Campus News
New Deputy Registrar Appointed
November 11th, 2019
Stephen McAuliffe has been appointed as the University’s new Deputy Registrar with responsibility for senior-level co-ordination of activities and services to support the University’s students.
Stephen is currently Academic Registrar at the University of Birmingham and has worked in the higher education sector for almost 20 years in a wide range of student-facing roles including a four-year period as Director of Careers and Employability at Nottingham and a six-month secondment to the University of Nottingham Malaysia.
Before joining the University of Nottingham for the first time in 2008, Stephen worked at the University of Kent and as Head of Student Services at the Kent Institute of Art and Design. After leaving Nottingham in 2012, Stephen joined the University of Essex as Academic Registrar before moving to Birmingham in 2016.
Taking up the role of Deputy Registrar from February 2020, Stephen will be working to create an integrated, informed and responsive approach to enhancing the student experience across Student Services, Careers and Employability, Sport, Campus Life and Residential Life.
Enhancing the student experience has been a passion for Stephen since his first role in higher education, as the Student Union President at Canterbury Christ Church. His role at Nottingham will also have a strong focus on joining up service provision across all student-facing support provided both centrally and, working closely with Faculty Operations Directors, in schools and faculties to ensure the best possible experience for students and the most efficient and effective delivery of operations.
Dr Paul Greatrix, Registrar said: “I am delighted to be welcoming Stephen back to the University of Nottingham as our new Deputy Registrar. He will be taking on the leadership of an outstanding team of professional staff and we all look forward to working with him as we continue to support the successful delivery of the University’s strategy across student facing areas.”
Stephen McAuliffe said: “I am thrilled to be joining the University of Nottingham in this exciting role. At this current time, the higher education sector faces many challenges and I look forward to working with the team in partnership with our students to address these. Nottingham has a proud and justified reputation for a tremendous student experience across the UK, China and Malaysia and I hope I can contribute to enhancing that further.”
Tags: Deputy Registrar, Registrar's Department
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Staff Engagement Survey Annual Progress Report
November 11th, 2019
The University has published its annual Staff Engagement Survey progress report. Against a challenging environment for higher education and our institution, it highlights actions and progress made directly in response to staff feedback since the 2017 biennial Staff Engagement Survey.
The report covers a small selection of the changes made by the University, Faculties, Schools and Departments, in particular recognising the efforts of the network of Staff Engagement Champions who improve staff engagement and the working environment for their immediate colleagues.
The 2019 Staff Engagement Survey opens on Monday 25 November across our campuses in the UK, China and Malaysia, with a closing date for submissions on Friday 10 January.
The Survey is independently administered by Gallup who will send a personal email to each staff member enclosing a unique web link to ensure that all responses are anonymous. A maximum of three reminder emails will be issued over the survey period. Hard copy surveys will be provided for staff who do not have regular digital access.
The Staff Engagement Survey is a key means of listening, measuring and acting on feedback from colleagues across our University community. As such, all staff are encouraged to complete the survey and make their views known.
In her preface to the annual progress report, Vice-Chancellor Professor Shearer West said: “This second Staff Engagement progress report sets out a selection of the changes, innovations and good practice introduced by the University Executive Board, Faculties, Schools and Departments to improve our working lives.
“I believe this work is beginning to have impact, but there remains much to do. Engagement between an organisation and its people needs to be a constant work in progress if it is to be truly genuine and long lasting.
“As we approach the next Staff Engagement Survey later in this autumn term, I ask colleagues to use that opportunity to tell us where improvements have made a difference to your working lives and, crucially, to continue to tell us where more work needs to be done.”
More information on the Staff Engagement Survey is available on the HR website.
Tags: progress report, staff, staff engagement survey
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‘Students as Change Agents’ project wins ECIU Team Award 2019
November 8th, 2019
The University of Nottingham’s ‘Students as Change Agents’ project has won the prestigious European Consortium of Innovative Universities (ECIU) Team Award for Innovation in Teaching and Learning.
Carina Neil, Matthew Watts and Dean Lymath received the prize at the special ceremony held at the University of Barcelona on the occasion of the ECIU Board Meeting.
The ECIU Team Award 2019 was handed out to the Students as Change Agents (SACA) team for their inspiring work in enabling Nottingham students to work in partnership with staff to make positive changes to the curriculum and to their experiences there. The students design their own project to improve teaching and learning.
By doing so, not only do the students developing the projects learn a lot, but other students will be positively influenced by the results, thus amplifying the impact on student development. In the last five years, the SACA team have supported nearly 200 students to become “change agents” who have run over 50 projects which have benefited over 5,000 students to date.
Students as Change Agents has contributed to a culture change in the university enabling greater openness and collaboration between staff and students. By having students involved in the processes of change, it ensures that they are fit for purpose to the modern student.
More specifically, changes that the projects supported by SACA have established the Peer Assisted Study Support scheme to support first year Maths students and develop their interpersonal, communication and fundamental mathematical skills. ‘Students as Change Agents’ is an excellent example of the ECIU slogan ‘challenge conventional thinking’.
Find more information abut the Students as Change Agents project.
Tags: awards, European Consortium of Innovative Universities, Students as change agents
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Science Public Lecture Series: Predatory bacteria: natural killers of problematic pathogens
November 8th, 2019
The latest lecture in the Schools of Biosciences, Physics and Astronomy, Pharmacy and Chemistry’s public science lecture series will focus on predatory bacteria, delivered by Dr. Liz Sockett, Professor of Bacterial Genetics in the School of Life Sciences.
Join Liz on Thursday 21 November to learn more about the mechanisms by which bacteria invade and kill each other and find out what is needed to combat resistant infections.
These lectures are open to everyone, free to attend and take place once a month at 6pm in lecture theatre B1 in the Physics Building.
Find more information about the series of lectures or contact Hilary Collins or Chris Staddon to be added to the mailing list.
Tags: bacteria, School of Biology, science public lecture series
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General Election – staff guidance
November 8th, 2019
The General Election campaign has now commenced, with polling taking place on Thursday 12 December 2019. The following information is published to guide and support staff in their professional activities during the campaign period.
Student Voter Registration
The University has installed new software to enable students to register to vote quickly and simply, all they need is their National Insurance number. This service is being promoted across student communications and is available on the MyNottingham app and online at Registering to Vote.
Staff are invited to encourage students to register to vote and exercise their democratic rights, importantly, in a strictly impartial manner. You may wish to mention this in tutorials and lectures and even set aside a few minutes in your class so that students can register online using the new software.
Students are able to vote in a General Election if they are a British, Irish or qualifying Commonwealth citizen resident in the UK, aged 18 or over and registered to vote. While students must only vote once, they can be on the Electoral Registers for both their home and term-time addresses.
The deadline to register to vote is midnight Tuesday 26 November.
Pre-Election Period
Universities can play an important role during elections, helping to facilitate and inform public debates, and staff should feel confident in doing this, as long as they heed the relevant guidance.
As registered charities, universities are governed by Charity Commission guidance on elections and referendums. Universities UK has also published guidance on election and charity law issues for universities.
In summary, academic staff can continue to publish and promote academic research and provide analysis and comment in media and elsewhere on topical issues relevant to the election. Institutions can host candidate debates and hustings and invite them to attend events as well as host seminars and discussions on topical issues relevant to the election.
The essential caveat is to avoid anything which suggests support for a particular party or candidate(s) and undertake these activities in a manner which “leaves it to the electorate to make their own decisions about how to vote.”
The University fully recognises that staff may wish to be involved in party political activities in a personal individual capacity, including standing as candidates. Where this is the case, it should be declared and any potential conflicts of interest managed, for example ensuring it is clear when the individual is speaking in a personal capacity or as a representative of the University.
If in doubt, please contact pressoffice@nottingham.ac.uk for further advice and support.
Tags: election, GE2019, general election, voting
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Feedback sought by Unite on Derby Road proposal
November 7th, 2019
External contractor Unite is gathering feedback on a proposed development adjacent to Jubilee Campus. Staff and students at the University may wish to learn more about, and comment on, the proposal.
See below for more detail on the Unite event.
Tags: Derby Road, development, Unite Students
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Race Equality Charter focus groups – sign up
November 7th, 2019
UPDATED 14 NOVEMBER 2019
Unfortunately the Sutton Bonington event is no longer available
Earlier this year we held our first Race Equality Charter Survey – the University’s largest-ever survey into racial equality on campus. More than 2,400 staff and students across our UK campuses completed the survey – thanks to everyone that took part.
We’re now looking at the themes raised by the survey in more depth. To help us do this, we inviting BME staff across our campuses to take part in focus groups exploring the issues and concerns raised, and how to tackle these in our action planning.
We’re calling on BME staff across all job families and levels to sign up to the focus groups, which will take place from Wednesday 4 to Wednesday 11 December. Each group will have a maximum ten participants, will last for 1.5 hours, and will include guided discussion on the themes raised by the survey. There are sessions available on University Park, Jubilee, King’s Meadow and Sutton Bonington campuses.
• Wednesday 4 December 2019 – University Park
• Thursday 5 December 2019 – University Park
• Friday 6 December 2019 – Jubilee
• Wednesday 11 December 2019 – University Park
• Wednesday 11 December 2019 – Kings Meadow Campus
Professor Sarah Sharples, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and co-chair of the Race Equality Charter Self-Assessment Team, said:
“The Race Equality Charter survey gave us rich data on the experiences of BME colleagues working at the University, and the issues and challenges they face. We now want to work on understanding these in more detail, and identify actions that can address them.
“We appreciate this is asking a lot of our BME colleagues, and recognise that it can be a difficult process. But by addressing these experiences and challenges as a group, we can start to understand their origins, the processes that sustain them, and the work we need to do to eliminate them.”
Stacy Johnson, co-chair of the Race Equality Charter Self-Assessment Team, added:
“The RACE Equality Charter process signals a whole University commitment to race equality. In this phase, we want to ensure that the voice of the University’s BME community is strong and that we listen carefully.
Now is the time to be open and truthful and make the most of the opportunity to exert influence on what we do going forward.”
The University is set to apply for Race Equality Charter bronze status in summer 2020. Data from the survey and focus groups are a key part of the application process, and essential for our institutional and departmental action planning.
The Race Equality Charter gives us a framework in which to identify, explore and address issues affecting the representation, progression and success of BME (black and minority ethnic) students and staff at the University. Bronze status recognises the work the institution is doing to create “a solid foundation for eliminating racial inequalities and developing an inclusive culture that values all staff and students. A Bronze award acknowledges commitment and preparation to act.”
For more information on the Race Equality Charter and the focus groups, please email the team.
Tags: equality, race
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Buckingham Palace honour for Nottingham professor
November 7th, 2019
A University of Nottingham professor was invited to Buckingham Palace this week to be officially honoured for his contribution to improving eye healthcare, health education and pioneering research into ophthalmology.
Harminder Dua, Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, in the University’s School of Medicine, and his family travelled to London on Tuesday 5 November for the investiture ceremony, where he was made a Commander of the British Empire (CBE) by His Royal Highness, the Duke of Cambridge.
Professor Dua was among almost 70 other people receiving their honours in the ceremony, held in the lavish Buckingham Palace ballroom. During his investiture he spent several minutes chatting to the Duke about ophthalmology research and his specialist areas of expertise, corneal disease, which threatens the sight of millions of people around the world, and developments in corneal transplants.
Speaking about the award, he said: “It’s a great day out for the whole family. The significance of the award itself was almost overpowered by the experience of the occasion.“
Professor Dua’s most famous contribution to ophthalmology was his research group’s discovery of a previously undetected layer of the human cornea in 2013. His work to develop our understanding of this Pre-Decemet layer – also dubbed Dua’s Layer – has already informed three new surgical techniques and made lamellar corneal transplantation safer.
He served as co-Editor-in-Chief of the British Journal of Ophthalmology and is a past president of both EuCornea and the Royal College of Ophthalmologists. He was made Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists in September 2018.
Tags: CBE, Ophthalmology, Queen’s Birthday Honours
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The Orchard Hotel wins at Nottinghamshire STARS Awards
November 6th, 2019
The Orchard Hotel won the Large Hotel of the Year award at the annual Nottinghamshire STARS Awards on Thursday 24 October.
The Orchard Hotel will now be put forward for national judging by Visit England for the national Visit England Awards for Excellence 2019/20.
The Nottinghamshire STARS awards are an annual celebration of tourism in Nottinghamshire, recognising the best in leisure, culture, tourism and hospitality sectors across the country.
De Vere East Midlands Conference Centre, The Orchard, and Jubilee Conference Centre were finalists in five categories:
- Business Events Venue of the Year
- Ethical, Responsible and Sustainable Tourism Award
- Large Hotel of the Year
- Rising Star — Front of House: Dylan Anderson
- Rising Star — Unsung Hero: Jahrome Cresswell
Seen Left to right: Wayne Benson (Bars and Banqueting Manager), Kasia Bardyga-Essien (HR DIrector), Kerry Pritchett (Operations Manager), Dylan Anderson (Rising Star, Front Of House Finalist), Jennifer Hutchings (Learning & Development Manager), Carrie Quantick (Digital Marketing Executive), Jahrome Cresswell (Rising Star, Unsung Hero Finalist), Tom Waldron-Lynch (General Manager), Laura Ellaby-Howard (Sales Executive), Alin Tintila (Conference Food & Beverage Supervisor), Laura Wright (Sous Chef), Yaqoob Khan (Deputy General Manager).
Tags: De Vere East Midlands Conference Centre and Orchard Hotel, De Vere Orchard Hotel, Jubilee Conference Centre, Nottingham STARS awards
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Science Public Lecture Series: Quantum resources and where to find them
November 6th, 2019
Next month’s lecture in the Science Public Lecture series focuses on quantum resources and where to find them.
The quirky features of the quantum realm have puzzled scientists for a century. Microscopic particles can be in superpositions of two states at once — say heads and tails — and share entanglement, a correlation that defies their separation in space and time. Efforts in unmasking and controlling these features triggered a technological overhaul rivalling last century’s industrial revolutions.
Join Professor Gerardo Adesso on Thursday 12 December to venture into the foundations of quantum mechanics and explore recent progress in exploiting its most elusive signatures as resources for disruptive information and communication tasks.
These lectures are open to everyone, free to attend and take place once a month at 6pm in lecture theatre B1 in the Physics Building.
Find more information about the series of lectures or to be added to the mailing list, please contact Hilary Collins or Chris Staddon.
Tags: quantum physics, Quantum Resources, Science Public Lectures
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