Sue Heward (History 1975) met her late husband, Professor Phil Taylor (History 1975; PhD 1978), on their second day as undergraduates. She has chosen to leave a share of the residue of her estate to the University to provide scholarships for students who face difficult financial circumstances.
“Phil and I talked about this a long time ago,” Sue says. “We decided we wanted to help students less fortunate than ourselves.”
After graduating, Phil went on to spend his whole career at Leeds, joining the School of History as a lecturer after completing his PhD and later moving to the Institute of Communications Studies, where he was director from 1998 until his death in 2010.
“Your time at university is a pivotal point in your development,” Sue adds. “It’s where you grow up. You learn how to conduct relationships. It sets you up, not just for a career but for life.”
“This opportunity shouldn’t be denied to people on purely financial grounds.”