Van Mildert College, commonly known as Mildert, is a college of the University of Durham in England. Founded in 1965, it takes its name from William Van Mildert, Prince-Bishop of Durham from 1826 to 1836 and a leading figure in the University's 1832 foundation. Van Mildert College occupies grounds of eight acres (32,000 m²) alongside South Road and is centred around a large lake. The college's acc
ommodation and communal facilities are modern and spacious, and includes an adjacent conference centre which is regularly used by external organisations. Women postgraduate students were first admitted in 1967, studying certificates in education. While female undergraduates were first admitted to the college in 1972, making it the first Durham college to become co-educational. The accommodation blocks are named Tyne, Tees, Middleton, Derwent, Wear, Tunstall and Deerness, the latter two of which are fully en suite. They are all situated within the college grounds and the university is in the process of refurbishing each of the buildings in turn. In total the College can provide 550 single rooms for its members. The college's Dining Hall is one of the largest in the UK. It measures 30.8m by 13.2m and can seat approximately 350 members at formal dinners. The dining hall is used for a variety of functions over the academic year and plays a central role in the lives of livers in (students who live on the college site) as it is where college meals and formals are held. The hall also acts as a venue for drama productions, use as a sports hall and in 2010 was one of the main locations for the Inter-Varsity Folk Dance Festival. The portrait of William Van Mildert, whom the college is named after, hangs at one end of Van Mildert dining hall, along with portraits of the former Principals and Masters of the college.
