Students have protested against university cuts which have seen ongoing restructures and job losses across Sheffield universities.

On Thursday 12th March, the Anti-Cuts Coalition Sheffield joined arms with Sheffield Hallam Against Cuts and Leicester Student- Worker Action Group to protest the continuing cuts to staff, courses, and resources in both Sheffield Universities. 

Liberation and Activities Officer at the University of Sheffield, Eli Axcell said: “I am a final year politics student. My specific course pathway is being cut for next year’s applicants which is crazy because it’s a really popular course and I probably wouldn’t have come to Sheffield if it didn’t exist.

“It’s so important to stand up for the staff who are losing their jobs because of cuts and restructures.

“Koen Lamberts, the vice chancellor, has a salary of £400,000 a year which is absolutely insane.

“There is such a divide between the executives and the actual staff who do the teaching, who support the students, who go above and beyond their working hours every single day to make sure that their students get a good education. 

“It’s so important that we show up for our staff and we show them that they’re not alone in the struggle.”

In November 2024 the University of Sheffield had a £50 million shortfall and announced plans to cut staff costs by £9 million in 2025 and £14 million in 2026. 

It is suggested that the main reason for the financial difficulty for UK universities is the decline in international students. HESA reported a 10% decrease in international entrants to postgraduate taught courses. 

Students from Leicester Universities travelled to Sheffield to join the protest.

A spokesperson for Leicester Student- Worker Action Group, who attended the protest, said: “We are a group of students who have come all the way from Leicester and our university is involved in the exact same thing, they have sacked loads of our staff. 

“We’ve seen the exact same struggle in Sheffield. There’s nothing we can do except support each other.”

Sheffield Hallam Against Cuts and Anti-Cuts Coalition Sheffield are hosting a Stop the Cuts demonstration on Saturday 21 March at Sheffield Hallam University and continue to organise upcoming meetings and sessions for support.

The University of Sheffield was contacted for comment but has not yet responded.