Dear Colleagues,
In December 2024, we invited you to share your views on the principles guiding our search for a new home. We heard from 823 members, and the feedback provided valuable insights that are helping to shape our thinking.
As you might expect with a membership as large and diverse as ours, there were a range of views and no clear consensus on some issues. However, some key themes emerged:
- Broad support for the principles. Overall, respondents were broadly supportive of our principles (the core aims and themes guiding our search). When asked how well these aligned with their vision for our future home, the average score was 7/10.
- Location preferences. Our principles proposed the College should remain in central London. Around one quarter of respondents expressed a preference for outside London. Manchester and Birmingham were the most frequently mentioned alternatives.
- Other priorities. Beyond location, the most common priorities were value for money, facilities for members, and keeping exams at the College.
- What would make members more likely to visit. The most common suggestions were if the College were located outside London, better facilities for members, and shorter travel time from home.
Key areas of focus
Your views have reinforced our priorities in some key areas, which were also reflected in feedback from our employees. These include:
- Value for money. We are committed to using our resources wisely, focusing on core activities that benefit members and patients. The funds from the sale of Churchill House have been ringfenced for investing in an appropriately-sized freehold building – without any additional financial contributions from you.
- Member facilities. We want to make the College a place where you feel welcomed and inspired. Our focus is on creating an accessible space with facilities tailored to your needs.
- Sustainability. We want our new home to exceed minimum standards for sustainability to reduce our environmental footprint. We are also committed to technologies that enable virtual collaboration, ensuring that every member across the four nations remains connected and supported by their College.
Further exploration of location
Your feedback prompted us to further explore the best location for a new building.
We commissioned some independent geospatial analysis using anonymised postcode data to determine which UK city is most accessible to the largest proportion of our members by public transport.
The study compared four cities outside London and three major rail stations within London, assessing what proportion of members could reach each within 1, 2, 3, and 4-hour journeys. The results confirmed that London remains the most accessible location:
| Location | 1 hour | 2 hours | 3 hours | 4 hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham New Street | 5.0% | 26.8% | 65.4% | 80.6% |
| Bristol Temple Meads | 3.0% | 11.9% | 48.1% | 73.4% |
| London Bridge | 20.0% | 37.0% | 62.6% | 84.2% |
| London King's Cross St Pancras | 19.7% | 39.3% | 68.8% | 85.5% |
| London Paddington | 17.2% | 36.3% | 62.3% | 84.4% |
| Manchester Piccadilly | 6.3% | 19.5% | 48.0% | 75.3% |
| Newcastle | 3.2% | 7.3% | 19.1% | 61.0% |
You can download the full analysis on our website.
Why London?
Based on this analysis, we are focusing our search on areas around major transport hubs in London. Other important considerations for remaining in London include:
- Proximity to key stakeholders. Being in London keeps us close to UK government decision-makers, policymakers, and other royal colleges, strengthening our ability to advocate for the specialty.
- Retention of expertise. Our employees play a crucial role in delivering member services. Relocating outside London could lead to the loss of experienced employees and incur significant costs related to redundancies or relocation packages.
Exams – keeping an open mind
We recognise that where exams are held is important to you and our priority is creating the best possible experience for candidates. As our search continues, we are keeping an open mind about whether exams should be conducted in the College’s new premises or at an external venue.
We will continue working closely with our Exam Chairs and teams, listening to candidate feedback, and engaging further with stakeholders to ensure we make the right decision.
Thank you for your continued engagement as we progress our search. I look forward to updating you when we have more news to share.
With best wishes,
Dr Claire Shannon
President