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THE RECENT HISTORY OF CITY UNIVERSITY LONDON, 1978-2008:
Progressing through change
- Table of Contents Allan P. O. Williams
- Preface 2-
- Chapter 1: Mission, strategic aims and the changing academic profile: 1894-2008 5-
- Chapter 2: Financial crises as the drivers of change: 1978-1993 18-
- Chapter 3: Governance reforms: 1998-2008 31-
- Chapter 4: The seven academic Schools and their antecedents 40-
- Chapter 5: Partnerships 54-
- Chapter 6: Alumni and sponsors 59-
- Chapter 7: Leadership through change 65-
- Methodology and acknowledgements 71- Appendices
- Chancellors, Pro-Chancellors, and Vice-Chancellors: 1978-2008
- Members of Council at 1978/79; 1998/99; 2007/08
- 4a and b. Governance structures at 2008 75-
- Research centres at 2008 77-
- Facts and figures at 1977/78; 1997/98; 2006/07 & 2007/08
- References 82-
PREFACE
The history of a university should be of interest to all its stakeholders. Staff can be proud of working for an institution that has made, and is making, positive contributions to knowledge that benefits society. Alumni and students can learn more about the institution that is designed to help shape their careers and well-being. Employers can better appreciate what the institution has done, and is doing, to ensure that their employees enable them to succeed in a competitive world. Sponsors and representatives who generously give their money, time and expertise to the institution can share the pride that comes with progress and success. To stakeholder benefits can be added the academic ones that emerge when researching an organization across time. Two topics that are continually being discussed in the management literature are leadership and change. These topics are particularly relevant to the higher education sector with the challenges created by global competition and reduced state funding. Today the role of Vice-Chancellor is as demanding as that of any CEO in a large organization. Vice-Chancellors have to be alert to the problems and opportunities being created by a changing environment, possess the knowledge and skills to lead their institutions through change and to do so in ways that win and maintain the commitment of current and future stakeholders. Leadership and change are the underlying themes in this history. The early history of City University has already been well covered in John Teague’s account of the period from its foundation in 1894 to 1978 (Teague 1980). The present history will therefore focus on the period 1978 to 2008, touching on the earlier years when necessary to help the reader understand the evolution of the University. On achieving university status in 1966 the first Vice-Chancellor was Sir James Tait (1966-1974); the second was Edward Parkes (1974-78), later Sir Edward Parkes. In 1978 Professor Raoul Franklin became the third Vice-Chancellor until he retired in 1998. In 1998 Professor David Rhind succeeded him. When he resigned in 2007, Professor Malcolm Gillies succeeded him. Thus this publication of the University’s history covers primarily the leadership years of Franklin, Rhind and the first year of Gillies. Prior to gaining university status the Principals of the institution were: Robert Mullineux Walmsley (1896-1924); Samuel C. Laws (1924-47); J. Eric Richardson (1947-56); and James Sharp Tait (1957-66), later Sir James Tait.
Outline of subsequent chapters. Chapter 1 is an overview of the academic development of the University. As well as linking into the earlier publication of the institution’s history, it shows the academic changes that have taken place under the guidance of successive Vice-Chancellors. Chapter 2 illustrates how the funding bodies, and other government agencies, have used their financial muscles to exert pressure for change; how the University responded to these pressures during the period 1978 to 1993 is outlined. Chapter 3 continues this theme, but in the context of corporate governance. A number of reports have enhanced the importance of ‘good’ corporate governance, and the Higher Education sector has been pressurized to conform to the reforms that are recognized as good practice in the commercial sector. The very significant reforms introduced by the University from 1998
1992 Second attempt to force a merger with City of London Polytechnic
1993 Sale of City Technology Ltd for £24.5 million gross £20 million net
1994 Centenary celebrations
1997 Sir Paul Newall appointed Pro-Chancellor & Chair of Council
1998 Professor David Rhind appointed Vice-Chancellor
2001 Inns of Court School of Law incorporated into University
2003 The Queen opens the new building for Cass Business School
2004 Sir David Howard appointed Pro-Chancellor & Chair of Council
2006 Supplemental Charter and Statutes approved by Privy Council
2007 Professor Malcolm Gillies appointed Vice-Chancellor
2008 The University raised over £24 million in philanthropic gifts in 2004-
CHAPTER 1
MISSION, STRATEGIC AIMS AND THE CHANGING ACADEMIC PROFILE:
Mission, strategies and culture Nowadays any discussion about leading organizational change will inevitably mention mission, strategic goals and culture. A useful research literature has been built around these concepts. ‘Mission’ highlights the overall goal that provides the purpose for which the organization exists; ‘strategic goals’ indicate the pathways through which the mission is to be achieved, and thereby defines the dominant environmental features of the organisation; ‘culture’ has many facets, but is often expressed as the values and routines that characterize the organization when dealing with its environment. Mission, strategies and culture are closely intertwined in, for instance, the academic profile of the institution (i.e., the areas of knowledge in which teaching and research occur). It is the evolution of the academic profile of the University that will be the focus of this chapter. In the early history of the University, John Teague shows how the Northampton Institute came about (Teague 1980). The original aims of the Institute were spelt out in 1891, several years before recruiting its first students (see Box 1.1). These aims were successfully pursued by the founding members (individuals and institutions), who were particularly concerned in educating the ‘whole person’. Indeed, the first Principal (Robert Mullineux Walmsley, 1896-1924) was someone who had been a technical teacher at the Finsbury Technical College before becoming a Professor of Electrical Engineering and Applied Physics at Heriot-Watt College in Edinburgh. His leadership of the Northampton Institute was undoubtedly influenced by his early experiences at Finsbury Technical College. The needs of the Clerkenwell district, packed with small workshops, meant that the six departments in the 1890’s spanned mechanical engineering and metal trades (covered building and furniture trades), artistic crafts, applied physics and electrical engineering, horology (clockmaking, springing and timing), electro- chemistry, domestic economy and women’s trades (included dress making, household management and health, artificial flower making and tailor’s cutting). During the first half of Walmesley’s stewardship the engineering areas expanded (e.g. aeronautical engineering), some subjects were given independent recognition (e.g. technical optics was hived off from the department of applied physics, and electrical engineering was given departmental status), while subjects with less academic content were transferred to other institutions (e.g. domestic economy). Following a visit to American technical educational institutes in 1903 he introduced the idea of ‘sandwich courses’ where students spent some of their time within a firm while maintaining a degree of academic supervision. Moreover, an international element was introduced by him when placing some students in firms abroad. Sandwich courses became a distinctive feature of Northampton when it achieved College of Advanced Technology status in
- As early as 1908-09 Northampton candidates were presented for the University of London BSc degrees in engineering (from 1900 selected individuals were recognized as teachers of London University).
volume of technological and allied work exclusively at advanced level including research and postgraduate work; the constitution of the governing body should be such that it includes strong direct representation of industry, reasonable representation of authorities who regularly contribute substantial numbers of students to the college, and universities and professional technological interests; an advisory committee representing in particular industry and the appropriate professional bodies, should be established for each technology studied in the college. Sir James Tait. On the day that James Tait (1957-66) took up the position of Principal of the Northampton, the college was designated a College of Advanced Technology (CAT). Tait had previously been Head of the Department of Electrical Engineering (1947-51) at the Northampton and then Principal of Woolwich Polytechnic (1951-56). In his reference to Tait, Teague comments: “Of outstanding ability, the right man in post at the right time for his immense initiative and drive to lead the college to full university status in nine years upon a flood-tide of national concentration of resources on higher education particularly in science and engineering” (p. 108). In 1966 the mission and strategies of the University were embodied in its Royal Charter. This new status resulted from a recommendation made by the Robbins Report on Higher Education (1963). The key paragraph in the Royal Charter is reproduced in Box 1.2. It is not surprising that the emphasis remained on science and technology, given the University’s earlier history and its CAT status.
Box 1.2 A statement from the 1966 Royal Charter.
“The objects of the University shall be to advance knowledge, wisdom and understanding by teaching, research and professional training, particularly in science and technology, both within the University and in close association with industry and commerce, and by example and influence of its corporate life to benefit society.”
In the last year of the CAT period (1957-66) the academic departments were as shown in Box 1.3. Little change was made to the academic profile on gaining university status. Production Technology and Control Engineering changed its name to Automation Engineering, and Management and Social Science was split into the Department of Management and the Department of Social Science and Humanities. There were several reasons for this split including the motion passed by the Court of Common Council of the City of London in June 1965: “In connection with the new City University, the corporation would welcome the establishment of a Faculty for Business Management…..”(Williams 2006). The culture of the institution’s past was clearly preserved in the domination of the engineering departments. Nevertheless, the seeds for future change were sown at this time by the recognition of those in power that the future of the University lay in being closely linked to the City of London. This was demonstrated by Oliver Thomson (Chairman of Governors) and James Tait (Principal) striving successfully to get the name of ‘The City University’ accepted against strong opposition from the University of London, and by forging links with the City Corporation through the brilliant idea of installing successive Lord Mayors as Chancellors of the new University.
Box 1.3 Academic profile in 1965/66. *Civil and Mechanical Engineering *Electrical and Electronic Engineering *Aeronautics and Space Technology *Production Technology and Control Engineering *Mathematics *Physics *Chemistry *Management and Social Science *Ophthalmic Optics.
Sir Edward Parkes. However, in the early years of the University the expected student numbers in science and engineering fell far short of the targets agreed with the University Grants Committee (UGC) for the 1970s. This was the challenge facing Edward Parkes when he was appointed Vice-Chancellor in 1974. Parkes was formerly Professor of Mechanics in the University of Cambridge; previous to that he was Head of the Department of Engineering, University of Leicester, following earlier experience at the Royal Aircraft Establishment. The fall in numbers of science and engineering students was partially compensated for by innovative developments in other academic areas, particularly in the field of business and management. One of the constraints under which the University had to operate was that academic initiatives had to be self-financing if not previously approved by the UGC. An example of this was the University’s decision to launch in 1977 a Diploma in Law against the advice of the UGC, but with the support of the Council of Legal Education. In later years this example of entrepreneurial behaviour became a blessing; it encouraged the University to develop a culture which became less and less dependent upon the vagaries of successive government policies toward higher education (see next chapter). By 1978/79 the departmental/centre profile of the University showed considerable expansion and diversification (Box 1.4).
Box 1.4 Academic profile in 1977/78.
*Civil Engineering *Mechanical Engineering *Electrical and Electronic Engineering *Systems Science (previously Automation Engineering) *Aeronautics *Mathematics *Computer Science *Physics *Chemistry *Optometry and Visual Science *Social Science and Humanities *City University Business School *Centre for Information Science
*To form developmental links with other educational providers, through affiliation and validation. *To meet local and regional needs for employment-related continuing education, in collaboration with the Further Education sector and other providers. *City University has built its reputation on excellence in professional education, dating back to 1894, in pursuing its mission, the University continues to value this heritage.
Evidence of these changes, and the commitment to future change, can be seen in the University’s school/departmental profile in 1996. The process of forming departments into schools had begun in the 1980s in order to decrease the amount of bureaucracy that had developed with growth in size. Having a structure to cope with the situation that had arisen required greater devolution of power down the chain of command. Note the absence of the two basic sciences of physics and chemistry, the relative decrease in engineering and the corresponding rise of new academic areas. Also notable is the presence of the St Bartholomew School of Nursing and Midwifery which was incorporated in 1995/96; this provided a significant boost to the size of the University - staff numbers increased by over 200 and student numbers by 1000. Validation partnerships with other institutions are not shown in this list because they were administered by the Registrar’s Office although the academic leaders were drawn from appropriate schools/departments. Validation was a minor but noteworthy part of the university’s strategy in fulfilling its mission, increasing its income and enlarging its alumni (see chapter 5).
Box 1.6 Academic profile in 1995/96.
*School of Engineering (Departments of Civil Engineering; Electrical, Electronic and Information Engineering; Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics) *School of Mathematics, Actuarial Science and Statistics (Department of Actuarial Science and Statistics; Centre for Business Systems Applications; Department of Mathematics) *School of Informatics (Departments of Business Computing; Computer Science; Information Science; and Centre for Software Reliability) *School of Social Sciences (Departments of Economics; Psychology; Sociology) *Business School (Departments of Banking and Finance; Business Studies; Property Valuation and Management) *St Bartholomew School of Nursing and Midwifery (Departments of Applied Behavioural and Biological Sciences; Nursing; Midwifery and Neonatal Nursing; Quality Improvement and Academic Standards) *Departments not in yet in Schools: Arts Policy and Management; Clinical Communications; Continuing Education; Journalism; Law; Music; Optometry and Visual Science; Radiography; Social Statistics Research Unit; Systems Science.
In recognition of his service to the University Raoul Franklin was made a C.B.E. in 1994. In his last address to Court in December 1997 he highlighted some of the changes and achievements that had been made during his tenure of office. The following are extracts:
“….In order that figures are firm I have compared 1976 and 1996 (i.e. in respect to student numbers and financial summary) ….. they show an overall growth in student numbers by a factor of more than three. But more remarkable than the change of size is the change of shape. In 1976 Engineering was dominant…… The Business School was the Graduate Business Centre and of very modest size and scope; Law was just beginning as was Music. It shows the regrettable loss of Physics and Chemistry. At the same time the acquisition of Clinical Communication Studies (Speech and Language Therapy) in the mid 80s and, more recently, the incorporation of the Barts School of Nursing and Midwifery and the Charterhouse College of Radiography, had a major impact on the subject balance. The growth of Social Sciences has kept pace with that of the institution as a whole. Informatics has emerged as a major area to balance the loss of Physical Sciences. Mathematics has benefited significantly from the activity in Actuarial Science which also was just beginning in 1976. Optometry had held its own as a major national centre. Arts Policy and Management, and Journalism have taken advantage of our location to emerge as the leading courses in those areas in the country……. What is immediately apparent (from the financial picture) is the massive shift from grant, from the University Grants Committee, to fees 82% to 27%. No other university has undergone such a change over the period ……. This is largely due to a change of postgraduate percentage of the total from 26% to 43%....” (Franklin 1997). Professor David Rhind. Under the Vice-Chancellorship of David Rhind changes in progress were consolidated (e.g. finalizing the formation of Schools, particularly the School of Arts), and systematic reviews of the University’s strategy and corporate governance were instigated. Before coming to City he was Director General and Chief Executive of Ordnance Survey, Britain’s national mapping organization and a government department. His earlier academic career included being Professor of Geography and Dean at Birkbeck College. His managerial and academic achievements have been recognized at the highest level (e.g. CBE in 2001, Fellow of the Royal Society in 2002, Fellow of the British Academy). It is significant that David Rhind was the first non-engineer to be appointed to lead the University. This may be seen as the culmination of a cultural shift that had been taking place since the institution gained university status. It was no coincidence that under his watch the catch phrase of City being ‘The University for Business and the Professions’ was widely promoted, after its initial introduction under Raoul Franklin. The process of reviewing the University strategy involved consulting all staff during the period from February to July 1999, and obtaining the approval of Senate and Council. In presenting his 1999 Annual Report to Court he introduced the new University Strategy that sets out a vision for the institution. He stressed the importance of having a clear idea of where the University wants to be in an environment characterized by rapid change. Box 1.7 lists the six strategic aims included in the strategic document as approved by Council.
Box 1.8 University logos under three Vice-Chancellors.
The new strategy was reinforced by commissioning outside consultants to create a new visual identity for the University; one which presents “a university attuned to fast- changing times, living in one of the world’s most important cities”. The resulting logo (i.e. the four letters, each symbolic of a City-based feature) was introduced in 1999. Toward the end of David Rhind’s stewardship thoughts were given to changing the logo once more. This was taken further under Malcolm Gillies, and a new logo was introduced in time for the academic year 2008-09. Box 1.8 illustrates the logos inherited by Raoul Franklin (1977-1978), by David Rhind (1997-1998), and by Malcolm Gillies (2006-2007). The successive changes made indicate attempts to move away from the ‘too traditional’; and it is interesting to see that the most recent version resurrects an element of the original shield while recognizing the University’s modernity (2008-2009). The 1997-98 design was an attempt to get away from the ‘fussiness’ of the earlier logo, while retaining the beacon and emphasizing City since in lists it appeared alphabetically as City. A second strategic plan was produced for 2004-2009. Again it was a very comprehensive document that reflected good management practice, i.e., it developed from a review of strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities in the light of the institution’s mission and strategic aims, and where possible spelt out targets and the criteria for assessing their achievement. Box 1.9 shows that the essence of the revised mission statement remained the same as before but that research was given additional emphasis. The strategic aims are worded at a higher level than the 1999 set, but essentially reflect the same intent.
Box 1.9 City University’s mission and strategic aims as expressed in the strategic plan 2004-2009.
Mission: To provide rigorous research and education for the world of work. Strategic aims: *To meet the changing educational needs of individuals, employers and society. *To improve further our excellence in education, especially professional education, and to extend the range. *To increase high-quality research activity that influences strategy, policy and practice. *To enhance our reputation and effectiveness.
Changes made to the academic profile continued the process of bringing together cognate subjects into single schools, thereby strengthening the management structure and increasing the visibility of the University’s strengths in the eyes of the external market. The structural changes are readily seen when comparing the contents of Box 1.10 with those of Box 1.4. Thus, Actuarial Science and Statistics had moved into the Business School; Mathematics was absorbed into the School of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences; a School of Arts was formed to include the Departments of Cultural Policy and Management, Music, Journalism and Publishing, Education and Lifelong Learning; and the Departments of Nursing, Midwifery, Optometry, Radiography/Radiotherapy, Speech and Language Therapy were brought together into the School of Health Sciences. The Law department together with the recently amalgamated Inns of Court formed the City Law School.
Box 1.10 The seven Schools forming the academic profile at 2007.
*School of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences *Cass Business School *School of Informatics *School of Health Sciences (now Community & Health Sciences) *School of Social Sciences *School of Arts *City Law School
Professor Malcolm Gillies. David Rhind was succeeded as Vice-Chancellor by Malcolm Gillies in August 2007. He is an Australian and joins from the Australian National University where he was Vice-President (Development), based principally overseas within Yale University in the US. Before that post he was Deputy Vice- Chancellor (Education), based in Canberra. Earlier appointments included Dean of the Faculty of Music at the University of Queensland, and Pro-Vice Chancellor responsible for commercialization, and for the faculties of humanities, social sciences and the professions, at the University of Adelaide. Commenting on Malcolm Gillies appointment, Sir David Howard (Chair of Council) said: “The City University is a world- class institution and as such has to attract the very best to lead it. Malcolm brings strong
- Sustainability : to operate in a sustainable manner, ensuring our processes take account of their broader, environmental impact and are financially sound: sustainable operations; challenging targets for carbon footprint reduction; investment funds.
As yet the academic profile has not changed under Malcolm Gillies although the number of Deans has been reduced. One of the structural problems encountered was to preserve adequate representation on the Executive Committee of the main constituent parts of the University while limiting its size. An additional problem was that the voice of some schools carried a lot more weight because of the wide differences in relation to income – thus some Deans were responsible for an annual turnover above £30 million while others were responsible for only £10 million. The solution was to introduce the concept of conjoint deans. From the August 2008 Professor Ken Grattan became Conjoint Dean of the Schools of Informatics and Engineering and Mathematical Science; and Professor Christina Slade becomes Conjoint Dean for the Schools of Social Science and Arts when she joins the University in January 2009.
Revised Charter and Statutes Revisions to the University’s Charter and Statutes became necessary to reflect the changes that had taken place since 1966, including the major governance reforms to be discussed in Chapter 3. The changes to mission and strategic aims since 1966 stand out when comparing the contents of Box 1.12 with those in Box 1.2. Science and technology have in effect given way to business and the professions, and consultancy activities are seen as a legitimate service. Implications of these changes will be brought out in later chapters, but attention needs to be drawn to the distinctive link between the University and the City of London and the professions. The academic profile of the University was transformed as a result of the involuntary decrease in engineering students in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and the attempt to develop a more balanced pattern in student recruitment. In the process of expanding in new areas two related factors played key roles – the University’s location and association with the City of London. These provided a competitive advantage when it came to forming links with financial and professional institutions. These links became even more important in the early 1980s when the Thatcher Government reduced the protection provided by the State to Universities, and opened up markets generally to more competition. The University was at the forefront in introducing postgraduate courses in such areas as export management, journalism, arts policy and management, shipping, law, and so on. The Vice-Chancellor, Raoul Franklin (1978-98), used to say that City was in the business of making graduates from other universities employable! Since those days the number of postgraduate courses has grown significantly in a wide range of subject areas. Virtually all the undergraduate and postgraduate courses have been designed in close consultation with professional bodies, thus enabling students to obtain exemption from many of their professional examinations.
Box 1.12 The objects of the University as written in the revised Charter assented in 2006.
“The objects of the University shall be: (a) To provide education.
(b) To conduct research. (c) To disseminate knowledge and promote scholarship, and to benefit society by the example and influence of the University’s corporate life. (d) To work closely with business and the professions. (e) To provide consultancy services.”
Conclusions The University has gradually adapted its strategies to benefit from the competitive advantages provided by its location (e.g., City of London, London as an international City). Originally when the institution was founded in the 1890s it was surrounded by small manufacturing/craft firms, and it made sense to develop technological and scientific disciplines. Its academic achievements were recognized in the late 1950s when it was made a College of Advanced Technology. In the early 1960s the three CATS located in London had to make the critical choice of whether to stay in London or not. Brunel (Brunel University) and Battersea (Surrey University) moved to the outskirts; Northampton CAT remained in the centre. This decision had profound consequences for the City University, and some of these consequences became more obvious when the market for students wanting to study engineering declined. Tracing the history of the institute’s mission and strategies reveals the influence of environmental forces and the University’s traditional and innovative responses to these forces, including: building closer links with the City of London, developing an international market, developing a postgraduate market by catering for a range of professions, growing collaborative links with other educational institutions, generating additional sources of income, conducting research that influences policy and practice, adopting ‘model’ managerial practices. The result has been to enable the University to grow and to be less vulnerable to unpredictable funding cuts and other crises. In relation to the current profile of the University it is worth noting that two of the seven Schools owe their origins to bodies that predate the foundation of the University in
- The Community and Health Sciences School consists largely of the Bart’s School of Nursing and Midwifery, a body founded in 1877 and incorporated into the University in 1991. The City Law School brought together the University’s Department of Law and the Inns of Court School of Law in 2001. The latter body was formed in 1852. Both these additions to the University have a long and distinguished history of their own. The remaining five Schools (Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, Cass, Informatics, Social Sciences, Arts) can be seen as emerging from the engineering origins that characterised the early history of the University.
early 1970's with the swing away from science". From 1975-76 student numbers at City grew proportionately more rapidly than in the university system as a whole and UGC targets were found to place severe limitations on expanding new developments. As the UGC target figure for 1981-82 was 3,100 and the grant was to be based upon this figure, only limited overshooting of the mark was possible, and then only in self-funding initiatives; indeed extra fees gained by means of taking increased numbers of undergraduates would be deducted from the grant. The UGC had abandoned the quinquennial funding system mid-way through the 1972-77 quinquennium and moved to annual funding with strict cash limits. The 3,100 was exactly one per cent of the planned national total. In December 1978, Senate agreed to reduce the 1979-80 overseas intake. This had the effect of reducing income, since in 1976 the Government became concerned about the increase in the number of overseas students in British universities, and introduced differential fees between home and overseas students. As the number of the latter continued to grow, the prospect of financial sanctions loomed. The change to a Conservative government in May 1979, led to a full cost fees policy with the grant to each university being reduced over a three year period by the average cost of overseas students in residence in 1979-80. This reduced the numbers of foreign students in British universities and it was followed by a volume cut in funding that implied a reduction in home students over the period 1981-84. The fourteenth Annual Report to Court (1979-80) noted an increasingly uncertain financial provision and a declining total student enrolment, the latter largely due to the full cost overseas students' fees requirement. For 1980-81 the situation was worse, with the UGC proposing to reduce grants to universities by 15% over the three subsequent years. Further, grants would in future be determined on academic criteria rather than the previous historic basis. When the UGC offered subject advice suggesting that there might be a reduction of activity in Social Sciences, in Mathematics and in Mechanical Engineering, involving dispensing with almost a third of the staff, Senate restricted itself to accepting that there was scope for flexibility within the engineering departments. It was realised, of course, that such cuts would make City the smallest English university, of the same size as Stirling, leaving no scope whatever for economies of scale……By March, 1981, the UGC became aware that redundancies would result from the severe cut-back as well as drastic reallocation of funds. Thus the grant for 1981-82 was not announced until the 1st July, 1981.
Draconian Measures, 1981-82. Senate held special meetings from July to September, 1981 and set up a working party on the Future of the University. Its report included findings such as: "There was no escaping the fact that City was a high cost university, for reasons that could not easily be changed, namely ... London allowance on salaries, a high proportion of leased space and lack of opportunities to take advantage of economies of scale. The problem of the leased buildings had to be addressed during the 1981-82 crisis period and Lionel Denny House and Gresham College leases were then surrendered. By October, 1981, the financial prospect for City University was really serious, the financial year having begun with a deficit of
£250,000 and quite clearly, without a reduction in the number of staff, there would be a deficit in 1981-82 of £1.0 million on an estimated income of £12. million. It was resolved to reduce expenditure by £2.5 million per annum by 1983-84. Redundancies were likely, the capital cost of which it was hoped would be met by the Government…….Short-term finance was to be arranged. Senate reported to Council on 2nd November that the necessary staff reductions would be sought by voluntary means in the first instance. The Committee of Vice-Chancellors & Principals prepared a scheme for severance payments, based on the existing premature retirement scheme, but extended down the age range to 50-55. Those under 50 years of age would receive payment related to salary and years of service. In February 1982, the UGC was able to announce a government approved scheme for reimbursing universities with these costs. This lifeline was highly significant in the survival of certain universities, including City University. A major achievement of the University was obtaining the required levels of reduction by voluntary means. Well over one hundred staff left full-time employment in the University in the academic year 1981-82. In his annual report to Court the Vice-Chancellor Raoul Franklin said:- "A rough calculation shows we will be losing a thousand years of accumulated experience in the service of the University amongst academic and related staff alone, and this blow is one, the effects of which are now beginning to make themselves felt. At the beginning of academic year 1981-82 there was a total of 840 staff in the academic, clerical, technical and related grades, reduced to 706 by the following year, in the main by premature retirement (54 were in academic and related grades). Thus the main part of the reduction in recurrent expenditure required over the period 1981- was achieved by the end of 1981-82" (Franklin 1981-82). It should be noted that the total staff in these categories in 1979-80 had been 915 and the trend from 1966-1976 of increasing the staff/student ratio had ended abruptly and had been reversed, partly by not filling posts when they became vacant. Academic development came to be more than ever reliant on non-UGC funding and some success was recorded in this, no doubt based on previous experience. As the remaining balance in the Development Fund (£750,000), could not be used for current expenditure, a bank overdraft facility of £1.5 million was arranged though not used. The May Degree Congregation of 1982 was abandoned. No department was closed directly as a result of this severe crisis, but structural changes and drastic reorganisation did occur. Common first year courses, joint programmes and reduction in unit degree course options were means of avoiding excessive extra load on the remaining staff. The following academic year was of course a most difficult one of adjustment to the loss of experienced staff, internal promotions, and a further, but smaller number of early retirements and voluntary redundancies. At the same time plans for extension of the subject range were afoot, by association as in the case of Clinical Communication Studies, or by validation of courses elsewhere. The drastic staff pruning of 1982, which, together with other economies, put the University on the road to financial viability, had immediate effect on the unit cost per student and gradual effect on the content, and, indeed, the type of courses taught. The gradual effect on teaching was occasioned by many of the academics who had so helpfully taken early retirement, carrying on their teaching
