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Ambleside college to become post grad campus
A LONG tradition of teacher training in Ambleside is to end as the town's Charlotte Mason campus becomes a specialist postgraduate and conference centre for the University of Cumbria.
Major plans for the future of the site will see undergraduate study cease altogether in the town by 2013 ending a 121-year association with the educationist Charlotte Mason.
Instead, the University of Cumbria, formed last year, hopes to transform the former St Martin's College to provide high-quality facilities and accommodation for students undertaking Masters degrees, PhDs and short courses with linked distance learning.
It is also hoped newly-developed conference facilities will attract business from private firms generating a "lucrative income" for the institution.
Teacher training and outdoor studies courses will be transferred over a three-year period to campuses in Carlisle, Newton Rigg, Penrith and Lancaster.
For full story see the March 21 edition of The Westmorland Gazette.
9:33am Friday 21st March 2008
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CommentPosted by: emma willerton, ulverston on 2:31pm Mon 24 Mar 08
I would like to express my concern over the recent announcement to reduce the provision of courses at the Ambleside campus over the next few years.
As a former student of the university and now a local resident and employee, I see this proposal being detrimental on three counts. Firstly to the village of Ambleside, secondly to the university itself and finally to the wider Cumbrian community.
Having lived and also worked in Ambleside for six years I am aware of the overriding importance the University has at the heart of the village. Local businesses rely on the student population for staff and also for income, especially in the off season. The students also account for the occupancy of hundreds of properties in the village. Without these tenancies and taking into account the cost of property at this time, I believe it is inevitable that houses will be let as holiday cottages or sold to second home owners, thus turning the Ambleside into a ghost town in the winter months as has happened to so many Lakeland villages.
In terms of the university itself and the future of the Ambleside campus, I cannot comprehend how providing solely postgraduate education can be successful on this site. Surely in order to provide the best postgraduate courses and to be recognised for this it is imperative that the university has an existing reputation in this field. The University of Cumbria is not and cannot aspire to be one of the most successful research and development institutions in the country as such titles are already held by well established universities and colleges. I believe that Ambleside relies on its undergraduate population to support the post graduate courses and without this the long term future of the University of Cumbria in Ambleside would indeed be in jeopardy.
Ambleside and Charlotte Mason College are renowned for excellence in providing teacher training and outdoor degrees. This reputation is one to be proud of and should undoubtedly be maintained.
Finally, the wider community, beyond that which is rooted in Ambleside undoubtedly benefits from the existence of the university and the undergraduate students. Local schools from the west coast of Cumbria and across South Lakeland receive students on teaching practise placements throughout the year. This is an invaluable way of ensuring some young people settle in the area and maintain a healthy diversity in the population of the county. After receiving a fantastic education in Ambleside I chose to settle locally and intend to bring up my family here in Cumbria. My contribution along with that of many of my peers surely adds to the case for maintaining under graduate provision in Ambleside.
Studying at Ambleside is inherently different to other larger universities. There you are not simply another student or another statistic. In this institution you have a genuine sense of identity. To study in Ambleside is to study in an inspirational place, ideal for exploring all aspects of Outdoor Studies, the classroom for which is well and truly on your doorstep.
I firmly believe that the university, the village and the wider community cannot possibly be sustained in its current form if undergraduate provision is removed.
I would like to express my concern over the recent announcement to reduce the provision of courses at the Ambleside campus over the next few years.
As a former student of the university and now a local resident and employee, I see this proposal being detrimental on three counts. Firstly to the village of Ambleside, secondly to the university itself and finally to the wider Cumbrian community.
Having lived and also worked in Ambleside for six years I am aware of the overriding importance the University has at the heart of the village. Local businesses rely on the student population for staff and also for income, especially in the off season. The students also account for the occupancy of hundreds of properties in the village. Without these tenancies and taking into account the cost of property at this time, I believe it is inevitable that houses will be let as holiday cottages or sold to second home owners, thus turning the Ambleside into a ghost town in the winter months as has happened to so many Lakeland villages.
In terms of the university itself and the future of the Ambleside campus, I cannot comprehend how providing solely postgraduate education can be successful on this site. Surely in order to provide the best postgraduate courses and to be recognised for this it is imperative that the university has an existing reputation in this field. The University of Cumbria is not and cannot aspire to be one of the most successful research and development institutions in the country as such titles are already held by well established universities and colleges. I believe that Ambleside relies on its undergraduate population to support the post graduate courses and without this the long term future of the University of Cumbria in Ambleside would indeed be in jeopardy.
Ambleside and Charlotte Mason College are renowned for excellence in providing teacher training and outdoor degrees. This reputation is one to be proud of and should undoubtedly be maintained.
Finally, the wider community, beyond that which is rooted in Ambleside undoubtedly benefits from the existence of the university and the undergraduate students. Local schools from the west coast of Cumbria and across South Lakeland receive students on teaching practise placements throughout the year. This is an invaluable way of ensuring some young people settle in the area and maintain a healthy diversity in the population of the county. After receiving a fantastic education in Ambleside I chose to settle locally and intend to bring up my family here in Cumbria. My contribution along with that of many of my peers surely adds to the case for maintaining under graduate provision in Ambleside.
Studying at Ambleside is inherently different to other larger universities. There you are not simply another student or another statistic. In this institution you have a genuine sense of identity. To study in Ambleside is to study in an inspirational place, ideal for exploring all aspects of Outdoor Studies, the classroom for which is well and truly on your doorstep.
I firmly believe that the university, the village and the wider community cannot possibly be sustained in its current form if undergraduate provision is removed.
Posted by: Luke Connolly, Ambleside on 3:03pm Wed 26 Mar 08
As a current student we feel let down by the university who only recently told us that our campus was safe.
Closing our campus to undergrad studnets will be majorly detrimental to the whole of the south lakes as higher education facilities shift to north cumbria and lancashire.
Further more, we have set up petitions as well as a group on Facebook which has over 400 members and rising, not to mention an online petition set up so other former students who are nolonger in cumbria can sign to show thier support.
[bold]Keep Higher education in South Cumbria!
Show your support!
Thankyou. [/bold]
As a current student we feel let down by the university who only recently told us that our campus was safe.
Closing our campus to undergrad studnets will be majorly detrimental to the whole of the south lakes as higher education facilities shift to north cumbria and lancashire.
Further more, we have set up petitions as well as a group on Facebook which has over 400 members and rising, not to mention an online petition set up so other former students who are nolonger in cumbria can sign to show thier support.
Keep Higher education in South Cumbria!
Show your support!
Thankyou. Posted by: Allyson Ingall, Kendal on 7:14pm Sun 6 Apr 08
Charlotte Mason woudl turn in her grave.
A sad day for all of us-past students and current education employers-when there are no undergrads at CMC
Charlotte Mason woudl turn in her grave.
A sad day for all of us-past students and current education employers-when there are no undergrads at CMC
Posted by: M Williams, cumbria on 8:16pm Sun 6 Apr 08
Some of the best years of my life were at Charlotte Mason. Miss Bolton and Miss Moreton and many others would turn in their graves. The university is not thinking of anything other than money. Without the college there the amount of money being put into the town is much reduced. Cumbria is not just for tourists its for the people who live and work here. I came to Cumbria 40 years ago and am still here! Is Cumbria County Council involved in this with all the changes they are promoting at the moment? They are certainly not thinking of the area in what they are proposing.
Some of the best years of my life were at Charlotte Mason. Miss Bolton and Miss Moreton and many others would turn in their graves. The university is not thinking of anything other than money. Without the college there the amount of money being put into the town is much reduced. Cumbria is not just for tourists its for the people who live and work here. I came to Cumbria 40 years ago and am still here! Is Cumbria County Council involved in this with all the changes they are promoting at the moment? They are certainly not thinking of the area in what they are proposing.
Posted by: Margaret Halstead, Whitehaven on 9:43am Tue 8 Apr 08
It seems a great shame that the University of Cumbria should lose one of the most central sites within Cumbria. To run postgraduate courses and act as a conference centre seems to foster the site as a tourist centre, rather than utilising it particularly for outdoor education. In this sphere it has an acknowledged reputation, which impacts on the town, in that Ambleside is excellent for good equipment. The teacher training has impacted on every school in Cumbria, and although the logistics of transporting students has caused nightmares for years, it has still worked successfully.
I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent at Charlotte Mason as librarian in the 80s, and have watched its development with interest. There always has been an awareness that it is a spectacular conference centre, but it seems a great shame to lose other aspects that have contributed so much to the area
It seems a great shame that the University of Cumbria should lose one of the most central sites within Cumbria. To run postgraduate courses and act as a conference centre seems to foster the site as a tourist centre, rather than utilising it particularly for outdoor education. In this sphere it has an acknowledged reputation, which impacts on the town, in that Ambleside is excellent for good equipment. The teacher training has impacted on every school in Cumbria, and although the logistics of transporting students has caused nightmares for years, it has still worked successfully.
I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent at Charlotte Mason as librarian in the 80s, and have watched its development with interest. There always has been an awareness that it is a spectacular conference centre, but it seems a great shame to lose other aspects that have contributed so much to the area
Posted by: Lisa, Ambleside on 8:09pm Wed 9 Apr 08
As I understand it the Ambleside campus is the toughest of all the university sites to operate from for many reasons:
restrictive planning policies in the national park; poor quality teaching and student housing stock; general lack of space on the campus; local nimbyism for example, as I understand, many potential students turn down offers of places on courses at Ambleside because of the outdated halls of residence and poor student recreation offer. When St Martins published plans to address such issues, such business critical actions were blocked by local opposition. The community can't have it both ways. Arguments that revolve around the change in the availability of 'cheap labour' and 'income' for local businesses are simply not issues the university can truly be held accountable for - it is not their mission to prodive the local economy with minimum wage staff and shoulder season occupancy. I am undecided about if this is the right move for the university as I have not been privy to all the information that has led to such a decision. What I do believe is that some of the arguments I have read recently are arguably fuelled by self interest or maybe a kneejerk reaction to change.
As I understand it the Ambleside campus is the toughest of all the university sites to operate from for many reasons:
restrictive planning policies in the national park; poor quality teaching and student housing stock; general lack of space on the campus; local nimbyism for example, as I understand, many potential students turn down offers of places on courses at Ambleside because of the outdated halls of residence and poor student recreation offer. When St Martins published plans to address such issues, such business critical actions were blocked by local opposition. The community can't have it both ways. Arguments that revolve around the change in the availability of 'cheap labour' and 'income' for local businesses are simply not issues the university can truly be held accountable for - it is not their mission to prodive the local economy with minimum wage staff and shoulder season occupancy. I am undecided about if this is the right move for the university as I have not been privy to all the information that has led to such a decision. What I do believe is that some of the arguments I have read recently are arguably fuelled by self interest or maybe a kneejerk reaction to change.
Posted by: Matt Durschmidt, Ambleside on 2:34pm Wed 16 Apr 08
[bold]Another nail in the lid of Amblesides coffin.[/bold]
Having been lucky enough to have lived in Ambleside all my life, I find it a very depressing proposition that the village is going to lose most of the little youth it has left.
The impact this decision will have on the community will be huge, and I’m not just talking economically – yes businesses will lose out and yes the local economy will suffer, after all students do spend money in a unique way (as if it never runs out!). But the community will lose even more; a sense of vitality, a sense of fun, a sense life, and something even more important than all of that; it will lose its future.
Ambleside needs more young people not less. The village suffers from extortionate house and rental prices, massive cost of living increases, and very few well paid jobs. This has led to a population where nearly 26% of residents are retired, 18% are immigrants, and nearly 50% of all houses are second homes or holiday lets.
The student population makes up more than 5% of Amblesides population, a population with an average age of 41 years old – the decision to end undergraduate courses in Ambleside is narrow minded, greedy, irresponsible, and without reason.
Another nail in the lid of Amblesides coffin.
Having been lucky enough to have lived in Ambleside all my life, I find it a very depressing proposition that the village is going to lose most of the little youth it has left.
The impact this decision will have on the community will be huge, and I’m not just talking economically – yes businesses will lose out and yes the local economy will suffer, after all students do spend money in a unique way (as if it never runs out!). But the community will lose even more; a sense of vitality, a sense of fun, a sense life, and something even more important than all of that; it will lose its future.
Ambleside needs more young people not less. The village suffers from extortionate house and rental prices, massive cost of living increases, and very few well paid jobs. This has led to a population where nearly 26% of residents are retired, 18% are immigrants, and nearly 50% of all houses are second homes or holiday lets.
The student population makes up more than 5% of Amblesides population, a population with an average age of 41 years old – the decision to end undergraduate courses in Ambleside is narrow minded, greedy, irresponsible, and without reason.
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