Campus closure not the end of Hastings’ ambition to be a university town
The story of Hastings’ own university campus is a short one spanning just 14 years from its opening in a former telephone exchange in Havelock Road to its closure this summer.
There were great hopes for a homegrown university in the town and overwhelming sadness when it was announced in 2016 that the University of Brighton would not keep its Hastings Campus running beyond 2019.
Leader of Hastings Borough Council Peter Chowney, in his monthly council report, has taken a look back at what the university achieved and ponders what more it could have achieved if some of those initial dreams and ambitions had been realised.
Hastings and Bexhill – later Hastings and Rother – became a focus for regeneration and growth in 2001 writes Peter Chowney.
This investment was initially led by the then Regional Development Agency (SEEDA) and a Task Force was set up involving government, national agencies, the MPs, the three local authorities and others, drawing up a ten-year programme of regeneration.
Bringing a university to Hastings was part of the Task Force’s ambition back in the early days of the new millennium and was added as a sixth point to the ‘five-point plan’.
Public money was invested in creating a university building in a former telephone exchange on Havelock Road and the new university campus opened there in 2005.
Initially, this university project was sponsored by several universities: Brighton, Sussex, Kent, and Greenwich but as the project gathered momentum, Brighton University offered to take it forward on their own, with an ambitious programme of expansion put together by the then Vice-Chancellor, Julian Crampton.
This plan involved a brand-new building at Priory Square, purpose-built student accommodation at Station Plaza – which was never built – and an increase in student numbers to over 2,000.
The Priory Square building offered new top-class facilities including a state of the art microbiology lab, and was built using around £10m of Hastings regeneration money.
The then Council leader, Jeremy Birch, signed a ‘memorandum of understanding’ with Julian Crampton to take this project forward, however, in 2015 Julian Crampton retired, and a new Vice-Chancellor was appointed with a very different agenda.
Within a couple of weeks of taking up her appointment, Debra Humphris announced the intended closure of the Hastings campus and the university’s intention to sell off the buildings, but not return the £10m Hastings regeneration money that had been used in the project – all proceeds from the sale were to be taken back to Brighton.
Despite massive protests from staff and students, Hastings Borough Council, local businesses, local people and many others, the university held firm, and the closure went ahead, with the campus finally shutting down this summer, holding its final graduation celebration in July, an event I attended and made a speech at.
At the July Council meeting, we invited all the university staff to a reception to thank them for their work in Hastings, and made a presentation to them at the council meeting. They made the point that Brighton University had done nothing to thank them at all.
During those 14 years when the university was running, several hundred young (and not so young) students received degrees, most of whom would never have thought such a thing possible, and would never have considered going to university anywhere else. Indeed, their graduates included three Hastings councillors.
The achievements of the staff in Hastings, particularly in the later years with a hostile university working towards closure, were remarkable – we should all be grateful to them.
Sadly, both Julian Crampton and Jeremy Birch are no longer with us, but it’s a tragedy, and a betrayal of their work, that it should have come to this.
Not all is lost though. East Sussex College in Hastings now has a thriving University Centre, with around 300 students studying for degree-level qualifications and we’ll keep looking for a university partner to re-establish a campus in Hastings.
One day, perhaps, we’ll be able to reinvent the project and honour the memory of Julian and Jeremy with a new university.
I’m disappointed that Brighton University hasn’t put the investment into making this campus work, especially given the funding to support them (and others) locate here. A thriving higher education offer gives local residents a chance to explore a subject they are passionate about, learn new skills to help them move up the career ladder – as well as creating jobs and investment from outside the area.
However, I’m worried this article is all talk and no action. In the last two years, there is no evidence from council minutes that Peter Chowney and his executive team have been trying to find a new partner to take over the campus. In fact, the only reference I can find to the university at all in council minutes in the whole of 2018 and 2019, is from 29th April this year, where they state the complete opposite. The quoted text: “Since the closure of the university, Hastings has to change its brand from a university town and needs a new unique selling point and vision.”
LINK: https://hastings.moderngov.co.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=151&MID=3103&fbclid=IwAR3nR2XI0GX9DszU0O-FbNYVV26McbLKa2Q9FZIhB2lgJ__jLCmdowAZWdE#AI15966
They have also emailed local businesses about ‘repurposing’ the university buildings to attract tourists here. These aren’t the actions of a council that is actively looking to offer the highest levels of education to its citizens and is doing all it can to find another university partner.
If the council has been actively engaging partners in the last two years, it would be nice for them to provide some evidence of what they’ve been up to – perhaps in a follow up article?
Otherwise, is there an opportunity to form an action group with local residents to help them explore ways to attract a university here? I would be keen to support that as I believe the town deserves an outstanding university offer.
An interesting article.
However, my query is, who actually owns this building? Is it Sea Change, Sea Space, HBC, University of Brighton – or none of the above.
I ask as clearly there has been a lot of outside financial assistance for it
HI Sagacious – thanks for commenting.
In answer to your question, the buildings are owned by Brighton University and are currently on the market.
Havelock Road: https://www.brayfoxsmith.com/property/university-of-brighton-44-havelock-road-hastings-tn34-1be/
Priory Square: https://www.brayfoxsmith.com/property/university-of-brighton-prirory-square-building-hastings-tn34-1ea/
The good news (from my point of view) is that the buildings can only be used for D1 use – which includes: education, medical centre, a library, public hall or to display art. So, there isn’t much interest ifrom commercial organisations to buy.
However, if you want to attract another university to the town, the council has to be engaged in the idea and help facilitate it. This is what has happened in other seaside towns of a similar size, but isn’t happening here (or at least there is no evidence it is happening).
The last record I can find in council minutes of trying to engage another partner is from 28/09/17(!) which mentions ‘continuing contact with the University of Sussex’. Talking to one other university in two years, isn’t enough in my view. There are 100s of universities out there, many spreading out of their local areas, that could and should be approached.
Minutes: https://hastings.moderngov.co.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=391&MID=2570#AI10293
It’s a shame not to have a go at least, don’t you think?
This is only an extract from Peter Chowney’s monthly report – it would be a good idea to put the entire report up on this page so we can actually see what Councillor Chowney considers to be his council’s achievements. I attach a link to his report and you can make of it what you will.
http://www.hastingsandryelabour.org.uk/hastings-council-leaders-report-august-2019
Comment re the University of Brighton (UoB) pulling out of Hastings and the future of higher education provided by colleges and/or universities, etc, in hastings.
Re UoB leaving Hastings still owning the building’s, if they did not – but Hastings Regeneration money did – fund them, questions have to be asked:
1. Why do the UoB think it is acceptable – morally (if legally) – for them leave Hastings but retain the buildings?
2. Why do the UoB think it is acceptable – morally (if legally) – for them to seemingly attempt to profit from selling the buildings?
3. Why is UoB keeping and/or selling the buildings legal?
4. Why were the Hastings Regeneration funds not provided:
a) as a loan; to (and to be paid back by) the UoB?
b) as a grant to an independent organisation; and the buildings funded and held in the form of a trust for university level education in Hastings?
Note: not merely provided to and owned by UoB.
c) as a grant to Hastings Borough Council (HBC); for HBC to fund and own the buildings?
Note: effectively owned by the people of Hastings.
N.B: either points a) or b) above should have been insisted upon by HBC.
There are other questions:
1. Why was UoB allowed to, effectively, become the sole partner institution?
Note: this facilitated the take over.
2. When University of Hastings – in the guise of UoB in Hastings or, before that, University Cente Hastings – was open, why was Sussex Coast College allowed to continue it’s small but competing university level offering?
Note, the above:
a) a meant competition in the already small university level sector in Hastings;
I.e. University of Hastings being set up to fail.
b) allowed UoB, whilst taking resources, ownership of the building and courses, to still claim (and being allowed to claim) a university level offering in Hastings.
I.e. this allowed UoB an ‘acceptable’ out for them – in terms of the finances (and media fallout) not the people of Hastings – and encouraged the pull out.
3. Why was it acceptable for UoB to cherry pick and transfer – from Hastings to other UoB campuses – historical (and, presumably, more profitable) courses?
Moving forward:
1. As East Sussex College Group (ESCG) currently hold the reins re university level education in Hastings – at Station Plaza (SP) – this should be encouraged and afforded help to grow via:
a) being afforded a new building re:
• given a lease (peppercorn rent at most) – by the owners (UoB or whoever it ends up being owned by) – on the previous building/s;
and/or
b) the Medical Centre (at Station Plaza) – the building adjacent to East Sussex College (ESC) – being transfered to either building or elsewhere, e.g. the newly built St. Leonards Medical Centre, etc. and ESC move higher education provision across to the adjacent building.
Note: this would effectively provide Hastings Colleges of Further and Higher Education – run by ESCG or other – side by side.
2. ESCG’s university offering should be housed in Hastings – not in Eastbourne where UoB are already (or, the already close to university provision, Lewes).
3. Long standing and Hastings linked courses that were cherry picked – and transferred from Hastings to UoB (other) campuses – e.g. teacher training and media studies, should be restored to Hastings.
4. Offer aditional (and more popular) higher education courses – via partnership with other organisations, universities, etc. – by:
a) securing and offering universty courses in Hastings validated by the University of Sussex.
Note: as Hastings is in Sussex, this makes much sense.
b) securing and offering courses validated by other universities outside Sussex.
Note:
• this, on the face of it, makes less sense than providing university of Sussex validated courses;
but
• still provides a recognised university – degree – from wherever – whilst studying in Hastings.
c) liaising with professional bodies, e.g. AAT, ACCA, IMA and CILEX and providing higher education, accountancy, law, etc, courses leading to e.g. AAT (level 4) and ACCA (levels 4 to 7) and related qualifications.
Note: this would make the university in Hastings the go to for local business, accountants and law firms, etc, at least.
d) liasing with local organsations within the public and private sector re offering tailored courses.
Note: this could mean local hospitals and care homes and schools and business, e.g. insurance companies, utilising local provision (and additional revenue streams)
e) making e.g. HNCs and HNDs as the standard level 4 and 5 offering leading to bachelors degree at Level 6.
Note: this would provide students with a clear pathway whilst attaining qualifications along that pathway.
In summary:
With some challenge, questoning, re/organsation and out of the box thinking, there could be good (better than before) higher education provision in Hastings.
Who’s keen?