Portsmouth University' students protest at 'catastrophic' cuts

Students have begun a campaign against the cuts

Cuts to the University of Portsmouth's English Literature department could "eradicate" it, students have claimed

The university is proposing reducing the department from 12 full-time posts to five.

It said it was due to falling numbers of applicants but insisted the department would not be closed.

An online petition against the cuts has been signed by more than 4,000 people. Postgraduate student Amy Thomson said the plans were "catastrophic".

Ms Thomson said the department reflected Portsmouth's "strong literature tradition", as the birthplace of Charles Dickens and home of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

"The staff members here are not only leaders in their field of research, but are passionate and caring," she said.

"The variety of units available holds great appeal for prospective students, and so to reduce this will likely impact application numbers and result in a knock on further reduction to staff.

"This move towards redundancy is effectively a step towards eradicating the literature department."

'Difficult decisions'

A university spokeswoman said demand for the courses had fallen over several years with fewer people taking English Literature at A-level.

"Matching resources with student demand leads to difficult decisions, which are never taken lightly," she said.

"It is vital that the university stays relevant to student choices and continues to offer a diverse portfolio of courses.

"There are no plans to close English Literature or reduce it so much that it is unable to succeed."

The proposals are being discussed with staff and unions.