UUK: New era of collaboration between universities to transform the sector and drive efficiency
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Sir Nigel Carrington, former international lawyer, business leader
and Vice Chancellor, appointed to lead new taskforce Universities
UK has appointed Sir Nigel Carrington, former Vice Chancellor of
the University of the Arts London and international Mergers &
Acquisitions lawyer, as the Chair of its Taskforce on Efficiency
and Transformation in Higher Education. The Taskforce will take an
‘all options on the table' approach to how - after years of working
to reduce...Request free trial
Sir Nigel Carrington, former international lawyer, business leader and Vice Chancellor, appointed to lead new taskforce Universities UK has appointed Sir Nigel Carrington, former Vice Chancellor of the University of the Arts London and international Mergers & Acquisitions lawyer, as the Chair of its Taskforce on Efficiency and Transformation in Higher Education. The Taskforce will take an ‘all options on the table' approach to how - after years of working to reduce costs individually – universities can partner, collaborate and deliver transformation and cost savings through new models and ways of working. Sir Nigel will lead more than a dozen experts to consider detailed and radical options for cross-sector working and to produce comprehensive business cases for these. Universities are clear on their shared responsibility with government to put the sector in the strongest possible position to support the needs of the country, and the Taskforce is evidence they are prepared to think radically to tackle the challenges they face. The taskforce will examine the efficiencies made by the university sector in England in the past decade and make recommendations about what more can be achieved through collective action. It will identify opportunities to build on the sector's long history of cost saving and improving student experience through partnership - as with UCAS, the sector-wide applications service. Options under consideration will include systems and processes to drive down cost through the collective buying power of the university sector, shared delivery of some student facing services, and achieving greater consistency in the way universities operate to make collaboration simpler in future. The taskforce will also support leaders at individual universities by sharing good practice in efficiency, transformation and income generation. This could include transformation of operating models, mergers and acquisitions, federated structures, future workforce planning and understanding how AI is likely to transform teaching, research and operations. Alongside his significant private sector experience as a partner in a major international law firm and as Managing Director of McLaren Group, Sir Nigel was Vice Chancellor at University of the Arts London between 2008 and 2021. He oversaw the complete remodelling of the previously federal institution; moving from six different art and design colleges operating under the same university banner but as separate brands, to one integrated and efficient global institution which is now recognised as being one of the world's leading universities of art and design. Sir Nigel Carrington said: “This critical work will usher in a new era of collaboration and cooperation between universities to drive even greater value to students and taxpayers. "While institutions have been doing more and more to be as efficient as possible, they have largely been doing so at an individual level. Truly impactful transformation will best be delivered through partnership and collaboration at both a regional and a national level. It is time for some blue sky thinking on what that looks like. “Transformation to reduce costs is not all we need though. Our work will drive meaningful change by creating evidence-led recommendations around working well together and being productive for the long-term.” Professor Dame Sally Mapstone, President of Universities UK and Vice Chancellor and Principal of the University of St Andrews said: “Our universities are a global success story. They are also critical regional employers, engines of growth, and equip our future workforce with the skills the UK needs to thrive. To be fit for the future, they need both sustainable funding and a shared commitment to working together to unlock savings. “While universities have continually adapted to do more with less, we need to think carefully, but creatively, about new opportunities and models. This work will allow us to learn from each other and to work in partnership to drive meaningful change. “I am delighted Nigel will lead this ambitious programme of work. He has a wealth of experience in both the private sector and in higher education. He will bring together high-level commercial and restructuring experience with a deep understanding of our sector, underlined by his success in restructuring a very complex and devolved institution.” Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “The dire situation we inherited means we have had to take tough decisions to fix the foundations of higher education and deliver change for students. "I welcome the launch of the UUK taskforce and look forward to seeing innovative and robust proposals to help secure a sustainable future for higher education. "This government remains committed to restoring universities as engines of growth, opportunity and aspiration, as we seek to break down barriers to opportunity through our Plan for Change.” ENDS
Notes to editors: The Transformation and Efficiency Taskforce, first trailed in the UUK Blueprint to stabilise and reform the university sector, will comprise three strands:
Book your place today and contribute to shaping the future of higher education. About Sir Nigel: Nigel spent 27 years in the private sector before becoming Vice Chancellor of UAL in 2008. He brings together high level commercial and restructuring experience with a deep understanding of HE, underlined by his success in restructuring a very complex and devolved institution which, by the end of his tenure, had been recognised as one of the two globally-leading Universities of art and design, with an annual revenue of over £350m and a strong and consistent operating surplus. In his first career, he was an international Mergers and Acquisitions lawyer and, in 1994, became the youngest London Managing Partner of a major corporate law firm. After four years in that role, he became a member of the Firm's International Executive Committee and Chairman of its European and Middle East Regional Council. He left to become the Managing Director of McLaren Group, the automotive technologies group, where his role included bringing its six operating companies together into a single new £250m Technology Centre. When he joined University of the Arts London (UAL) in 2008, he took over responsibility for the integration of its six Colleges. Until that time, UAL had operated in a federal structure which reflected its history: the University had brought together six distinctive and fiercely independent art, design and fashion Colleges which, although part of one single institution for 20 years, had continued to operate in a devolved manner with many individual and overlapping systems, a series of complex and competitive brands, a relatively poor financial outlook and an estate which was run down, partly leased and requiring redevelopment. Over the 13 year period of his tenure, the University was restructured, reducing its operating costs by increasing efficiencies and building a new global brand. Through a series of innovative land swaps and new development in previously underdeveloped parts of London (including King's Cross and the Olympic Park), he led a redevelopment programme which is nearing completion with a gross investment of over £700m. Nigel was a member of the UUK Board from 2015-2020 and led on behalf of UUK the tripartite merger of the three struggling HE sector agencies which became Advance HE. He was then asked by the Board of Advance HE to become its inaugural Chair and successfully steered it through a complex series of staff and senior management restructurings which resulted in it becoming financially sustainable on a much lower cost base. About Universities UK: At Universities UK, we harness the power of the UK's universities and create the conditions for them to thrive. We are the collective voice of 142 universities in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, bringing them together to pursue a common cause: thriving universities, serving society. We aim to ensure our universities can transform the lives of more individuals, drive greater growth and create flourishing places through the knowledge and skills they generate, while being globally competitive centres of research making ground-breaking discoveries. Universities UK acts on behalf of universities, represented by their heads of institution. www.universitiesuk.ac.uk |