2011 date for Telford-Lincoln merger

If all goes to plan, Telford Rural Polytechnic could become a division of Lincoln University by January 1 next year.

That was Telford chief executive Jonathan Walmisley's reaction when asked about the public consultation phase of the proposed merger between the two organisations, announced yesterday by Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce.

Mr Walmisley and Telford council deputy chairman Murray Brass both said they welcomed public feedback because the merger could only be good for Telford.

Mr Brass said the council was "pretty passionate" about providing agricultural training, and merging with Lincoln would strengthen Telford's ability to provide that training.

The merger had been thought about long and hard, with both Telford and Lincoln councils approving a business case that had been presented to Mr Joyce, Mr Walmisley said.

With Telford being one of the smallest polytechnics in the country, there were real advantages in merging, such as technological transfers down to the farmers, staff having greater access to professional development and the opportunity for students to progress to higher learning.

"It is now [for Mr Joyce] to ascertain if there is public support for the merger," Mr Walmisley said.

Telford has about 120 students on campus and about 2500 nationally.

Mr Brass said 1000 equivalent full-time students would transfer to Lincoln under the new organisational structure, but the structure of the courses would remain the same.

"We have quite a lot of students studying by correspondence, e-learning and other courses, with tutors run around the country.

They will be enrolled with the new organisation, but the students won't physically shift to Christchurch," he said.

"The type of students that come to Telford can only benefit from this," Mr Walmisley said.

"It's about the students and stakeholders - we think this is the best solution for them."

Industry groups and stakeholders had been consulted, with 99% positive feedback, he said.

The public consultation period finishes on September 17, and Mr Walmisley said the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) will gather feedback and report to Mr Joyce, who will then make recommendations to Cabinet on whether the merger should go ahead.

rachel.taylor@odt.co.nz