Following the numerous issues reported with Campus Solutions by our University community during the start of term period, colleagues in faculties, Information Services, Student Services and Finance have been working hard to review the causes, develop solutions and improve communications to support colleagues and students in their use of the system.

New resources, improved communications and a dedicated Campus Solutions status webpage published today will help staff and students in using Campus Solutions and overcoming any further difficulties.

Professor Andy Long, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Chair of the Campus Solutions Senior Business User Group said:

“On behalf of UEB, I fully acknowledge the problems experienced by a considerable number of staff and students using or administering the system, and I am very sorry for the significant anxiety, concern and confusion this will have caused.

“I am grateful to our colleagues in Information Services and Student Services for your hard work in supporting staff and students where difficulties arose and in developing interim and long-term solutions to address the problems that are being experienced. Thank you also to colleagues across Schools and professional services areas for your patient and professional approach in raising concerns and supporting staff and students where they experienced problems.

“Numerous and severe problems were logged for action ranging from incomplete or inconsistent registration data, difficulties in accessing the system, duplicate records, difficulties for mobility students and in accessing MyCal timetabling information.

“Information and Student Services staff have undertaken detailed analysis of their causes and are developing solutions to each problem which were triggered by different combinations of technical, process and data quality issues.

“While I am pleased that some of the most significant problems have now been resolved, for example restoring access to MyCal timetabling, intensive work continues to address outstanding issues and improve the quality of data that has been transferred into Campus Solutions from a multitude of legacy systems.”

Additional support will be put in place to help staff and students in using Campus Solutions and overcoming any further difficulties. Information Services will secure further business analysts to identify and tackle emerging problems and designate more staff to provide rapid desk-side assistance to colleagues to fix running issues. Student Services will ensure they have more resource devoted to providing personalised support to students facing particular difficulties, in addition to the focus already provided by service centres.

Communications for staff and students will also be improved, alongside the publication today of a Campus Solutions status webpage detailing the cause, current status and solutions to any reported issues with Campus Solutions so that staff can see how faults are being addressed and any work-arounds in the meantime.

Analysis and early-warning systems will also be improved across Information and Student Services so that colleagues can be provided with real-time information on emerging issues, and the system will be tested ahead of major pressure points such as term starts and examination periods to provide further reassurance.

Staff should check the Campus Solutions status webpage for the latest information on resolving known issues and share this information with colleagues. Staff should also continue to report any new issues experienced with the system for investigation and resolution to the IT Service Desk, raising them with faculty Support Coordinators as well as members of faculty user groups.