The original UKeU concept was first introduced by the UK Secretary of State for Education in a speech delivered in February 2000. It was envisioned as a platform to deliver the best of UK higher education to learners worldwide through online channels. The Secretary of State tasked the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) with leading the initiative. The project was operated by UK eUniversities Worldwide Limited, with the government allocating £62 million to HEFCE to fund the initiative between 2001 and 2004.

In 2004, HEFCE announced a “restructuring” of UKeU to the board and the public, allowing UKeU to form genuine partnerships with the private sector. However, this decision led to a rapid decline in both funding and confidence. Despite spending over £50 million, UKeU attracted only 900 students and ceased operations in the summer of 2004.

Years later, and especially after the COVID-19 pandemic spurred a surge in e-learning, the group of e-learning experts and education leaders who were involved in the former UKeU recognized, reaffirmed, and emphasized that the original 2000 concept was not only ahead of its time but also truly visionary. They concluded that with renewed independence, strategic investment, and a revitalization of its founding vision, the new UKeU — built on the original concept — has the potential to emerge as a leading force, driving significant innovation and impact in the online education sector. The most significant challenge, however, was securing the immense funding required to operate, as everyone understood just how extraordinarily expensive it was — costing millions — to build and sustain a system like UKeU.

Thanks to the backing of the Swiss Information and Management Institute (SIMI Swiss) and a consortium of investors, the original UKeU concept from 2000 has been successfully reinvented. Now operating independently under UK eUni Worldwide Limited, the new UKeU stays true to its original mission, thriving entirely without government funding.