The University of Edinburgh has announced plans to cut staff positions as part of a radical cost-saving strategy to address a £140 million hole in its finances. Principal Sir Peter Mathieson informed staff on February 25, 2025, that the institution must implement “radical university-wide actions” that will lead to “a smaller staff base and lower operating costs”.
Edinburgh University, one of Scotland’s four “ancient” universities founded in 1582, must save approximately 10 percent of its annual turnover over the next 18 months.
This amounts to around £140 million, slightly more than the university’s monthly operating costs of £120 million.
The university aims to restore financial stability by the 2026/27 academic year.
In his email to staff, Mathieson explained that the university’s spending on staff “is no longer sustainable and we must reduce it,” adding that the ongoing voluntary severance scheme would not be sufficient by itself.
The university will “work to identify the right size and shape of our academic and professional staff body, informed by a strategic rationalisation of our current educational portfolio.”
Mathieson cited several factors contributing to the financial difficulties:
- Years of teaching income not rising in line with costs
- Steeply rising utilities prices
- Inflation
- Unexpected announcements on National Insurance Contributions
- Rising employment costs
- Reduction in the UK’s attractiveness as a destination for international students10
He also blamed “inadequate” teaching funding from the Scottish government1.
The University and College Union (UCU) has branded the proposed cuts as “devastating” and “shocking.” UCU members at Edinburgh recently passed a motion of no confidence in the principal and senior management.
UCU General Secretary Jo Grady urged the university to use some of its reserves rather than cutting staff, highlighting that the institution’s most recent accounts listed net assets worth £3.1 billion.
“Professor Mathieson needs to use the billions of pounds the university boasts in wealth to protect jobs, protect provision and protect the university’s global reputation,” Grady said.
The Edinburgh UCU branch has already lodged a “failure to agree” notice with the university over its refusal to rule out compulsory redundancies.
Branch president Sophia Woodman told The Scotsman: “UCU Edinburgh is adamantly opposed to compulsory redundancies at the University of Edinburgh in the current round of budget cuts. The research done by our Joint Unions Finance Working Group shows that this university has more than adequate resources to tide it over any relative downturn in revenue.”
Woodman warned that “industrial action may be on the horizon if management does not reconsider its course of action now.”
Edinburgh’s announcement comes as part of a troubling trend in Scottish higher education. Staff at the University of Dundee began strike action this week after it said job cuts were “inevitable” as it looked to tackle a £30 million deficit.
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Several other Scottish universities have reported financial difficulties, with St Andrews, Abertay, Robert Gordon, Heriot-Watt, the University of the West of Scotland, and the University of Aberdeen all posting deficits in their most recent accounts.
In response to the sector-wide crisis, Finance Secretary Shona Robison announced on February 25 that £15 million of financial transactions would be made available to the Scottish Funding Council to support struggling higher education institutions.
A University of Edinburgh spokesperson said: “We appreciate – and share – many of the concerns raised by colleagues, students and others in our community. We know how much Edinburgh means to so many. However, we have been very clear that the current financial position we are in is not sustainable for the future, and we will be liaising with our unions throughout this process.”
