UK Management College has big plans as it opens new Salford campus

A college that’s just opened a new campus in Salford and has bases across the country is celebrating its tenth anniversary – and now hopes to become a university in its own right. UK Management College was founded in 2016 by husband and wife Zahidul and Abida Islam to focus on offering education opportunities to members of socially disadvantaged or underrepresented groups, and to older people looking to return to education.

From just a handful of students in 2016, the college has grown to serve 7,000 learners at three sites in Greater Manchester and campuses in Sunderland, Newcastle and Derby. Its offering has gone beyond management courses and it now offers degrees, in partnership with other universities, in subjects including fashion and events management.

Now, its provost Professor Jason Powell says, the college has started planning to become a university in its own right and to be able to offer its own degrees. He said: “Last year, we created what’s called the Transforming Lives Strategic Plan 2025 to 2030. That was written in consultation with students, staff and external stakeholders, not by myself as the provost of the institution.

“And part of that, in terms of the strategic direction of the college, is that we do aspire to be a university in our own right with our own degree-awarding powers. That’s really important and that obviously gives more autonomy for the future.”

Becoming a university is a key long-term goal for UKMC’s management team, which it will work on to 2030 and beyond. Prof Powell said: “That’s important as a marker and shows our ambition and credibility and legitimacy. I’ve worked in higher education for years now with Russell Group universities, post-92 universities, as well as the independent sector. Some of my proudest moments have come from UK Management College.

“One of the fantastic insights that I get from working here is about intergenerational justice and social justice for those groups who traditionally have been denied access to university level education.”

UKMC will continue working with its current university partners, including Canterbury Christ Church University, Arts University Bournemouth, and the University of Wolverhampton.

Prof Powell said: “We very much value the university partnerships that we have and may have in the future.” He added: “These partnerships are not just created overnight, they’re cultivated carefully and it shows us as a quality beacon of excellence in order to attract leading universities to deliver their programmes in the heart of Greater Manchester and across the UK.”

Those degree courses were developed through consulting with local communities as UKMC continued to grow. Prof Powell said: “From 2016 onwards, the college had a number of different types of diploma courses. And in 2023 we decided to actively listen to the communities by which we serve – listening to community-based organisations as well as, say for example, faith based organisations, Jobcentre plus, the NHS – to actually find out what type of programmes were needed.

“What they told us was we needed more HE-orientated programmes to be put in place. The problem that we found was that there were many potential learners who were denied access to education in the university sector. So to that end, we decided to cultivate a number of strategic partnerships with universities in order to provide opportunities for those socially disadvantaged students who may have been out of the education system for a long time, but who wanted that opportunity.”

Prof Powell works closely with founder Zahidul Islam on their vision for the college. He said: “Zahidul is the CEO of UK Management College, and he’s one of the most passionate entrepreneurs that I’ve ever met, and is very student driven. Its fundamental value from the beginning was about active listening to the communities which we serve.

“And that was about looking at the most socially disadvantaged and most underrepresented groups in education who should be given opportunity. We saw it as a human right, a fundamental human right, that no one should be denied access to education irrespective of social identity or social division.

“And we’re a very strong widening participation college. One of the strong pillars and foundations of the college for students has been about enhanced student support.. from their first interaction with the college to plans for when they graduate.”

That mission, Prof Powell says, led the college to open its campuses in the North East and the East Midlands. “Social disadvantage doesn’t just materialise in Greater Manchester, it’s replicated across the UK,” he said. “And we’ve found through very careful demographic analysis in those areas many for example mature students who were denied again access to mainstream education. So to meet a fundamental need in their areas, we cultivated campuses.

“We engaged in the process of active listening. We’re a member of the Chambers of Commerce in these different regions, so we listen to them on the courses that should be cultivated, but for standardisation the student experience is exactly the same as what it would be in Greater Manchester, Derby, Newcastle and Sunderland.”

The Salford campus, 15 minutes or so from MediaCity, opened in January. Prof Powell said: “Salford is an emerging economy and obviously you’ve got MediaCity about a mile away and it’s a hot spot for business, it’s a hot spot of opportunities for learners in order to develop their skills.”

The college also opens itself up to the public and to the private sector through its events and open days, where potential employers and students can find out more about what it has to offer. The next such event is the Careers Fair on Tuesday, February 24, which features exhibitors including NHS England, Manchester City Council, Salford City Council, KPMG, Wellway Rehab Solutions, and Kids Planet Salford.

Olympic medallist Chelsie Giles MBE will join as a guest speaker, while activities designed to help students find work will include mock interviews, CV building workshops and career guidance sessions.

Prof Powell said: “Today’s student is tomorrow’s stakeholder. The opportunities to learn on that day will be immense and the links and the contacts that they’ll cultivate will help them, not just in terms of their careers and their employability, which we have a very strong focus on here, but in terms of their development and growth.”

He added: “We have further other events coming as well, and we just do this consistently, so we want people, students, to come in to see our facilities, speak to our staff, see what courses we do, and come here and get excited about what they can do for the future.”

• UKMC’s next Careers Fair will be held on Tuesday, February 24, at the college’s Salford campus at 17 Carolina Way from 10am to 4pm. For information, visit https://ukmc.ac.uk/event-details/ukmc-careers-fair-2026