London South Bank University

London South Bank University supplied revised Good Honours data after the League Tables were published. Had these been included, the University would have been ranked 113th in the 2012 League Tables and 108th in the Good Honours measure.

History

• Founded in 1892 as the Borough Polytechnic and amalgamated with four other colleges in 1970 to become South Bank Polytechnic.
• Historically the institution focused on providing people with relevant employment skills and supplying employers with the skilled workforce they needed. This included pioneering courses such as petrol motor mechanics in the 1900s, heating and ventilating engineering in the 1920s and nuclear power in the 1950s, together with the UK's first engineering course for women in the 1920s and one of the UK's first nursing degrees iin 1974.
• In June 1992 the institution was granted university status by the Privy Council to become London South Bank University (LSBU).

Location and transport

• Within walking distance of Elephant and Castle tube station, Waterloo and London Bridge. LSBU is only minutes away from the South Bank, the West End and the City.
• Twenty-six bus routes connect the university to the rest of London.
• LSBU also has a campus in Havering.

Entry standards

• The university seeks to create professional opportunity for all who can benefit.
• As well as opportunities for undergraduates and postgraduates with formal qualifications, many of the university's students have taken non-traditional routes into Higher Education.
• Find out more about entry requirements at London South Bank online.

Student mix

• LSBU has more than 24,000 students come from over 130 countries. 88% are home or EU students and 12% are from overseas.
• 58% of students are female and 42% male; 51% are from ethnic minority backgrounds and 63% are over 25 and over.
• Applications to places ratio 5.7:1.

Course flexibility

• LSBU provides a wide range of courses set at a variety of levels to make accessing higher education a realistic option for as many people as possible.
• The university believes in making its courses as flexible as possible, and many courses are offered part-time.

Teaching standards

• Student feedback consistently shows high levels of student satisfaction with teaching.
• Reviews by the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) have frequently commended the quality of teaching.
• External examiner reports indicate that the levels of student attainment are indicative of good teaching.
• LSBU is first for adult nursing and second for learning disability nursing in London (source: NHS London's Contract Performance Management for Education Commissioning Results 2009–10).

Research standards

• A growing and dynamic research culture, with a wide range of academic interests and highly qualified staff.
• Traditionally the university's research strengths are in social science, engineering, applied science, business and computing.
• LSBU has worked to establish credible research activity in other areas of strategic importance to the university, notably health and sport.
• LSBU is the number one modern university for Social Policy Research (source: Research Assessment Exercise 2008).
• LSBU is the number one modern university in London for research in sport-related subjects (source: Research Assessment Exercise 2008).

Academic strengths

• LSBU offers one of the most professionally and vocationally oriented course portfolios in the country.
• Areas of academic strength include Health & Social Care, Computing, Business, Design and Engineering, Arts & Society, Science and Technology.
• The vocational nature of many courses means that many course directors have links with industry and professional bodies such as CIM, RIBA and ACCA.
• LSBU is the number one Knowledge Transfer Partnership university in the UK.

Student facilities, including library and computing

• One library on each campus. There are over 600 study spaces at the university for both individual and group learning.
• IT services for students are provided on all campuses, with over 400 workstations. Open access in Southwark and more PCs at Havering.
• There are wireless areas for laptops and IT support for students living in halls.
• Third in the Green League Table in London and in the top 20 UK-wide.

Disability services

• Visit the website for information about the disability services at London South Bank.

Students' Union

• The Isobar is at the heart of the union. The social space, includes pool tables, video games, café and bar space, and is used for regular gigs.
• The union has a range of clubs and societies, student radio and a Student Advice Bureau.

Sport

• Sports facilities include 40+ station fitness suite, a dedicated free weights room, exercise classes and a sports injury clinic.
• The university provides a large and comprehensive Sports Scholarship Scheme.
• In 2003 LSBU was awarded a prize for the Most Improved University by the British Universities Sports Association (BUSA) for the overall performance of sports teams and individuals.
• Number one men and women’s university basketball team in London.
• New Human Performance Centre with state-of-the-art altitude training equipment accessed by the England football team for the 2010 world cup and gait lab, home to the LSBU biomechanics who invented the micro-wobbleboard, the technology found in the now world famous Fitflop.

Recent/prospective new builds

• K2 is LSBU’s new £47-million teaching and research building, opened in 2010. Shortlisted for a RIBA award, the eight-storey building has been designed and constructed using the latest in green building technology and, fittingly, houses the University’s Centre for Efficient and Renewable Energy in Buildings (CEREB – see below). It also houses the Faculty of Health and Social Care, the Department of Education and Sport and Exercise Science. Impressive green credentials include one of the largest installations of geothermal energy pile in the UK, which controls the building’s heating and cooling system, solar powered heated water and an innovative mesh cladding to regulate temperature. First-class facilities for students and staff include four modern lecture theatres and 12 state-of-the-art skills labs including real time emergency wards. 
• CEREB is the Centre for Efficient and Renewable Energy in Buildings: a unique teaching, research and demonstration facility for low carbon technologies in the built environment. The multi-million pound project is the first centre of its kind to be located in an urban setting with a dedicated space, providing opportunities to research and develop sustantainable and environmentally friendly technologies. 

Availability of part-time work

• There is good availability of part-time work. Currently 48% of students are part-time. The Jobshop provides a service advertising part-time vacancies.

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