University of Dundee Strategic Advisory Taskforce report

10 Aug 2025 04:06 PM

The University of Dundee Strategic Advisory Taskforce was established by Scottish Ministers, working with the University, Scottish Funding Council and Dundee City Council, to provide advice to inform decisions on the University's future. This is the final report of the Taskforce.

Chapter 1: University of Dundee Strategic Advisory Taskforce

Purpose of the Taskforce

“Scottish Ministers, working together with the University of Dundee (the University), the Scottish Funding Council (SFC), and the City of Dundee Council, established the University of Dundee Strategic Advisory Taskforce (the Taskforce) in April 2025.

“The remit of the Taskforce is to draw together relevant expertise to advise the University, SFC, the City of Dundee, and the Scottish Ministers, such that any decisions made about the University’s short, medium and long term financial sustainability take full account of its impact on the City, the region, and the country as a whole; and do everything possible to protect the interests of students and staff, taking account of all potential sources of funding and support.”

In establishing the Taskforce, all parties recognised the University as an internationally renowned higher education institution with an excellent reputation for its undergraduate and post graduate provision and world leading research. It was also acknowledged as playing a crucial role in the landscape of Scotland and the UK, with its graduates making a valuable contribution to all sectors including health, education, justice, business and the arts.

The University is a fundamental part of the economic and social makeup of the City of Dundee and the Tay Cities Region (TCR). It is a major employer, a key driver of economic growth, and an asset that draws students and researchers to the area from across the UK and many other countries. It is also a key institution in the TCR’s exceptional learning and research offering, which includes the Universities of St Andrews, Abertay, and Highlands and Islands Perth campus, Dundee and Angus College, Scotland’s Rural College, and the James Hutton Institute which offers world leading scientific solutions for sustainable land management, crops and natural resources that support thriving communities.

The University is an autonomous institution responsible for its own strategic, operational and financial planning and implementation. It faces immediate challenges to its financial sustainability, linked to wider financial pressures across the sector as a whole, but with its own very specific issues to deal with. The University’s leadership is developing plans to recover from the current critical situation, and to move to a place of medium and long-term sustainability. The senior team is being supported by the SFC, with additional advice and support offered by Scottish Ministers.

The University is an independent institution and registered Charity, subject to its own governance and accountability. The Taskforce is external to and independent of the University, and its function is purely advisory, not directive. All final decisions will be made by the appropriate governance structures whether the University, SFC, or the Scottish Government.

Scope

The scope of the Taskforce is to provide advice to inform the development and implementation of a financial recovery plan that takes into consideration the wider context of the City and the TCR. Specifically, the Taskforce is asked to advise on the current impact of the University and of any changes or reforms to:

1. the regional and national skills base;
2. research and innovation;
3. the attractiveness of the City, and the ability to continue to grow the local economy and drive local economic development.

In addition, the Taskforce has commented on: the context in which the University is operating; the particular issues facing the University; building on existing strengths of the University; the size and shape of the University; potential sources of funding and support; people and culture; and governance. Clear advice is embedded in each of these areas, and the Taskforce suggests that the University should give these matters careful consideration. In particular, the University is advised to address the explicit challenges set out in paragraph 26 and paragraph 48 of this report.

Work of the Taskforce

The Taskforce held five full meetings in the period spanning late-April to mid-July 2025, and has prepared this report for the University, the SFC, the City of Dundee and Scottish Ministers.

A series of five workshops was held in the last week of June and the first week of July 2025, each led by a senior member of staff from the University, facilitated by the Scottish Government, and attended by some members of the Taskforce or their representatives. The topics covered were: the Regional and National Skills Base, Income Generation, Shared Services, the Future Vision for Research, and Dundee City, Region and Communities.

This work generated helpful insights, discussion points and proposed actions which can be taken forward at the appropriate time by the University as part of its recovery process, incorporated in future operational planning, and developed further in collaboration with further and higher education partners, and colleagues from the City, Tay Cities Region, economic development agencies, and relevant industries.

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