University of Lincoln: Union says budget cuts devastating

The university said it was "looking to take pragmatic steps to reduce our cost base"

Funding cuts at the University of Lincoln would be devastating for staff, students and the city, a trade union said.

The University and College Union (UCU) said it has been told the university aims to reduce budgets by 20%.

Owen Clayton from the UCU said staff were "shocked and quite scared".

The university said it was "looking to take pragmatic steps to reduce our cost base" but could not rule out redundancies.

It has just over 2,000 staff members and about 18,000 students.

'Huge impact'

"We've had bumper student numbers for about five years and the university finances, if you look at them from July, look quite good, so people were not expecting this," said Mr Clayton.

"A 20% cut to funding would have a huge impact. You obviously couldn't provide the same level of quality. You would have staff that were far more stressed and tired and that would impact on the experience the students were getting.

"I think some departments would struggle to stay open if the cuts were as large as has been suggested."

Owen Clayton from the UCU said staff were "shocked and quite scared" by the news

A university spokesperson confirmed the plan to reduce its budget by 20% next year, citing "growing pressure from the continued freeze in the home undergraduate tuition fee, volatility in international student recruitment, additional pension costs, and high inflation" as among the issues.

"Although our finances are sound, we need to act now to ensure the university remains financially sustainable into the future and can continue to fulfil our crucial civic mission," they added.

"We will do everything possible to achieve the necessary cost savings through normal staff turnover and by reducing non-pay budgets. But we cannot, at this stage, rule out the possibility of redundancies in some form.

"The university will be consulting with our trade unions and engaging with colleagues and students over the coming months as plans develop."