Leeds Beckett University (formerly Leeds Metropolitan University and Leeds Polytechnic) is a university located in Leeds, West Yorkshire, with campuses in the city centre and in Headingley. It gained university status in 1992; before this date it was the Leeds Polytechnic. The number of students is listed by the HESA 2013/14 data as the 25th largest in the UK (out of 163). The current name was adopted in September 2014.
Vice Chancellor, Professor Peter Slee, joined the university in September 2015, succeeding Professor Susan Price, who had been in post since January 2010
The current Deputy Vice Chancellors are Professor Paul Smith (Strategic Development), Professor Andrew Slade (Research & Enterprise) and Professor Phil Cardew (Academic)
The university’s origins can be traced to 1824, with the foundation of the Leeds Mechanics Institute. Leeds Polytechnic was formed in 1970 and was a part of the Leeds Local Education Authority until it became an independent higher Education Corporation on 1 April 1989. In 1992 the institution was granted university status.
In January 2015, Leeds Beckett entered Stonewall’s nationally-recognised league table of gay-friendly employers at number 51 in the rankings.
In June 2013, Leeds Beckett became only the third university in the UK to achieve the Customer Service Excellence standard, a Government benchmark awarded to public sector bodies who demonstrate a commitment to driving customer-focused change within their organisation.
In 2013 the University obtained the Gold Investors in People standard, one of only a handful of higher education institutions to do so.
In November 2006, the university won the award for "outstanding contribution to the local community" at the annual higher education awards ceremony hosted by The Times Higher Education Supplement. It also came second in the main category, "the university of the Year", which was won by the University of Nottingham. In this category, the university was highly commended for its "low-charging, high impact" strategy.
In June 2007, the university was recognised for its environmentally friendly attitude by being ranked number one in the UK in the Green League 2007: a ranking of sustainability in the higher education sector, compiled by People & Planet.
