Mike Ratcliffe

A view of the grounds, Cherwell Hall, showing Magdalen Tower

Cherwell Hall - the south lawn

The ‘prospectus’ has that very photo. It says:
“The Hall stands in a healthy environment, 250ft above sea-level in a most beautiful part of Oxford … the space and quietness of the country is secured, while the hall is within five minutes walk of the town

Porch at front door

Cherwell Hall, Oxford - training college for Women Secondary Teachers

Stamp from the Board of Education Reference Library

Here is the ‘prospectus’ for Cherwell Hall Training College c1912. Established in 1903 it closed in 1920, the site being taken on by St Hilda’s college. A residential college for women, offering courses for both graduates and non-graduates.

Sign on the stall: EDUCATION PIONEER WOMEN TEACHER TRAINING RURAL/POOR EDUCATION With a copy of INTERIM REPORT SUB-COMMITTEE CO-ORDINATION of the VOCATIONAL TRAINING of WOMEN. LONDON: S PUBL SHED BY HIS INJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE.

Book fair

Sir Kenneth Weare Hall, Oxford Brookes

Always nice to visit our local university, today’s excuse is a PBFA book fair. However, the resolution not to buy anything did not last beyond the first stall with a cache of pamphlets once in the Board of Education library.

It isn’t a requirement that OfS announces when it starts an investigation, but it’s interesting that it has now announced that it started one over seven months ago.

www.officeforstudents.org.uk/news-blog-an...

Chancellor’s boards going up in Headington this lunchtime

It still feels like the first weeks of the academic year, but today the estate agents are putting up the posts to advertise student houses for next year.

OfS register news: one less provider. Spurgeon’s College, which went into administration on 1 August 2025, has asked to be voluntarily deregistered as it ‘no longer intends to deliver HE’. There are plenty of questions about how this happened - it only had £8k in the bank at the end.

Buckingham eyes investment after financial and leadership woes Buyers likely to require drastic changes to move ahead with sale, experts say, as institution seeks to move on from torrid year

The fallout from validating a for-profit provider that went bust is among the difficulties that Buckingham faces. Discussion of what price their degree awarding powers might fetch is a sign of the times.
www.timeshighereducation.com/news/bucking...

Summary of assets from the statement of affairs posted on companies house website. Estimated assets available for creditors £230k

This melancholy schedule is the assets of Spurgeon’s College on the date it went into administration. It had only £8k in the bank - its endowment restricted. There’s a £400k deficiency on its creditors. Note that the main building was not an asset - a charge was satisfied just before it closed.

THE WORK OF THE COLLEGE OF ST MATTHIAS, FISHPONDS AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO EDUCATION IS REMEMBERED HERE Donated by Miss Elsa Nunn CBE (Elsa Nunn was principal from 1930 to 1954)

A view of St Matthias

There’s a memorial to the work of the College of St Matthias in Bristol Cathedral. While some former church colleges went on to become universities, a range of these venerable colleges were closed in the 1970s.
moremeansbetter.wordpress.com/2019/05/23/w...

Outcomes data for subcontracted provision How do students who are registered at one provider and taught elsewhere get on? And what combinations of the two do best? David Kernohan introduces a long-awaited OfS dataset

When the OfS data is crunched, the scale of the challenge becomes clear. This is still very laggy data - several cohorts have joined since. Maybe the provision has got better, but maybe it hasn’t.

wonkhe.com/blogs/outcom...

But one third is above the threshold. Having all large delivery providers having to register, with the extra measures in the new initial condition should drive out the bad actors. That the OfS set-up enabled bad actors is a giant policy failure.

Prince Albert

THE COMPLETED MAIN BUILDING WAS OPENED BY THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE, K.C,CHANCELLOR OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE, ON THE I9TH JULY, 1895. THE SOUTH-EASTERN WING WAS OPENED BY HR.H. THE DUKE OF YORK ON THE 4th JULY 1899.

IN GRATEFUL RECOLLECTION OF THE RIGHT HONOURABLE SIR THOMAS DYKE ACLAND BART DCL AND AS A MEMORIAL OF THE PART HE BORE IN THE ADVANCEMENT OF EDUCATION THROUGH THE METHODS OF LOCAL EXAMINATION AND OF THE EXTENSION OF TEACHING BEYOND THE LIMITS OF THE UNIVERSITY THIS TABLET IS SET HERE BY SOME WHO KNEW HOW WISELY AND HOW WELL HE WORKED

The importance of extension lectures is marked by Prince Albert depicted in his Cambridge Chancellor’s robes, the building being opened by the Duke of Devonshire and the memorial to Thomas Acland for his work on extending education beyond the university.

Entrance to RAMM

View of RAMM

Plaque about schools of science & art

Former sites of HEIs: a series. The Exeter Schools of Art and Science were founded in 1851 and formed part of the Albert Memorial complex of library, museum and venue for extension lectures. In 1922 the higher education part moved to Streatham and becomes the University College of the South West.

Example chart - no names no packdrill

The OfS have published data on student outcomes from subcontractual partnerships. There’s some significant challenges in here, with some large provision being a way off the B3 blue line.

www.officeforstudents.org.uk/data-and-ana...

FOUNDED WITHIN THESE PRECINCTS IN 1839 TO TRAIN TEACHERS SAINT LUKE'S COLLEGE MOVED TO HEAVITREE IN 1854 AND BECAME PART OF THE UNIVERSITY OF EXETER IN 1978

Al Overview There is no specific "St Luke's College memorial" at Exeter Cathedral; how-ever, there is a strong historical connection between the two, as St Luke's College originated from the Exeter Diocesan Training School, which was established in the Cathedral Close in 1839. The college's formal opening was in 1854,

Many of the former diocesan teacher training colleges which closed are commemorated in their cathedrals. Here’s the memorial plaque in Exeter commemorating the work of St Luke’s College.
(I knew it was there, but #AI denied its existence)

St Luke’s (at night)

St Luke’s

Memorial plaque to principals of St Luke’s

Sites of former HEIs: St Luke’s College of Education. The Exeter Diocesan Training School moved to this site in 1854. It joined the University of Exeter in 1978 which continues to use the site.

Jo Grady’s evidence from UCU: 28. The UCU welcomed the government's belated decision in January 2021 to keep the majority of learning at colleges and universities online until mid-February, although we again emphasised the need for consistent, effective and advanced planning rather than last-minute chaos [JG/24 - INQ000649311]. Nevertheless, in February 2021, the Prime Minister indicated that there would be a wider reopening of college and university campuses from 8 March 2021, which we highlighted as irresponsible and risking undoing the country's hard work to get Covid-19 rates down [JG/38 INQ000649327]. Then, in April 2021, it was announced that remaining HE students would be able to return to in-person teaching from 17 May 2021. Our view was that this made little sense for students and staff as most lessons would have already finished, and that it would be better to wait until the following term for a wider reopening as more people would have been vaccinated. We described the decision as "a stupid end to a stupid year beset by government mismanagement' [JG/26 - INQ000649313].

Sir Gavin Williamson has been giving evidence to the UK Covid-19 inquiry today. Much of the focus will be on children, but this module includes young people. Evidence from NUS and UCU is in the bundle published last week and is a reminder of the decisions taken about HE.

Letter about Stamford University THE UNITED STEEL COMPANIES LIMITED ( P. O. BOX 64) THE MOUNT BROOMHILL SHEFFIELD 10 TELEGRAMS: "UNISTEELS SHEFFIELD IO' OUR REF. DROT/CE YOUR REF. TELEPHONE: SHEFFIELD 60081 12th April 1960 11 4 APR 1960 Sir Keith Murray, Chairman, The University Grants Committee, 38 Belgrave Square, London, S.W. 1. Dear Sir Keith, New Universities The Press report from time to time the claims of various Education Authorities to have a new university established in or near some strategically centred town - in response to the declared Government policy that more universities should be established. These claims come from fairly strong pressure groups, I imagine, combining possibly both industrial and Local Education Authority ambitions? I hope you will forgive me for writing to you on this subject, but I have wondered for some time whether Stamford has ever been considered as a suitable centre for a new university? I pass through this town frequently on the A.1 road going to Cambridge, and am always impressed by its architectural quality. As you will no doubt know, a by-pass on the A.1 road has now been completed (or is about to be completed) which will render the town free of the traffic congestion that has been so irritating in the past and harmful also to buildings adjacent to the main road. I understand that the economic life of Stamford is not very vigorous; and certainly there does not seem to be any evidence of new industries growing up in the neighbourhood. On the other hand, it would be a great pity if this beautiful 17th 18th Century tow were allowed to decay and become a mere museum piece. Could it not therefore be made the centre for one of the new universities, where university life could be built up - not indeed in a stagnant area (for agriculture is vigorous) but on the other hand, not overwhelmed by industry, either new or old?

The A1 bypass was a reason for Stamford getting a university, but they never got as far as actually getting a site.

Depends how near - York’s east campus makes it a bit ring road adjacent but really it’s on the road into the city.

TEF scores - highlighting that there are three providers with ‘requires improvement’ one of which has university title.

I know it’s a quote from the paper, but I don’t understand why we use a special definition of ‘university’ to miss out the companies given university title. One of those has ‘requires improvement’ but is doing remarkably well in recruiting students to its city centre branches.

The ‘boots on the ground’ perspective is more illuminating than the stock photos on a website.

If you stand outside a former city centre branch ‘campus’ you can check how many thousands of students were registered there and then look up the planning application with five or six teaching rooms and marvel at their efficiency.

If DfE wants to ‘scrap’ the TEF then it shows commendable independence of the OfS to propose putting it at the heart of the regulation of quality…

www.officeforstudents.org.uk/reforms-to-q...

No comment on speculation about linking TEF to fees from the Secretary of State this morning. Also, not confirming the prospect that government would *not* support a university is financial crisis - the ‘no bail out’ question. #skynews

Tuition fees set to be lowered at universities with poor teaching Labour is considering bringing the cap below £9,000 a year on campuses where standards aren’t met

When you’re glad to not be able to see the nonsense behind the paywall.

www.thetimes.com/uk/education...

The officers of the society outside the Charterhouse

Professor Graham Zellick gives his presidential address

The scene in the Great Chamber.

Fantastic 25th anniversary congregation of the Burgon Society at The Charterhouse today. Prof Zellick talked about the continuity that academic dress represents in our universities. We also heard about people using bogus colleges in the early 20th century to get gowns & hoods they didn’t deserve.

ARU London

UCLAN London

According to their websites, ARU London’s campus is on the first and fifth floors of Import House and the University of Central Lancashire’s (sic) London campus is on the sixth floor.

From the UoB Manchester

No mention of UoB

Still no mention of UoB

Meanwhile, perhaps another former site of an HEI. The current website for the ‘UoB - Manchester’ (which hasn’t switched to Greater Manchester from Bolton) celebrates a building which they appear to have vacated.

From LCAE accounts LCAE GROUP LIMITED STRATEGIC REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2024 The director presents the strategic report for the year ended 31 December 2024. LCAE Group Limited, incorporated on 31 October 2022, functions as the parent entty within the Group. It holds two subsidiaries: LCA London Ltd and LCA Education Ltd. Both subsiciaries are actively engaged in the delivery of university-level educat on services, with a strategic focus on academic excellence, student experience, and institutional crowth. Review of the business During the reporting period, the Group continued to offer a range of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes through established academic partnerships with Anglia Ruskin University, the University of Northampton, and the University of Bolton. In 2024, the Group expanded its academic portfolio through its subsidiary. LCA Education Ltd, which entered into a new academic agreement with the University of Central Lancashire. As a result, undergraduate courses commenced at the London campus in January 2024. in the current landscape of higher education, characterised by rapid technological advancements and evolving student expectations. the group has remained agile and responsive to industry trends. We have embraced digital transformation enhancing our teaching infrastructure to support both remote and hybrid learning models, ensuring our students receive excellent tuit on regardless of their location.

Expenditure

Dividend £9million

LCAE Group has partnerships with four universities with which it delivers badged branch campuses. It has 8285 students in total, with course fee income of £70m. It paid its CEO £306k. He is also the owner and received a £9m dividend from the group.

LCA London accounts.

LCA London had 6385 students at the end of 2024. It had income of £56m from course fees and made a £14m profit before tax. Its financial statement records that it paid its parent company LCAE Group Limited £20m dividend “as a deferred return for the risks taken in investing in the business”.