North Western Polytechnic

The North Western Polytechnic (NWP) - founded in 1896 - opened in Prince of Wales Road, Kentish Town, NW London, in 1929. It had more than 2200 students, mainly in evening classes, and an academic staff of 150, concentrating on social sciences, humanities and arts. By 1967 the NWP was the largest polytechnic in London. On 26 January 1971, as more polytechnics were designated, it was decided that the Northern and North Western polytechnics should merge to form the Polytechnic of North London (PNL), which then had its degrees awarded by the Council for National Academic Awards (CNAA). In 1992 the Polytechnic won the right to the title of 'University' and to award its own degrees and diplomas as the University of North London, rather than those of the CNAA. In December 2001, the University announced that it would be merging with London Guildhall University, to create London Metropolitan University, London's largest unitary university and one of the country's largest higher education institutions.