For more than 200 years Ushaw College has been at the heart of the Catholic Church in the north of England. The great good that has been done through the priests trained there, and in countless other ways cannot be measured. The College has had a particular place in the affections of the people of Hexham and Newcastle, the diocese in which it is situated. It is with great sadness, therefore, that the Trustees of Ushaw College have to announce its proposed closure. The press statement made by them is below:
Ushaw Press Release 8 October 2010
Trustees announce proposal to close Ushaw College
The trustees of Ushaw College have announced a proposal today that pending consultation with College employees and the Charity Commission Ushaw College will be closed.
The 200-year old Roman Catholic college is home to St Cuthbert’s Seminary which has been forming young men for the priesthood since its foundation more than 400 years ago. Ushaw also provides a range of conferencing, events, and accommodation facilities to groups, organisations and businesses from throughout the UK. The proposal means that if implemented the College will cease operating at the end of the current academic year in June 2011.
The seminary serves the seven dioceses of the Northern Province of England and the Diocese of Shrewsbury and the wider church.
In recent years, Ushaw College has developed to blend heritage with advancement while maintaining its core function of the formation of priests to help renew and continue the work of the Roman Catholic Church in the region. Currently, there are 26 seminarians in formation at St Cuthbert’s Seminary and once they have completed this year’s studies, it is proposed that they will transfer to another seminary.
Archbishop Patrick Kelly, Chair of Trustees said:
“This is one of the most difficult proposals that we as Trustees have had to make, not least because of the excellence of the formation our students are receiving.”
Monsignor John Marsland, President of the College, expressed his sorrow at the proposal:
“Ushaw has a long history within the Roman Catholic Church and words cannot express how sad we are that we are considering such a drastic step.
“We have long tried to find a development partner and it would be nice to believe that a partner will still come forward with a viable business plan but unfortunately time is running out and we have to face the reality of the situation we are in.”
Ushaw College can trace its roots back to Douai College, which was founded in 1568 in the Spanish Netherlands (now northern France) to provide priests for the English mission and to educate Catholic laymen when Catholicism suffered persecution in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Much later, students and staff from Douai relocated to County Durham and eventually settled at Ushaw in 1808.
For a time in the 19th century, Ushaw’s educational facilities made it the premier Catholic college in England and right into the 1950s 400 students were in attendance. Since Vatican Council II, the College has had important ecumenical links with Durham University’s Department of Theology and Religion and, in the past three decades, increasingly close cooperation with Cranmer Hall, the Wesley Study Centre and, most recently, Lindisfarne Regional Training Partnership. The decline in priestly vocations provided the college with an opportunity to diversify, resulting in innovative educational outreach programmes, a new biomass enterprise – complete with a willow crop -- and the three-star English Tourist Board accreditation for its accommodation and its sought-after unique setting for conferences and events. The college has also become the home of the North East regional office of CAFOD, and the Churches’ Regional Commission.
Kay Wightman, Director of Finance and Commercial Development at Ushaw College said the business had been facing tough times for many years.
“Ushaw College has proved to be increasingly popular among leisure groups, individual visitors, and people seeking somewhere a little different from the usual accommodation options on offer”, she explained.
“We’ve also experienced a welcome upturn in the number of businesses and organisations – including international companies – selecting Ushaw to host their corporate events, team-building activities and social gatherings however this is not enough.
“We are a charitable organisation and as such unfortunately we’ve had to bear increasing costs of maintaining and running the facilities we provide, and this has led to the sad proposal that Ushaw is to close. We have spent the last two years exploring several options and had hoped we would be able to attract a development partner to continue the evolution of Ushaw College and the home of St Cuthbert’s Seminary.”
Whatever the future may hold for the Ushaw community with its historic buildings and long tradition of education, formation and outreach, the College remains grateful to God for all the thousands of friends and benefactors who have supported it over the years.
For more information contact:
Ruth Shepherd, Results Communications, 11-12 Portland Terrace, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE2 1QQ
Tel: 01912120404 / Mobile: 07852219699