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Has University of Kent spent £500k on Liberty Quays’ Cargo Bar despite it not being open for five years?

The cash-strapped University of Kent is believed to be paying around £7,000 a month on a student bar which shut more than five years ago.

The revelation comes as bosses there launch a new round of redundancies as they battle crippling debts and falling learner numbers.

The former Cargo Bar unit in Liberty Quays, Gillingham. Picture: Joe Crossley
The former Cargo Bar unit in Liberty Quays, Gillingham. Picture: Joe Crossley

Students at the Medway campus frequented the Cargo Bar in Liberty Quays, off Pier Road, Gillingham, for five years until it closed its doors for good in September 2019.

It is understood the university signed a 15-year lease in 2014 for the unit, which is close to halls of residence, a Tesco and a Subway.

Based on the assumption the £7,000 figure is consistent throughout the length of the contract, the university will be paying £84,000 a year for something closed up, generating no income.

This would also mean it will have paid £448,000 since its last pint was pulled, and if the contract runs until June 2029, another £371,000 will be spent.

The university says it shut the bar due to a “lack of financial viability to continue trading” but is “currently looking into alternative uses for the space”.

The former Cargo Bar unit in Liberty Quays, Gillingham, which the University of Kent is paying £7,000 a month on rent for - despite it closing in 2019. Picture: Joe Crossley
The former Cargo Bar unit in Liberty Quays, Gillingham, which the University of Kent is paying £7,000 a month on rent for - despite it closing in 2019. Picture: Joe Crossley

However, it declined to comment on how much it was spending on the closed-up unit – citing commercial sensitivities.

KentOnline has since submitted a Freedom of Information request asking about the monthly and overall costs.

We also asked bosses whether there were any additional fees the university is still paying in relation to the unit.

Again, they declined to comment.

In June, KentOnline revealed the university was planning on introducing more redundancies, while several courses were axed from the curriculum.

The former University of Kent Gillingham Building in Chatham which was sold as part of cost-cutting
The former University of Kent Gillingham Building in Chatham which was sold as part of cost-cutting

Last week an email sent to staff said Kent suffered from a shortfall in international recruitment, which was down by 16% this year, and a “fundamental shift in competitiveness” for domestic students.

It stated: “This has a knock-on effect on our income and while we had anticipated this and put measures in place to control costs, the impact of both reduced fee and associated income is far beyond what we can cover without taking steps to address the shortfall.”

A former lecturer, who took redundancy last year, told KentOnline: “It is very galling to see this apparent waste of money and also the ongoing loss of a social facility for students, particularly at a time of damaging cuts.

“Dozens of people have lost their jobs at the university, departments and courses are closing and students have suffered as a result.

“More staff cuts are on the way. These rental costs since 2019 appear to add up to hundreds of thousands of pounds. This equates to many people’s jobs or substantial running costs.

“Is this amount now considered a drop in the ocean to the uni’s management compared to the uni’s financial problems or does it point to more poor decision-making? It’s hard to see how a bar in student accommodation would not be viable or even profitable if run well.”

KentOnline visited Liberty Quays to ask learners what they thought of the defunct bar and its costs.

Accounting and finance student, Bradley Basaula, 21, was “very upset” to learn tuition fees are potentially paying for the unit’s rent.

University of Kent student Bradley Basaula says the money should be spent on "better options". Picture: Joe Crossley
University of Kent student Bradley Basaula says the money should be spent on "better options". Picture: Joe Crossley

The second-year, who has lived in Liberty Quays for his whole University of Kent experience, said: “I mean, nothing’s going on inside here.

“I think [the money] should be put into better places like student events, maybe some investment here and there, maybe even into charities.”

Meanwhile, second-year pharmacy student, Missy Bala, said: “It’s a lot of our money [going into it] and we are going to be in debt by the end of our degrees so I’d rather that money go to something that would be useful rather than something that’s just going to be shut.”

The 19-year-old added the university would “get a lot of money” if the unit reopened as a student restaurant.

Yu Chen, who is also in the second year of his pharmacy undergraduate degree, was “not happy” about the expenditure.

University of Kent students Missy Bala and Yu Chen who live in Liberty Quays. Picture: Joe Crossley
University of Kent students Missy Bala and Yu Chen who live in Liberty Quays. Picture: Joe Crossley

The 20-year-old, who lives in Liberty Quays, said: “I don’t know much about it but £7,000?

“Do you know why they spend that much? Just for the sake of it?

“That’s a lot of money, so the unit should be turned into something.”

Chisom Okoye, 21, who studies pharmacy at Greenwich University, which is also on the Medway campus, said: “Although this was a good cause once upon a time it may no longer be the best use of the money.”

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