Former Salford University lecturer leaves £50,000 legacy for fashion students

Barbara Baldwin may have taught at the University of Salford in the ‘70s and ‘80s, but she is having an impact on the lives of students there today.

In the will she left with her husband Stuart, Mrs Baldwin left £50,000 to the University’s Fashion Design programme to help students build their careers in the fashion industry.

The Barbara Baldwin Fund will mean students on the programme will have the opportunity to apply for up to £5k a year over the next decade to help them finance various projects like placements or research visits abroad to develop their skills.

Barbara taught the Fashion Design HND at the former Salford College of Technology before a fashion degree programme became part of the University.

Her sister-in-law Lynn Hall presented the money last week when she visited the New Adelphi building – the University’s new home for art and design programmes.

Nigel Howe, associate dean of the University’s School of Arts and Media, who worked with Barbara, said:

“I remember her as an energetic woman who was absolutely passionate about what she did, who knew her subject inside out and who loved her students.

“As this legacy shows, she was totally committed to Salford and really wanted all students to be able to benefit from the opportunities available.”

The University’s Fashion Design programme has enjoyed great success in recent years, with success stories such as Val Kristopher Galbo, a student who won a global competition run by denim giant Levi’s.

Graduates have also managed to secure jobs with famous retailers like H&M in Stockholm, Zara in Spain, Peter Pilotto in London and Maxmara in Italy.

The fashion department was also recently shortlisted in the teaching excellence category in last year’s Guardian University Awards, after judges were impressed with a project in which fashion students spent one day working with their counterparts in a Chinese institution.

Bashir Aswat, fashion programme leader at the University of Salford, said: “We always encourage our students to get as much as possible from our international partnerships during their time here. This very generous legacy will help even more of our students to take advantage of the opportunities we have on offer.”