King’s College London and Cranfield University propose merger

Above: Professor Dame Karen Holford DBE FREng, Chief Executive and Vice-Chancellor of Cranfield University and Professor Shitij Kapur, Vice-Chancellor & President of King’s College London.
Courtesy Cranfield University

The proposed merger will create a UK university especially equipped for the changing world, with enhanced opportunities and resources for students, a synergy in its disciplinary mix and a distinctive offer for the UK’s future.

The merger will build on the existing individual strengths of each institution, to support national capability and resilience across:

• Engineering and Technology – aerospace, advanced manufacturing, AI and robotics
• Environment and resources – water, soil, food systems and climate
• Energy – hydrogen, batteries and net zero systems
• Economy, industry and leadership – productivity, skills and innovation
• Society and policy – health and life sciences, regulation and public leadership
• Security and Defence – expertise spanning science, strategy and operations

As a specialist postgraduate university, Cranfield will benefit from the interdisciplinary breadth and scale of King’s. King’s, in turn, will be strengthened by Cranfield’s world-renowned expertise in technology, engineering and management, alongside its deep and longstanding partnerships with industry and government. Cranfield will become part of King’s College London and together we will recognise, celebrate and build on Cranfield’s distinct culture and contribution.

The combined university aims to deliver:

• A globally leading engineering and technology capability aligned with industrial missions and future prosperity.
• A distinctive contribution to national resilience, security and defence.
• Leading business and management education provision spanning undergraduate programmes, MBA and executive education.
• A combined force at the forefront of environmental science and policy with clean-tech, and a particular emphasis on alternative fuels and net-zero transportation.
• Interdisciplinary research that unites the combined strengths of both institutions from engineering, technology and environmental sciences to health, social sciences, arts and humanities, to address complex challenges.

This will be supported by a combined footprint spanning London and the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor, one of the UK’s key centres of knowledge and economic activity, strengthening our ability to work in partnership across research, industry and government.

Lord Patrick Vallance KCB, Minister for Science, Innovation, Research and Nuclear in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) said: “The combination of Cranfield and King’s creates an extraordinarily powerful university. It holds huge potential for the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor and for wider UK research capability and training, bringing together two world-class institutions and giving King’s a place at the heart of one of our most important regions for science and technology.

“It will create a driver of innovation and growth, capitalise on the complementary strengths and specialisms of both institutions and increase access, capacity and resilience across teaching and research.”

Professor Shitij Kapur, Vice-Chancellor & President of King’s College London said: “The UK’s universities are among our greatest strategic assets; engines of innovation, educators of future talent, and central to how the country responds to the challenges ahead.

“This proposed merger will bring together the complementary strengths of two institutions – both founded with a particular emphasis on service to society. The merger would bring new educational possibilities for students, new discoveries from academics and a clear focus on working in partnership with industry and government to support national resilience. This is a deliberate step to bring some of the best of UK to compete with the best in the world.”

Professor Dame Karen Holford, Chief Executive and Vice-Chancellor at Cranfield University said: “This merger is an exciting proposition for Cranfield, aligning our deep specialisms in engineering, technology and management within King’s College London. It is an intentional step, which brings Cranfield University’s outstanding applied research, nationally important facilities, sovereign capability and long-standing industry links to King’s, creating enormous potential and continuing our mission to tackle real-world issues.

“In merging, we build on the strengths of Cranfield and King’s to embed our shared ethos of truly working in the service of society. Together we will create a global university that is not only committed to excellence but delivers it with purpose, drive and scale.”

Lord Simon Stevens, Chair of King’s College said: "Bringing Cranfield into King’s College London has the potential to be a genuine ‘win-win’ for both universities, unlocking major new opportunities for our world-leading research, teaching and industry-facing innovation. For the UK, it also creates new opportunities to deepen and extend capabilities so critical to our future, including applied engineering, novel environmental technologies and national security and resilience."

Sir Andrew Haines OBE, Chair of Cranfield University Council and former Chief Executive of Network Rail said: “This is a bold and inspiring move that will create a unique university capable of addressing the challenges of today’s world and our future. Cranfield is a leader in its specialist areas and this development brings opportunities to build that even further. The combined university will be in a great position to harness our deep expertise, unique facilities and long-standing industry relationships.”