College exams hit as 3,000 lecturers strike

London was hit by a wave of strikes at universities and colleges today. About 3,000 lecturers and academics walked out at 11 colleges and two universities in protest at redundancies and course closures.

More than 50,000 students — many preparing for crucial exams — faced disruption to classes but some backed their teachers in protesting over the cuts. The University and College Union, which called the industrial action, warned that higher education faces Government cuts of £1.3 billion.

Academics walked out at King's College London and the University of Westminster. Among the colleges hit by the strikes was Lambeth College, where cuts include closing the access to the art and design course.

Former Lambeth student Lara Ritosa Roberts, an artist whose work recently featured at Tate Britain, condemned the decision. "It is an absolute disaster to hear that they are scrapping a successful course that is so needed for many reasons," she said.

Lambeth College claimed the course was not recruiting enough students.

A spokesman criticised staff for striking: "The college has no control over these budget reductions, and interrupting students' studies at this crucial time of the year is not in our view the proper way to express those concerns."

King's College London said it was "disappointed" that the strike was going ahead despite recent positive talks with the union. A planned strike at University College London was called off after negotiations.

UCU general secretary Sally Hunt said. "People are losing their jobs and access to education is disappearing. We should not be slashing funding when more people than ever need access to education."

The 11 FE colleges affected are: Barnet College; City and Islington College; College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London; College of North West London; Greenwich Community College; Hackney Community College; Lambeth College; Lewisham College; Richmond Upon Thames College; Tower Hamlets College; Westminster Kingsway College.