Friday 10-02-2017 - 13:45

The University’s Board of Governors has today endorsed the option to withdraw academic provision from the Crewe campus by July 2019. Over the coming months the University will be implementing a collective consultation process with the recognised staff trade unions. At the same time, the Students' Union will be collecting and representing the concerns of Cheshire students to the University. 

The options being considered have been well publicised and trailed to staff and students, but following the announcement today it is understandable that there may be a heightened sense of student anxiety and questions around what is going to happen next. 

Starting next week the University is holding meetings with staff and students to further explain the rationale behind the preferred option. The student meetings will take place on Wednesday 30 November, and I urge everyone to come along if you are free. If you’re not available, but would like to have an input, please get in touch with us and we can ask questions or offer feedback on your behalf.

The Students’ Union’s role will be to make sure that, regardless of any future decisions, the University continues to invest in the campus student experience over the next three years – ensuring that you have the opportunity to finish your course in a positive environment that supports achievement of the degree that you deserve. We will be working to provide all Cheshire students with opportunities to input into shaping what the next three years of the campus looks like. 

Having been at Manchester Metropolitan for the last five years – four of which were spent at the Cheshire campus – it is inevitably disappointing to see that the campus may close, however we have also seen how the overall student experience has diminished due to the falling student numbers and increased difficulty to get involved in opportunities. We will continue to make sure the University deliver a world-class education and student experience as long as the Cheshire campus exists.

The Union will ensure that we are here for all of your needs over the next three years; and that the academic offering and student experience is the very best it can be.

Lewis Bartlett

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please do get in touch with Natasha Jaworski (Activities Officer Cheshire) on s.u.sacheshire@mmu.ac.uk or 0161 247 6595, as we can then ensure that all student feedback is reflected upon by the University’s management team.