Francis Ravenscroft
Francis Ravenscroft established the Birkbeck Building Society and Bank in 1885 and he personally guaranteed the cost of developing new premises for Birkbeck College on Fetter Lane. The Breams Buildings would be home to the college for the next 66 years.
Birkbeck College, founded in 1823, is a constituent college of the University of London. It was the home of the London Mechanics' Institution and an early pioneer of lifelong learning. The foundation of the Institution meant that for the first time artisans and craftsmen could learn about science, arts and economics.
Francis Ravenscroft joined the London Mechanics' Institution in 1848 as a student and was elected onto the Committee of Management a year later.
