Kingston University London is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are "the key sites of Knowledge production modes, knowledge production", along with "intergenerational ...

located within the

Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames is a London boroughs, borough in southwest London. The main town is Kingston upon Thames and it includes Chessington, Malden Rushett, New Malden, Surbiton and Tolworth. It is the oldest of the four List ...

, in South West London, England. Its roots go back to the Kingston Technical Institute, founded in 1899. It received university status in 1992, before which the institution was known as Kingston Polytechnic. Kingston has around 17,000 students and a turnover of £192 million. It has four campuses situated in Kingston and

Roehampton Roehampton is an area in southwest London, sharing its SW15 postcode with neighbouring Putney and Kingston Vale, and takes up a far western strip, running north to south, in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It contains a number of large counc ...

. The university specialises in the arts, design, fashion, science, engineering, and business and is organised into four faculties: Kingston School of Art, Faculty of Business and Social Sciences (which combines Kingston Business School and the School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences), Faculty of Health, Science, Social Care and Education and Faculty of Engineering, Computing and the Environment. The Kingston Business School is

CNAA The Council for National Academic Awards (CNAA) was the national degree-awarding authority in the United Kingdom from 1965 until its dissolution on 20 April 1993. Background The establishment followed the recommendation of the UK government Com ...

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular a ...

degree approved. In 2017, the university won ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' University Award for teaching excellence. Kingston is a member of the

European University Association The European University Association (EUA) represents more than 800 institutions of higher education in 48 countries, providing them with a forum for cooperation and the exchange of information on higher education and research policies. Members of ...

, the

Association of Commonwealth Universities The Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) is a charitable organization that was established in 1913, and has over 400 member institutions in over 40 countries across the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth.University Alliance group.

History

Kingston was founded as Kingston Technical Institute in 1899, it offered courses in chemistry, electrical wiring, construction and nursing. In 1917 Gipsy Hill College for teacher training opened, a predecessor of Kingston University. Gipsy Hill College was created by Belle Rennie and led by an Australian named Lillian Daphne de Lissa. In 1930 the Kingston School of Art separated from the Technical Institute, later to become Kingston College of Art in 1945. In 1946 Gipsy Hill College moved to Kingston Hill. In 1951, the first Penrhyn Road campus buildings opened. Kingston was recognised as a 'Regional College of Technology' by the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

in 1957. In 1970, the College of Technology merged with the College of Art to become Kingston Polytechnic, offering 34 major courses, of which 17 were at degree level. In 1975, Kingston merged with the Gipsy Hill College of Education, incorporating the college's faculty into Kingston's Division of Educational Studies. Kingston was granted university status under the

Further and Higher Education Act 1992 The Further and Higher Education Act 1992 made changes in the funding and administration of further education and higher education within England and Wales, with consequential effects on associated matters in Scotland which had previously been g ...

. In 1993, Kingston opened the Roehampton Vale campus building and in 1995, Kingston acquired Dorich House. In June 2021, Kingston launched its Future Skills campaign, highlighting the importance of skills for innovation and the vital role they play in driving a thriving UK economy. The results of their 2021 and 2022 surveys, conducted with support from

YouGov YouGov plc is a international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm headquartered in the UK with operations in Europe, North America, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific. History 2000–2010 Stephan Shakespeare and Nadhim ...

, demonstrated key attributes such as problem-solving, critical thinking, communication, adaptability and creativity remain among the core skills most valued by employers.

Campuses and estate

Penrhyn Road

This is the main university campus located close to Kingston town centre. Students based here study Arts and Social Sciences, Civil Engineering, Computing and Information Systems and Mathematics, Earth Sciences and Geography, Statistics, Biosciences, Pharmacy, Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Science, and Radiography. Development at this site has extended to the Learning Resources Centre. In 2015, the Union of Kingston Students, moved into the main building. Penrhyn Road also houses the refurbished Fitness Centre.

Town House

Kingston University's Town House building was opened in January 2020 and is located on the Penrhyn Road campus. The six-storey building was the first by

Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...

(RIBA) Gold Medal-winning firm Grafton Architects in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and is open to students, staff and the local community. The building work was carried out by

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

-based Willmott Dixon. It features a three-floor academic library, archive, dance studios and a studio theatre. It incorporates a covered internal courtyard, two cafes and external balconies and walkways culminating in a rooftop garden with views across

Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames, colloquially known as Kingston, is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, south-west London, England. It is situated on the River Thames, south-west of Charing Cross. It is an ancient market town, notable as ...

and the River Thames. Town House has been nominated for several awards, including two ''

'' University Awards, and a RIBA London Regional Award. In October 2021, Town House was announced as the winner of the 25th RIBA

Stirling Prize The Royal Institute of British Architects Stirling Prize is a British prize for excellence in architecture. It is named after the architect James Stirling, organised and awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The ...

. In 2022 it won the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture.

Kingston Hill

Kingston Hill mainly caters to Nursing (adult, child, mental health and learning disability), Education, Business, Music and Social Care. Before 1989, this campus was known as Gipsy Hill. The Business School moved to a new building on the Kingston Hill Campus in 2012.

Knights Park

Located on Grange Road, the Knights Park campus is home to some of the students from Kingston School of Art (KSA) - architecture, art and design students. The campus is built on the northern banks of the Hogsmill River and opened in 1939. A £29 million refurbishment of the Mill Street workshops, studios and reception area, was completed in March 2020 and includes a gallery, a social space and an art shop. The regeneration project was shortlisted for a

(RIBA) London Regional Award.

Roehampton Vale

The Roehampton Vale campus was opened in 1993 by Sir William Barlow, the president of the

Royal Academy of Engineering The Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) is the United Kingdom's national academy of engineering. The Academy was founded in June 1976 as the Fellowship of Engineering with support from Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who became the first senio ...

. The site is located on Friars Avenue, on the outskirts of Kingston. This campus is purpose-built and completely dedicated to the study of engineering (aerospace, automotive, motor vehicle and mechanical engineering). Facilities on site include a wind tunnel, engineering workshops, a flight simulator, a range of vehicles, a Learjet 25 plane, several large 3D printers, plus automotive and aeronautical learning resources.

Reg Bailey Theatre Complex

Former church converted into the Kingston

Drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

students' base, the Reg Bailey has two theatres with lighting and sound equipment, three rehearsal rooms and a

costume Costume is the distinctive style of dress and/or makeup of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch—in short, culture. The term also was traditionally used to describe typica ...

room while its annexed Surrey Club is for

Dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

students. The Reg Bailey has been home to such alumni members as Ben Barnes, Sam Chan, Mandy Takhar, Alphonsia Emmanuel, Jessie Cave, Laura Harling and Trevor Eve.

Tolworth Court Sports Ground

The university's 55-acre sports ground houses twelve football pitches, two rugby pitches, three cricket squares, one American football pitch, one lacrosse pitch, two netball courts and three tennis courts.

Galleries and museums

The Stanley Picker Gallery is the Faculty's exhibition space which is now used to present a variety of research-based projects, fellowships and exhibitions. In 2003, the Stanley Picker Gallery gave birth to Transitstation, which was created/curated by Stanley Picker Fellow Dagmar Glausnitzer-Smith, and former gallery curator Charles Ryder. In 2003, the Director of Foundation Studies in Art and Design, Paul Stafford, converted a run-down public convenience in Kingston town centre into the Toilet Gallery. Kingston University runs Dorich House Museum which houses a huge collection of sculptor Dora Gordine's work, and examples of Russian Imperial art and furniture. Dorich House is also used as a meeting and conference venue.

Other locations

Additional to the four main campuses is an administration building: Hind Court on London Road which was home to the office of the Vice-Chancellor until 2018 when they moved to Holmwood House. Furthermore, art and design studies students from Kingston School of Art are based at River House, on the High Street in Kingston town centre.

Organisation

Teaching and research are organised in four faculties.

Kingston School of Art

Kingston School of Art (KSA) was established as part of Kingston Technical Institute founded in 1899. The School of Art separated from the Technical College in 1930 and left Kingston Hall Road to move to Knights Park in 1939. It became Kingston College of Art in 1945 and merged back with the Technical College to form Kingston Polytechnic in 1970. The Polytechnic later became Kingston University in 1992, under which the school was known as the Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture (FADA) until 2017 when it reverted to its historic name. Kingston School of Art delivers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes of study across three schools: The Kingston School of Art runs a number of research centres: *Contemporary Art Research Centre ("CARC"), a Research Centre within the Department of Fine Art *Colour Design Research Centre *Screen Design Research Centre *Modern Interiors Research Design *Sustainable Design Research Centre *Centre for the Contemporary Visual & Material Culture *Curating Contemporary Design Research Group *Real Estate Research Group *Fashion Industry Research Centre *Fire, Explosion and Fluid Dynamics (FEFD) *Centre for Research in Modern European Philosophy ( CRMEP)

Faculty of Business and Social Sciences

The Faculty of Business and Social Sciences combines Kingston Business School and the School of Law, Social and Behavioural Sciences. Kingston Business School (KBS) can be traced back to the 1960s. In 1985, the

approved the school's

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...

(MBA) degree and the following year KBS moved to Kingston Hill Campus. The Business School is divided into four departments:

Faculty of Health, Science, Social Care and Education

The Faculty of Health, Science, Social Care and Education was founded in August 2022 and contains courses including nursing, midwifery, social work and teacher training education. The faculty also contains life sciences and chemistry and pharmacy courses, which were previously part of Kingston's former Faculty of Science, Engineering and Computing – now the Faculty of Engineering, Computing and the Environment. The new Faculty of Health, Science, Social Care and Education was established after a formal partnership between Kingston University and

St George's, University of London St George's, University of London (SGUL), legally the St George's Hospital Medical School, was a public medical school from 1733 to 2024 in South London, England. It merged with City, University of London to form City St George's, University of ...

(SGUL) was mutually terminated in July 2022 after 26 years of working together training the next generation of healthcare workers, social workers and teachers. The faculty is based at the University's Kingston Hill and Penrhyn Road campuses in Kingston upon Thames.

Faculty of Engineering, Computing and the Environment

The Faculty of Engineering, Computing and the Environment was founded in August 2022 and contains courses including mechanical, civil and aerospace engineering, computing, cyber security, quantity surveying and geography. The faculty is based at the University's Penrhyn Road and Roehampton Vale campuses.

Academic profile

Rankings and reputation

'' placed Kingston 45th out of 128 surveyed universities. ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

Guide'' placed it at no. 92 ( Good University Guide, 2022). In 2018, Kingston was ranked 1st out of 121 institutions for its

graphic design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art that involves creating visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdisciplinary branch of ...

and

product design Product design is the process of creating new Product (business), products for businesses to sell to their customers. It involves the generation and development of ideas through a systematic process that leads to the creation of innovative products ...

courses by ''The Guardian'' in 2017. In 2017, Kingston University won ''The Guardian'' University Award for teaching excellence. Kingston is ranked as one of the top 40 universities in the UK by ''

The Guardian University Guide Three national rankings of universities in the United Kingdom are published annually by the ''Complete University Guide'' and ''The Guardian'', as well as a collaborative list by ''The Times'' and ''The Sunday Times''. Rankings have also been pro ...

'' 2020, ranked in the top 250 in the world for Business & Economics by the ''

Times Higher Education World University Rankings The ''Times Higher Education World University Rankings'', often referred to as the THE Rankings, is the annual publication of university rankings by the ''Times Higher Education'' magazine. The publisher had collaborated with Quacquarelli Symon ...

'' 2019 and ranked in the top 140 Global MBA rank according to "

QS World University Rankings The ''QS World University Rankings'' is a portfolio of comparative college and university rankings compiled by Quacquarelli Symonds, a higher education analytics firm. Its first and earliest edition was published in collaboration with '' Times ...

" (2020) Kingston was awarded a Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) in September 2023. It has also secured a Gold award in the framework's two new student experience and student outcomes categories. The announcement sees Kingston join an elite line up of 26 universities and colleges across the United Kingdom who have been awarded TEF Gold in all three categories, alongside Oxford, Cambridge, Exeter and Warwick.

Student life

Union of Kingston Students

The Union of Kingston Students (UKS), formerly Kingston University Students' Union (KUSU), and in the 1990s KUGOS (Kingston University Guild of Students') is a charitable organisation representing the student body and aiming to provide services and activities beneficial to the student experience. It is a student union in the meaning of the term given in the Education Act 1994, and whilst independent of the university is funded by a block grant from it.

Halls of residence

The university has six halls of residence. Chancellors' and Walkden are based at the Kingston Hill campus. Middle Mill is adjacent to the Knights Park campus, while Clayhill and Seething Wells are on opposite sides of

Surbiton Surbiton is a suburban neighbourhood in South West London, within the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames (RBK). It is next to the River Thames, southwest of Charing Cross. Surbiton was in the Historic counties of England, historic county of ...

. Finally, there is Kingston Bridge House which is situated on the edge of

Bushy Park Bushy Park in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is the second largest of London's Royal Parks, at in area, after Richmond Park. The park, most of which is open to the public, is immediately north of Hampton Court Palace and Hampton ...

at the

Hampton Wick Hampton Wick is a Thamesside area of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England, contiguous with Teddington, Kingston upon Thames and Bushy Park. Market gardening continued until well into the twentieth century. With its road and rail ...

end of Kingston Bridge, London. File:Hogsmill River (part thereof) - geograph.org.uk - 151396.jpg, Hogsmill River File:Seething Wells - geograph.org.uk - 1318706.jpg, Seething Wells File:SeethingWells01.JPG, Seething Wells File:Water works building - geograph.org.uk - 1112648.jpg, Seething Wells

International partners

The university holds a number of links with institutions from around the world to share teaching and research and facilitate staff and student exchanges. Kingston has a number of international 'Study Abroad' or 'Exchange' partner institutions.

Controversies

Humanities Department Closure 2025

Kingston University has initiated the closure of its Humanities department, including its graduate research teaching programme in philosophy, the Centre for Research in Modern European Philosophy (CRMEP). In February 2024, the Head of the School of Creative and Cultural Industries advised students that it had launched a review of its Philosophy programme, citing declining enrolment, lack of government funding and the Philosophy programme’s focus on post-graduate teaching as reasons. The review was expected to complete in six weeks. The outcome of that review was not made public. On 26 February 2025, the Dean of Kingston School of Art advised students that Kingston had begun a 30 day consultation period to shut down teaching in the entirety of the Humanities, to include closure of its English and Philosophy programmes, stating that these programmes are inconsistent with Kingston’s new Town House strategy and future skills delivery. ''The Times Higher Education'' noted that "Kingston has also suspended applications for new students to its foundation year humanities programme “with a view to it closing in the new longer term”, according to the email sent by Kingston School of Art dean Mandy Ure." The closures are also expected to affect Creative Writing and the Kingston Language Scheme which teaches modern languages. In an open letter, published in the contemporary art forum e-Flux and the British publishing house

Verso ''Recto'' is the "right" or "front" side and ''verso'' is the "left" or "back" side when text is written or printed on a leaf of paper () in a bound item such as a codex, book, broadsheet, or pamphlet. In double-sided printing, each leaf h ...

, the CRMEP students state they "unequivocally condemn" the closures, writing that the proposals are an "affront against a broadly humanist concept of education, in which the independence of culture and research from immediate market imperatives" affirms their social value. Kingston University's Senior Leadership Team led by the Vice-Chancellor Stephen Spier has expressed its intention to implement £20 million in savings and to lay-off staff and close programmes to take effect at the end of July. The Kingston University College Union has since passed a motion of 'no-confidence' in the Senior Leadership Team. Judith-butler-CRMEP2-March2024

BMus external examiner

In 2008, the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

obtained e-mails circulated within Kingston's School of Music, relating to the opinions of an

external examiner The external examiner plays an important role in degree-level examinations in higher education in the United Kingdom. The external examiner system originated in 1832 with the establishment of the University of Durham, and was then adopted by o ...

moderating the BMus course. The messages showed that her final report caused considerable concern within the department. The examiner was persuaded to moderate her criticism following contact from a member of the university's staff. The e-mails also detailed a plan to replace her (at the end of her term) with a more experienced and broad-based external examiner, a process which Kingston stressed breaks no rules relating to the appointment of such examiners. In October 2008, Peter Williams, Chief Executive of the UK Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), presented the agency's findings to a Parliamentary Select Committee charged with investigating standards in British higher education. Following an investigation of the allegations by a former University staff member that undue pressure was applied to the School of Music's External Examiner, QAA upheld all charges of wrongdoing, as alleged.

Controversial speakers

In 2015, Prime Minister

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

named and shamed four British universities which gave platforms to allegedly 'extremist' speakers. Kingston's Vice Chancellor Julius Weinberg defended his decision to allow controversial speakers in the name of free speech.

National Student Survey exaggeration

In 2008, an audio recording obtained by student media included two psychology lecturers asking students to inflate their graded opinions given as part of the National Student Survey. One member of staff was recorded as encouraging students to boost specific satisfaction scores, because "if Kingston comes down the bottom f the league tables then the bottom line is that nobody is going to want to employ you because they are going to think your degree is shit". In response, Vice-Chancellor

Peter Scott Sir Peter Markham Scott (14 September 1909 – 29 August 1989) was a British ornithologist, conservation movement, conservationist, painter, naval officer, broadcaster and Sportsperson, sportsman. The only child of Antarctic explorer Robert Fal ...

confirmed that the recording was genuine but added that he believed that the incident was an isolated one. In July 2008, the Higher Education Funding Council of England removed the university's Department of Psychology of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences from the League Tables for the year as its sanction for having fraudulently manipulated the National Student Survey results.

Notable alumni

File:Eric-Clapton 1975.jpg,

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

, CBE is the only three-time inductee into the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...

. File:Ben Barnes by Gage Skidmore 2.jpg, Ben Barnes at 2017 San Diego Comic- Con. File:Sam Golden Flower Awards.jpg, Sam Chan at the 2016 Golden Flower Awards. File:Glenda bailey editor harpers bazaar christopher peterson.jpg, Glenda Bailey File:David Chipperfield.JPG, Sir David Alan Chipperfield CBE RDI

RIBA ''Riba'' (, or , ) is an Arabic word used in Islamic law and roughly translated as " usury": unjust, exploitative gains made in trade or business. ''Riba'' is mentioned and condemned in several different verses in the Qur'an3:130

File:Dall England world cup winners.jpg,

Lawrence Dallaglio Lorenzo Bruno Nero Dallaglio (born 10 August 1972) is an English retired rugby union player. He is a former captain of England, and a 2016 inductee of the World Rugby Hall of Fame. Dallaglio played as a flanker or number eight for London ...

holding the

Rugby World Cup The Men's Rugby World Cup is a rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams, the winners of which are recognised as the World championship, world champions of the sport. The tournament is administer ...

. File:025 reeksen 60m philip (32505897124) (cropped).jpg, Asha Philip in 2017. File:上海咪咕颁奖礼红毯 (1).jpg,

Eason Chan Eason Chan Yick-shun ( zh, s=陈奕迅, t=陳奕迅, first=t, p=Chén Yìxùn; born 27 July 1974) is a Hong Kong singer and actor. He is one of the most popular and influential singers in both Cantopop and Mandopop. Besides holding the record ...

in 2016. File:Ruby McGregor-Smith CEO of Mitie Group plc.jpg, Ruby McGregor-Smith in 2013. File:Ed McKeever portrait.jpg, Ed McKeever -

London 2012 Olympic Games The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

Victory. File:Francis Yeoh.jpg, Francis Yeoh in 2015.

Notable faculty and staff

File:Laura Borràs 3471003114121118 00.jpg, Laura Borràs File:Hanif Kureishi.jpg, Hanif Kureishi File:Official portrait of Dr Rupa Huq MP crop 2.jpg, Rupa Huq File:Bond Henry Kensington neutral.jpg, Henry Bond File:Les Hatton 1.JPG, Les Hatton File:Alan Gillett.jpg, Alan Gillett at St Mary's Perivale in 2012.

References

External links

* * {{authority control Educational institutions established in 1992 1992 establishments in England University Alliance Universities in London Universities UK Education in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames