Gary Neville and Manchester United’s Class of 92 plan to open a university Manchester United’s Class of 92 are launching a new project – a university. Gary Neville and former team mates Ryan […]

Manchester United’s Class of 92 are launching a new project – a university.

Gary Neville and former team mates Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes and Phil Neville are launching University Academy 92 in the shadow of Old Trafford.

The university – UA92 – on the site of the former Kellogg’s cereals headquarters in Stretford will be a branch of Lancaster University and will teach courses in sport, media and business.

I have always believed that success is down to more than just having talent and good luck. There should be no limits to what you can achieve with the right preparation. Gary Neville

Gary Neville said: “I have always believed that success is down to more than just having talent and good luck. There should be no limits to what you can achieve with the right preparation.”

He added: “Our aim is that UA92 graduates would leave with an academic qualification, of course, but also with a range of other skills such as how to deal with pressure, understand finance, leadership and presentational skills, and also how to maintain a healthy body and mind. In other words, the complete package you need to succeed in the workplace.”

The players have teamed up with Trafford Council, developers Bruntwood, Trafford Colllege and Microsoft for the venture, which they say is a “new higher education concept”.

They said it will be the first university of its kind and will offer placements at Microsoft and other firms.

Trafford Council has borrowed £12m to but the site, which will include a new leisure centre. The university will have sports pitches over a mile away near the M60.

The project is backed by the support of Manchester United Football Club and Lancashire County Cricket Club, along with the players’ former manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

He said: “It is a project with great potential and I hope that their efforts make a genuine difference and provide opportunities in life for those that otherwise would not have been given a chance to realise their potential.”

One of the aims is to attract students who might not otherwise have gone to university as well as traditional university entrants looking to enhance their life skills.

It will seek to put personal development at the centre of teaching.

How to survive demanding workplace situations

The university will also focus on providing students with the skills to ”survive in demanding workplace situations“.

The first students will start in September 2019.

Professor Mark Smith, the Vice-Chancellor of Lancaster University, said: “We were very interested in the ideas presented by the Class of 92 because they matched closely with a number of things Lancaster already does very well, particularly innovation, widening participation and employability. We therefore felt we could make a strong contribution to a project which seeks to do things differently.”

A DfE spokesman said: “If we are to meet the future skills needs of this country we cannot stand still – we must ensure that our higher education system is fulfilling its potential and meeting the demand for new ways of learning with strong routes to employment.“