Foulston Room
A place where new ideas, skills and knowledge is generated; a place that accommodates and showcases our intellectual and creative talent in action, in a setting that facilitates our engagement with wider intellectual, educational and cultural communities and industry.
The Box is Plymouth’s £48 million redevelopment of its Museum and Art Gallery, backed by £14m from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and over £6m from Arts Council England (ACE), as well as other external capital grants. The Box is a flagship investment by HLF and ACE nationally, as well as being a major Plymouth City Council project and the centrepiece of the Mayflower400 Commemorations and legacy. The University has been one of the four strategic partners on the project since its inception in 2013. Our involvement is as follows:
The Foulston Room
The Foulston Room boasts a rich history of learning in and of itself; the 86m2 space was once the old lecture room within Plymouth Library and was latterly used as their open access computer room. Despite its recent transformation for its new purpose, the room’s extensive history has been perfectly preserved in the mid-20th-Century wood panelling, thanks to the dedication of the 20th-Century Society. Within the newly configured space, the room sits opposite that occupied by the archival and museum professionals and adjacent both to The Box’s invigilated Cottonian Research Room and the more informal Active Archive, which enables the general public to interact with the various collections of The Box. It sits off a through-route accessible to the public, but in a context of professional offices.
Accessing the space
If you are a University of Plymouth staff member interested in accessing the Foulston Room, please refer to the usage policy and bookings process.
Please note, the room is only bookable by University of Plymouth staff members.
For general enquiries or any questions in relation to this space, please contact: foulston@plymouth.ac.uk
This innovative MA programme is specifically designed for those seeking a career in the archive sector. Designed and taught in partnership with archival professionals, the programme enables students to gain practical experience drawing on The Box’ extensive archives; from manuscripts to film, sound and digital. Students also learn about current and practical management issues, the varied needs of users and how to communicate through outreach and marketing. This programme is also available to study part time.
Find out more about MA Archival Practice.
“We are delighted to be working with the University of Plymouth; one of the founding funders of The Box and a key strategic partner. The Box is a place where the city’s heritage meets contemporary art; where archives meet interaction; and where the Mayflower meets a mammoth! Plymouth has a fascinating past and a dynamic present. Our partnership will help to unlock the exciting potential of this flagship cultural investment and demonstrate the power of fusing new ideas, intellectual and creative talent, and driving engagement across intellectual, educational and cultural communities and industry. We look forward to welcoming University of Plymouth staff and students, to building new and innovative projects and collaborations, and to seeing the Foulston Room come to life!"
Paul Brookes, Interim CEO, The Box
