The University of Central Lancashire said it will cut staff by around five per cent due to help reduce its costs.
The university, which has a campus at Westlakes Science Park, near Whitehaven, said there were unprecedented financial challenges facing the entire higher education sector and it was taking decisive action now to reduce its costs and reshape the way it delivers education and research.
It has launched a voluntary redundancy scheme for its 3,300 employees today, Monday, April 8.
It said: “The largest university in Lancashire contributes more than £200 million to the North West economy every year but has not been immune to declines in international student recruitment following Government changes to visa requirements and the UK tuition fee being frozen for a decade, with rampant inflation eroding its real value. To be fit for the future, the university is now in the process of reviewing its costs for the academic year 2024/25 to ensure expenditure is in line with income.”
Vice-Chancellor of the University of Central Lancashire, Professor Graham Baldwin, said: “At a time when income is static and our expenditure is growing, we need to start reducing our costs as well as balancing developing areas of growth and investing in areas that attract students to study with us.
“Whilst it is important that we reduce our costs and our staff base over the coming months, it is also important to remember that we remain a strong performing university delivering quality teaching to thousands of students. We remain a large employer in the region but we must embrace change by thinking and delivering differently.
“We know this is a concerning time for our staff and we have support systems in place during this difficult time. As ever our continued priority is our students and giving them a great university experience.”
