Thomas Paul Richard Bloxham MBE

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

 (born 20 December 1963) is an award winning property developer, founder of the pioneering urban renewal

Urban renewal

Urban renewal is a program of land redevelopment in areas of moderate to high density urban land use. Renewal has had both successes and failures. Its modern incarnation began in the late 19th century in developed nations and experienced an intense phase in the late 1940s – under the rubric of...

 property development company Urban Splash

Urban Splash

Urban Splash is a British company which regenerates decaying industrial warehouses, mills, Victorian terraced houses and other buildings. These buildings have mainly been converted into housing...

 and member of the judging panel for RIBA

Royal Institute of British Architects

The Royal Institute of British Architects is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally.-History:...

's Stirling Prize

Stirling Prize

The Royal Institute of British Architects Stirling Prize is a British prize for excellence in architecture. It is named after the architect James Stirling, organised and awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects...

. Bloxham has appeared on Britain's rich list

Sunday Times Rich List

The Sunday Times Rich List is a list of the 1,000 wealthiest people or families in the United Kingdom, updated annually in April and published as a magazine supplement by British national Sunday newspaper The Sunday Times since 1989...

 and has a property portfolio worth over £200m.

Background

Bloxham was born in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 and went to Tiffin School leaving in 1983 to go to Manchester to study Politics & Modern History at the University of Manchester

University of Manchester

The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...

. During his time at university

University

A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...

 he opened a music and poster shop in Afflecks Palace and also sold fire extinguishers door to door and tried to increase sales by demonstrating them by setting his briefcase on fire then extinguishing it.

Urban Splash

Bloxham began subletting portions of his unit at Afflecks Palace and this began his career in property. Bloxham founded Urban Splash who initially converted redundant properties, mainly formerly industrial buildings, in the north west England into affordable city centre residential loft apartments. They have won in excess of 100 awards for design, architecture and urban renewal.

He is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects

Royal Institute of British Architects

The Royal Institute of British Architects is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally.-History:...

 (RIBA) and in 1999, he was given an MBE.

Chancellor of The University of Manchester

Tom Bloxham was elected Chancellor of The University of Manchester in June 2008 to take office from 1 August 2008 for a period of seven years. Bloxham was installed as Chancellor at a special ceremony at the University's Whitworth Hall

Whitworth Hall

The Whitworth Hall on Oxford Road and Burlington Street in Chorlton-on-Medlock, Manchester, England is part of the University of Manchester. It has been listed Grade II* since 18 December 1963. The Hall lies at the south-east range of the Old Quadrangle of the University, with the Manchester Museum...

 on 3 December 2008. At the same ceremony Sir Bernard Lovell

Bernard Lovell

Sir Alfred Charles Bernard Lovell OBE, FRS is an English physicist and radio astronomer. He was the first Director of Jodrell Bank Observatory, from 1945 to 1980.-Early Life:...

, Sir Tim Berners-Lee

Tim Berners-Lee

Sir Timothy John "Tim" Berners-Lee, , also known as "TimBL", is a British computer scientist, MIT professor and the inventor of the World Wide Web...

, Edward Gregson and Eddie Davies received honorary degrees.