Educating for Professional Life

Part Five

Published 2017 by University of Westminster, 309 Regent Street, London W1B 2HW.

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iii

Contents Chancellors Foreword v Acknowledgements vi Abbreviations vii Institutional name changes ix List of illustrations x

1 Introduction

Map showing the University of Westminster's sites in 1992 8 2 The Polytechnic and the UK HE System pre-1992 11 University of Westminster Management Structure 1992 31 University of Westminster Academic Faculty Structure 1992 22 3 ‘A rose by any other name...’ 33 University of Westminster Management Structure 1998 49 University of Westminster Campus Structure 1998 50 4 The University of Westminster: Legal and Brand Identity 51 University of Westminster Management Structure 2009 71 5 The University of Westminster: The First Ten Years 73 University of Westminster Management Structure 2017 93 University of Westminster Academic Faculty Structure 2017 94 6 Into the New Millennium 95 Map showing the University of Westminster's sites in 2017 116 7 Afterword 119 Geoff Petts Appendix 1 — HE Political Timeline 1956-2017 128

Appendix 2 — English Polytechnics that became universities in 1992 132

Appendix 3 — Heads of the University of Westminster and predecessor 133 institutions 1838-2017

Appendix 4 — University of Westminster Students’ Union Presidents 134

1992-2017

Picture acknowledgements 135 Bibliography 136 Index 144

FOREWORD v Foreword by Frances Sorrell

The University of Westminster has a rich heritage — it has responded with spirit, resilience and entrepreneurship to the many changes of the past quarter of a century and, as a result, is a truly modern and diverse University with a distinctive offer. This book beautifully chronicles that history, delving into the University’s archive and documenting the people who have enabled and experienced its evolution.

I was deeply honoured to become Chancellor of the University of Westminster in 2015. The University has a deep-rooted ethos to offer education for all, regardless of income or background, an approach that reflects George Cayley’s original 1838 vision for the Polytechnic Institution. I am immensely proud of this enduring mission.

I have witnessed the positive impact of this inclusive approach with our own education charity, the Sorrell Foundation. We support access to education for all, and we encourage young people from all backgrounds to work collaboratively, building confidence, teamwork and social skills. Working with universities, colleges and schools from across the country, our aim has been to inspire creativity in young people, help them gain new skills, and explore their potential for further and higher education and future careers. Education is truly transformative, with the ability to change people’s lives.

Since becoming Chancellor, I have been impressed by the University of Westminster’s strong commitment to shape the future of professional life. I have seen for myself the dedication of the University’s students and staff, and the remarkable work of the outreach team, who are helping young people in the local community. ‘Today, as it was in the nineteenth century, this is an institutional priority.

And whilst that ethos endures (48 per cent of Westminster students come from within Greater London), the University also benefits from a truly global outlook. Our students face a global marketplace, where traditional careers are changing. ‘They must be ready to adapt, and as Geoff Petts describes so compellingly in the Afterword of this publication, they will need both interdisciplinary skills and knowledge, and the ability to keep learning. The University of Westminster has always equipped its students well for this challenge.

It is of great value to take this opportunity to look back and celebrate the University’s achievements. Drawing on our past, guided by founding principles, and remaining open to change and opportunity, we are preparing our students for an exciting future.

Ayr Serr

Frances Sorrell, OBE Founder of the Sorrell Foundation & Chancellor of the University of Westminster vi EDUCATING FOR PROFESSIONAL LIFE Acknowledgements

Thanks are due to many individuals and teams at the University of Westminster, in particular the Project Board, consisting of Suzanne Enright, Professor Graham Megson, Professor Guy Osborn and Professor Alexandra Warwick; and to Claire Brunnen, Anna McNally and Rebecca Short at the University of Westminster Archive.

I would also like to thank the following individuals and institutions: Tim Asson, Dr Helen Glew, Jane Harrington, Caroline Lloyd, London School of Economics and Political Science Archives and Special Collections, Carole Mainstone, Professor Geoff Petts, Derek Power, Evelyne Rugg, The Quintin Hogg Trust, UCL Institute of Education Library and Archives.

The author also wishes to acknowledge the contribution of Professor Terence Burlin who sadly passed away during the writing of this book.

ABBREVIATIONS vii

Abbreviations

AUCF Average Unit of Council Funding

BA Bachelor of Arts degree

BEIS Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, 2016-present

BEng Bachelor of Engineering degree

BIS Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, 2010-2016

BSc Bachelor of Science degree

BTEC Vocational qualification awarded by the Business and Technology Education Council

CAT College of Advanced Technology

CATS Credit Accumulation Transfer System

CDP Committee of Directors of Polytechnics, 1971-1992

Cm. Command Paper, 1986-present

Cmnd. Command Paper, 1956-1986

CNAA Council for National Academic Awards

CVCP Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals, 1918-2000, re-formed as Universities UK

DES Department of Education and Science, 1964-1992 (formerly the Ministry for Education)

DfE Department for Education, 1992-1995 and 2016-present

DfEE Department for Education and Employment, 1995-2010

DfES Department for Education and Skills, 2001-2007

DIUS Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, 2007-2009

ESRC Economic and Social Research Council

FE Further Education

FTE Full-time Equivalent

GDP Gross Domestic Product

HC Deb House of Commons Debate

HE Higher Education

HEFCE Higher Education Funding Council England

HEFCW Higher Education Funding Council Wales

HEI HEQC HERB HESA HL Deb HMI HMSO HNC

Higher Education Institution

Higher Education Quality Council, 1992-1997, replaced by QAA Higher Education and Research Bill [2016-17]

Higher Education Statistics Agency

House of Lords Debate

Her Majesty’s Inspectorate

Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, re-formed as The Stationery Office Higher National Certificate

Higher National Diploma

Institute of Advanced Studies (UOW)

Inner London Education Authority

UCL Institute of Education Library and Archives viii EDUCATING FOR PROFESSIONAL LIFE ome:

FEFE Sraa

Investors in People

London County Council

Local Education Authority

Bachelor of Law degree (Legum Baccalaureus)

London School of Economics and Political Science Archives and Special Collections

Master of Arts degree

National Advisory Body for Higher Education (Public Sector), 1981-1989 Non-Advanced Further Education

National Statistics Socio-economic Classification

National Student Survey

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, H.G.C. Matthew and Brian Harrison, eds., (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).

Available online: http://www.oup.com/oxforddnb/info/online

Office for Fair Access

Oral History Programme (UWA)

PCFC Annual Record from Institutions of Staff and Students Polytechnics Central Admissions System, 1986-1993 replaced by UCAS Polytechnics and Colleges Funding Council, 1989-1992

Polytechnic of Central London

Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education

Quality Assessment Exercise

Research Assessment Exercise, 1986-2008 replaced by REF

Research Excellence Framework

Royal Polytechnic Institution

Regent Street Polytechnic

Senior Management Group (of PCL/UOW)

Society for Research into Higher Education

Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics academic disciplines ‘Teaching Excellence Framework

The Times Higher Education Supplement

The Stationery Office

‘Trades Union Congress

Universities Central Admissions Service

Universities Central Council on Admissions, 1961-1993 replaced by UCAS niversity Funding Council, 1989-1992 niversity Grants Committee, 1919-1989

U U Unit of Assessment

University of Westminster U U niversity of Westminster Archive niversity of Westminster Students’ Union Vice-Chancellor’s Executive Group (UW) Westminster International University in Tashkent, Uzbekistan

INSTITUTIONAL NAME CHANGES ix

Institutional name changes

Sir George Cayley founds the Polytechnic Institution, which later becomes the Royal Polytechnic Institution (RPI) following the patronage of Prince Albert.

Quintin Hogg establishes the York Place Ragged School and Mission, to provide basic education for some of London’s poorest children in the slums of Covent Garden.

Hogg develops his vision to provide educational, sporting and social opportunities for young working men by establishing the Youths’ Christian Institute at 15 Hanover Street.

The Institute moves to 48-49 Long Acre and is renamed the Young Men’s Christian Institute.

Hogg’s Institute moves into 309 Regent Street, following the closure of the RPI, and gradually becomes known as The Polytechnic.

The Charity Commission Scheme of Administration establishes the governing body and begins the transition from private to public institution. Regent Street Polytechnic becomes the official name, but the institution continues to describe itself as “The Polytechnic’.

The Polytechnic of Central London (PCL) is designated on 1 May 1970 following the White Paper ‘A Plan for Polytechnics and Other Colleges’ (Cmnd. 3006) published in 1966. PCL is the result of a merger of Regent Street Polytechnic with Holborn College of Law, Languages and Commerce.

Merger with Harrow College of Higher Education.

PCL gains university status following the 1992 Further and Higher Education Act, which abolished the remaining distinctions between polytechnics and universities. It is renamed the University of Westminster, with the right to award its own degrees.

x

List of illustrations

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PCL graduation ceremony, Royal Festival Hall, 25 January 1974.

Sir Keith Joseph (1918-1994), Secretary of State for Education and Science 1981-86, visiting PCL’s Faculty of Engineering and Science, undated.

Students in an engineering laboratory from PCL’ Guide for Applicants: Postgraduate Courses, 1979-80.

Terence Burlin (1931-2017), oil painting by David Atack (b.1949).

Freshers’ Fair taking place in the New Cavendish Street building, 1979.

Front cover of Prospectus for Harrow College of Technology and Art: Faculty of Art and Photography, 1976.

Engraving of the exterior of 309 Regent Street, [1851].

Carte de visite photograph of Quintin Hogg (1845-1903), undated.

Chemistry class at the Polytechnic, 1899.

Exhibition of student photography work in the Old Gymnasium, Regent Street, 1965. PCL Film and Television students, undated.

Choose good candidates to create a good home, October 1964.

Interior of Marylebone Road campus, 1970s.

Anthony Crosland (1918-1977), Secretary of State for Education and Science 1965-67. Photograph by Central Press/Getty Images, 1977.

HRH Prince Charles visiting the Marylebone Road campus for a CNAA meeting on

Article from the School Mag, published by Second Year students in PCL’s Media Studies Department, 1977.

Kenneth Baker (b.1934), Baron Baker of Dorking, Secretary of State for Education and Science 1986-89, operating the controls of the Television Link-up system in London, 2 November 1981. Photograph by Keystone/Getty Images.

Ken Livingstone (b.1945) in his office at County Hall, London, 1983.

Photograph by Tim Roney/Getty Images.

Front cover of leaflet promoting PCL’s Microcomputer Unit, 1982.

PCLs Computer Centre for the Disabled stand at the IT Support for the Disabled Project launch, 25 May 1988. Photograph by PCL Media Services.

Front cover of brochure advertising PCLs Short Courses, 1989.

Roy Lawrence, Course Leader for the LLB Access course, with students from Kingsway-Princeton FE College at a PCL reception in March 1987.

Enrolment for evening language classes in September 1987.

Research project in PCL’s Engineering and Science laboratories, March 1989.

Kenneth Clarke (b.1940), Secretary of State for Education and Science, 1990-92. Photograph by Gemma Levine, 1987.

Paul Channon (1935-2007), Minister of State for Arts 1981-83, Terence Burlin (1931-2017),

Acting Rector of PCL, and Neil McLean, Head of PCL Library Services, at the reception for the opening of PCL’s Information Technology Centre in November 1982.

Front cover of The Working Man’s University: the First Polytechnic publication commissioned by the Central Office of Information, 1949.

Article in Nodepaper, January 1973.

ILEA sixth-formers in a laboratory at the PCL Summer School on Biotechnology, undated. Poster advertising PCL courses in the heart of London, undated.

Cover of The Poly To-day pamphlet, 1950s.

PCLs construction hall at Marylebone Road, 1985.

Computer Studies student at PCL, March 1989.

Cover of McGarel, vol. 23, issue 10, December 1991.

Advertisement in McGarel, vol. 23, issue 27, 2 June 1992, page 9.

Rector Terence Burlin with samples of the proposed new University of Westminster logo, published in McGarel, vol. 23, issue 27, 2 June 1992, page 3.

PCLs building at Red Lion Square, London, 1980s.

F. Walter Oakley, Chair of the Governors, 1962-82, giving an address at the Designation Ceremony of the Marylebone Campus, 21 May 1971. Also pictured are Colin Adamson (1922-2005), Rector of PCL 1970-83, and the Lord Mayor of Westminster.

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xi

Members of the PCL Students’ Union, 1970s.

PCL Freshers’ Fair, 2003.

The University of Westminster's first graduation ceremony, Barbican Centre, London, November 1992.

Façade of 307-311 Regent Street, 1980s.

PCL 18-22 Riding House Street, now 4-12 Little Titchfield Street, 1980s.

Plan of the Polytechnic’s sports ground at Chiswick, from The Polytechnic brochure, 1961-64.

Sir J.E.K. Studd, Ist Bt. (1858-1944) at the opening of the Quintin Hogg Memorial Sports Ground at Chiswick, 19 May 1906.

Cover of Student, March 1945.

Cover of McGarel, vol. 13, issue 21, 29 March 1982.

University of Westminster Students’ Union T-shirt, 1990s.

Interior of entrance hall, 309 Regent Street, 1984.

Stained glass in Fyvie Hall, 309 Regent Street. Photograph by Jo Mieszkowski, 2014. Cover of PCL’s Guide for Applicants: Undergraduate Courses 1980-81.

Cover of pamphlet advertising PCL’s postgraduate Town Planning courses, [1990]. Students on PCL’s From Family Management to Business Management course, undated. Cover of the University of Westminster’s first undergraduate prospectus, 1992. Artwork for the University of Westminster coat of arms and Letters Patent, 1992-94. Photograph of a member of staff at the Royal Mint making the seal for the University of Westminster’s Letter Patent, 1994.

Thanksgiving Service and Rededication Ceremony at Westminster Abbey,

1 December 1992.

Cover of brochure detailing part-time routes to qualifications in Construction, Housing and Surveying, 1996.

Staff in the University’s Central Admissions Unit, c. 1995.

Media studios at Harrow, 1995.

University of Westminster graduation ceremony at London’s Barbican Centre, undated. MBA students visiting a retail business, undated.

A University of Westminster graduate and her family at the University’s graduation ceremony in the Barbican Centre, undated.

University of Westminster graduates celebrating at the Barbican Centre, London, undated. Recruitment flyer for the University of Westminster, c. 1994.

The Street, Harrow campus, c.1995.

Art students at Harrow campus, 1990s.

Poster advertising the end of year screenings of student work for the BA in Photography Arts — Film Option, PCL School of Communication, undated.

University of Westminster Architecture student, undated.

HM The Queen and Rector Terence Burlin at the opening of the Harrow campus,

6 December 1995.

Dr Geoffrey Copland, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Westminster 1996-2007.

The University’s site at 115 New Cavendish Street, undated.

Cover of brochure for BA in Commercial Music, 1993.

Lulu and Billy Ocean attending the University’s Voices United Concert in February 1999. Cover of The Smoke, vol. 7, issue 7, 13 December 1999.

Freshers’ Fair, 2005.

Interior of student bedroom at Wigram House, early 1990s.

Façade of 309 Regent Street, late 1990s.

The Deep End, student social and study space in 309 Regent Street, undated. University of Westminster Student Ambassadors, October 2012.

Members of the Tana River expedition to Kenya, 1976.

Cover of Research 88, a quadrennial report of PCLs research activities, 1988.

Professor Geoff Petts, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Westminster at the Communication University of China, November 2007. Photograph by Joanne O’Brien. Student using a self-service book issue machine at Harrow Library, 2008.

Photograph by Mike Ellis.

Exterior of The Forum, Harrow campus, July 2014. Photograph by Matt Clayton. Exterior of Marylebone Road campus, July 2014. Photograph by Matt Clayton. Vice-Chancellor Geoffrey Copland and the Deputy Lord Lieutenant of London, Colonel Neil Johnson, on the occasion of the presentation of the Queen's Award for Enterprise to the University, Fyvie Hall, 2005.

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96 97

Opening of the China Media Centre by Jeremy Paxman, 17 June 2005.

Indian journalists studying journalism practice and theory at the University of Westminster.

Pictured at the Financial Times placement are, left to right: Uttara Choudhury, Amberish K. Diwanji and Indranil Ghosh. Photograph by Dominic Dibbs, May 1997. University of Westminster Students’ Union sabbatical team 2016-17: Tasawar Khurshid (Regent), Ludovica Siniscalchi (Cavendish), Salsabil Al-Siri (Marylebone),

Freya Thompson (President) and Dan Seamarks (Harrow).

Photograph by Kacper Rudolf, October 2016.

Graduates at the University of Westminster graduation ceremony, Royal Festival Hall, London, 11 July 2016. Photograph by Kacper Rudolf.

Post-graduate students in the University’s Financial Markets Suite, May 2016. Photograph by Joanne O’Brien.

HRH Duke of Gloucester with Vice-Chancellor Geoff Petts and David Dernie, Dean of the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment, Marylebone campus,

23 October 2013. Photograph by Joanne O’Brien.

Front cover of Undergraduate Prospectus for entry 2017.

Lecture by Sands McKinley, founder of McKinley Irwin, at the ReInvent Law London conference held in Westminster Law School, 24 June 2014. Photograph by Matt Clayton.

BA Fashion degree show catwalk, 2015.

Student social spaces at the University’s Cavendish site, December 2016. Photograph by Kacper Rudolf.

The University’s Vice-Chancellors past and present: Professor Geoff Petts, Professor Terence Burlin and Dr Geoffrey Copland, 2016.

1 See The Robbins Report, Higher Education. Report of the Committee appointed by the Prime Minister under the Chairmanship of Lord Robbins, Cmnd. 2154 (London: HMSO, 1963); DES White Paper, A Plan for Polytechnics and Other Colleges, Cmnd. 3006 (London: HMSO, 1966).

Introduction

This book explores the transformations that have taken place in UK higher education since the late twentieth century. The author uses the vehicle of the University of Westminster to examine how its own evolution from the Polytechnic of Central London can be seen, somewhat curiously, as both archetypal and distinctive. The story of the University of Westminster provides a microcosm through which to evaluate successive UK government policies on higher education. This volume examines how the University adapted to the changing external context, changes to its governance, and the impact of its choice of name and brand identity on staff, students and the wider public. It highlights key developments in higher education, including the binary line, quality assessment and funding. It also focuses on issues relating specifically to the University, notably the London situation and the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA), part-time students, and internationalism and trans-national education. This volume explores how the institution remained true to its traditional values, which supported access to higher education for all regardless of income or background, and how it has successfully redefined them for the twenty-first century. In telling this story, this book will show how, twenty-five years on, the University continues to thrive as a confident, innovative and distinctive institution.

On 16 June 1992, the Polytechnic of Central London (PCL) officially became the University of Westminster. This was a result of the Further and Higher Education Act that had come into force in May 1992. The change in formal status enabled the University to award its own degrees and to compete for public research funding. It had been a hard fought for change, played out in the lobbying chambers of Parliament and in the editorial pages of the national press. Those pushing for reform had argued that the polytechnics had long contended with the disadvantages of underfunding and unfair treatment compared with the universities, together with unjustified public perceptions of inferiority and prejudice. The so-called ‘binary line’ in UK higher education, which separated the ‘public’, or polytechnic sector, from the ‘autonomous’, or university sector, had been in place since the 1960s,' yet, thirty years later, there was still widespread misunderstanding about what a polytechnic actually was.

Harold Wilson’s Labour government established a comprehensive system of polytechnics in 1966 to support what became known as the Robbins Principle of providing for ‘all those who had the qualifications and the willingness to pursue higher education’.” The polytechnics were specifically set up to provide wider access to flexible, vocationally-oriented courses at a range of levels designed to support productivity and expand Britain’s economy, and by 1989/90 there were actually more students studying in polytechnics than in universities in England.’ Yet polls and surveys conducted throughout the 1980s consistently found that the public, employers, and even MPs, regarded polytechnics as ‘second-class’ or ‘second-best’ institutions, with many not even realising that they offered degree courses.* Many of the large international companies refused to visit polytechnics on their annual recruitment ‘Milk Rounds’ and allegedly discriminated against polytechnic graduates when interviewing, despite the fact that more polytechnic courses aimed to prepare students for work.’ Polytechnic supporters also pointed out that ‘a polytechnic student, believe it or not, has to work harder than at university. Terms are three weeks longer on average, and the work is more rigorously structured’.® Furthermore, although entry requirements were often not as strict as for university courses, this enabled the polytechnics to open higher education to students without traditional qualifications; and, in fact, for some courses such as business studies, accountancy, law and engineering, entry requirements were the same or actually higher at the polytechnics.’

Fig. 1

PCL began holding formal graduation ceremonies for students in the early 1970s. A range of awards were presented to graduates including CNAA degrees, University of London degrees and the institution’s own well-regarded Polytechnic Diplomas, many of which were professionally accredited.

2 The Robbins Report, Chapter XIX, Sect. 828, p. 265.

3 DES White Paper, Higher Education: A New Framework, Cm. 1541 (London: HMSO, May 1991).

4 For example, David Walker,

‘Employers biased against college

and polytechnic graduates, survey

shows’, The Times, 4 November

1983; Colin Hughes, ‘Polytechnic

students suffer from employers’

bias to universities, report states’,

The Times, 3 September 1984; JD,

‘The tempo rises as the axe falls’,

The Times, 7 February 1985;

Sarah Thompson, ‘A change of

style at the polytechnics’, The

Times, 25 June 1987.

Hughes, see also Michael Heller,

‘The Institute and the wn

Polytechnic’, in Elaine Penn, ed., Educating Mind, Body and Spirit: the Legacy of Quintin Hogg and the Polytechnic, 1864-1992 (Cambridge: Granta Editions, 2013), 45-77 (pp. 73-4).

6 Thompson.

7 Thompson; Robert Jackson, Minister for Higher Education, ‘Why we are backing success’, The Times, 11 September 1987.

Fig. 2 Sir Keith Joseph speaking at PCL’s Engineering and Science Faculty in New Cavendish Street during his time as Secretary of State for Education and Science, 1981-86.

Fig. 3 The polytechnics excelled at providing practice-based education and professional training.

8 Diana Geddes, ‘Oxford college rejects polytechnic graduate’, The Times, 10 December 1980.

9 Ibid.

10 Keith Joseph, ‘How proposed poly axe will fall’, Letter to the Editor from the Secretary of State for Education and Science, The Times, 9 April 1986.

11 Jackson.

INTRODUCTION 3

Nonetheless, the prejudice against polytechnics ran deep as one graduate from the Bolton Institute of Technology discovered when he applied for a junior research fellowship at Merton College Oxford in 1980.8 The College Statutes, which were written before polytechnics and higher education colleges came into existence, stated that only university graduates could be admitted to junior research fellowships. The College said it was reviewing its policy, yet its Acting Warden, Dr Courtenay Phillips, revealed a bias typical of many at the time when he stated: ‘We had to draw the line somewhere, and it seemed unlikely that someone who had just graduated from a polytechnic or a college would be of the same quality as a top first from a university’.’

The prejudice ran counter to government policy, which openly encouraged polytechnic expansion and acknowledged their role within UK higher education. Keith Joseph, Secretary of State for Education and Science 1981-86, stated:

The polytechnics and colleges have done a magnificent job in the 1980s. They now provide for 27% more students than in 1979, and are more cost-effective than ever... There is evidence that young people and their parents increasingly recognise that the polytechnics offer high quality vocational courses.!° Robert Jackson, Minister for Higher Education, said:

I make no apology for giving pride of place to the polytechnics because they are setting such a hot pace. The figures speak for themselves. ... All this spells success ... but it is not all. The Polytechnics have also made themselves more cost-effective, while maintaining their academic standards.!!

By the end of the 1980s, the polytechnics educated 60 per cent of the UK’s students, yet they received only 4 per cent of the funding granted to the universities. Figures for full-time home students at English Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in 1989/90 indicate there were 232,000 students in universities compared with 344,000 in polytechnics and colleges; yet the universities received a total of £1,620 million compared with £70 million received in 1988/89 by the polytechnics and colleges.'? One polytechnic director complained that: ‘the fact that polytechnics, unlike universities, receive virtually no automatic support for research [is] a form of “intellectual apartheid”’.? A significant gap also existed between staff pay in the two sectors, with polytechnic staff awarded a 2 per cent lower pay rise than their university counterparts in 1989.14

However, despite the pleas for parity and the acknowledgement of prejudice and inequality, the events of 1992 were not a foregone conclusion. Although many within the polytechnic sector, including PCL’s own Rector, Professor

Fig. 4

Professor Terence Burlin played an instrumental role in PCL achieving university status.

Having joined PCL in 1962 as a Senior Lecturer, Burlin became Rector in 1984 and held the post until bis retirement in 1995. He was awarded a Doctor of Science (honoris causa) by the University in November 1996.

12 DES White Paper, Higher Education: A New Framework, Cm. 1541 (London: HMSO, May 1991), Sect. 46 and Sect. 29.

13 Mark Cross, Thames Polytechnic, speaking at the Committee of Directors of Polytechnics Conference, London, 29 March 1990, cited in Andy Coghlan, ‘Polytechnics demand an end to “intellectual apartheid”, New Scientist, 7 April 1990.

14 Sam Kiley, ‘Poly chiefs fear change means more bureaucrats’, The Times, 3 April 1989.

Fig. 5

PCL’s Students’ Union offered a variety of extra-curricular opportunities alongside the academic programme.

15 Kenneth Baker, Secretary of State for Education and Science, letter to Dr H.D. Law, Portsmouth Polytechnic, 10 February 1988, Correspondence regarding University status and title, 1986-1990, UWA/PCL/2/6/2/4.

16 DES Green Paper, The Development of Higher Education into the 1990s, Cmnd. 9524 (London: HMSO, 1985).

17 John Clare, ‘Do the polytechnics rate a pass?’, The Times, 15 June 1989.

18 Robert Kilroy-Silk [former Labour MP (1974-1986)], ‘Higher forms of education, and yet higher’, The Times, 9 June 1989.

19 Sam Kiley, ‘Market forces to lift polytechnics’, The Times,

27 October 1988.

INTRODUCTION 5

Terence Burlin (1931-2017), had been long campaigning for reform, the government was resistant. Kenneth Baker, Secretary of State for Education and Science 1986-89, was in favour of retaining the existing diversity within the higher education sector, arguing that it was advantageous to the polytechnics: ‘the polytechnic name now stands uniquely high in public esteem. It seems to me the wrong moment to risk submerging your separate identity; the polytechnic name is part of that identity’. In 1985 the Department for Education and Science (DES) published a Green Paper: The Development of Higher Education into the 1990s that firmly rejected a proposal to create an overarching body to unite and plan for both sectors of the binary system.'® Other commentators opposed any change to the established status quo on the grounds that the distinction between the two sectors demarcated the different purposes of the two types of higher education. However, such arguments often contained elements of snobbery and intellectual elitism, for example: ‘Polytechnics... are evidently doing the down-to-earth job for which they were designed’ and ‘Polytechnics were never intended to turn out graduates who would compete in the same job market as university graduates. They were designed to perform another role, attract a different type of student’."*

Throughout the late 1980s, the government consistently refused to support the unification of higher education into a single sector, and instead tried to find other methods to end the perceived division in status. In 1988, it was argued that plans for a ‘more market-driven system’, with the introduction of variable course fees and student tuition fees, ‘would mean the divide between the two would disappear in all but name’. The 1988 Education Reform Act led to the independence of polytechnics and higher education colleges from the funding and control of Local Education Authorities and the National Advisory

Fig. 6

Harrow College moved to its

Harrow College of Technology and Art Faculty of Art and Photography Prospectus purpose-built Northwick Park site in 1959.

Board for Higher Education. However, although these institutions subsequently received funding directly from central government just like the universities, it was not via the existing University Funding Council, but through a new quango, the Polytechnics and Colleges Funding Council (PCFC). In May 1989, the government rejected calls by Peers to allow polytechnics to include the word university in their title, with Lord Henley arguing that: