Welcome – Open Staff Meeting

Caroline GippsVice-Chancellor

May 2010

National Challenges

• Financial challenges for all universities.• Control on student numbers for 2010 entry.• Browne Review (autumn):

An affordable and sustainable student finance system.

Controlling Government expenditure.Ensuring that those who benefit from HE make a significant financial contribution.Balancing public investment in FT and PT provision.

National Challenges

• New Government– Labour: growth in FDs and PT, STEM &

‘New Industries New Jobs’ agenda.– Conservatives: postpone REF? – Liberal Democrats: scrap tuition fees and

50% participation target. Balance HE, college and apprenticeships.

Difficult Decisions• Strict control on FT recruitment in 2010 despite

buoyant demand• Difficult decisions for 2010-11 and downstream• BUT..

– HESES Audit appeal: we re-gained £0.5m– We have been awarded 90 employer co-funded ASNs

– Our appeal on the cap has resulted in +50

Difficult Decisions – college partners

• Previous policy based on assumed growth.

• Impact of the recruitment cap in Sept 09.

• Reduced number of strategic partners:Wolverhampton; TCAT; Dudley; Stourbridge; Halesowen; Sandwell; Walsall; Birmingham Metropolitan

Moving Forward – planning 2010-11

• Budget Position – 2008-09 = £13.5m deficit– 2009-10 = £5m deficit– 2010-11 projection is to break even– 2011-12 = 3% surplus– Review of overlapping activities:

Marketing, Student Support, Staff Development

Moving Forward – Innovation and Enterprise Strategy

• UWBS move to City Campus.

• Business Solutions Centre for the Science Park and for Telford.

• ICD Ltd – finalising 2nd and 3rd pilot programmes; actively recruiting fee paying students.

Moving Forward - curriculum

• Learning Works– Validation of new curriculum is near

completion

– Communication to students and external marketing is still active

– Working through time-tabling and transition arrangements

Moving Forward - curriculum

• PG taught review– By June 2010 we will have agreed

curriculum principles, academic and validation framework

– By December 2010 a new proposed curriculum will have been outlined

– We aim to deliver the new portfolio in September 2011

Moving Forward – capital developments

• The Performance Hub

• MG Block developments

Key Achievements

• Student Retention – HEFCE PIs

Young Mature All Benchmark

2009 12.5% 21.8% 15.3% 12.6%

2010 10.9% 18.3% 13.4% 11.8%

Key Achievements

• Graduate internships– A Partnership with WM HEIs and Graduate

Advantage.– To date, we have placed 75+ graduates

in the region, the most of any partner……– 63% of them are from BME backgrounds.

Key Achievements

• Times Higher Leadership Award– Outstanding Registry team shortlisted.

• Marketing Awards – Higher Education– MaC team shortlisted for 3 categories.

• Launch of the Institutes of Media Arts and Gaming and Animation – 7 June.

Questions?