Sir Jesse and Lady Florence Boot
When the College launched a fundraising appeal in 1920, prominent local people were contacted with requests for donations. Jesse Boot’s initial response was not encouraging. In a letter dated 2 March 1920, Boot explains that he is unable to give a donation at present, adding that he may perhaps be able to do something small in the future. However, he was soon to change his mind in spectacular fashion. By the end of the same year, Boot had given £50,000 to the College, beginning his series of large gifts.
Over the course of the next ten years, he gave donations totalling more than £9,000,000 in today’s terms. His gift of land at Highfields resulted in the establishment of the present University Park campus. His wife Florence shared his passion, paying for the building of a hostel for female students, which was christened Florence Boot Hall.
The impact of the Boots’ generosity and vision is still felt by students today, in several of the buildings in which they study and meet. Similarly, alumni's contributions shape today’s Nottingham, by helping to ensure that students from lower-income backgrounds can experience all the university has to offer.