Did you know all University of Sheffield bars, cafes and restaurants are open to everyone?
This means that regardless of whether you're a student looking for a bite to eat before your next lecture or a local that wants a hot drink and cake whilst catching up with friends, the whole community can benefit from the options available.
Each building is unique, but warmly welcoming, and there's always an incredible selection available to choose from for all dietary requirements.
And for climate-conscious foodies, you're in for a real treat.
The University of Sheffield puts the planet at the forefront of its plans, and minimises its environmental impact wherever possible with its 'think local, act global' initiative.
The idea is that as many ingredients as possible are sourced from local butchers, greengrocers, coffee roasters and even dairy farms.
Our Cow Molly is a prime example of this. The local farm is located in Dungworth (S6), and sees their milk go from cow to coffee in as little as three hours. The locality of the business means that delivery emissions are reduced, local people are given jobs within the production line and customers like you and I get fresh free-range milk, served in giant 20 pints churns to minimise plastic wastage.
Now of course it's impossible to source everything from Sheffield but when the university is looking for products like coffee beans for instance, the supply chain is reduced as much as possible to ensure farmers and suppliers have their pay potential maximised.
The development of Roastology, the local supplier UOS uses for its coffee, is currently partnered with researchers from the University of Sheffield to support the development of the co-operative and work to solve problems within the global industry.
Food waste accounts for 9.5 million tonnes per year, but the University of Sheffield is ensuring that not only is all food wastage minimised, but that it goes to a deserving cause.
If there's any sandwiches, veggies or even cake left over at the end of the day, it is placed inside the community fridges at UOS accommodation sites Endcliffe and Ranmoor for students and members of the community to help themselves, completely free of charge. This is saving an average of twenty tonnes of food each year alone.
There's murals all around the cafe documenting the different initiatives across the university campus, encouraging locals to find out more about the reusable cups, electric delivery vehicles and even a 'Save our Sandwiches' campaign that minimises food waste and supports vulnerable people in Sheffield.
Need any more stats to get you thinking? This academic year, across the University of Sheffield, over 100,000 fewer single-use cups will be used across campus.
To find out more about the University of Sheffield's sustainability initiatives, you can visit the WithUS website.
All images - Benjamin Elliott via Unsplash
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The Crucible Theatre set for major £45m upgrade as World Snooker Championship stays in Sheffield
Estimated to be worth around £45 million, the Grade II-listed structure renovations won't begin for a little while just yet, but it is set to increase the capacity of the space by more than 50%.
Announced on Tuesday, 24 March, the major refurb will be partly funded by public money and topped up by the private sector and "philanthropic partners".
The UK government and Sheffield City Council will be pumping in approximately £35m, with a further £10m being added through the investment mentioned above.
Soon to allow the theatre to scale up or down in size, the hope is that the new 'in the round' format will enable the Crucible to serve its arts and sporting audiences for decades to come, as well as opening the big Northern stage up to new opportunities.
Due to start in the summer of 2028, it's still unclear as to the exact completion date, but the plans are in support of confirmation that the annual snooker tournament will stay put.
A fresh agreement with the WSC will see them stay in Sheff until at least 2045, with the Crucible's number of seats set to jump from just under 1,000 to 1,480.
It's also said there is an option in the deal to extend the contract until 2050, and as one of the biggest competitive events that comes to the city year in and year out, you would expect them to push hard for the Council and partners to push hard for this, too.
Credit: Bread and Butter PR (supplied)
Dan Walker, Chair of Sheffield Theatres Trust, said in a statement: "The Crucible is a wonderful theatre with a brilliant reputation, and the positive impact of this investment will be seen for years to come.
"As a proud resident of Sheffield, I know the importance of snooker to our city, but this isn’t only good news for Sheffield: this is amazing news for the north of England and the whole of the UK."
If all goes to plan, the overhaul should take around 18 months, with productions being hosted in the Lyceium and the newest room, the Montgomery.
All the while, the Sheffield Theatres will continue to present new work both domestically and around the globe over this period, with more details coming this autumn 2026.
Sheffield amongst nine areas to be long listed for UK City of Culture 2029
Clementine Hall
It's big news for Sheffield as the city has officially been long listed to become the UK City of Culture in 2029.
It’s one of just nine places across the country to make the cut, alongside the likes of Blackpool, Portsmouth and Wrexham.
Winning the title could bring huge investment to Sheffield, thousands of visitors, and a massive spotlight on everything that makes our city special - and let’s be honest, Sheffield’s got plenty to shout about.
From music and film to art and grassroots creativity, culture runs right through this city, and it would be a huge achievement to receive this title.
So, what happens now? Each arena will now receive £60,000 to develop a full application with the aim to build a vibrant cultural programme by 2028.
The nine confirmed long listed locations are: Blackpool, Inverness-Highland, Ipswich, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Portsmouth, Sheffield, Swindon and Wrexham.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said: "For far too long, opportunity has not been shared equally across the country. The UK City of Culture and new UK Town of Culture competitions recognise the enormous contributions made by communities all over the UK who are all part of the story of who we are as a nation.
"I look forward to seeing what the nine long listed places have in store as they progress in the competition. I also urge any towns thinking about entering the UK Town of Culture competition to seize this opportunity and get involved. It’s a chance to show the country what makes them unique and shine a spotlight on their cultural offer, enriching the lives of local people."
Go on Sheffield, we're rooting for you big time. We can't think of a city more worthy.
Sophie Smith -
15th December 2023 
