With 400 staff and students from 40 countries, the peace studies department has been at the forefront of conflict resolution for three decades.

These days it sets the standards others follow. When it was set up, the world had experienced a series of continuous conflicts: two world wars, Korea, the Cold War and the Cuban Missile Crisis and Vietnam.

Many were wondering whether nuclear annihilation might be just round the corner.

The Scandinavians were first in on the act when they set up similar departments in Sweden and Norway in the 1950s. A similar project followed in Chicago.

Then along came the peace-loving Quakers, who posed the question: "With everyone so interested in war, why is no one studying peace?"

The organisation put up money for a Professorship in Peace Studies. Bradford University - at that time a science and technology-based institution - seized the chance.

Thirty years on the department packs a punch internationally. It advises the British Government and some of the more shadowy parts of its security apparatus. It also advises dozens of other governments as well.

Dr Shaun Gregory, head of department since 2002, has been involved at the university on and off since 1985. He admits the student body is as mixed as you could get.

"We get idealistic youngsters who want to do something vague for peace," he said. "But we also get soldiers. Because what does our Army mainly do these days? It keeps the peace."

Dr Gregory said the invasion of Iraq had shown that you could invade a country with 150,000 soldiers. But the challenge was then to win the peace. It sends speakers to Sandhurst and the Greenwich naval college. During the Balkans conflict, members of the department were despatched to Catterick to train army officers in dealing with flashpoints.

Graduates from the department wind up as everything from Government advisors, community mediators and journalists. Post graduate students include police officers from Malaysia, army officers from Africa, and clergymen and diplomats.

The department also has to face its own potential internal conflicts.

"Here we get Jews and Arabs. We get Pakistanis and Indians. We get Kosovans and Albanians. We are dealing with heavily emotive issues.," said Dr Gregory. "It would be difficult enough if you had Israelis and Palestinians talking about pottery. This is potentially very volatile but that is what makes it so interesting."

The department has close contact with war-torn Sierra Leone. David Francis, who originates from the country and heads the Africa Centre, works with a dozen other African nations promoting conflict resolution.

"He has developed some amazing programmes to rehabilitate child soldiers who've been drugged, tortured and often forced to kill their own parents," said Dr Gregory.

The department picks up large chunks of funding from British Government departments. The Ministry of Defence has just awarded it an £800,000 contract to train army officers.

Even more lucrative is a contract worth up to £2 million from DFID, The Department for International Development, to provide up-to-date security assessments of individual countries across the globe.

Thirty years ago in Bradford they decided to give peace a chance. Not only did it work, they found it very profitable, too.