After 36 years delivering courses and programmes to the local community, the University’s services in Tonbridge will come to an end next week, bringing to a close a unique chapter in our history.

The University has been operating from its Avebury Avenue site in Tonbridge since 1983 and was the first UK building to be specially constructed as a regional satellite University Centre. From its humble origins in mobile classrooms, it developed to support hundreds of students through its dedicated programmes for adult learners, which ranged from accredited study options to short courses. Staff at the Centre were also able to form valuable links with the West Kent community, through events like the Tonbridge Arts Festival, the annual Pint of Science Festival and networking events for local businesses.

To encourage access to the Centre, short courses at Tonbridge were always competitively priced with costs supported by the University. This approach is sadly no longer viable in the current financial context, and with the Centre having been closed to the public for a number of months due to Covid-19, it will now not reopen for further courses from 31 August 2020. Students and local stakeholders have been informed of plans, including options for alternative study opportunities such as the U3A.

The University remains fully committed to delivering wider services for people in Kent and will continue to look into how people can best study and engage with us across the county as part of our ongoing regional engagement plans. Kent-franchised programmes in the creative arts will also continue unaffected at West Kent University Centre (part of West Kent College).

Vice-Chancellor Professor Karen Cox said: “I’d like to thank both staff and tutors at the Tonbridge Centre for all their work to deliver a fantastic range of courses over the years to their committed students, and wish everyone associated with the Centre all the best for the future.”