Staff working at the universities of Kent and Greenwich say they “still have hundreds of questions” as the official merger date approaches.
The two south-east institutions will officially become a “superuniversity” on 1 August after announcing their intention to come together last year.
The new entity, known as London and South East University Group (LASE), will very quickly be thrown into the clearing process and preparations for the new academic year.
While leaders have stressed the two universities will retain their own identities, with some functions slowly merged over time, unions have raised fears that there are “many unknowns” as the crunch point approaches.
Ruth Ballardie, co-chair of the Greenwich University and College Union (UCU) branch, said that the university opened a consultation on the structure for the merger in June – two months before it was due to be completed. While the consultation received 62 responses, none were taken on board, she claimed.
