On Air Now Non Stop Music Midnight - 6:00am Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars Schedule

Ryde Town Council Signs New Partnership Agreement With Portsmouth University

Prof Graham Galbraith, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Portsmouth (left), shaking hands with Cllr Michael Lilley, Mayor of Ryde and Vice-Chair of Isle of Wight Council.

The University of Portsmouth and Ryde Town Council have signed a new partnership agreement to help raise the regional and national profile of both the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth.

The agreement covers areas of mutual interest such as addressing educational inequalities, finding solutions to environmental issues and supporting sustained economic growth in the region.

To symbolise the two entities working cooperatively, the signing took place on a hovercraft in the middle of the Solent as a symbolic gesture of this cross-Solent agreement.

Prof Graham Galbraith, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Portsmouth, said:

“This initiative is one of many on the University’s long-term ambition to become a leading civic university and I am excited about its potential to facilitate working together on shared aims.”

Cllr Michael Lilley, Mayor of Ryde and Vice-Chair of Isle of Wight Council, added:

“Ryde Town Council is delighted and excited about the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with the University of Portsmouth.

"This is a historic celebration of the importance of Portsmouth to Ryde as the town's gateway to the mainland of England, the UK, and the rest of the world."

More from Isle of Wight News