Professor Paul Croney OBE
Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive of Teesside University
Becoming University of the Year was not a single moment, nor the result of any one initiative. It was the culmination of a long‑term journey – one shaped by a sustained commitment to transforming lives.
When Times Higher Education named Teesside University as University of the Year, we were deeply honoured to receive recognition from an organisation that understands the global role of universities.
This recognition aligns closely with the shared values of Times Higher Education and the Association of Commonwealth Universities, both committed to education as a public good and global collaboration.
The foundations
Teesside University is proudly rooted in the Tees Valley, in the North East of England - a region that has experienced economic transition, industrial change and, too often, underinvestment. Our mission has always been clear: to ensure that higher education is available to all who can benefit from it, regardless of background or circumstance.
Many of our students are the first in their family to attend university, reflecting a focus on access and inclusion that sits at the core of our identity.
A decade of transformation
Teesside University has pursued a values‑led transformation, choosing where to invest, how to prioritise student experience, and how to align teaching, research and innovation to address local, national and global challenges.
Like universities across the world, we have navigated funding pressures, policy change, a global pandemic and an increasingly complex operating environment. Yet throughout, we have remained resolute in our belief that universities must be stabilising, optimistic forces, anchors for their regions and gateways to the world.
Our journey has required not only ambition, but resolve, particularly in a period of significant uncertainty for the sector. Leadership has meant making clear choices, guided by purpose and responsibility for the future.
Students at the heart of everything we do
We have designed curricula to meet skills needs, embedded employability through our award‑winning ‘Future‑Facing Learning’ model, and ensured access to high‑quality academic, pastoral and professional support.
We have invested in experiential learning, helping students to see themselves as professionals from the moment they arrive.
We have taken action to address digital poverty, by ensuring every student has access to an iPad and a full digital toolkit, removing a key barrier to participation from day one. This reflects a values‑led commitment to widening participation and student success, increasingly recognised at a national level.
Investing in the future
Central to our journey has been a £300 million investment in our campus, delivering cutting‑edge learning environments designed around how students learn and how employers operate today. Our medical and healthcare simulation facilities are among the most advanced in the UK, enabling students to train in realistic settings before entering professional practice. Our digital infrastructure supports immersive learning, advanced computing, creative technologies and data‑driven innovation.
Digital innovation
The University’s commitment to inclusive digital access underpins our wider technological capability, reflected in our status as the first higher education institution in Europe to become an Adobe Creative Campus. We are also an Apple Distinguished School, have long‑standing partnerships with Microsoft, and received the Technology for Employability Award for our partnership with Amazon Web Services.
Together, these recognitions reflect our commitment to using technology to remove barriers and widen access, underpinned by a strong focus on inclusivity and application. This approach has translated into impact beyond the University, with many of our graduate tech start‑ups helping to drive the UK’s most thriving tech sector outside London.
Community and shared purpose
In 2025, local demonstrations created a challenging moment for our university community. What followed, however, was extraordinary. Local residents, businesses and civic partners came together to offer support. Many had no formal connection to the university, but understood its importance to the town, reaffirming that Teesside University’s success is shared across the region.
A global university
We have expanded our international footprint through overseas offices across Asia, the Middle East, Pakistan, and West Africa; through partnerships, collaborative research and a diverse global student body studying both on campus and with partners around the world. Through these connections, we contribute to shared challenges that transcend national borders.
Our membership of the Association of Commonwealth Universities strengthens our global outlook, helping us identify research funding, develop partnerships, and expand scholarship opportunities. We are already working with a number of universities across the Commonwealth and will use this platform to deepen collaboration, explore new opportunities, and stay responsive to a changing geopolitical landscape. The Commonwealth’s shared commitment to education as a public good, and to collaboration across cultures and contexts, closely mirrors our own values.
Over the past decade, Teesside University has developed a research profile recognised as internationally excellent, distinguished by its focus on applying knowledge into practice. Delivered through centres of excellence spanning health, net zero and community engagement, our translational research addresses challenges across creative and digital industries, sustainability and regional regeneration. This applied approach generates meaningful impact while creating opportunities for students to engage as partners in innovation.
Culture and creativity
Teesside University has a strong creative and cultural profile, working with local government and civic partners to drive cultural ambition and regeneration. Across digital storytelling, games design, performance, screen and the visual arts, we nurture talent shaping narratives locally and globally. This collaboration has seen Middlesbrough shortlisted for UK City of Culture and our on‑campus Tate‑affiliated gallery selected to host the prestigious Turner Prize.
Team Teesside
The recognition as Times Higher Education’s University of the Year belongs to Team Teesside - our academic, professional and technical staff, whose dedication, professionalism and resilience have driven our success, even in challenging times.
The road ahead
Being named University of the Year reflects the cumulative impact of consistent choices - about who we serve, how we invest, and the kind of university we choose to be. It challenges us to continue pushing boundaries and ensure our impact endures. Education transforms lives, and universities, when anchored in values and partnership, can change futures.
That is the journey Teesside University has been on. And it is one we are committed to continuing, alongside our students, our communities and our partners across the Commonwealth and beyond.