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Sheffield Hallam University

Coordinates: 53°22′45″N 1°27′53″W / 53.379105°N 1.464706°W / 53.379105; -1.464706
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Sheffield Hallam University
Coat of arms
Former names
Sheffield Polytechnic
Sheffield City Polytechnic
MottoLearn and Serve
TypePublic
Established1843; 181 years ago (1843) – founded
1992; 32 years ago (1992) – university status
Endowment£0.19 million (2022)[1]
Budget£311.2 million (2021–22)[1]
ChancellorHelena Kennedy, Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws
Vice-ChancellorLiz Mossop
Academic staff
2,114[2]
Students35,340 (2022/23)[3]
Undergraduates23,820 (2022/23)[3]
Postgraduates11,520 (2022/23)[3]
Location
Sheffield
,
South Yorkshire
,
England

53°22′45″N 1°27′53″W / 53.379105°N 1.464706°W / 53.379105; -1.464706
CampusCity Campus and Collegiate Crescent Campus
ColoursMaroon, Grey, Black and White
AffiliationsAssociation of Commonwealth Universities
EUA
Websiteshu.ac.uk
Logo of Sheffield Hallam University

Sheffield Hallam University (SHU) is a public research university in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The university is based on two sites; the City Campus is located in the city centre near Sheffield railway station, while the Collegiate Crescent Campus is about two miles away in the Broomhall Estate off Ecclesall Road in south-west Sheffield. A third campus at Brent Cross Town in the London Borough of Barnet is expected to open for the 2025–26 academic year.

The university is the 14th largest university in the UK (out of 169) with 35,340 students (of whom 4,400 are international students),[3] 4,494 staff and 708 courses.

History

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Foundation and growth

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In 1843, as the industrial revolution gathered pace and Sheffield was on the verge of becoming the steel, tool and cutlery making capital of the world, the Sheffield School of Design was founded following lobbying by artist Benjamin Haydon. The day-to-day running was controlled by the local council, whilst the Board of Trade in London appointed the head. Tuition began in a 60x40ft rented room off Glossop Road.[4] In 1850, the School of Design was renamed Sheffield School of Art.[5]

In 1905, the City of Sheffield Training College (later renamed Sheffield City College of Education) on Collegiate Crescent admitted its first 90 students.[6] During the First World War, the Collegiate Hall was requisitioned by the War Office to create the 3rd Northern General Hospital, a facility for the Royal Army Medical Corps to treat military casualties.[7]

A new city centre campus was constructed during the 1960s. During construction, in February 1962, a tower crane on site collapsed during the Great Sheffield Gale. It crashed into the side of what would become the Owen Building, causing serious damage and setting back construction.[8] In 1967, the Owen Building was completed.[9] Built in a functional 1960s design, it has since been modernised and comprehensively renovated with an atrium linking it to four adjacent buildings.[10] In 1969 the Sheffield School of Design merged with the city's College of Technology to form Sheffield Polytechnic. In 1976, Sheffield Polytechnic merged with the city's two teacher training colleges (Sheffield City College and Totley Hall College) and was renamed Sheffield City Polytechnic. From 1979 to 1988 students from Sheffield City Polytechnic were based at Wentworth Woodhouse,[11] near Rotherham. Two departments, Physical Education and Geography and Environmental Studies, were based on site. In 1987 Sheffield City Polytechnic became a founding member of the Northern Consortium.[12]

University status to present day

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In 1992, Sheffield City Polytechnic became Sheffield Hallam University (SHU), with the right to award its own degrees.

Sheffield Hallam University

In 2005, SHU was reorganised into four faculties. The new Faculty of Development and Society, with an emphasis on 'people, places and spaces', brought together education, geography, humanities, law, and social sciences. At the same time, with the intention of further developing research and teaching in the new Faculty of Health and Wellbeing, a new Clinical Academic Group was launched. The building that had been designed and constructed to house the National Centre for Popular Music became the university's students' union building (the HUBS). The Nelson Mandela Building, the former students' union building (when opened in 1978 was known as the Phoenix building[13]), was sold and has since been demolished.

In 2007, SHU took over the teaching of nursing and midwifery from the University of Sheffield. These activities are now based at the Collegiate Crescent Campus. The following year the Psalter Lane campus (formerly the Sheffield College of Art) was closed, and the activities transferred to the City Campus. The £26 million energy-efficient Furnival Building opened in September (renamed Cantor Building in 2011 in recognition of a major donor to the university). The building, which includes teaching spaces and an art gallery has been described as "the impressive new entry point to the campus".[14] For the 2025–26 academic year, the University expects to open its London campus at the Brent Cross Town development in the London Borough of Barnet. The campus will accommodate up to 5,000 students by 2030.[15]

Organisation and governance

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Colleges

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Charles Street building
SHU's Owen Building (left) and Stoddart Building (right), part of the City Campus on Arundel Gate
Collegiate Campus, Sheffield Hallam University
Sheffield Hallam Students' Union

In 2020, the university relaunched its structure moving away from four faculties and re-organising academic departments into colleges.[16]

College of Business, Technology and Engineering (BTE)

Formerly known as the Sheffield Business School and prior to that the Faculty of Organisation and Management (OM). The new college incorporated parts of the old Faculty Science, Technology and Arts (STA) previously known as the Faculty of Arts, Computing, Engineering and Sciences (ACES)

  • Sheffield Business School
    • Department of Finance, Accounting and Business Systems
    • Department of Management
    • Department of Service Sector Management
  • Department of Computing
  • Department of Engineering and Mathematics

College of Social Sciences and Arts (SSA)

Formerly known as the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH). The new college incorporated parts of the old Faculty Science, Technology and Arts (STA) previously known as the Faculty of Arts, Computing, Engineering and Sciences (ACES)

  • Department of Art and Design
  • Department of Media Arts and Communication
  • Department of the Natural and Built Environment
  • Sheffield Institute of Education (SIOE)
  • Department of Education, Childhood and Inclusion
  • Department of Teacher Education
  • TESOL Centre (Teaching English to Speakers of other Languages)
  • Department of Psychology, Sociology and Politics
  • Department of Humanities
  • Department of Law and Criminology

College of Health, Wellbeing and Life Sciences (HWLS)

Formerly the Faculty of Health and Wellbeing (HWB)

  • Department of Allied Health Professions
  • Department of Biosciences and Chemistry
  • Department of Nursing and Midwifery
  • Centre for Leadership
  • Centre for Postgraduate Medical and Dental Education
  • Academy of Sport and Physical Activity
  • Department of Social Work and Social Care and Community Studies

Research

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Research centres

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  • Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (AWRC)
  • Biomolecular Sciences Research Centre (BMRC)
  • Centre for Behavioural Science and Applied Psychology (CBSCAP)
  • Centre for Development and Research in Education (CDARE)
  • Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research (CRESR)
  • Centre for Sport and Exercise Science (CSES)
  • Centre for Sports Engineering Research (CSER)
  • Design Futures Centre for Industrial Collaboration (Design Futures)
  • Humanities Research Centre (HRC)
  • Lab4Living
  • National Centre of Excellence for Food Engineering (NCEFE)
  • Sport Industry Research Centre (SIRC)
  • Sport and Physical Activity Research Centre (SPARC)

Research institutes

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  • Cultural, Communication and Computing Research Institute (C3RI)
    • Art, Design and Media Research Centre (ADRC)
    • Communication and Computing Research Centre (CCRC)
  • Materials and Engineering Research Institute (MERI)
    • Centre for Automation and Robotics Research (CARR)
    • National HIPIMS Technology Centre
    • Polymers, Nanocomposites and Modelling Research Centre
    • Structural Materials and Integrity Research Centre
    • Thin Films Research Centre
  • Sheffield Business School Research Institute (SBSRI)
  • Sheffield Institute for Policy Studies (SIPS)
  • Sheffield Institute of Education (SIoE)

Groups and networks

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  • Voluntary Action Research Group
  • Film, Television, Theatre and Performance Research Network
  • Health and Social Care Research
  • Law Research Group
  • Natural and Built Environment Research Group
  • Outdoor Recreation Research Group
  • Physical Activity, Wellness and Public Health Research Group (PAWPH)
  • Sheffield Addiction Research Recovery Group
  • Sport and Human Performance Research Group
  • Sports Engineering Research Group
  • Sports Industry Research Group

Through the research centres a number of spin-off companies have been formed, including:

  • Sheaf Solutions – automotive and aerospace organisation
  • Hallam Biotech – biotech analysis and synthesis
  • Materials Analysis & Research Services (MARS) – materials analysis and solutions
  • Bodycote – materials coating
  • Design Futures – product design, packaging design, research & strategy

Chancellors

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British barrister, broadcaster, and life peer of the House of Lords, Helena Kennedy, was installed as chancellor in a ceremony at Cutlers' Hall on Thursday 26 July 2018.[17]

Academic profile

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Rankings
National rankings
Complete (2025)[19]63
Guardian (2025)[20]75
Times / Sunday Times (2025)[21]84=
Global rankings
QS (2025)[22]1001–1200
THE (2025)[23]801–1000

Lifelong Learning Network

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SHU is the lead partner for Higher Futures, the Lifelong Learning Network (LLN) for South Yorkshire, North Derbyshire and North Nottinghamshire.

Rankings and reputation

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In the National Student Survey, several subject areas at SHU have performed very well in terms of overall student satisfaction with their courses: for example, architecture and geography have both been placed first, and planning has been placed second.

In the university league tables, Sheffield Hallam University was placed 47th out of 121 UK universities by The Guardian University Guide 2021; 65th out of 131 by The Times & Sunday Times Good University Guide 2020; and 67th out of 130 by the Complete University Guide 2021. In 2019, it ranked 485th among the universities around the world by SCImago Institutions Rankings.[24]

Hallam received a First Class award and was ranked 15th out of 151 universities in the People & Planet University League 2015 which assesses universities on their environmental credentials. In 2020, the university was awarded The Times and Sunday Times University of the Year award for teaching quality.[25]

Adsetts Learning Centre

Notable alumni

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See also: Category:Alumni of Sheffield Hallam University
Entrance to Sheffield Hallam University at night
Collegiate Crescent campus

Notable staff

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See also: Category:Academics of Sheffield Hallam University
  • Alison Adam, professor of science, technology and society.
  • Geoff Cartwright, senior lecturer in Environmental Conservation 1995–2012: joint winner of the 2011 Individual award in the Environment Awards of the Sheffield Telegraph for his work on the development of a nature reserve at Blackburn Meadows on the site of the former Tinsley sewage farm.[26]
  • I. M. Dharmadasa, applied physicist and researcher of low cost solar cells
  • Hywel Jones, materials scientist and inventor in advanced ceramics and metals, Principal Research Fellow
  • Marina Lewycka (1946– ), senior lecturer in Media Studies 1998–2012, author of several novels including A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian (2005)
  • Frederick Brian Pickering (1927–2017), metallurgist
  • Jane Rogers, winner of the 2012 Arthur C. Clarke Award for the 'best science fiction novel of the year' for The Testament of Jessie Lamb
  • Jawed Siddiqi, Professor of Software Engineering and political activist
  • Frances Spalding, art historian, former lecturer
  • Dave Wickett (1947–2012), lecturer in economics, served on the industry and economics committee of the Campaign for Real Ale; in 1981 he established the Fat Cat (a real ale pub on Kelham Island) and in 1990 he launched Kelham Island Brewery; in 2004 his golden ale, Pale Rider, won Camra's Champion Beer of Britain award; in 2010 he set up a post-graduate course in brewing at Sheffield University, and in 2011 he was given a lifetime achievement award by the House of Commons all-party parliamentary beer group.[27]
  • Mike Wild (1939– ), senior lecturer in environmental studies 1969–1997, founder of the Five Weirs Walk group; co-founder of the Sheffield Wildlife Trust; and 2010 winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award in the Sheffield Telegraph's Environment Awards[28]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Annual report and financial statements 21–22" (PDF). Sheffield Hallam University. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
  2. ^ "Key Facts". Sheffield Hallam University. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  3. ^ a b c d "Where do HE students study?". Higher Education Statistics Agency. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  4. ^ Basford, John A School of Art is Beginning, From Sheffield Government School of Design to Sheffield Hallam University, Part 1 1843–1963, Sheffield, Sheffield Hallam University, p. 3
  5. ^ "Our heritage". Sheffield Institute of Arts. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
  6. ^ "Sheffield Crescenters Association annual reunion". shu.ac.uk. 1 October 2011.
  7. ^ "Our history". Sheffield Hallam University. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
  8. ^ "70,000 Homes Damaged in Sheffield Disaster". The Times. 17 February 1962. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  9. ^ "The Owen Building". skyscrapernews.com.
  10. ^ "Owen Building Refurbishment". baggaley.co.uk.
  11. ^ "The House". Wentworth Woodhouse. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  12. ^ see "NCUK". Archived from the original on 6 April 2010. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
  13. ^ "Our history | Sheffield Hallam University".
  14. ^ "University gets keys to Furnival Building". Sheffield Telegraph.
  15. ^ Havergil, Chris (8 November 2022). "Sheffield Hallam to open London campus". Times Higher Education. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  16. ^ "University structure | Sheffield Hallam University".
  17. ^ "Human rights champion installed as Chancellor". www.shu.ac.uk. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  18. ^ "The University's first chancellor)". shu.ac.uk. Retrieved 13 November 2018.
  19. ^ "Complete University Guide 2025". The Complete University Guide. 14 May 2024.
  20. ^ "Guardian University Guide 2025". The Guardian. 7 September 2024.
  21. ^ "Good University Guide 2025". The Times. 20 September 2024.
  22. ^ "QS World University Rankings 2025". Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd. 4 June 2024.
  23. ^ "THE World University Rankings 2025". Times Higher Education. 9 October 2024.
  24. ^ "SCImago Institutions Rankings – Higher Education – All Regions and Countries – 2019 – Overall Rank". www.scimagoir.com.
  25. ^ "Sheffield Hallam University".
  26. ^ "Sheffield Telegraph Environment Awards sponsored by Amey: Meet our winners – VIDEO" – via www.sheffieldtelegraph.co.uk.
  27. ^ Protz, Roger (23 May 2012). "Dave Wickett obituary". The Guardian. London.
  28. ^ "Mike Wild about nature".
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