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Spending review could drive the OU to shut doors of its regional centres
11 June 2009
Executives look at 'cost-saving opportunities' as cuts hit other institutions, writes Melanie Newman
The Open University is considering closing up to eight of its regional centres in a move that coincides with a further swath of cuts at other institutions.
A leaked document from OU executives outlines a study of "cost-saving opportunities", with a reduction in the number of centres from 13 to five among the options on the table.
The document says there is "no assumption" that the number of locations will be reduced, but Roger Walters, president of the University and College Union at the OU, said the review was "a complete surprise and shock".
"I am astonished that at a time when the OU needs to improve its competitive position and public visibility throughout the country, the university should be contemplating even the remote possibility of reducing the number of regional centres," he said.
Will Swann, the OU's director for students, said government cuts to funding of students taking second degrees meant the university had to reduce overheads.
He said the plans would proceed only if the study found that costs could be reduced without damaging quality. The university's science faculty is also considering slashing the number of its 17 residential summer schools, raising concerns that its science degree programmes will no longer offer suitable practical skills in all disciplines.
Meanwhile, up to 37 staff are at risk at Coventry University as a result of reorganisation and the loss of external funding sources. The jobs may go within four months.
Martin Machon, the UCU regional official, said Coventry was "not considering any question of redeployment or increasing revenue."
A university spokesman said the changes were "part of normal business, indeed the university continues to be successful and will be declaring a surplus this year".
He added: "For the UCU to claim that the university is not considering redeployment is untrue. The university has embarked upon a rigorous consultation and redeployment process as fully agreed with all our unions."
Staff at the University of Leeds are also facing cuts, with 60 jobs at risk in the faculty of biological sciences, which has a recurring deficit of £4.3 million, union sources said.
At least 20 additional staff are to go in Leeds' nursing and midwifery training unit, on top of 19 staff who have already left under a voluntary severance scheme.
A spokesman said the reductions "amount to no more than 1 per cent of our workforce, and we are working with the unions to try to effect them through voluntary means".
Its neighbour Leeds Metropolitan University is another institution looking to make cuts, but a proposed voluntary redundancy scheme is to be confined to support staff and researchers.
In a letter to staff, Steve Pashley, director of human resources, said academics "engaged predominantly in teaching" would not be affected.
Finally, the University of the West of England is turning away students already accepted on to joint honours degree courses in French, Spanish and Chinese for the next academic year following a decision to close the languages department.
Up to 30 members of staff will be affected by the decision, which the UCU claims was taken without consultation.
A university spokesman said UWE had seen a progressive decline in the number of students wanting to study certain languages.
melanie.newman@tsleducation.com.
Readers' comments
Unfortunately, Will Swann didn't say that the OU are planning on cutting the number of their science residential schools from seveteen down to just one introductory level course. Nor did he say that the current faculty plans include the removal of all subject based degrees to be replaced by a single general science degree, with subject or thematic tracks. As an OU student, I can tell you that science students value their summer schools and think that a degree without laboratory work (or field work in the case of the Evironmental and Earth Science degrees) would seriously impact on the credibility of their degrees. I hope I won't be among the last few cohorts to be able to sign themselves Jon Hurwitz BSc (Hons) Physical Sciences (Open)
The OU has bloated itself with too many administrators,regional centres and staff tutors. These days many traditional universities do distance learning courses, and the OU has lost its lustre. Also if one looks at their courses they are in no way innovative in areas like computing,technology and science. I found the regional centres to be self-serving and it is time to close many of them.
Find me any organisation which is not bloated with bosses of one kind or another, leaving insufficient numbers of hard-working drones to plug holes, cover their (bosses') backs and generally do a tremendous amount of unacknowledged supporting of the system. As a long-standing Associate Lecturer for the OU, and having been involved in many years of teaching at all ages and levels, I should make it clear that this systems, whilst not perfect, is less guilty of James's accusations than are many others. As far as academic quality is concerned, all genuine and caring teachers (who quietly borrow much OU material and who can blame them ?) know just how truly excellent in every respect OU course material actually is. As a musician I respect my courses and the inspiring course teams in the way in which one recognises the value of Oxbridge expectations. As a provider of distance learning courses, the OU has too much sense to chuck the baby out with the bath water, because, whilst it constantly updates and re-thinks programmes and concepts very intelligently it also recognises that the most way-out innovation has to start some where - Gregorian Chant led to Bach, painfully to Schoenberg and after musical World War 3 and beyond, to the present day, and we must never forget our roots. The system is not perfect but its standards and expectations (and therefore its teacherswho join because of this) are a touch above most current BA and BSc qualifications and the students are fully rounded. OU Summer School is the highlight of the year - meeting students who care, work hard and really appreciate what is there for them is a truly memorable experience - and it all comes out of the Regional Office.......
I agree Josephine! I too am an Associate Lecturer of long standing (and indeed an OU student) in Technology. I do not see the OU as being 'bloated' nor do I believe the OU has 'lost its lustre'. Indeed the fact that the OU can offer me a service other institutions can not, is why I remain a student. However I also believe that if the OU do question the validity and value of its summer scholls especially in Science and Technology then they embark of a slippery downward slope.
Nice to see UWE once again jumping on the bandwagon closing its langiuage dept wihtout due consultation and turning away students already accepted on to degree courses. Better together? I think not. Yet more change for U+WE? is this the real "progressive decline"?