Tales of the Urban Explorer: Horsforth Campus
We were very lucky to get some great information on how to get into Horsforth Campus without attracting the attention of the on-site security.
A map was provided with directions on where to go, and what to do, what could be better!
Following the most excellent guide, we hopped over a wall ignoring a few old ladies muttering, 'Well, I never Martha', and using super ninja skills entered the compound from a direction the snoozing security dude would not expect.
The Horsforth Campus closed in 2017 as part of a programme of consolidation to enable Leeds City College to reinvest in the new college stock and the estate rationalisation.
There is little other information to be found about it, it looks like it may have been built in the 1970s, looking at the style.
Once inside the grounds, access to the building was relatively easy and we found ourselves roaming empty, quiet corridors with the occasional pools of water underfoot.
One of the first rooms we found was the Science Laboratory, and a few things had been left behind.
Algae have had time to settle into the lab, nestling amongst the bunsen burner gas pipes.
This kid didn’t complete his work, is he going to get lines?
There was no shortage of things to look at including samples of insects!
Jars with all kinds of weird stuff were in another adjoining room.
The fish never had a chance, once the hooligans got here and started smashing everything up.
2017 was the year of closure; it is confirmed on this whiteboard.
With all these pieces of metal sticking out of the ceiling, walking down corridors was a little hazardous; I’m quite attached to my eyes.
I can't say I'm a fan of DERP schools, there's too much of the same in most of the rooms. You have to look to find anything special.
This was outside the student canteen; the graffiti hounds have taken a visit.
The kitchen was flooded and hard to walk in. I was quite hungry but no food was on offer.
If you are late, then you have to wait.
Were there any books left in the library, we opened the door to take a peek.
Not even one, just a teak looking information desk, without any information.
The study room was quiet, but so was everywhere else. Some kids were spotted outside around this point.
If they came in without all the information provided to us, the security bloke would surely have them quickly escorted out.
I’m still trying to figure out what all that is on the left side of the whiteboard.
The Instagram lot have been here begging you to follow them, I don't even have an account.
Keith Parish, you will have to do better, you failed boy.
The old server room had some hardware left, a little dated by today’s standards.
We were approaching the front of the inside of the collage and had to be quiet. The security bloke might wake up from his afternoon sleep and hear us.
The Science lab was about as good as it gets and we exited the same way purposely walking to the front gate intentionally alerting the security bloke,
He spotted us quickly, opened his little cabin...
‘Hey, you can’t go in there’, he shouted over using his best authority voice.
‘I know, we are leaving’, I replied quickly.
‘What are you doing…, you are not allowed to take photographs’, he sputtered angrily seeing me snapping the front entrance.
I defied him and took one anyway, as well as one of him just to see what he might do.
Yes I know, I am a wind-up merchant at times but he must be bored in there and it gives him something to do, right?
The phone came out, and he started to call for backup, the police, and his heavies; who knows?
We would be gone in five minutes, and it wouldn’t matter anymore.
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I was hoping youd get a pic of the security guard. He totally looks like he just woke up from a nap in that last pic. Doubt any extra security or police would've bothered doing a whole lot about his alarm and call for back up.
I think the science kab would've taken me hours to go through. I'd be checking out each little specimen jar.
The school looks like it was once pretty great. Any idea as to why it suddenly dhut down. Looks like it happened midterm or something.
You planning on going back or did you see all there was.
He wasn't too intimidating, but to be fair we didn't give him a hard time. Not sure who he was calling but did not want to hang around to see who was going to turn up next.
The Science Lab was the highlight, other than that, we had to look hard to find things of interest.
Not going back, there's more interesting place than this. I prefer older locations preferably with history attached!
Any idea why the school just suddenly went under?
Other than what I wrote I haven't been able to find anything. It's not a great looking building, but perfectly serviceable.
What a great explore, my old school had one of those large tower things, reminds me of that.
You needed gloves in those labs, who knows what's brewing.
Lots of salvageable material in there by the looks of it - surely those steel kitchen units can get some reuse?
I might add (ineffective) security guard to my list of potential jobs - unless they have ways to surveil you to prevent you dicking around on Hive at the same time?
Katie Broadbent - lovely girl, first pregnant at 15, now 18 with three kids, and three dads.
Is there anything in them, we didn't see an internal climb up there?
This security was particularity ineffective, and I was told never goes inside the building, is this for insurance reasons?
As I was starting my 5th year (called that then), one of the girls I was told got pregnant at 15 years old. She had massive tits and didn't have much 'up there'. I saw her at the 40th reunion some years ago, not much had changed in either respects.
I've got it into my head that it was a water tower, although that doesn't make that much sense to me. So maybe not?
40th reunion, wow! That's your whole life lived already.
I guess these buildings were block made from some design during a certain time period, that's why it looks familiar to you.
The reunion was strange, I left quite early as it didn't feel quite right. I'm hardly the best socialiser to start with.
Yes - educational institution prefabs I guess.
I went to a school reunion drinks last year - I think there were about 10 initially booked in, ended up just being 4 of us.
We do have a Whatsapp group going, but that's only for those of us that used to be into Metal, and a few others.
Cool little explore; I think Keith Parish's tutor needs to do better with his handwriting haha
LOL, I struggled to read what the tutor had written, does not set a great example!
Seeing that server room makes me wonder if that place still has energy... if the energy is still going you can place some BTC miners in there and get free energy to mine some BTC! Profit!
If only the power was switched on!
Has to be a boring job watching an empty site. I would think he would welcome the excitement.
Is that a water tank above it? Not the nicest building design. Everything tends to be very functional. At least you found some interesting items in there. Just take care walking through all that crap. You must need hosing down afterwards.
Secca are generally quite chatty, anything to make the world go by quicker but this dude was intent on getting us off-site. I wanted a picture of the front, and he went a bit nuts.
I have some trail shoes I use for UX, they stink of old buildings.
a great mix of stuff there, grot and pickled cockroaches hmm!
poor old keith, one of life's failures
Yes the lab was the highlight, but there was a few other things knocking about. Sometimes there's so much you don't know where to look, and others have you searching for anything.
good point well made. it's on my list to do
Drop me a DM, I will spill the beans.
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You are such a troublemaker! That is pretty funny. This looks like it was a really cool place. Not a lot of history, but definitely a lot of neat stuff. I probably would have spent a long time in the server room even though the equipment was outdated.
I see server rooms quite often, one in the last place I was at. That guy was too much of a stiff, we could have had a chat.., but he was too serious!
Oh, memories of secondary school with all the crazy stuff people had shoved in jars. A highlight was a rather magnificent horse testicle.
I can't remember any weird shit like this in bottles at my school, then again.. it was a terrible school where the kids ruled.
I suppose there is too much asbestos to be worth trying any renovations. That is what they tell us here when they decide they need a new school building and want to raze the old one.
There's always asbestos in these place, I seem to be coughing more than I used too. Could be a factor.