University of Sunderland makes spelling mistake on signs advertising its academic excellence

Every day thousands of road users are passing temporary fencing at the bottom of Chester Road, where the university has a number of buildings. Behind the fencing construction is being carried out on a new development beside the Murray Library.

The signage doubles to promote the university, with one hoarding saying “Ranked in the world’s top universities.”

However, passers-by have been amused to notice that it stands close to another sign which reads “Murray Library main entrance 100 meters”, spelled as in ‘gas meters’ rather than ‘metres’, the unit of measurement.

The misspelled sign is to be corrected.

A spokesman for the University of Sunderland said: “Whilst a global university like Sunderland could be expected to insert the occasional Americanism, we will change this to the more commonly used British spelling of ‘metre’.”

The “meter” mishap is not the first time such an error has occurred in Sunderland. In 2018 a correction had to be made to road markings on the north side of the Queen Alexandra Bridge, after directions to the city “center” were painted onto the tarmac.

This may have been another Americanism. However, the USA bore no responsibility for a road sign in Vine Place which was corrected in July 2022, after 15 months of showing the way to “Teeside” rather than Teesside.

The Echo humbly admits to the occasional typing error too. Monday’s front page referred to Sunderland AFC’s game at “Milwall”, rather than Millwall.