Writtle University College and ARU have merged. Writtle’s full range of college, degree, postgraduate and short courses will still be delivered on the Writtle campus. See our guide to finding Writtle information on this site.

Strategy and leadership

We published 'Designing our future' on 16 June 2017. It’s a strategy that sets out our vision, priorities and ambitions for the next ten years.

Our strategy, published on the 25th anniversary of our achieving university status, is built around three central themes.

Read our strategy, Designing our future 2017-2026

Underpinning strategies: Education, Research & Innovation, Operating 2022-27

Value for money: the ARU approach

Theme 1: Creating a leading learning and innovation ecosystem

  • Our students are at the heart of our University, and we want to deliver an outstanding educational experience. To do this, we'll combine the best of face-to-face and digital learning in all our courses; increase work-based opportunities; and offer activities that enhance academic success and employability.
  • Over the next ten years, our aim is to maximise the impact of our research by focusing on areas of key international and regional need. We'll also use our research expertise to enhance our curriculum.
  • We always strive to contribute to the economic, social and cultural wellbeing of our region. And so we'll continue to build partnerships with businesses; communicate the impact of our research; and open up our campuses for all to enjoy. 

Theme 2: Building and nurturing vibrant university communities

  • We will be inclusive and welcoming of all who want to study with us, measuring our success by their success. We'll have a particular focus on continuing to attract and retain international students, and growing our postgraduate student communities.
  • Building on our reputation as a good employer, we will focus on attracting and keeping the very best people we can.
  • Our aim is to become a university that is greater than the sum of its parts. We will nurture the wider ARU community, including schools and colleges, alumni, and friends and supporters.

Theme 3: Strengthening the underpinning operations of the University

  • Building on our reputation for enterprise, we will be known for our use of innovative, user-focused approaches to problem-solving. We will put the needs of those who study and work with us at the forefront of the way we design our activities.
  • Our ambition is to be a digital leader. To achieve this, we will build and maintain a digital infrastructure that supports our education and research activities. But we will balance this emerging 'digital campus' with the needs of our three physical campuses.
  • We will make the most of our current resources, and work consistently to grow them. We will use data and evidence to identify areas for improvement and investment, focusing resources on priority areas that will deliver the greatest impact.

Our People Strategy is linked to our overarching University strategy.

Read our People Strategy: ARU People 2022

Read our Digital Strategy 2019-2023

Our leadership

We're managed by a Board of Governors and a Senate. The Board of Governors is responsible for the strategic direction of our University, and Senate is responsible for our academic standards. Members of our Board of Governors are also Trustees of Anglia Ruskin.

Our Vice Chancellor is Professor Roderick Watkins, who is responsible for the day-to-day leadership, and advising the Board on the strategic direction, of our University.

He is supported by our Vice Chancellor’s Group:

We’re a higher education corporation and a registered charity, and we publish our annual report and accounts every year. We’re committed to sustainability; to supporting access to university for students who may not have otherwise considered it, or been able to afford it; and to boosting young people’s skills and employability as part of the EU’s Erasmus+ Programme. You can read more about these commitments – and others – on our Policies, procedures and regulations page.