Kent and Greenwich hail ‘key milestone’ as merger terms inked

The universities of Kent and Greenwich have officially agreed the terms of their merger after months of negotiations.

Confirming plans to form the UK’s first “superuniversity”, the two institutions will become a single legal entity from 1 August.

Contracts have been exchanged on the move that will see Greenwich initially change its name to the London and South East University Group, a company limited by guarantee, with Kent then joining them.

Both universities will continue to operate distinctly within the structure, recruiting, teaching and graduating students under their individual identities.

But all staff will be employed by the new group which will have a single board of governors and management team including current Greenwich vice-chancellor Jane Harrington, who will become the overall leader of the new group. Further executive appointments and a full new board of governors will be recruited in the spring.

The universities said “no decisions have been made on future structural changes” and they are both establishing “integration teams” to consider changes over the next few years.

The announcement comes after the universities announced their intention to merge in September, the first move of its kind in a cash-strapped sector.

Universities have been encouraged to consider new models and collaborations as they adjust to a challenging financial context, caused by declining international student numbers and a long period of frozen fees that has only just come to an end.

Kent and Greenwich said since the initial agreement was made, they have been “engaged in months of detailed legal and financial due diligence” including working with the Office for Students and the Department for Education to gain approval for the model.

“Our two mighty institutions have worked side by side for more than 20 years, and this new model enables us to build on this, combining our collective strengths and giving us greater resilience and a stronger foundation to transform lives across London and the south east,” Harrington said.

She added that it was a “truly significant moment for the sector, which we hope could provide a blueprint for other institutions in the future”.

Georgina Randsley de Moura, acting vice-chancellor at Kent, said the “key milestone…should give our staff, students and partners confidence that this trailblazing new multi-university model is the right one to deliver a bold new approach for universities working together to deliver for the future needs of our communities”.

tom.williams@timeshighereducation.com