In 1901, industrialist Alfred Bolton acquired a 2-acre (8,100 m2) site on what is now College Road, and in 1906 mining classes began there. In 1907, pottery classes followed, being transferred from Tunstall into temporary buildings, and in 1914 the building now known as the Cadman Building was officially opened as the Central School of Science and Technology by J. A. Pease, President of the Board of Education. A frieze over the entrance depicts potters and miners. In 2013, the Library Conference room in the Cadman Building was renamed the Alfred Bolton Room.
In 1915, a department was established for the commercial production of Seger cones used to measure and control the temperatures of ceramic furnaces, based upon research completed by the principal, Joseph Mellor. Grants from the Carnegie United Kingdom Trust in 1924 were used to develop the ceramics library and in 1926 the name of the institution was changed to North Staffordshire Technical College. By 1931 extensions to the Cadman Building ran along Station Road and housed the Mining Department. A grant was awarded from the Miners’ Welfare Fund to fund the building work. The new extension also housed the library, which by now had 35,000 volumes. By 1934 the college consisted of four departments: Engineering (nearly 800 students), Pottery (just over 600 students), Mining (just under 500 students), and Chemistry (under 300 students).
In 1939, new engineering workshops were occupied for the first time and the land opposite the Cadman Building was purchased. By 1950 Victoria Road changed its name to College Road and the site now extended over 12 acres (49,000 m2). The Mellor Building and Experimental Production Block (now Dwight Building) were constructed for the North Staffordshire College of Technology by 1960.
Various faculty movements and further building work resulted in North Staffordshire Polytechnic being formed in 1970 with the merger of Stoke-on-Trent College of Art, North Staffordshire College of Technology (both based in Stoke-on-Trent), and Staffordshire College of Technology in Stafford. In 1977, the polytechnic absorbed Madeley College of Education, formerly County of Stafford Training College, a teacher training facility in Madeley, Staffordshire specialising in physical education.
The polytechnic developed traditional strengths of the component institutions, e.g. ceramics (Stoke-on-Trent),[9] computing (Stafford)[10] and sports education (Madeley). The mining department closed as result of the decline of coal mining in the 1980s. New subjects were developed. North Staffordshire Polytechnic was among only a handful of third-level institutions in the UK to offer International Relations as a dedicated degree. The 1992 UK government Research Assessment Exercise placed the International Relations Department as the highest-rated in the institution.
We’re a great choice for international students and your success is important to us. At Staffordshire University you’ll gain much more than a qualification.
You’ll receive a friendly welcome and support from our dedicated team in International Student Support.
Our modern facilities and digital focus will support your learning. With industry-leading research and experienced lecturers – you'll gain knowledge that will give you the edge in the workplace.
Staffordshire University is a safe environment with everything you’ll need close at hand. It’s also a perfect base for exploring the rest of the UK.
We can offer you:
- Excellent modern facilities and digital focus
- Gold - Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF)
- A thriving and diverse student population representing over 75 countries
- English language support from our own team on campus
- A lower cost of living than many parts of the UK
Staffordshire University is…
- rated Gold for Teaching Excellence in the Teaching Excellence Framework
- top 10 for Student Satisfaction in the Complete University Guide 2020
All students are given the opportunity to master future technologies in professional environments such as the £1.3m facility-packed Smart Zone, the Staffs Newsroom, the dedicated Games Lab, and the Crime Scene House. There is significant investment in the university’s future, with a brand-new Catalyst building due to open in 2021 that will house learning areas, business collaboration zones and networking spaces.
