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The Institution That Wasn't: The birth, short life, and death of the British National Health Service University
Taylor, S. Bell, E. Grugulis, C. Irena Storey, J.
Taylor, S.
Bell, E.
Grugulis, C. Irena
Storey, J.
Publication Date
2007
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© The Observatory on Borderless Higher Education, December 2007
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Abstract
This report presents a detailed account of a major educational initiative in the British health
service, the organisation with the largest workforce in Europe. The initiative was to set up a
`university for the National Health Service¿, an aspiration that gave birth to `NHSU¿. Work
began in 2001, but the project ended abruptly in 2005. This paper is based on the analysis
of a series of in-depth interviews with senior managerial staff and a review of policy
documents. Our analysis explores both the political and the organisational aspects of
NHSU. We conclude that two aspects of the initiative are key to understanding its demise:
its politically-led nature and its challenge to the idea of a `university¿. Finally, we attempt to
draw conclusions from the experience of NHSU to inform other state-sponsored education
and training interventions.
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Taylor, S., Bell, E., Grugulis, C.I. and Storey, J. (2007). The Institution That Wasn't: The British National Health Service University. The Observatory on Borderless Higher Education. Report. December 2007
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