Farnham’s standing as a creative centre has long been shaped by the University for the Creative Arts (UCA), but concerns are growing as the institution faces falling rankings, restructuring and wider financial pressures.

The UCA Farnham campus is not only important for creative students in the town but it is also intertwined with Farnham’s reputation as a “World Craft Town” and the first of its kind in the UK.

UCA operates three main campuses in Farnham, Epsom and Canterbury. In 2019 UCA maintained relatively strong positions in the UK’s major university rankings, with The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide ranking it 42nd in the UK, The Guardian University Guide ranking it 13th and The Complete University Guide ranking it 48th.

At that time, the university was widely regarded as a leading specialist arts institution, with strong student engagement and solid graduate outcomes.

However, in the years following, UCA’s position began to slide. In 2020–2021 rankings remained mid-range, though minor declines were visible, with The Times placing UCA in the mid-60s and The Guardian around 32–33.

A more significant shift came in 2023 with the closure of its Rochester campus in Kent. Kent Online reported that university leaders had not publicly detailed the reasons, though financial pressures were understood to be a factor behind the decision.

In 2024–25 the University for the Creative Arts announced a £9.8 million restructuring plan aimed at reducing costs, which included proposals to cut around 20 percent of jobs. This followed a voluntary redundancy scheme which saw around 50 staff leave.

This prompted students to take action in a protest where they chalked the quad at the heart of the university with messages of support for members of staff and messages criticising management plans, including concerns over the use of artificial intelligence.

The protests were linked to the £9.8 million restructuring plan aimed at reducing costs by July 2025, reportedly including the potential loss of roles and restructuring of academic and professional services.

During the compulsory redundancy process in 2025 the vice-chancellor Jane Roscoe stepped down “by mutual agreement”, with limited detail provided publicly as to why the decision was made.

Ms Roscoe was replaced by Professor Mark Ellul as joint acting vice-chancellor and chief operating officer of UCA alongside Professor Melanie Gray.

In the 2025–26 academic year, the university reached one of its lowest points in national rankings, placing in The Times 2026 guide at 127th out of 130 universities, including last place for graduate prospects. In The Guardian 2026 guide it was placed outside the top 100 and in the Complete University Guide 2026 it was ranked around 111th–112th.

This marks a significant fall from the mid-range and stronger positions held just a few years earlier.

The recent redundancies at the University for the Creative Arts campus in Farnham also reflect wider financial pressures affecting universities across England, at a time when students are increasingly weighing the cost of degrees against future earnings.

A spokesperson for UCA said: “It is well reported that the higher education sector is facing unprecedented financial pressures. The University for the Creative Arts, like many others in the sector, is not immune to these pressures.”

Sector analysis from the Office for Students suggests that nearly half of higher education providers could be operating in deficit by the 2025–26 academic year.

The regulator’s Financial Sustainability of Higher Education Providers in England report highlights a combination of rising costs, weaker-than-expected student recruitment and long-term funding constraints. Universities had forecast stronger student growth than materialised, leaving a projected £437.8 million shortfall in tuition fee income across the sector.

As a result, around 45 percent of universities may record deficits, signalling growing financial instability.

UCA’s own financial report illustrates this position. The university reported total income of approximately £156.7 million against expenditure of £162.4 million, resulting in an annual operating deficit of around £5.7 million.

The university’s income structure also shows a heavy reliance on student fees, which account for around 88 percent of total income, while government funding contributes only a small proportion.

These sector-wide challenges are particularly acute for smaller or specialist institutions such as UCA. Unlike large research-intensive universities, specialist arts universities tend to have fewer alternative income streams and rely heavily on tuition fees.

UCA’s expenditure reflects the high costs associated with delivering specialist creative education. Around 72 percent of spending is directed towards teaching, research staff, technicians and library services, while additional costs include estates, facilities and student services.

Despite these financial pressures, UCA has continued to invest in infrastructure and teaching facilities, allocating around £6.6 million to capital projects, including building improvements and teaching spaces. While these investments support the quality of creative education, they also place additional strain on budgets when operating deficits persist.

As the Office for Students warns, financial pressures across the sector are unlikely to ease quickly. Even with potential tuition fee increases planned from 2026, the regulator predicts that a significant proportion of universities could continue to face deficits.

At the same time, national data shows fewer young people are choosing creative pathways. There is also evidence that students are increasingly opting for more vocational or career-focused routes, with some humanities and arts degree subjects seeing sharp declines in enrolment, while courses linked to employment outcomes continue to grow.

Jo Grady, general secretary of the University and College Union, said: “UCA has reduced staff numbers through multiple rounds of redundancies, which has impacted student learning and its reputation. Despite this, management continues to pursue changes to terms and conditions while investing in new buildings. It is important that investment in staff is prioritised.”

Students are also feeling the impact of the university’s fall in rankings, with some expressing concern about future job prospects and the value of their degrees.

One student graduating from UCA this year said: “It’s concerning and it makes me feel like I’m less likely to be employed. I’m not expecting to be able to get a job straight away after I graduate and I feel I could be waiting for some time before my degree becomes useful. I feel people from other universities will stand a better chance for graduate roles as we are ranked much lower than the university used to be.”

The student added: “We have seen the impact on learning as well. We have seen more staff leave and it has affected the quality of teaching.”

The graduate job market has become more uncertain in recent years as artificial intelligence and wider economic pressures affect employment trends.

Youth unemployment is at its highest level since 2021, with around 16 percent of those aged 16 to 25 currently out of work, and there are estimated to be fewer than 100,000 graduate roles available.

Approximately 2,500 students will be graduating from UCA’s three campuses this year, many of whom will be entering an increasingly competitive jobs market, while also carrying significant levels of student debt.