Workers fear more cuts at university’s nursing school

Martin Shipton

Fears are growing among staff at Cardiff University’s nursing school that a further attempt is under way to close it down.

The school was initially targeted for closure in a series of cuts announced by the university in January 2025, but was reprieved following a huge campaign led by the University and College Union (UCU).

A nursing school insider told Nation.Cymru: “You may recall the debacle at Cardiff University around 18 months ago, when the University Executive Board (UEB) was proposing to remove Nursing from its portfolio of programmes.

“Thankfully, following considerable opposition, we were granted a reprieve, although I suspect the uncertainty surrounding our future is far from over.

“Following that decision, Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) reduced our student commissions across Adult, Child and Mental Health Nursing. Then, in December 2025, HEIW went out to tender for the Provision of Health Professional Education and Training Services – South-East Wales Nursing. That tender has now been awarded, and I am reliably informed that Cardiff Metropolitan University has secured some, if not all, of the contract.

“So, if my understanding is correct, HEIW effectively reduced the number of commissioned student places at Cardiff University, only to subsequently offer those places to other Approved Education Institutions (AEIs). It raises some serious questions about workforce planning, the rationale behind commissioning decisions and the longer-term implications for established nursing provision at Cardiff.

“Meanwhile, as you know, our delightful Vice Chancellor has been rather vocal recently, suggesting that Cardiff is not Oxford or Cambridge and that we should stop trying to operate a scaled-up version of that model.

“Perhaps I am being overly cynical, but reading between the lines, I am increasingly concerned about her vision for the university and what it means for our future as a Russell Group institution. I appreciate that this is my personal interpretation, and perhaps my scepticism is getting the better of me, but I cannot help feeling that she does not fully appreciate the value of Cardiff’s Russell Group identity, nor the importance of maintaining a comprehensive university with a strong portfolio of professionally focused disciplines.

“Nursing contributes so much beyond student numbers and financial margins, including research, healthcare workforce development, public service and our wider civic responsibilities across Wales.

“I genuinely worry about where all this is heading. Having already experienced the upheaval, uncertainty and loss of valued colleagues through the previous restructuring, morale remains fragile.

“Many of my colleagues and I are anticipating another round of redundancies in 2027, particularly if the university’s financial and academic direction continues along its current trajectory. I sincerely hope that UCU can work its magic again, because I fear that without a strong collective voice, we may find ourselves facing another very difficult period.”

The South-East Wales Nursing Education Procurement is a £34.46m contract commissioned by HEIW and managed by NHS Wales Shared Services Partnership. The tender covers full-time pre-registration adult and mental health nursing programmes across Cardiff, the Vale of Glamorgan, Monmouthshire and Newport.

The contract runs for an initial three-year term from August 2027 to July 2030.

Planned

A spokesperson for Cardiff University said: “As you know, we don’t comment on unnamed sources but we will correct misinformation. On the two points that are directed at Cardiff the following needs to be noted – and corrected.

“Cardiff University requested the reduction in commissioned numbers for Adult Nursing in response to our Academic Futures transformation project – it was planned.

“The university has achieved its commissioned recruitment targets for 2026/27. There are no plans for redundancies within the School of Healthcare Sciences – and any claims suggesting otherwise are inaccurate and misleading.”