A specialist arts university has said it has been left with no choice but to look at making compulsory redundancies because of the ¡°significant financial pressures¡± it faces. Meanwhile,?Durham University has confirmed that 200 staff are leaving as part of its own cost-cutting drive.

Arts University Bournemouth said it was looking at making 75 potential redundancies across its academic, technical and professional services teams out of a total of about 400 staff overall.

It said it had already taken a range of steps to reduce costs, including a pay reduction for its vice-chancellor and chief executive, Lisa Mann, but ¡°the financial outlook remains difficult¡±.

Mann said that ¡°every effort has been made to avoid potential compulsory redundancies, and we recognise the impact this will have on valued colleagues¡±.

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¡°However, the scale of the financial challenges we face ¨C particularly in the context of reduced student numbers ¨C means that we must take further action now to protect the long-term sustainability of the university.¡±

Most UK universities have been forced to make deep cuts to their workforces after facing a cocktail of rising costs, frozen fees and declining enrolments.

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Durham vice-chancellor Karen O¡¯Brien has written to staff at the Russell Group university to outline progress on its own efforts to reduce staff costs by ?20 million over the next two academic years.

She said the institution had achieved ?14 million of savings, just under its total savings target of ?15 million from professional services by 2026-27.?

A total of ?9.6 million of this had been achieved through voluntary severance, with more than 200 staff members taking this option. A further ?4.3 million was down to vacancies being removed. Impacted staff will leave the university between 31 May and 31 July.

While the university did not rule out compulsory redundancies, O¡¯Brien said she was ¡°confident¡± that it can deliver the remaining savings through voluntary means.

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She said ¡°the financial challenges we and others across the sector face remain acute. International student recruitment remains volatile¡±, and acknowledged that ¡°these measures inevitably bring change, which I understand can be challenging¡±.

On top of its staff cost savings, the university said it has a ¡°stringent target¡± for non-staff savings as ¡°costs continue to rise¡±.

Durham¡¯s University and College Union (UCU) branch has previously?voted in favour of strike action over the cuts.?

It recently passed a motion banning UCU general secretary Jo Grady from its picket lines and branch meetings over?an ongoing internal dispute between Grady and UCU management and some of its staff members.

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juliette.rowsell@timeshighereducation.com