Dundee University admits ‘clear failings’

By Gbam Godwin On Aug 14, 2025

Dundee University admits ‘clear failings’.

Dundee University has released its response to a damning report on the institution’s financial collapse, which resulted in a £22 million government bailout.

The university stated that the Gillies Report, which was released in June, revealed “clear failings in financial monitoring, management, and governance”.

It has issued a 65-point action plan that includes daily cash flow monitoring, cancelling or deferring non-essential capital projects, and providing “financial literacy” training to all university executive group, court, and committee members.

The university also announced that it had received 434 applications for its voluntary severance plan. According to Dundee University, Prof Pamela Gillies’ independent report was a “chastening experience and triggered a time for deep self-reflection”.

The university, which is currently facing a £35 million deficit, stated that its “proposed route forward” would necessitate “significant additional public funding”.

It received £22 million from the Scottish Funding Council in February and will receive another £40 million from the Scottish government over the next two academic years.

The university plans to cut 300 jobs through the voluntary scheme, down from an initial forecast of about 700.

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The Gillies Report slammed the university’s former leadership, including Prof Iain Gillespie, who resigned last December.

It discovered that Prof Gillespie, ex-interim principal Prof Shane O’Neill, and former chief operating officer Jim McGeorge acted as a “triumvirate,” making decisions among themselves. It also questioned the accuracy of information about the university’s finances provided to other senior officials.

According to the report, university administrators and the governing body repeatedly failed to recognise the worsening crisis and continued to overspend rather than take action.

It stated that the problems were “self-inflicted” and that senior university officials should have been aware that the university’s financial situation “was worse than presented”.

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The university has now issued an official response to the report. It admitted there had been a “complete breakdown in cash management and expenditure control at the senior level of the organisation.” The report continued:

“While there were significant external factors, which had affected the higher education sector across the UK to varying degrees, the university’s response to these, and responsible management of our finances, had fallen well short of the standards that everyone should have expected.”

However, it admitted that the situation was exacerbated by “over-reliance on the director of finance for strategic financial decisions, without sufficient independent challenge”.

According to the report, members of the University Executive Group (UEG) were preoccupied with their own portfolios, with “limited cross-functional financial accountability”.

The university stated that the Gillies Report was clear about the “dominant nature of the most senior leadership in the university.” The publication continued:

“This led to a hierarchical culture, characterised by hubris, the suppression of dissent, and fear of speaking out, resulting in an inability for staff to challenge constructively.”

‘Chastening experience’

The university is proposing a series of short, medium, and long-term actions to ensure the university’s sustainability. These include daily cash flow monitoring and the implementation of additional cost controls to reduce discretionary spending like travel.

Former principal Prof Gillespie was chastised last year for taking expensive trips abroad, including a £7,000 trip to Hong Kong.

The university stated that it has implemented a new monthly management reporting process to ensure that “management accounts are formally presented to senior management and the university court.”

Proposals include overhauling the court and appointing a permanent principal with “transformation and change experience and a people-focused leadership style.” It will also hold monthly “town-hall” meetings to hear the “concerns, hopes, and ideas of staff and students.” The response concluded by saying: “The circumstances surrounding the Gillies Report have been a humbling experience that has prompted deep self-reflection.

“They present a unique opportunity to renew and refresh the university’s covenant with its community—staff, students, alumni, the court, research partners, third party stakeholders, and the city of Dundee.”

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