, ensuring our student voice is heard at all levels."
The visit was organised by the University’s new External Affairs unit within the Department of Marketing, Communications and External Affairs. It was also supported by University of Bath student and current IPR policy intern Olly Connolly.