Edinburgh University warns staff ‘nothing is off the table’ amid funding crisis

Edinburgh University has warned that “nothing is off the table” in an email sent to staff warning of potential programme and school closures and staffing cuts.

This comes after an announcement last August warning that university running costs had increased to £100 million a month.

At the time principal Peter Mathieson blamed the Scottish and UK governments for failing to cover the costs of non-fee paying Scottish students and discouragement of international students who are key to making up funding shortfalls.

The principal warned that inaction could be detrimental to the universities financial position and said he felt it best to “be honest and open about the scale of the urgency and measures likely to be needed”.

Sir Peter has received backlash from The University College Union (UCU) who disputed the need for cuts, claiming that “the university was richer than it had ever been”.

The UCU have urged the university to rule out compulsory redundancies following Mathieson’s email which extended the period of voluntary redundancies until February the 28th.

The UCU also said its members recently passed a vote of no confidence in the principal and senior management of the university with a final count of 265 to 25.

The principal has come under scrutiny this past year regarding his handling of finances and many staff and students were outraged by his “near £20,000 pay rise” which took his salary up to £438,000.

The UCU general secretary Jo Grady has also said that that Edinburgh University is an employer that “wastes millions on capital projects, but is now seeking to cut the very staff who deliver the teaching, research and student support that make the the successful institution it is”.

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The financial warnings, and concerns from staff and students come after The Complete University Guide ranked Edinburgh 121 out of 128 for student satisfaction which fell to just 74 per cent in 2024.

Many staff and students will be left anxious about their careers and futures at the university following this statement.

Milly, a third year student from the School of Social and Political Sciences has told The Tab that she felt “worried that degrees relating to the arts and humanities will be in danger of cuts to funding as the university tends to have a focus on STEM subjects.”

Peter Mathieson acknowledged the anxiety caused by this email and stated he was “optimistic” that with “swift and decisive action now, we can put the university back on to a secure footing for the future”.

A spokeswoman for the University of Edinburgh told the BBC: “In line with our commitment to be transparent about the university’s financial position, we have shared with staff that we anticipate having to take further actions to ensure the university remains on a secure financial footing.

“We have also decided to extend the deadline for applications to the voluntary severance scheme by two weeks until Friday 28 February.”

More information about the universities financial position will be released in an email to staff on February 18.

The University of Edinburgh has been approached for further comment.

Featured image via The University of Edinburgh.