UCLan renamed University of Lancashire despite potential confusion with Lancaster University

UCLan’s proposed name change to University of Lancashire has been approved.

The decision to change the name of the university was opposed by Lancaster University, with concerns about it reportedly causing confusion for UK and international students.

The Office for Students (OfS) has launched a consultation with sought to establish whether the name change would be confusing.

The OfS revealed that it received 1,830 responses with 1,635 saying they believe that the name is confusing or has the potential to be confusing.

The OfS, however, took the view that the majority of people would not find the name confusing because it is not unusual for geographical areas to contain multiple universities with “a relatively high degree of similarity”.

The agency said: “We consider that there is sufficient difference between the provider’s new name and other provider’s names to enable the majority of students and other stakeholders to differentiate between the two names.”

The name change was announced by Preston Blog Post in January 2024, with university bosses saying “Central Lancashire” is an “outdated geographical construct.”

Professor Graham Baldwin, UCLan Vice-Chancellor, said: “Changing our name to the University of Lancashire better reflects our regional economic importance and will aid continuing efforts to raise brand awareness further afield.”

A spokesperson for Lancaster University said to Blog Preston: “We are disappointed at the ruling, despite submitting what we believe is strong evidence pointing at brand confusion with the name particularly among employers and international students.”