Campus News
University secures five centres for doctoral training as UK invests £1 billion in next generation of innovators
March 13th, 2024
The university has been awarded five centres for doctoral training (CDTs) by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
The centres are part of an unprecedented £1 billion investment in the UK’s engineering and physical sciences doctoral skills, announced by Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan.
The award of five CDTs across various disciplines underscores the university’s commitment to excellence in research and innovation, and its dedication to training the next generation of researchers. Between four and five cohorts of doctoral students will be trained over the over next eight years and help the UK tackle large-scale, complex challenges and benefit society and the economy.
The university will lead a CDT in Resilient Chemistry, in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, and co-lead on four CDTs, which are focusing on engineering and pharmacy and led by other institutions.
Professor Tom Rodden, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research and Knowledge Exchange, said: “As a university, we are immensely proud to have secured five new centres for doctoral training. This accomplishment underscores our commitment to fostering cutting-edge research and providing unparalleled opportunities for the next generation of researchers and innovators”.
The five CDTs are:
CDT in Resilient Chemistry: Feedstock to Function (CDT-F2F) is a renewal of a current and successful CDT which will be led by UoN, in partnership with colleagues from Nottingham Trent University.
Professor Pete Licence, project lead and Director of the CDT, said: “I am thrilled to be selected to lead the EPSRC CDT in Resilient Chemistry, which will train multidisciplinary scientists and engineers to deliver truly sustainable solutions to some of the chemicals industries biggest challenges, from Feedstock to Function. In partnership with research leaders from around the world we will attack some of society’s biggest challenges including synthetic fuels, renewable polymers and next generation battery materials to secure jobs, productivity, and growth.”
The Resilient Chemistry CDT forms part of the shared commitments under the Universities for Nottingham Civic Agreement, a collaboration between Nottingham’s two world-class universities and eight key anchor institutions, which sets out a shared commitment to working across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire for the benefit of our community, people and place.
BIONET (Bio-based negative emissions technologies) CDT is a new programme which will be led by Aston University with the University of Nottingham partnering as a co-lead.
Professor Hao Liu, Head of the Low Carbon Energy and Resources Technologies (LCERT) Research Group at the University of Nottingham, and Dr Eleanor Binner, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering, will lead the University of Nottingham’s participation with the NET2Zero CDT.
Professor Liu said: “Over the past 15 years, the University of Nottingham has led several CDTs in the research areas closely related to those of NET2Zero CDT and conducted internationally leading research in bioenergy, carbon capture, low carbon fuels and chemicals, and greenhouse gas removals. Funding for the NET2Zero CDT will provide more opportunities to UoN academics to supervise high calibre CDT students and deliver inspiring training modules in negative emissions technologies and sciences.”.
Innovation for sustainable composites engineering CDT is a new programme which will be led by the University of Bristol with UoN partnering as a co-lead.
Dr Lee Harper who is the Nottingham lead for the CDT said “Composite materials are crucial for delivering a net zero future, but there is currently a distinct lack of skills to produce, design, and deploy sustainable composite products. I’m looking forward to continuing our long-term partnership with the University of Bristol to advance the knowledge and science that will create innovative leaders, capable of unlocking the full potential of composite materials to secure UK competitiveness.”.
DigitalMetal CDT is a new programme which will be led by the University of Leicester with UoN partnering as a co-lead.
Professor Tanvir Hussain, an EPSRC Research Fellow, who is the UoN lead for the CDT said: “The metal and manufacturing sector is crucial to the UK economy and plays a vital role in the Midland’s regional employment. This CDT will meet the urgent national and strategic need for future researchers and engineering to lead digitisation of the products and processes to enable defect-free, right-first-time innovation, and implement transition to net zero in this hugely important sector. The CDT will train a diverse cohort to build world-class research and training base in the UK.”
CDT in Accelerated Medicines Design & Development is a renewal of a successful CDT for which the leadership revolves between UoN and University College London (UCL). For this iteration UCL will be leading the programme with UoN partnering as a co-lead.
Professor Snow Stolnik-Trenkic, UoN lead and Co-Director for the CDT, said “The critical role of mRNA vaccines in recent years has shown how important pharmaceutical science is to global health. This EPSRC funding will educate a new generation of researchers equipped to lead future translation of potential new drugs into medicines accessible to patients.”
Tags: chemical engineering, Chemistry, Chemistry funding, NET2Zero
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Sustainability Action Week starts Monday 18 March
March 12th, 2024
Get involved with a week of events promoting environmental issues and action at UoN. There’s something for everyone across our campuses. Information on all the events listed below, and a few more besides, plus registration links can be found here.
If you are interested in sustainable travel…
- All week – Buy half-price bus tickets for travel on NCT, exclusively during SAW.
- Monday and Thursday – Have your bike serviced by Dr Bike on SB and UP.
- Thursday – Attend the Cycle Fair to find out more about cycling, buy a refurbished bike, have your bike registered by Nottinghamshire Police and pick up some cycling freebies.
If you’re interested in wildlife, conservation and the nature crisis…
- Monday – Join an online talk to find out about the biodiversity crisis, what this means at the university, how we plan to reverse nature’s decline and how you can help.
- Tuesday – Attend the ‘Humans and whales public lecture’ to learn all you need to know about the interesting relationship between two of the planets most complex creatures.
- Wednesday – experience the spectacular BBC Wild Isles Live in Concert and Sustainability Showcase at the Royal Concert Hall.
- Wednesday and Friday – Get your hands dirty with conservation activities on UP and SB, creating new wildlife habitats and planting bulbs.
- Friday – Take a look around the new Memorial Woodland Walk on UP that has been created with the help of staff and students.
If you’re interested in improving wellbeing and dealing with eco anxiety…
- Thursday – take some time for yourself and get outside to enjoy a wellbeing walk around our beautiful campuses.
- Friday – attend a screening of the short documentary Gen Z Mental Health: Climate Stories followed by an informal discussion of the issues raised over free pizza.
- Wednesday 27 March – Tackle eco anxiety with action and sign up for Climate Fresk to explore the science behind the climate emergency in an interactive and engaging workshop. Includes time for discussion and reflection about our choices and ideas for positive action.
If you’re interested in sustainable careers…
- All week – Take part in a range of events highlighting green jobs and helping students prepare for future careers in sustainability. Hosted by the Careers Team.
If you’re interested in anything and everything else sustainable…
- All week – Lunch and learn online talks with the university’s sustainability team covering: Sustainability at Castle Meadow Campus, Climate Adaptation, Net Zero, and Environmental Education
- Tuesday – Buy a second-hand book at Charity Book Sales on UP and SB.
- Wednesday – Visit the Sustainability Fair in Humanities for displays and reflections on sustainability, with a focus on the seasons, waste and eco-education.
- Thursday – Get litter picking at SB.
- All week – Visit SUstainable for all your ethical and plastic-free shopping. Open from 11am – 3pm.
Information on all of these events, plus registration links, can be found here.
Get in touch with the Sustainability Team.
Tags: climate change, Environmental, environmental sustainability, SAW, SAW24, sustainability, Sustainability Action Week
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Being an effective agile worker: bitesize training
March 12th, 2024
If you want to learn how to be an effective agile worker or are looking for practical tips on implementing agile working into your day-to-day, the university is running a series of online bitesize sessions to help enhance productivity, performance and wellbeing.
Suitable for all members of staff, the sessions aim to develop understanding and support you in adopting agile working using practical tools.
Upcoming sessions include:
Influence without authority
Wednesday 20 March 2024, from 11am – 12noon
Having better meetings
Monday 15 April 2024, from 11am – 12noon
Outcome focused working
Tuesday 7 May 2024, from 1pm – 2pm
There are limited places on each bitesize training session so book your place now to avoid disappointment.
Visit the Agile Working SharePoint site to see more sessions and book your place.
If you book a place and can no longer attend, it’s incredibly important to cancel your place so that it can be given to another colleague.
Tags: Bitesize training, Staff training, training courses
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Data Protection and Information Security policies revised
March 12th, 2024
Protecting personal data and ensuring information security are top priorities for the university, which is why we have updated our Data Protection Policy and Information Security Policy to strengthen protocols and compliance.
These policies apply to all staff and students. Both policies provide the introduction of clear accountabilities and responsibilities.
Data Protection Policy
The Data Protection Policy outlines our data collection, usage, and protection protocols in order to comply with UK data protection laws and regulations.
Information Security Policy
Provides the requirement that material policy gaps with a Faculty or Department will be logged, managed, and prioritised within the existing Faculty or Department risk register alongside other risks.
Key updates in the policies
- Easier to understand definitions of personal data
- Clearer rules around collecting or using personal data
- More clarity provided around the consequences of non-compliance
- All staff must complete annual data protection and information security training
- Additional technical safeguards and access controls, including where sharing personal data internationally
- Incident response procedures for data breaches or security incidents
- Linking the Policies and record keeping to the University retention schedule
Policy Access
Please read the policies to understand your responsibilities. You can find the policies at the links below:
Training Reminder
Please undertake your mandatory annual data protection and information security training if you have not yet already done so.
Questions?
Contact the university’s Data Protection Officer, Tracy Landon if you have any questions about the Policies or your responsibilities.
Thank you for helping us maintain high data protection and information security standards for our university community.
Tags: Data Protection, data security, Information security, Information security training, Staff policies
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Transforming the Culture – register your interest this year’s Digital Accessibility conference
March 11th, 2024
Following the huge success of last year’s Digital Accessibility conference, we’re pleased to announce that University of Nottingham Libraries will be hosting the conference again on Wednesday 26 June 2024.
This year’s conference, Transforming the Culture, will be held online and will bring together practitioners from right across the sector for a day of talks, discussions and networking across three themes connected to cultural transformation:
- Leadership and governance
- Delivering the capability
- Realising the benefits
Whilst this year’s conference will be held online to enable as many people to attend as possible, participating institutions are encouraged to use the event as a local conference and provide space for attendees share the experience and participate in the same physical space as colleagues.
A call for papers and confirmed programme will follow over the coming months but in the meantime, colleagues are encouraged to register their interest.
The organising team will then be in touch with more details over the coming weeks.
Tags: Digital Accessibility, Digital Accessibility Conference, Digital Accessibility Conference 2024
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Changes to hot plated food service at Kings Meadow Campus
March 11th, 2024
The university will be making a change to the hot-plated food service currently offered at Kings Meadow Campus.
As part of our cost-reduction strategy, the hot counter service – which currently includes a selection of hot-plated meals – will be discontinued.
The last day that hot-plated meals will be offered will be Friday 26 April, with the change coming into effect from Monday 29 April 2024.
While we understand that this change will mean a reduction in the choice available, the university remains committed to providing a range of options to cater to staff needs.
King’s Meadow Campus will continue to offer:
- Varied selection of sandwiches, salads, paninis, soup, and jacket potatoes
- High-quality barista-style coffee, tea, and cold drinks
- Delicious cakes and snacks
We appreciate your understanding and continued support as we navigate these changes together.
The savings we are all working towards now are designed to help us prioritise organisational resilience while protecting the important work we are doing across the institution.
Tags: catering, hot plated meals, King's Meadow Campus, KMC
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Project Period pilot to launch at the University of Nottingham Malaysia
March 8th, 2024
Project Period, the university’s pioneering scheme that provides free sanitary products to our staff and students to help tackle period poverty and reduce stigma of menstruation and menopause, is expanding overseas.
Led by Associate Dean of Teaching & Learning for the Faculty of Science & Engineering, Professor Jess Price, colleagues are launching the scheme as a pilot at the University of Nottingham Malaysia (UNM).
To celebrate and officially launch the project, UNM will be running a social media campaign across various channels to coincide with International Women’s Day, taking place today (Friday 8 March 2024).
Further funding for the project in UNM has been applied for which would see the pilot scheme expanded and sustained into the future.
As part of the pilot launch in UNM, a survey will be circulated among staff and students which aims to determine more about the levels of period poverty experienced in our Higher Education Institution in Malaysia.
Findings from the survey will also help to inform which locations on the UNM campus should be selected for product placement.
Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and People at the University of Nottingham, Professor Katherine Linehan said: “It’s fantastic to see a grass roots project started by the Students Union now running across campuses in two countries because of the proactive support of the initiative by a huge number of colleagues at all levels and job families.
“The impact Project Period has on our community cannot be underestimated, from supporting the cost of living, to allowing women carrying out business critical work to get on and complete it without having to think about sanitary protection.
“The pilot launch in Malaysia is another great example of excellent collective collaboration across our campuses and is testament to the hard work and dedication of colleagues at both UoN and UNM.”
Products should be in place at selected locations across our UNM campus in time for Earth Day – taking place on Monday 22 April 2024.
As well as providing products to help tackle period poverty, Project Period is also about educating and normalising conversations around menstruation and menopause.
On our UK campuses, steps have been taken to create a more inclusive environment by integrating discussions around menstrual and menopausal health into the curriculum.
Workshops and events have been held and will continue into the future to educate and raise awareness about challenges faced by those who menstruate and go through menopause.
Find out more about Project Period, current research the university is involved in around menstruation and menopause or recent studies from Malaysia around period poverty and stigma.
All products handed out as part of Project Period are made using sustainable materials, helping to reduce plastic packaging and protect the environment.
Tags: International Women's Day, IWD, Project period, University of Nottingham Malaysia, UNM
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New Association of African Universities Europe regional office officially launched on campus
March 8th, 2024
A new European office for the Association of African Universities, which will bring together academics in the UK and Africa to advance education and research collaboration across the two continents, has been officially opened at the university.
The new office will be hosted by the university’s School of Education on Jubilee Campus and is part of a wider five-year agreement between the two organisations that will promote partnerships on new international studies and projects.
At an event on Wednesday 6 March, the new office was launched by Vice-Chancellor, Professor Shearer West and the President of the AAU Professor Bakri Osman Saeed and Secretary-General of the AAU, Professor Olusola Bandele Oyewole.
Professor West said: “The University of Nottingham and our School of Education are proud to host the Association of African Universities Europe Regional Office, which is set to become a critical part of the future discourse between higher education institutions across Africa and Europe.”
“The office will serve as a conduit for continental collaboration across research, advocacy, and policy development for years to come, and the connections made between members of our global higher education community will empower us to address collectively the major global challenges of our time.”
Professor Osman Saeed said: “We consider this a historic occasion for our organisation because we believe that this international collaboration is absolutely critical for improving the skills and capabilities of current and future workforce in Africa and in Europe as well.” 
Professor Oyewole said: “The Association of African Universities represents over 430 universities in Africa and the setting up of the office in the University of Nottingham is a way of connecting universities in Europe to universities in Africa.
I look at this collaboration as a strategy for development through various forms, such as research partnerships, student exchange and mobility programmes. It will promote knowledge sharing between the two continents and also enhance our research capabilities in Africa and across Europe. “
The Association of African Universities (AAU), headquartered in Accra, Ghana, represents more than 430 higher education institutions across Africa.
The two institutions have agreed to collaborate in specific areas such as building capacity of staff, researchers and students, as well as in pivotal areas as quality assurance, resource mobilisation, ICT and other infrastructural development.
The new office will be under the leadership of Professor Juliet Thondhlana in the university’s School of Education, who is also the UNESCO Chair in International Education and Development.
Professor Thondhlana said: “International collaboration is essential to teaching and research. The university is developing a new strategy for engaging with partners in Africa, at the core of which is developing equitable partnerships with collaborators, so we are delighted to be partnering with the AAU to advance research and innovation across our continents. I look forward to seeing what we can achieve together as our collaboration grows further.”
Guests who attended the launch event – both in person and remotely – were able to join a panel session on University Collaborations between Europe and Africa: Strengthening Research and Teaching Excellence and a further session on Transformative Partnerships: Advancing the Research Ecosystem between African and European Higher Education Sectors, which featured representatives from Association of Commonwealth Universities Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, as well as the AAU and University of Nottingham.
Other sessions outlined the aims and objectives of the new office and what it can offer to member universities and its current and emerging projects, which include data ethics in education, research writing workshops, mapping the landscape of AI design and use in higher education in Africa and capacity building/executive education with African institutions. Attendees also had the opportunity to find out more about Africa-focused research which is currently being carried out at Nottingham.
Tags: Association of African Universities
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906 hopper bus – trial extended for the summer term
March 5th, 2024
The free evening 906 hopper bus service that connects University Park and Jubilee campuses with Beeston and Lenton has been trialled throughout the autumn and spring terms.
Usage and feedback has been very positive throughout the trial, and we are delighted to announce that the trial has been extended so the 906 will run during the summer term as well, making it easy for students to get home to Beeston and Lenton after studying for assessments and exams in libraries and other locations on campus.
The service will end for the spring term on Thursday 28 March and will restart for the summer term on Monday 29 April.
The service will run Monday – Sunday until Friday 21 June. There will be no service on the two May Bank Holiday dates of Monday 6 May and Monday 27 May.
The route and timetable will be the same as the current service – see the hopper bus webpage for the 906 route map and timetable.
The evening bus service starts at George Green Library and leaves every hour from 7.30pm – 10.30pm. The 906 hopper bus stops include:
- University Park (George Green Library and Union Shop stop for Hallward Library)
- Jubilee Campus (The Exchange)
- Ilkeston Road (Faraday Road and Albert Grove stops) and Derby Road (Canning Circus and Savoy Cinema stops) in Lenton
- Humber Road and Middle Street (Jessamine Court stop) in Beeston Students are asked to continue to provide feedback on the service via the online form.
Tags: hopper bus, Hopper bus trial
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Engagement Champions Network to relaunch
March 5th, 2024
Our Engagement Champions Network is gearing up for a relaunch, packed with innovative ideas, new engaging events, networking opportunities, and continuous professional development (CPD) initiatives.
The team would like to invite you to join n and be a part of the journey moving forward.
What is the Engagement Champions Network?
Established in 2017, the Engagement Champions Network is a space for a number of colleagues at our university who are passionate about supporting engagement on a variety of areas including with organisational surveys and also sharing information on a range of different topics.
Moving forward, engagement champions will continue to play a pivotal role in two-way communication on a range of different projects and initiatives across our university and working together collaboratively to evolve and enhance our approach to colleague engagement.
Why Join the Engagement Champions Network?
- Professional Development: Gain valuable insights and skills through participation.
- Impactful Contributions: Your unique perspective contributes to our collective success.
- Networking Opportunities: Connect with like-minded colleagues across the university and build lasting relationships.
- Making a Difference: Be part of a diverse community that continues to shape positive engagement, two-way communication and change at our university.
Relaunch Event – save the date
Mark your calendars for the upcoming relaunch event on Thursday 28 March 2024, from 10am – 11am.
In the first network event for 2024 (via MS Teams) the team will explore your thoughts, share ideas and set the stage for the network’s journey.
If you are interested in finding out more about our engagement champions network, why not join us for our launch event.
If you would like to receive an invitation, please complete the submission form using the link below:
Please complete this form to receive an invitation.
If you’re already an engagement champion, you will receive your invitation shortly.
Tags: engagement champions, staff engagement champions
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