On 1 June 2021 the story of decades of systemic abuse, discrimination and gaslighting by Bartlett School of Architecture tutors broke in the Guardian.

The depth of the scandal was uncovered through the hard work of former students and has been picked up by Dezeen, the Telegraph, Architectural Review, and wider press. 

On 10 June University College London promised to appoint an external investigator “within a month”, but to our knowledge this has not happened. Instead UCL and the Bartlett have, in our view, attempted to conceal the narratives of former students by censoring their own social media accounts, so that there is no reference to the scandal we have exposed. 

There has been a deafening silence from the Dean of the Bartlett and Director of the Bartlett Architecture School. Senior leaders at the Bartlett School of Architecture have blocked a whistleblowing Instagram account, with the effect of silencing complaints, at a time when any responsible institution would be doing the opposite and appealing for witnesses or victims to come forward. 

In response to the attempts to silence us we have formed Bartlett United: a group of former and current students as well as former staff members, who have witnessed, lived and studied in this toxic culture. We are committed to shining a light on Bartlett, until we are reassured there have been sufficient changes for it to be a safe and supportive place to study.

More than 70 survivors have been brave enough to come forward, consenting to speak directly to our legal team, or agreeing for our solicitor to review their statements for the purpose of evidence gathering.

Although each experience is unique they all confirm the abusive and toxic culture at Bartlett. This outpouring has led us to believe there may be hundreds of victims, and while some may fear repercussions in their education or professional careers others are willing to speak out in the knowledge that it may result in positive change. We welcome approaches from anyone who wants to tell us about their experiences.

We are asking survivors and supporters to help fund an investigation and legal review into the  toxic culture at Bartlett. 

With your financial support our lawyers  can review the testimonies from students, former students, and former staff members, take new testimonies and witness statements, investigate on behalf of Bartlett United and draft a report with recommendations for change at the Bartlett School of Architecture. Our report will focus on the experiences of students and staff and focus on the recommendations for change at the Bartlett School of Architecture.

Please help us to fund our own Bartlett United Investigation so that we can hold UCL and the Bartlett school of architecture to account for the failings of  its leaders and tutors. Help us to challenge the official report, which has thus far failed to listen to the testimonies of those of us deeply affected by our time at Bartlett and promises to be a whitewash as a consequence. 

We are setting our initial legal fee target for a review of the evidence and associated legal work at £5000. We hope to raise double this amount so that we can publish our own Bartlett United Investigation Report.  Thank you for your continued support in sharing and promoting this page. 

Media

https://www.dezeen.com/2021/07/27/bartlett-architecture-school-racial-sexual-discrimination/

https://www.dezeen.com/2021/06/01/bartlett-racism-sexism-investigation/

https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/bullying-bartlett-abused-ex-students-are-poised-to-take-legal-action

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/education/2021/may/31/ex-students-complain-sexism-racism-ucl-architecture-school