Over 50 protestors, students and staff, staged a demonstration at King’s on November 24th to lobby college Council over possible job cuts at the college.

The demonstration began outside the KCL strand campus before around 20 student demonstrators from the No Cuts @ King’s campaign later took the protest inside, entering the Old Committee Room adjacent to where the governing body were holding their meeting.

Among the portraits of former college Principals, protestors with megaphones and placards chanted “Rick Trainor, hear us say, ten per cent, no way”, and “Don’t take the PSC, save engineering” -referring to the planned closure of the department.

Security attempted unsuccessfully to persuade demonstrators to leave, saying that they were, “disrupting”, to which one protestor responded, “Us disrupting them is a good thing, because they are disrupting our education.”
After being notified that a ceremony was taking place in the nearby chapel, the protesters withdrew to a campaign meeting billed as an ‘Alternative College Council’ on ‘defending jobs and education’.

Glen Baker, branch secretary of KCL UNITE , the largest trade union in the UK, said: “These cuts are short-sighted and unnecessary. Management have shown us their figures; this is a long-term problem but they are tackling it by taking short-term measures.

“They admit they don’t have a long-term strategy, they’ve just said 5% this year, and 5% next year.”

A spokesman for King’s has confirmed that some staff within ISS (Information Services and Systems) have already had to re-apply for a reduced number of roles, resulting in some departures under the King’s Voluntary Leavers Scheme.

Meanwhile the catering services are, “under review as part of a modernisation process,” and, “many of the 24 staff affected have been offered new roles or opted to take advantage of the King’s Voluntary Leavers Scheme”.

Responding to the proposed cuts to Equality and Diversity (E&D), Becki Elson, a 1st year undergraduate, said: “Somebody much wiser than me said, ‘A society is judged by how it treats its most vulnerable.’ Why are cuts being made to Equality and Diversity, when 10% of students have some form of disability?

“How can we, as moral human beings, stand by and take this. As a disabled student, I know how much E&D have helped me, in little ways which may not seem like a lot, but when you face extra challenges you need that help there.”

With regard to the E&D department, a spokesman for KCL said: “King’s is consulting staff about the restructuring of the department of Equality and Diversity. 

“The consultation may lead to a reduction in posts concerned with policy and governance issues and would reduce administrative costs.

“Equality & Diversity services that have a direct impact on students would be unaffected; indeed, the proposal aims to re-focus and strengthen relevant operational activity by including it managerially under ‘Services for Students’, where it will be embedded at the heart of the wider welfare services.”

The Principal, Professor Rick Trainor, said: “The College remains totally committed to equality and diversity issues and will continue to provide a first-class service in these areas”.