Cash crisis university criticised
 There have been a series of protests outside the university |
A financial mismanagement report on a London university has found board members were aware unfair funding claims were made for the institution.
London Metropolitan University (LMU) was ordered to repay £36.5m after issuing false data on student numbers.
A draft report into the crisis, seen by the Press Association, finds the board knew it was using a wrong definition to calculate student levels.
LMU said it would learn "important lessons" from the report.
The problem arose because the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE ) only provides universities with money for a student who sits all their exams at the end of the year.
 |  I fail to see how the board of governors can remain in post after such a damning report  Sally Hunt, University and College Union |
LMU admitted it counted students as having completed the period if they moved into the next year, regardless of whether they had sat all exams.
Under the LMU's definition, just 3% of students failed to complete the year. Under the real definition the non-completion rate was 30%.
The payback order threw London's biggest university - with 34,000 students - into financial crisis.
Lecturers worried about redundancy during the fallout have staged several strikes.
Now the inquiry, led by Sir David Melville, lays blame for the fiasco squarely at the door of former vice-chancellor Brian Roper and his board.
"The unique level of the LMU clawback is attributable to a combination of ignoring the HEFCE definition and a failure to address very high levels of incomplete modules and student drop-out," the report said.
'Renewed focus'
"It must be the case that the board of governors and the audit committee should take their share of corporate responsibility for a failure of this magnitude."
An LMU spokesman said: "We are confident the appointment of a new vice-chancellor, subsequent action taken by the board and the university's new strategic plan will allow London Met to renew our focus on students and their education."
University and College Union general secretary, Sally Hunt, said: "I fail to see how the board of governors can remain in post after such a damning report.
"Sir David Melville's report completely vindicates everything the union has been saying yet, whilst it might be nice to be right, it is no comfort in these extraordinary circumstances."
倫敦城市大學 騙4.6億資助
http://paper.wenweipo.com [2009-11-24]
英國倫敦城市大學(LMU)被揭發虛報資料，騙取3,600萬英鎊(約4.6億港元)的資助，負責資助英國大學的組織「英格蘭高等教育資助委員會」(Hefce)指該大學濫用公帑，採取史無前例的措施，呼籲該大學的董事集體辭職。
Hefce致函倫敦城市大學董事長，呼籲董事會的高級成員在6天內「考慮他們的職位」，並下令該大學歸還3,600萬英鎊的資助。預期此舉將導致該大學陷入財政危機，可能造成幾百名大學職員失業。
調查報告此前指出，倫敦城市大學虛報資助幾千名學生，又未能為學生留下記錄，以確保他們在學年結束 前參與考試，但卻繼續根據人為的低離校率申請政府資助，騙取高於實際學生人數的所需的資助。報告指，該大學似乎沒有考慮Hefce的統計數字和發現，又沒 有正視Hefce的詳細報告結論。
倫敦城市大學承認，不管學生是否參與所有考試，只要學生升讀下一個學年，就代表他們完成了該學 期，根據該大學這個標準，只有3%學生未能完成一個學年，但如果根據實際的情況，則有高達30%學生未能完成一個學年。該大學表示會汲取教訓，當 Hefce的報告有定案後，董事會將於下月開會研究。
去年向達賴頒博士學位
倫敦城市大學有3.4萬名學生，提供近500個課程，並聘用了2,400名教學和非教學職員。該校曾在去年向達賴喇嘛頒發榮譽博士學位，原來期間一直詐騙政府4.6億港元津助。
負責撰寫報告的梅爾維爾爵士指責倫敦城市大學的高級管理人員，包括大學秘書長、財政主管和助理副校長等，指他們沒有處理好學生完成學業的比例，在沒有考慮實際情況、批評和諮詢下作出決定。
Hefce的執行總長朗蘭斯在信中表示，委員會很難對倫敦城市大學的管理有信心，根據該大學以往的經驗，該大學未能保障公帑適當運用，因此董事會成員和高級職員要考慮他們的職位，並撤換管理層，才可望恢復對該大學的信心。 ■《獨立報》/《泰晤士報》/英國廣播公司
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