apologies for length of this :- Situation Update The College governors decided on Friday, 2nd March to vote for the closure of the College, and to merge with Falmouth. This agenda, relentlessly pursued by the College Principal is based on facts and figures which are hotly disputed, and we are all very disappointed that the Governors not only accepted these, but did not have an opportunity to discuss the options for staying on the Estate in detail, if at all. The 'Falmouth option' relies entirely on the willingness of the RDA and HEFCE to fund it. Without this funding the Flamouth proposal will collapse. Despite Professor Brewerton's repeated assertion that this would mean the closure of the College, the believe that the Governors would have to reconvene and re-examine the Dartington Option. It is therefore crucial that both the RDA and HEFCE are aware of the ferocious and widespread opposition to them funding the 'move'. We are ENTIRELY DEPENDENT on your willingness to put some time into lobbying these 2 crucial groups.  You will find contact details for them below, as well as an explanation of their roles. PLEASE, make the effort and write to them! In your letter: 1) emphasise the importance of the College to the town of Totnes and the huge economic, cultural and social impact the loss of the College will have. (£4.7million - its official) 2) the absurdity of moving to Falmouth - the overwhelming majority of academic staff will not move; all the support staff, (administrative, caretakers, cleaners, caterers etc.) will lose their jobs. What therefore is actually moving? 3) Professor Brewerton is the ONLY person who maintains that one can move the college - everybody else knows you can't. You can close down DCA and start up something else, which may or may not attract future students, but DCA can only exist on the Dartington Estate 4) The main reason for this whole situation has been the inability of the Trust and the College to work together in an atmosphere of trust, mutual support and collaboration. The governors MUST now take this on board, and give everybody a chance to start again, working with a fresh attitude, the support of the town and local councils, and with the vison of ONE DARTINGTON as the main focus. The Dartington Hall Trust have accepted this and have committed themselves to it, both in private and in public. The Governors need to take this on board and be willing to work with this exciting idea. HEFCE: Write to: Mr David Noyce HEFCE Regional Director Northavon House Coldharbour Lane Bristol BS16 1QD email: d.noyce@hefce.ac.uk HEFCE are a responsible, well intentioned government body who have the college's interests at heart. They provide the college with the lion's share of their funding. We need to convince them to hold back from making any irrevocable decisions while the solutions, are given a chance to develop and be brought to fruition. At present, there are a number of ideas and proposals which are being developed which offer not only viable, but also forward looking and innovative solutions which will benefit not only the college, but the Trust and the town as well. It is absolutely clear now, that everyone's best interests (College, Trust and Town) are best served by working together. All parties, with the notable exception of the College Principal, Professor Andrew Brewerton, accept this and are making every effort to collectively find solutions. The crucial issue here is time. Please write to Mr Noyce and ask him to give the college an extra year so that these solutions can be developed and put into action. The accomodation problem has been looked at in detail, and there is an excellent scheme put forward by two local businessman and the Duke of Somerset to build accomodation off the Estate on the outskirts of Totnes. This proposal has been welcomed by the Principal of the College, Andrew Brewerton and the CEO of the Trust, Vaughan Lindsay as potential solutions to the College issue. THE RDA (Regional Development Agency) Write to: Sue Brownlow  Head of Operations  South West of England Regional Development Agency North Quay House  Sutton Harbour  PLYMOUTH PL4 ORA  Telephone: 01752 251 071  eamil: Sue.Brownlow@southwestrda.org.uk The RDA are a government body, who among other things are responsible for the allocation of European funding. The Falmouth proposal is dependent on this funding. Without it, the Falmouth proposal is a non-starter. The RDA are considering allocating £15 million to the Falmouth proposal. Write to them and emphasise: 1) That the allocation of European funds to one area at the expense of another is both immoral and illegal under the guidelines of the ECC. 2) That they should instead be putting their efforts into solving the problems surrounding the College's continued existence on the Dartington Hall Estate

Entire Thread

Topic	Date Posted	Posted By
To anyone who studied  at Dartington College of Arts or is interested in Dartington.	20/03/07 10:58:00	Mary OConnor
Re: To anyone who studied  at Dartington College of Arts or is interested in Dartington.	20/03/07 13:53:00	Keith Clarke
Re:Re: To anyone who studied  at Dartington College of Arts or is interested in Dartington.	20/03/07 15:23:00	Mary OConnor

Forum Home