The
University of West London (formerly
Thames Valley University) is a public
universityA university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
based in
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
,
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, with campuses in
EalingEaling is a suburban area of west London, England and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Ealing. It is located west of Charing Cross and around from the City of London. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically a rural village...
and
BrentfordBrentford is a suburban town in west London, England, and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It is located at the confluence of the River Thames and the River Brent, west-southwest of Charing Cross. Its former ceremonial county was Middlesex.-Toponymy:...
, London, and
ReadingReading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
,
BerkshireBerkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
.
The University has roots back to 1860, when the Lady Byron School was founded, which later became Ealing College of Higher Education. In 1990, Ealing College of Higher Education, Thames Valley College of Higher Education, Queen Charlotte's College of Health Care Studies and the
London College of MusicThe London College of Music is a music school which is part of the University of West London in England.The LCM was founded in 1887 and existed as an independent music conservatoire based at Great Marlborough Street in central London until 1991...
merged to form the
Polytechnic of West London. In 1992, the Polytechnic of West London became a university and adopted the name Thames Valley University. In 2004, Thames Valley merged with Reading College and School of Arts and Design. A former campus in Slough was closed in 2010.
In August 2010, the University announced that it had been granted permission to change its name to the University of West London, to reflect a focusing of operations onto its Ealing and Brentford campuses. The new name was formally adopted on Wednesday 6 April 2011.
History
The University of West London traces its roots back to 1860, when the
Lady Byron School was founded at what is now University of West London's Ealing campus. The school later became
Ealing College of Higher Education.
The Slough campus was founded in January 1912 as a selective secondary school in William Street. By the 1960s, it had become Slough College of Further Education. In the 1970s it became
Thames Valley College of Higher Education and in 2011 it was closed down.
In 1990, Ealing College of Higher Education, Thames Valley College of Higher Education,
Queen Charlotte's College of Health Care Studies and the
London College of MusicThe London College of Music is a music school which is part of the University of West London in England.The LCM was founded in 1887 and existed as an independent music conservatoire based at Great Marlborough Street in central London until 1991...
were merged to become the
Polytechnic of West London. Two years later, the polytechnic became a university under the
Further and Higher Education Act 1992The Further and Higher Education Acts 1992 made changes in the funding and administration of further education and higher education within the United Kingdom. The most visible result was to allow thirty-five polytechnics to become universities. In addition the Act created bodies to fund higher...
, and adopted the name
Thames Valley University.
In 2004, the university merged with
Reading College and School of Arts and Design (which was originally founded in 1947 as
Reading Technical College). Reading College's sites at Kings Road and Crescent Road became TVU sites.
In 2009, the University decided to divest itself of its
further educationFurther education is a term mainly used in connection with education in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is post-compulsory education , that is distinct from the education offered in universities...
courses, together with its Kings Road site, that it had inherited from the Reading College and School of Arts and Design. In 2010 the responsibility for further education, along with the Kings Road site, were transferred to a re-launched
Reading CollegeReading College is a further education college based in Reading, Berkshire, England. It has over 8,500 local learners on over 900 courses.The Kings Road site that is the principal location of Reading College has been used for further education since 1955, when the Reading College of Technology was...
. The University retained its other sites in Reading, including the Crescent Road site that also originated with the Reading College and School of Arts and Design.
In May 2009, the University announced that it be would closing its Slough campus in 2010 due to the relocation of nursing students, who make up the majority of the student body there, to Reading. Other courses will be moved to one of the University's west London campuses, although some part-time and nursing courses will remain in Slough at a different site.
In August 2010, it was announced that the university would change its name to the
University of West London, with the
Privy CouncilA privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...
subsequently granting permission for the change. The university unveiled a new logo and branding in April 2011. Vice-Chancellor Peter John stated that the changes reflected the university's development since 1992 and new focus on its Brentford and Ealing campuses.
Organisation
The University of West London is currently organised into three faculties, within which there are eight Schools. The Faculty of the Arts (FOTA), formerly the London College of Music and Media, now incorporates the
London College of MusicThe London College of Music is a music school which is part of the University of West London in England.The LCM was founded in 1887 and existed as an independent music conservatoire based at Great Marlborough Street in central London until 1991...
, relaunched in March 2007 and the School of Art, Design and Media (
Tech Music SchoolsTech Music School is a contemporary music school that trains musicians for the music industry in the following disciplines: drums, vocals, guitar, bass guitar and music business...
has been partnered with the University since 1993, offering a BMus in association with LCM). The Faculty of Health and Human Sciences consists of two Schools: School of Nursing and Midwifery and School of Human and Psychosocial Sciences. The Faculty of Professional Studies is made up of three schools; Ealing Law School, the Business School, London School of Hospitality and Tourism and the School of Computing and Technology. The University's Faculty of Technology formed part of the School of Computing and Technology in May 2010. The Graduate School (based in Ealing) co-ordinates and provides support to research activities and research degree courses.
Academic reputation
In the 2010 editions of the major rankings of British universities the University placed 69 out of 117 in
The GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
university guide, 98 out of 113 in
The IndependentThe Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
associated Complete University Guide, 106 out of 122 in
The Sunday TimesThe Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
University Guide and 110 out of 114 in
The TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
Good University Guide.
In official figures published by
Times Higher Education in July 2008, the University had the best graduate employment record against its benchmark in the country, with almost 95% employed within six months of graduating.
HESA (
Higher Education Statistics AgencyThe Higher Education Statistics Agency is the official agency for the collection, analysis and dissemination of quantitative information about higher education in the United Kingdom....
) compared data taken from its survey that looks at the destinations of graduates six months after leaving higher education against employment performance indicators for all universities across the UK. 94.8% of graduates were employed or in full-time education within six months of leaving their course, which exceeds the university’s benchmark figure of 89.8% by 5% - the widest margin of any of the general universities in the league tables (excluding specialist institutions) - making the University of West London the best in the country in this respect for graduate recruitment.
Student life
West London Students' Union
The West London Students' Union (informally WLSU) is the recognised student organisation of the University of West London. The Students' Union represents the 47,000 students at all its sites. WLSU is affiliated to the National Union of Students.
The Union has the ground floor of the North Building at the St. Mary's Road campus at which its Coffee Shop, Bar and Gym is located.
The official radio station for the University is
Blast RadioBlast Radio is the student radio station for University of West London. They broadcast online from studios based at Ealing Studios in West London and on an RSL 87.7FM across the local area for four weeks in May....
, which is based at
Ealing StudiosEaling Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever since...
.
Student accommodation
Prior to 2006 the university operated halls of residence only at the Reading campus, although a number of private houses in the Ealing area were rented by the University and allocated to students studying there. In September 2006 the university began to offer halls of residence accommodation to students from the Ealing and Slough campuses at a student and keyworker accommodation site named Paragon. The site won the 'Major Housing Project of the Year' category at the 2007 Building awards, and is in
BrentfordBrentford is a suburban town in west London, England, and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It is located at the confluence of the River Thames and the River Brent, west-southwest of Charing Cross. Its former ceremonial county was Middlesex.-Toponymy:...
, approximately two miles away from the Ealing campus.
Paragon is home to the tallest building to be completed using Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) in the UK, which serves as a 130000 sq ft (12,077.4 m²) academic facility for the university's human sciences facility.
The student accommodation at Paragon has been criticised by its residents for being too expensive, costing the highest of all London universities' halls of residence along with SOAS in the 2007-2008 year. TVU defended the costs, asserting that the halls are of an especially high standard.
Controversies
The University has weathered several storms in its short life. In the mid-1990s its high-profile Vice-Chancellor,
Mike FitzgeraldMike Fitzgerald is a criminologist, former higher education manager and consultant. He was Vice-Chancellor of Thames Valley University in the 1990s.-Scholarly work:...
, ushered through a new networked "New Learning Environment" for undergraduate students, involving a shift to online delivery and assessment. The NLE did not last in that form, and in 1998 Fitzgerald resigned following a negative Quality Assurance Agency report (QAA 1998) that cited serious management failures in the delivery of this model (Webster 2000).
By 2003 the QAA report on the university had returned a much more positive verdict, repeated in 2005. The NLE has now become a VLE (virtual learning environment) with a "blended e-learning" approach to teaching. In 2006 admissions were down and the university has consistently struggled to meet financial targets. Lower admissions in 2006 were evident across the HE sector following the introduction of tuition fees.
A 2007 article in
The GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
newspaper said that the university was, at that time, on a list of universities whose finances were being monitored by the
Higher Education Funding Council for EnglandThe Higher Education Funding Council for England is a non-departmental public body of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in the United Kingdom, which has been responsible for the distribution of funding to Universities and Colleges of Higher and Further Education in England since...
, as their financial stability was under threat unless they acted. The Funding Council did not publish this list.
The university has in the past offered BSc courses in subjects with foundations unsupported by scientific experimental backing, such as
homeopathyHomeopathy is a form of alternative medicine in which practitioners claim to treat patients using highly diluted preparations that are believed to cause healthy people to exhibit symptoms that are similar to those exhibited by the patient...
and nutritional medicine, and has been criticised heavily by the scientific community for doing so.
Notable staff
- The composer Andrew McBirnie
Andrew McBirnie is a British composer, educator and administrator.He studied at the University of Bristol with Adrian Beaumont and at the Royal Academy of Music with Justin Connolly, gaining a PhD in Composition from the University of London. He also studied at Tanglewood with Henri Dutilleux,...
was Chief Examiner in Music for London College of Music ExaminationsLondon College of Music Examinations is an examinations board offering graded and diploma qualifications in music, and in drama & communication...
until 2008.
- Professor Mike Fitzgerald
Mike Fitzgerald is a criminologist, former higher education manager and consultant. He was Vice-Chancellor of Thames Valley University in the 1990s.-Scholarly work:...
, flamboyant Vice Chancellor, 1991-1998.
- Claire Gorham
Claire Gorham is an English journalist and television presenter, best known for The Girlie Show in the late 1990s.She is sometimes credited as Clare Gorham...
- English journalist and television presenter, best known for The Girlie ShowThe Girlie Show was a 1990s Channel 4 television programme in the United Kingdom. Its presenters were Sarah Cawood, Claire Gorham, American Model Rachel Williams, and in her first presenting job, Sara Cox...
in the late 1990s.
- Mike Howlett
Mike Howlett is a Fijian-born musician, Grammy Award winning producer and teacher based in the United Kingdom and Australia....
is a teacher of music technology at the university, who previously performed with the bands GongGong is a Franco-British progressive/psychedelic rock band formed by Australian musician Daevid Allen. Their music has also been described as space rock. Other notable band members include Allan Holdsworth, Tim Blake, Didier Malherbe, Pip Pyle, Gilli Smyth, Steve Hillage, Francis Moze, Mike Howlett...
and Strontium 90Strontium 90 was the name of a short-lived 1977 British band with members Mike Howlett , Sting , Stewart Copeland , and Andy Summers...
, and produced many New WaveNew Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
acts in the 1970s and 1980s.
- Professor Tim Lang, City University and government advisor - ran the Centre for Food Policy in the Health faculty in the 1990s.
- The composer Francis Pott
Francis Pott, born 25 August 1957, is a British composer, pianist, senior academic and university administrator.-Life:He held open music scholarships at Winchester College and Magdalene College, Cambridge, studying composition at the latter with Robin Holloway and Hugh Wood while also pursuing...
is Head of Composition and Research Development in the Faculty of the Arts.
- Pip Williams
Pip Williams, is a record producer, arranger and guitarist, best known for producing albums for Status Quo and The Moody Blues.-Career:...
– a course leader teaching music technology at University of West London, Ealing. Philip (Pip) Williams, (born October 7, 1947) is a record producer, arranger and guitarist, best known for producing albums for Status Quo and The Moody Blues.
- Lola Young, Baroness Young of Hornsey
Lola Young, Baroness Young of Hornsey, OBE is a British artist, author, and Crossbench peer.Young was educated at the Parliament Hill School for Girls in London and went then to the New College of Speech and Drama, where she received a diploma in dramatic art in 1975, and a teaching certificate...
External links