Monday, 05 October 2026
Over the past two years, we have been developing a clear plan to strengthen our organisation for the future.
Known as Future Nottingham, the aim is to create a鈥痷niversity鈥痶hat is more focused in its academic offer, stronger in its areas of distinctive excellence, more consistent in the experience it provides to students and鈥痵taff and鈥痓etter placed to deliver sustainable academic excellence.
This is probably one of the biggest changes this university has seen in its 145-year history, and it is a change that has been shaped by our staff, students and alumni. Many of the suggestions and alternative proposals received through our consultation processes have been incorporated – either in part or fully - into the final Future Nottingham business case and will help our future university develop and thrive.
It is also a change that will impact our people across the organisation, and we do not underestimate what this means for many of our staff and students. None of these decisions have been taken lightly but the underlying challenges facing the university have not changed.
We are still not generating enough from our day-to-day activities to invest in our future, nor have the wider pressures facing higher education abated. Student recruitment remains highly competitive, and future financial pressures such as inflation and rising costs continue to rise.
Without further action, our longer-term position remains unsustainable and that is why Future Nottingham remains so important.
But it is not solely a financial programme. It is how we are building the resilience and sustainability needed to deliver our ambitions for the long term.
Future Nottingham Final Business Case
The final business case sets out how we will build a strong, sustainable future for our organisation. It gives us the solid foundations we need to deliver our new university strategy together.
Focussing on our students, it will help us shape an excellent academic offer and student experience. This will reflect what students want and need so that every student leaves us with the skills, knowledge and confidence to thrive, now and long into the future.
It will help us to become financially resilient so we can invest in our teaching and research, not just in areas where we already excel but also in new areas where we could become world-leading in the future.
And it will help us to support research and drive innovation, delivering a more consistent experience for students and staff across the university, giving us the space to try new ideas and ensuring everyone can achieve their potential and feel proud to be a part of this great university.
Over the coming months we will start to implement these changes. It will see us move from five Faculties to three Colleges, reduce complexity in our structures and change the way we deliver professional services support in faculties, EDI and technical services across our organisation.
We will also refine our course offering. Although student demand is insufficient to retain degree course provision in modern languages and music, we will retain module level provision through a new, University wide Language Centre offering a focused range of languages. This means that students on most courses will be able to add a modern language module as part of their degree.
The university remains committed to a vibrant music culture on campus: extracurricular music will continue to be supported through Lakeside Arts, including choirs, orchestras, performances and creative opportunities. This will be alongside the extension of our collaboration with the BBC Concert Orchestra – through to 2029 – as part of the Universities for Nottingham Partnership.
Music-related research will continue and grow within the School of Computer Science where interdisciplinary innovation and clear opportunities for external funding are already thriving. This reinvestment supports the creation of up to four new full-time roles, strengthening Nottingham’s position in cutting-edge research at the intersection of music, technology and innovation.
To better support our students, our Tutoring for Students Success initiative will replace traditional one-to-one personal tutoring. This structured, team-based support model strengthens academic guidance, improves links to specialist services, and gives students clearer and more consistent routes to help when they need it. It is designed to improve student experience and support student success, wellbeing and belonging, while also creating a more sustainable and clearly defined model of support for Schools.
This has already been piloted successfully in some areas of the university and we will roll this out more widely.
For almost 150 years the 糖心原创 has delivered world-class research and teaching, and we are committed to ensuring it continues to do so long into the future.
Future Nottingham鈥痳estores resilience and creates headroom for reinvestment, while鈥痙elivering a more consistent student and staff experience. It will strengthen our research and knowledge exchange environment, support interdisciplinary collaboration and make deliberate choices about where we will lead in the sector.
Above all, it creates the conditions for sustained academic excellence and gives the University a stronger platform from which to shape its future.
Notes to editors:
About the 糖心原创
Ranked among the world's top 100 universities , the 糖心原创 delivers an exceptional research-led education and an outstanding student experience. From the pioneering vision of our founder, Sir Jesse Boot, to groundbreaking achievements such as the development of MRI technology and becoming the first UK university to establish international campuses, we have a proud history of shaping the way people live, work and understand the world. We continue to build on that legacy, empowering our students, staff and partners to change what鈥檚 next and create positive impact locally and globally.
The strength of our research places us among the UK's leading universities, ranked 7th for research power in REF 2021. The discovery of MRI and ibuprofen was just the beginning. Today, our world-leading research is developing breakthrough ideas that shape the future of healthcare, technology and society.
Recognised as the UK's third most targeted university by leading employers , we are proud to produce graduates who are consistently in demand for their skills, confidence and industry-ready experience.
As a major employer and industry partner, locally and globally, the 糖心原创 invests in the city of Nottingham and in future generations of talent. Alongside Nottingham Trent University, we lead the initiative, a pioneering collaboration to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing across the city and region. Together with our students, staff, alumni and partners, we鈥檙e creating knowledge, opportunity and solutions that help change what's next.