These are due to a combination of external factors largely outside of our control which means that our income is lower than forecast while overall costs continue to increase. We are therefore taking steps to reduce costs and increase income where possible, to ensure that we remain in a healthy financial position.
We are implementing a recovery plan for 2024/25 that has put us on a sustainable financial pathway, allowing us to continue to be a large and popular university. This is focused on student recruitment and student success, growing our revenue, and controlling our costs.
In September, we welcomed nearly 28,000 new and returning students to Sheffield Hallam for the 2024/25 academic year. This demonstrates that Sheffield Hallam continues to be one of the largest and most popular universities in the country.
To help maintain this position, we will soon open our flagship Howard Street development in Sheffield. It will deliver a modern, efficient, and environmentally sustainable addition to our campus, providing outstanding facilities for our students and staff. It will also deliver significant regeneration of a key gateway to the city centre and provide a new public green space for local people.
We are also seeking opportunities to diversify our income. For example, we have recently launched an online offer to deliver masters-level courses remotely and flexibly. We also have plans for a London campus from 2026, as the Higher Education partner in the new Brent Cross Town development, a regeneration project being financed by a private developer and Barnet Council.
Our 2024/25 budget requires us to save over £40m, 12% of our £330m turnover, and we will need to reduce costs further in future years.
Several cost-saving measures have already been put in place to address this challenge, including reductions in non-pay budgets and Voluntary Severance Schemes. These schemes have enabled us to reduce staff numbers in Academic and Professional Services areas without compulsory redundancies. During 2024, around 500 people left the University through voluntary severance – over 10% of our workforce.
We have also streamlined our University Executive Board structure, developing a more integrated and efficient leadership of academic and professional services, which has also contributed to our cost savings.
As we move forward, we will continue to seek to avoid compulsory redundancies where possible and will continue to engage with trade union representatives throughout any change programmes as part of collective consultation.
Despite the challenges we face, Sheffield Hallam continues to be one of the largest and most popular universities in the country. Our students bring significant economic, cultural and social benefits to the city.
Throughout this period of change we are working to ensure that we minimise any disruption for our students and maintain the levels of quality that we are known for.
We are also committed to our award-winning research and innovation, which continue to secure significant external funding. Furthermore, we remain a committed anchor institution in the city and region, seeking to improve the lives of local residents through our numerous activities that deliver significant civic impact.
This is a difficult time for our University community, as it is for universities across the country that are having to make tough decisions about the way they operate. At Hallam, we are proud of our Gold-rating teaching in the Teaching Excellence Framework, our award-winning research, and our role in the city and region. Our mission to transform lives will continue to shape all that we do, and we will work to ensure that any changes we make are consistent with this ambition.
