Nottingham Trent University

Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is a public research university located in Nottingham, England, which lies along the River Trent. Its origins date back to the establishment of the Nottingham Government School of Design in 1843, one of the earliest institutions of its kind in the United Kingdom. The university assumed its current status in 1992.

NTU operates across multiple campuses, including sites in the City Centre, Clifton, and Brackenhurst near Southwell, with an additional campus in London. Its academic activities are organised into seven schools spanning creative, professional, scientific, and environmental disciplines. With a student population exceeding 35,000, Nottingham Trent University is the sixth-largest university in the UK by total enrolment. In recent years, the university has received various awards, including the Times Higher Education University of the Year award in 2017 and The Guardian University of the Year in 2019. It is a member of sector bodies including the European University Association, Association of Commonwealth Universities, Universities UK, Association of MBAs, and Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.

Additionally, the university owns and operates key cultural assets in Nottingham, including Bonington Gallery, a public contemporary art gallery based within the City campus, Metronome, a specialist venue for music and live events and Nottingham Conference Centre.

Nottingham Trent University and its predecessor institutions count among their alumni prominent figures in public life, business, the creative industries, academia, and professional sport in the United Kingdom and internationally. As of 2026, academic staff at Nottingham Trent University include fellows of the British Academy, the Academy of Social Sciences, the Royal Society, the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Royal Society of Biology.

History

Foundation

Nottingham Trent University was formed by the amalgamation of several institutions of higher education in Nottingham. Its earliest origins lie in the Nottingham Government School of Design, founded in 1843, during a period when government-supported art and design education was promoted to support industry and manufacturing. The School of Design continued to operate through successive institutional changes and remains part of the university.

Expansion and consolidation (1945–1970)

Following the Second World War, higher education provision in Nottingham expanded significantly in response to increased demand for technical and professional training. In 1945, the Nottingham and District Technical College was established. This was followed by the opening of the Nottingham Regional College of Technology in 1958, and the Nottingham College of Education at Clifton in 1959, which focused primarily on teacher training.

In 1964, the Nottingham Regional College was opened, and in 1966 the original Nottingham College of Design was formally linked with the Regional College. These developments reflected national efforts to rationalise and expand further education and technical colleges during the post-war period.

Polytechnic era (1970–1992)

In 1970, the merged institutions were granted polytechnic status, becoming Trent Polytechnic. As a polytechnic, the institution played a significant role in vocational and professional higher education, in line with the national mission of polytechnics to widen access to higher education and strengthen links with industry and professional practice.

During the 1970s Nottingham Polytechnic gained national recognition for its photography education, particularly through collaboration with Derby College of Art. Under the leadership of Bill Gaskins, who joined the Polytechnic from Derby in 1971, and with the involvement of photographers such as Raymond Moore, the programme became influential within British photographic education. Figures such as Ifor Thomas were also nationally influential during this period.

In 1975, Trent Polytechnic amalgamated with the Nottingham College of Education, further consolidating its role in teacher training.

By the 1980s the Polytechnic was also well respected for its Higher Diploma and CNAA degree courses in law, engineering and the sciences, with a large new Life Sciences block being built at the Clifton Campus in 1983.

The institution was renamed Nottingham Polytechnic in 1988.

Teacher training

Teacher training formed a substantial part of the Polytechnic’s provision during the post-war decades, reflecting national demand following the expansion of compulsory education. In the late 1970s, however, declining birth rates led to a reduction in teacher training places across England. While Eaton Hall Teacher Training College initially remained part of Trent Polytechnic, it subsequently closed in 1981.

Campuses

The university has five campuses: City, Clifton, Brackenhurst, NTU London and NTU in Mansfield.

City

Located just north of Nottingham City Centre, the City site is home to over 17,000 students from Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Law School, School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment, School of Art & Design, School of Social Sciences, and the Centre for Broadcasting & Journalism. The university's flagship buildings are the regenerated Newton and Arkwright, which are both Grade II listed buildings. The Arkwright Building, constructed between 1877 and 1881, features an elaborate Gothic architectural style with gables, arches, and pinnacles. It was originally home to University College Nottingham, as well as the city library and a natural history museum, and was described at the time as one of the finest public buildings in Nottinghamshire.

The adjacent Newton Building was constructed between 1956 and 1958 during the expansion of the Nottingham and District Technical College. Designed in a distinctive mid-20th-century Art Deco style, it is one of the tallest buildings in Nottingham. The building was officially opened in June 1958 by Princess Alexandra of Kent and remains one of the university’s principal teaching and administrative buildings.

On 18 May 2011, the two buildings were officially reopened by Sir David Attenborough.

The Boots Library is the main library of the university. It is in the centre of the city site and supports the schools of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment, Art & Design, Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Law School and Social Sciences. It is a purpose-built building, completed in 1998 at a total cost of £13m; with a refurbishment completed in summer 2013. It is set over four levels plus a further level dedicated to 24-hour computing facilities. There are branch libraries on the Clifton and Brackenhurst campuses serving the schools located there, and include additional Animal Planet digital facilities.

The Recent Advances in Manufacturing database (RAM) is published by the library and information department. It is a bibliographic indexing service providing information for manufacturing and related areas. Literature covered includes journals, magazines, books, videos, and conference proceedings with from 1990 to 2012.

Clifton

Clifton Campus is located approximately 4 miles (6 kilometres) south of Nottingham city centre and is one of Nottingham Trent University’s principal campuses. It is a largely self-contained campus, set within landscaped grounds, and is primarily associated with teaching and research in science, technology, engineering, health, and sport. The campus serves a student population of over 9,000, mainly from the School of Science and Technology.

Organisation and administration

Faculties

Nottingham Trent University is organised into a number of academic schools delivering teaching and research across creative, professional, scientific, and applied disciplines.

School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences

The School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences is based at the Brackenhurst Campus near Southwell, Nottinghamshire, and focuses on education and research in agriculture, animal and equine sciences, environmental management, ecology, food production, and sustainability-related fields.

School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment

The School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment is based primarily at the City Campus and provides education and research in architecture, design, engineering, construction management, surveying, and property-related disciplines, combining creative and technical approaches to the built environment.

Nottingham School of Art & Design

The School of Art & Design traces its origins to the Nottingham Government School of Design, founded in 1843. Based mainly at the City Campus, it delivers undergraduate and postgraduate education in fine art, fashion, textiles, graphic design, photography, and related creative disciplines.

Nottingham Business School

Nottingham Business School provides education and research in business, management, economics, and finance. It is triple accredited by EQUIS, AACSB, and AMBA, placing it among a small number of business schools worldwide to hold all three major international accreditations.

Nottingham Law School

Nottingham Law School is one of the United Kingdom’s largest law schools and delivers undergraduate, postgraduate, and professional legal education. A distinctive feature of the school is NLS Legal, an on-campus teaching law firm providing supervised, practice-based learning through real cases.

School of Science and Technology

The School of Science and Technology delivers education and research across scientific and technical disciplines including biosciences, chemistry, computing, engineering, forensic science, mathematics, physics, and sport science, with activity centred primarily at the Clifton Campus.

School of Social Sciences

The School of Social Sciences provides education and research in disciplines including criminology, psychology, sociology, politics, journalism and media, education, social work, health and allied professions, and languages, combining academic study with applied and professional practice.

Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies

Confetti is a specialist creative education provider focusing on music, media, film, television, games, and live events. Established in 1994, Confetti became part of Nottingham Trent University in 2015.

Academic profile

Rankings and reputation

Nottingham Trent University has received sustained national recognition in higher education awards. It was named University of the Year by Times Higher Education in 2017, and Modern University of the Year by The Times and The Sunday Times in both 2018 and again in 2022. In 2019, the university was awarded University of the Year by The Guardian.

Nottingham Trent University was ranked 25th in the UK by The Guardian in 2026. In the UK subject rankings, the university is currently ranked 2nd in forensic science, 4th in general engineering, 5th in pharmacology and pharmacy, 6th in childhood and youth, 9th in nutrition and food science, 10th in agriculture, 10th in creative writing, 11th in art and design, 16th in marketing and public relations, 17th in animation and game design, 19th in economics, 21st in journalism, and 23rd in fashion and textiles.

Nottingham Trent University achieved an Athena SWAN Bronze Award for good practices towards the advancement of gender equality in 2019. The university held a Gold rating in the UK Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) for June 2017. In the 2023 TEF assessment, the university maintained its overall Gold rating.

In 2015, WhatUni ranked the university 12th in its 'Student Choice Awards'. In the same year, the Times Higher Education ranked the university as 31st out of 113 universities in the country for student experience. In November 2015, Nottingham Trent received the Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education in the Science and Mathematics category, repeated in 2021 for projects involving digital imaging of architecture and heritage sites.

It was ranked 609th by the QS World University Rankings in 2026. Trent has also received a five-star rating on the QS World University Rankings for universities within the 500-600 category.

Graduation

Graduation ceremonies at Nottingham Trent University are typically held twice a year, in winter and summer. Ceremonies take place on the university’s City Campus at University Hall, a restored 19th-century building on Shakespeare Street which serves as a central venue for academic and cultural events.

University Hall was originally constructed in 1854 as a Wesleyan Chapel, with later extensions added in 1976. The building was acquired and restored by the university in the 2010s, and is now used for graduation ceremonies and other events.

In 2024, the university introduced a redesigned set of academic dress, following a competition involving students from the Nottingham School of Art & Design. The new gowns incorporate sustainable materials, including recycled plastics, and feature design elements inspired by the university’s architecture.

Environmental profile

Sustainability

The university was named "the most environmentally friendly university in the country" by The Guardian, and in 2009 it was awarded the title of "the most environmentally friendly university in the UK", by The People & Planet Green League (the only independent ranking of British universities' environmental and ethical performance – published by the Times Higher Education); with 100% of the university's electricity generated by renewable sources since 2009.

Between 2009 and 2012, NTU received four First Class Awards from Green League, reflecting its commitment to carbon reduction and its efforts to become an environmentally aware higher education institution.

Aside from organising various 'green' activity clusters (e.g., The Carbon Elephant, The Wind Turbines Project, The UCycle Scheme), the university has also been formally awarded Fairtrade status. Fairtrade products are therefore available in all campus shops, catering outlets and the Students' Union. Also, Nottingham Trent University branded T-shirts and hoodies sold in the Student Union shops are made from Fairtrade cotton. Additionally, the university holds a yearly Fairtrade Fortnight Celebration, featuring a range of events and activities to raise awareness of the work of the Fairtrade Foundation and NTU's commitment to ensuring that farmers in some of the poorest areas of the world receive a fair price for their produce.

The university published a Sustainable Purchasing Policy in 2007, which was said to outline specific aims meant to embed sustainability into the institution's purchasing activities. NTU also acknowledged its responsibility to operate in an ethical manner and claims to take into account social, environmental and ethical considerations in all of its activities, including financial investment. The university's Treasury Management Policy included a separate section on Ethical Investment, which states that "investments shall only be made with institutions with a clear and transparent Ethical Investment Policy which reflect the university's ethical values".

Nottingham Trent University is a member of the International Universities Climate Alliance (IUCA), an international network of universities collaborating on climate research, education and evidence-based approaches to climate change.

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