FARNHAM took a major step towards gaining full university status this week after the town's college finalised a multi-million pound merger deal. Bosses at the Surrey Institute of Art and Design (SIAD) say the £2.3 million deal now puts them on course to achieve university status by the year 2007. The agreement, after 16 months of complex negotiations, will see SIAD merge with the Kent Institute of Art and Design (KIAD) to form a new university college with campuses in Farnham, Epsom, Canterbury, Maidstone and Rochester. The merger will take effect from August 1,2005 and there will be a two-year transitional period. The new establishment is likely to be called the University of the Creative Arts. By merging the two institutes, its combined student numbers of 6,500 is among the government's criteria in the granting of university status. The aim is to transform the new university college into one of the UK's first specialist universities and a focal centre of excellence for art and design. Professor Elaine Thomas, director of SIAD, said: "We are delighted to be able to make this announcement. It's something we've been working on for some time but it has certainly been worth all the hard work. "This is good news for the town of Farnham as we now have the chance to really help put Farnham on the map. "Joining together in this way helps to give us a lot more clout and we're very optimistic that university status by 2007 is an obtainable goal. "The strength of this merger is that the two institutions are on an equal footing and are both financially sound. Despite joining together, an important element of this is that the individual colleges will still retain their local identity. "We will now champion our specialist subjects, build on our fast developing research culture, and look to further the achievements of our students and staff. "We remain realistic as to the challenges ahead, but look forward to realising a successful future." Staff at the Farnham college have been given an assurance that no jobs will be lost with the merger and that cost-cutting was not a factor. It is also understood that beyond the Farnham campus master plan already in place, there are currently no intentions to develop further or expand the Farnham campus. Professor Thomas said: "It is inevitable with something like this that along with the excitement there will also be some apprehension about how the changes will affect people. We have made a real effort to assure people that this move is not about making cuts and that jobs aren't under threat." The school of art in Farnham was first founded in 1866 by Lieutenant Colonel John Luard and the present campus was built in 1970. The institute gained university college status in 1999, allowing it to award its own degrees. Without that recognition, SIAD degrees would have to be validated by other institutes who did have university college recognition. The merger between the two institutes was given the green light by the Higher Education Funding Council for England who also made a £2.3 million contribution towards funding. Professor Thomas will become rector of the new university college while Professor Vaughan Grylls, director of KIAD, will become the chief executive. SIAD, which is one of Europe's largest specialist art and design institutes, has more than 3,500 students spread between the Farnham and Epsom campuses. Famous former students of the Farnham college include interior designer Linda Barker and Oscar winning animators Daniel Greaves and Michael Dudok de Wit. Former students of the Kent college include artist Tracey Emin and TV personality Tony Hart.
