
New impact board drives collaboration in business, law and society
Southampton Solent University has held its inaugural meeting for the School of Business, Law and Society's new Impact Board.
17 November 2025
19 November 2025
On Tuesday 18 November, a delegation from India visited Southampton Solent University’s Warsash Maritime School (WMS) to learn more about their sector-leading approach to learning and teaching.
The University played host to India’s Hon’ble Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Mr Shantanu Thakur, alongside Centurian University’s Director of the School of Maritime Studies, Captain Vik Patra.
The visit saw the delegation visit Solent’s Ship Handling Centre – a unique facility advancing learning for professional seafarers set on the beautiful Timsbury Lake in Hampshire. The centre’s Senior Lecturers, Martin Greenslade and Edmund Hadnett, demonstrated how the facility uses industry-standard scale models of ships to impart essential knowledge that up-skills professionals from across the world.
At the University’s city-centre campus, the group had the unique opportunity to tour its brand-new South Coast Institute of Technology facility, before its official opening in 2026. Warsash Maritime School’s Deputy Dean – Education, Matthew Stewart, says:
“WMS is proud to have hosted a visit from the Ministry of Shipping to strengthen our global partnerships in ship handling excellence. By bringing India’s rapidly developing maritime sector together with our international expertise in ship manoeuvring and simulation training, we can highlight the significant opportunities emerging in this critical discipline.
“We look forward to advancing skills, supporting seafarer development, and contributing to safer, more efficient ship operations across the global maritime community.”
Solent is home to more than 700 students from India, who form part of a diverse, proudly international learning community. On the importance of cultivating meaningful relationships across the world, the University's Chief Marketing Officer, Andrew Bird, says:
“We are very proud of our links and collaborations with India, and this visit from the State Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Mr Shantanu Thakur, allows us the opportunity to continue those discussions and create more meaningful opportunities within higher education. As we advance our 2035 Strategy, we look forward to deepening our international partnerships.”
