Goldsmiths Art School Strike Sets UK University Record At 130 Days

(MENAFN- USA Art News) A strike at Goldsmiths, a University of London art school, has now lasted 130 days, making it the longest in UK higher education history. More than 50 postgraduate fine art students at the London institution stated that they“are once again paying the price for a dispute the university has failed to resolve.”

Members of the Goldsmiths University and College Union (GUCU) initiated action short of a strike on April 27 and began an indefinite full strike on June 8. The industrial action stems from the university's ongoing restructuring program and proposed academic redundancies. The current duration surpasses the previous record held by the University of Brighton.

An open letter from Goldsmiths MFA students highlighted significant disruption, noting that 10 out of 12 staff members are on strike. The students reported,“Before enrolling, incoming students were not told the extent of the strike, or how severely it would affect teaching. Students have had no academic or workshop inductions, and second years are relied upon to explain how the course functions, whilst being unclear of the structure of their final year and examinations.” Additionally, second-year students have yet to receive marks or feedback from their interim assessments. The letter also claimed that failure to pay term fees by October 31 would result in almost immediate withdrawal, with students still owing 25% of the term's fees under university guidelines.

A spokesperson for Goldsmiths confirmed engagement with GUCU throughout the dispute, stating that three resolution offers have been made, with the latest one rejected. The spokesperson added,“We have taken extensive steps to minimise the impact on students and maintain teaching and academic support across affected programmes. Fewer than 2% of programme modules across the university are currently impacted by industrial action. Any disruption is regrettable, and our priority remains supporting students to progress and complete their studies successfully.”

Goldsmiths has undergone extensive restructuring in the past five years, launching the Recovery program in 2021 and the Transformation program in 2024. According to GUCU, the Recovery program generated £7.6 million in recurrent savings, while the Transformation program yielded an additional £16.1 million in savings. The institution is renowned for its art alumni, including Damien Hirst, Steve McQueen, and Sarah Lucas. Nine Goldsmiths graduates have won the Turner Prize, among them Gillian Wearing in 1997 and Laure Prouvost in 2013.

Source: The Art Newspaper

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