Edinburgh Napier University has confirmed plans to sell its Merchiston Campus after it emerged that it faces a massive repairs bill made worse by a tightening budget.
University bosses say its original home is “no longer fit for the future”, and a £220m bill to bring the RAAC-affected building back into working order has reportedly been laid at the university’s door.
The university, which recently embarked on a programme of voluntary redundancies to reduce costs, can expect to recoup a healthy price for the campus, which sits at the crossroads of Morningside and Bruntsfield, two elegant Edinburgh suburbs where property is coveted by developers.
An email sent to staff last week said that a suitable replacement site “in the Gyle area of the city” has been identified, although a spokesperson merely said the university is “considering alternative options elsewhere”.
The Merchiston Campus is built around Merchiston Castle – the 16th century home of mathematician John Napier, after who the university is named © Stefan Schäfer, Lich, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Rumours have swirled about Napier’s plans to move on from the creaking Merchiston campus for years, but the university appears to have used this moment of maximum upheaval to advance those plans.
There are proposals, supported by The Scottish Government, for a “strategic alliance” with Queen Margaret University (QMU) and Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), although sources were quick to stress that this “isn’t a merger” and the institutions will all maintain their independence.
Funded through the Scottish Funding Council’s University Transformation Fund, the initiative, Napier and QMU claim, is intended to test how institutions can collaborate more deeply without becoming one organisation.
Despite this, and reassurances that the collaboration will result in no further reduction to teacher numbers, Holly Patrick-Thomson has spoken out. She is the president of the University Lecturers’ Association, part of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) union, and she told The Times last week of fears from staff that a path is being paved for a future merger. She said she is concerned about “the closed manner in which these outline discussions are taking place”.
In addition, Edinburgh Napier has also unveiled plans to consolidate its five academic schools (business; applied sciences, health and social care, arts and the creative industries, computing, engineering and the built environment) into just three (business, health, creativity and AI).
A spokesperson for Edinburgh Napier University said: “We continue to provide life-changing teaching for students alongside leading research and innovation.
“Our Merchiston campus is no longer fit for the future, and we want to provide enhanced facilities going forward. We are therefore now considering alternative options elsewhere, and this process is in its early stages.”
Patrick-Thomson also told The Times of her relief that the institution has acted on plans to move from Merchiston, due to persistent health and safety and accessibility complaints.
Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) – a lightweight, “bubbly” construction material prone to catastrophic failure when exposed to moisture – has been identified in the building, although the threat is not thought to be immediate.
The University’s spokesperson added: “The recent University Review of our operating model concluded with no need for compulsory redundancies, while reducing headcount to achieve essential savings.
“Moving from five Schools to three will allow us to focus on specific areas of importance such as business, health, creativity and AI while reducing silos and allowing colleagues to work more closely across disciplines.
“We have agreed with trade union colleagues that the forthcoming changes to our school structure will result in no further reduction in headcount.”
On the new partnership with QMU and SRUC, the spokesperson said: “While maintaining our institutional independence, we are exploring the possibility of a strategic alliance with QMU and SRUC which would aim to build on our strong regional partnerships, presenting a long-term opportunity to explore potential areas of cooperative growth and improve resilience.
“Like many institutions across the sector, Edinburgh Napier will adapt to a continually uncertain environment and acute funding pressures from The Scottish Government.
“Colleague morale is very important to us, and we will continue to work with our staff, students and the wider community as we shape the University in the years to come.”
A spokesperson for Queen Margaret University concurred and said: “At Queen Margaret University, we have a long history of collaborating with other institutions to fulfil our institutional purpose.
“In that spirit, we are open to deeper collaborative working with institutions across the Lothians and beyond to create efficiencies while fully protecting our institutional autonomy.
“As part of this, we are at the early stages of work with SRUC and Edinburgh Napier University on a programme of work to explore the mechanisms by which such deeper collaboration might be achieved, building on existing close collaboration.
“We can say categorically that this does not involve any plans for a merger. Staff have been informed that we are embarking on this exploratory work and we will, of course be involving them in the process as appropriate. There is no target associated with this work.”
Developments at Napier and QMU come amid mounting concerns about funding for higher education in Scotland.
Bosses at The University of Edinburgh are locked in a bitter struggle with staff over their plans to cut expenditure at the university by £140m. Waves of strikes and a marking and assessment boycott have followed the university’s attempts to force through hundreds of voluntary and compulsory redundancies.
Dundee University was bailed out to the tune of £60m by the Scottish Government after an enormous funding black hole was revealed last year.
Universities Scotland – the representative body for Scottish Universities – has called for a wholesale re-evaluation of the way that universities in Scotland are funded.
Currently, Scottish students are not required to pay tuition fees, but the money awarded to universities by the Scottish Government on behalf of these students is thought to be inadequate.
Although Napier has been better off than many institutions, the series of redundancies this year have hit staff morale and confidence in teaching.
This article is provided by the news agency Deadline News Limited and published here with permission.
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