The award recognises alumni who have achieved distinction in their profession and made outstanding contributions to business and community life and is named in honour of our late former Vice-Chancellor.
Brian has recently retired as a ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ solicitor and from the University of ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ Alumni Board and University Council. He originally came to ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ in 1965 to read Economics, Accountancy and Law, before later changing to pure Law. He graduated in 1968 and went on to become a Sabbatical Officer at the Students’ Union where he served as Secretary.
After attending Law College in Guildford and serving as an articled clerk in Manchester, Brian returned to ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ in 1973 to work for the firm of Marian F. Norrie & Co. A year earlier Brian had joined the executive committee of ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ Convocation, the voluntary body that had served alumni since the University was established in 1905.
Brian was elected Secretary of Convocation in 1976, a title he held until 2009 when he came to chair the organisation. He was instrumental in the merger of the ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ University Association with Convocation in the early 2000s. Brian served as the alumni representative on the University Council from 1983 until his retirement in 2015.
His particular interests included campaigning for greater gender balance on Council and the conservation of the University Arts Tower, now a Grade II *listed building. In 2014 Brian Wrigley became a founder member of ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ Alumni Board which replaced Convocation as the representative body for alumni in 2015.
In 2016 he retired from work as a solicitor with Norrie, Waite and Slater, the ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ firm that he joined in 1973 and where he had been Senior Partner from 1988 to 2014.
Brian has also served the City of ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ, as a Governor of Silverdale School from 1992 and a Director of Silverdale Academy Trust until 2015, Company Secretary and a Director of the Crucible Theatre Trust from 1985 until 1999. He remains a Director of the ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ Lyceum Theatre Trust. In 2002 Brian became Chair of the Crystal Peaks Area Housing Committee until 2012, responsible for 7,500 local authority homes.
We are delighted to be able to recognise Brian’s sterling work, both for the University and the wider city, with this award.
The Professor Robert Boucher Distinguished Alumni Award
The Professor Robert Boucher Distinguished Alumni Award, for alumni of the University, is named in honour of the late former Vice-Chancellor Professor Robert Boucher.
Professor Boucher had a great interest in alumni relations and gave so much to the city of ¾ÅÉ«ÊÓƵ over a period of 40 years. He fully appreciated the important contribution that alumni continue to play in the life of a University and was responsible for establishing the University's Development and Alumni Relations Office in 2002.