Vice-Chancellor Professor Deborah Prentice confirmed the university was going to 'investigate the circumstances'

The University of Cambridge has confirmed it will investigate the appointment of Professor Jason Arday as the Vice-Chancellor called the case an "aberration".

Mr Arday resigned last week following a series of reports alleging he plagiarised his PhD thesis and other research and made alleged false claims in his upcoming memoir.

The university had announced a probe into his "academic qualifications and honorary appointments".

A spokesman confirmed it would continue its investigation following Mr Arday’s resignation, adding findings will feed into a review of the process for appointing senior roles.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Deborah Prentice said: "I fully understand the concerns being raised across the university and well beyond it regarding Jason Arday’s appointment and I share them.

“I know there is anger and anxiety around this damaging and difficult case.

"We will now investigate the circumstances around his appointment by the Faculty of Education back in 2022 and his time here in Cambridge since his appointment nearly four years ago."

She added: "This particular case is an aberration and should not be used to cast aspersions on their work or the legitimacy of their roles at Cambridge."

Mr Arday, a professor of sociology of education who became Cambridge’s youngest black professor in 2023, quit following a series of media reports alleging he plagiarised his PhD thesis, completed at Liverpool John Moores University, and other research.

Further questions were asked in the press about the truth of other claims he made, including saying he ran 600 miles in six days and that he had raised £5.5million for charity.

Professor Deborah Prentice said: "That investigation, as you say, should be thorough and transparent, and will be carried out independently by senior academics from within and beyond Cambridge."

She reiterated that the findings will inform a review of the process for the appointment of senior academic roles and that the university’s misconduct in research policy will be reviewed.

Professor Priyamvada Gopal, professor of postcolonial studies at Cambridge’s English faculty and one of the signatories who called for an independent inquiry, told reporters last week that Mr Arday’s case had "acted as a gift to people and forces who have been targeting equality, diversity and inclusion in universities for a long time now".

Mr Arday has cancelled events promoting his forthcoming memoir after his resignation over a high-profile plagiarism row.

A bookshop event in Edinburgh and a conference speech featuring the former Cambridge University professor have been called off.

His memoir, Great And Unfortunate Things, is to be published in the UK on August 27.

At the start of the week, publishers Simon & Schuster said that Mr Arday’s memoir was to go ahead as planned.

Mr Arday was due to attend Topping and Company Booksellers in Edinburgh on September 18, but the event has now been cancelled.

He was also booked for a "fireside chat" at the Royal Geographical Society.

On their webpage it says the conversation has been cancelled "on the request of the speaker".