SOUTHAMPTON University today celebrates a significant milestone in its history - half a century since the Queen presented it with a royal charter to award its own degrees.

It was the day the institution became a fully-fledged university in its own right. The passing years have seen it go from strength to strength. Today it is recognised as one of the UK's top research centres.

To mark the Golden Jubilee the university is holding a Charter Day packed full of events to mark the historic occasion.

Students have reason to celebrate - everyone gets a half day off in honour of the occasion on July 12 and the innovative new Uni Link bus service is free all day to anyone with student ID.

The university is also offering a number of Golden Jubilee Scholarships to international undergraduate and postgraduate students beginning their studies at the university in October 2002. Most awards will cover the full cost of tuition fees for the duration of the course. University staff and students have teamed up to produce an event packed cal-endar to ensure the celebrations are done in style.

The University Sinfonietta is putting on a performance of Haydn's masterpiece The Creation at Southampton Guildhall. Not only does the performance mark the 50th anniversary of the granting of the royal charter but April 29 is also the same day the piece received its premiere in Vienna in 1798. The campus has already seen Ground Force star Tommy Walsh arrive to open its specially created Jubilee Gardens.

Students too have got in on the action, organising a relay run to Buckingham Palace - with the baton a message of thanks to the Queen for granting the university's charter - one of her first acts on ascending the throne. On campus, students are also mounting a typically madcap challenge for the world record for the number of people crammed into a single-decker bus.

Students of the past are also returning to play their counterparts studying today in a Golden Jubilee Festival of Sport featuring 12 different competitions.

Jubilee events organiser Allison McQuail said: "It is 50 years of achievement we are celebrating. It is great to see the students taking part so wholeheartedly in the cele-brations by putting on a special concert and engaging in record attempts."

For a full list of the university's Jubilee celebrations go to www.goldenjubilee.soton.ac.uk