Campus News

Changes to the Academic Misconduct Policy

September 4th, 2018

Schools and Departments should ensure that course/module handbooks and materials used in academic misconduct training reflect recent changes to the Academic Misconduct Policy. A series of information sessions will take place, and Academic Misconduct Officers will also be required to attend further training.

The Academic Misconduct Policy was recently amended after the Complaints and Conduct team (Service Development, Student Services) proposed important changes. These changes were based on valuable feedback from colleagues in Schools, the Students’ Union, Academic Misconduct Committee members and colleagues from our international campuses. These changes were approved by the Quality and Standards Committee ready for implementation from the start of the next academic year, 24 September 2018.

As a result of these changes, Schools and Departments will need to ensure that course/module handbooks reflect the new regulations and update any materials used in academic misconduct training for new and returning students.

Information sessions

The Complaints and Conduct team will be providing information sessions to introduce the changes.

Introduction to Changes to the Regulations on Academic Misconduct‘ sessions are available to all staff members however they will be particularly useful for colleagues who are involved in the academic misconduct processes, for example:

  • meeting with students regarding potential academic misconduct
  • attending School meetings as a note-taker
  • communicating outcomes to students, personal tutors who provide advice and guidance on the policy to tutees, colleagues involved in training new and returning students etc.

The sessions will provide an overview of the changes and will be an opportunity to raise any queries regarding the new regulations. Available dates for these sessions are as follows:

2-4pm  Thursday 6 September  B37 Psychology Building, University Park
2-4pm  Monday 10 September  C1072 (C48) South Block, QMC
10am-12pm  Tuesday 11 September  A24 Business School South,  Jubilee
10am-12pm  Friday 14 September  B12 Main Building,  Sutton Bonington

 

Academic Misconduct Officer Training will be provided to School and Department Academic Misconduct Officers responsible for conducting School investigations into allegations.

This training, taking place after the introductory sessions, is compulsory for all Academic Misconduct Officers, new and old, as per the Office of the Independent Adjudicator’s Recommendations on Best Practice and will differ to training provided in the past. Available dates for these  sessions are as follows:

10am-12pm  Tuesday 18 September  B23 Pope Building, University Park
10am-12pm  Friday 21 September  A24 Business School South, Jubilee
10am-12pm  Wednesday 3 October  B1 Hemsley Building, University Park
1-3pm  Wednesday 10 October  B13, Main Building, Sutton Bonington

 

To register your attendance for any of the above sessions please email academic-misconduct@nottingham.ac.uk.

The Complaints and Conduct team are currently updating existing letters and templates and will be producing guidance documents for dissemination. These documents will be shared with colleagues as soon as they are available. If you have any questions regarding the changes or the training sessions please do not hesitate to get in touch via the above email address.

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Moodle upgrade — update and roadshow sessions

September 4th, 2018

On Monday 3 September we completed the Moodle upgrade to version 3.4. The upgrade brought various improvements to the look and feel of Moodle, as well as some new features, including:

  • a new, clearer and more intuitive Moodle theme
  • a clearer Module overview
  • new navigation and menu layouts
  • new icons
  • a two column layout
  • new tabbed content resource
  • functional improvements to the grader report

Watch this short video for more information about the upgrade.

Following the upgrade there will be a number of half hour awareness sessions taking place for staff:

10-10.30am  Thursday 6 September B8, Arts Centre, University Park
3-3.30pm  Thursday 6 September 101, Hallward, University Park
2-2.30pm Wednesday 12 September Trent Performing Art Studio (LG18)
12-12.30pm  Wednesday 19 September C24, Coates, University Park
10-10.30am  Thursday 20 September A31, Clive Granger, University Park
12.30-1.30pm  Thursday 20 September B05, Lecture Block, Sutton Bonington
3-3.30pm  Thursday 20 September A05, Xu Yafen (Amenities Building), Jubilee
10-10.30am Friday 21 September A21 Humanities
2-2.30pm Wednesday 26 September B8 Arts Centre
2-2.30pm Wednesday 3 October A21 Trent Building (Council Room)

 

There’s no need to book in advance – just turn up on the day.

For more information please get in touch with your Faculty Learning Technology Consultant:

Please check your own modules and let us know as soon as you can if there are any problems or you have any questions. If you have any queries please do not hesitate to contact learning-technologies@nottingham.ac.uk.

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Strategic Leaders Programme open for applications

September 4th, 2018

The Leadership and Management Academy’s Strategic Leaders Programme is now open for applications.

We’re pleased to announce that applications are now open for the next cohort of the Leadership and Management Academy’s Strategic Leaders Programme.

The Strategic Leaders programme is designed for you if you’re leading at a strategic level, and want to develop your leadership skills further. You can apply for this programme now on Moodle.

The Strategic Leaders Programme is all about broadening your horizons as a strategic leader. As well as considering the challenges and issues that our University is facing, you’ll get the opportunity to consider the wider sector, policy and global challenges that are shaping our present and future environment.

In broad terms, this programme will be right for you if you are operating in a strategic cross-University role, probably at L7 or potentially L6. This programme is designed for staff from all job families at these levels.

Delegates on the current cohort have told us that: “The Strategic Leaders Programme has given me time and space to reflect in my leadership” and “it has provided an opportunity to meet peers from a range of University contexts in a safe but challenging space – providing an opportunity to work with them and learn from them.”

This programme combines blended learning, personal diagnostics, one-to-one executive coaching, the application of learning in practice through a work based project, and the opportunity to learn with your peers from across different areas of the University.

The deadline for applications is Monday 30 October. You can find out more and apply on Moodle.

Further programmes and development tools

The Stepping into Leadership and Aspiring Leaders Programmes are also open for applications until Monday 30 October. These programmes are aimed at early career leaders, who are looking to get into or are currently in their first leadership role at the University.

You can find out more about these programmes and our coaching and mentoring opportunities on the LMA Hub on Moodle, or by contacting a member of the Leadership and Management Team.

There’s also a huge range of on-line learning resources available for all staff to access on the Learning and Resources page of the LMA Hub. From performance management and emotional intelligence to personal impact and managing stress, there’s a range of topics to choose from, so even if you’re not looking to come on a programme you can find something to help you develop today.

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Office 365 training sessions

September 3rd, 2018

Want to get to grips with all that Office 365 has to offer? Attend our campus roadshows.

Our series of hour-long sessions will give you the basics to get started with three key Office 365 applications: OneDrive, Teams and OneNote.

  • Getting started with OneDrive. 10-11am, Wednesday 5 September: Screening room, Hallward Library. Register here.
  • Getting started with Microsoft Teams. 11:30am-12:30pm,Wednesday 12 September: Screening room, Hallward Library. Register here.
  • Getting started with Microsoft OneNote. 3-4pm, Friday 21 September: Screening room, Hallward Library. Register here.

If you are unable to attend or wish to arrange a bespoke Office 365 session for your team or department, do not hesitate to contact us at UI-SC-Comms@exmail.nottingham.ac.uk.

To find out more about Office 365 rollout, keep updated via nottingham.ac.uk/go/Office365.

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New University design framework

September 3rd, 2018

We compete for the best students and staff across the globe. It is therefore vital to express our collective strengths through a clear and consistent brand identity.

Following an open tender process, a variety of suppliers have been appointed to a new University design framework commencing Monday 3 September 2018.

What does this mean for me?

From Monday 3 September 2018, any new external design commissions will need to go to a supplier from the new framework. Information on how to do this can be found on the Commissioning Design workspace page.

You can complete any work in progress (ie purchase orders raised before 3 September) with a supplier from the old framework but these suppliers will be removed from Agresso for new purchase orders from this point forward.

Introducing our design suppliers

The University implements a design framework to ensure that we can benefit from competitive pricing and flexible turnaround times.

The University has an internal design team which services designated internal accounts, and a number of external agencies competitively selected to provide the University with a range of creative design services suited to the diverse range of activities that we deliver.

Please take time to familiarise yourself with the new external design agencies and their portfolios (hyperlinks added). You may recognise a few names as some current design suppliers have been retained on the new framework.

Lot 1: creative concepts (three suppliers) Lot 2: general design (five suppliers) Lot 3: freelance design (five suppliers) Lot 4: fundraising direct marketing 
(two suppliers)
Optima Graphic Design Optima Graphic Design Cherry Anderson Bluefrog Fundraising
Together Agency Together Agency Gill Williamson Jaywing
Digitronix Creative Triangle Keith Dodds
Fluid Ideas Kit Studio
Warm Design Tom Partridge

 

Those in faculties should contact their Faculty Marketing and Communications Manager in the first instance, before commissioning any design work.Further information on how to commission design

Further information about the University’s brand and how to commission design and print can be found on the Marketing and Communications Workspace.

Contact for queries

If you have any queries regarding the new design framework, please contact brand@nottingham.ac.uk.

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Pioneering health science lecturers win national teaching awards

August 30th, 2018

Inspirational teachers at the University of Nottingham have been recognised by a prestigious national scheme.

Dr Richard Windle, Digital Learning Director, and a team led by Associate Professor Stacy Johnson, both in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, have been recognised by the UK Teaching Excellence Awards.

The awards are the most prestigious available to teachers in UK higher education and recognise excellent practice and outstanding achievement.

Dr Windle has been selected to receive a National Teaching Fellowship while Miss Johnson and her team, the European Junior Leadership Academy (EJLA) for Student Nurses and Midwives, has been selected as a winner for the Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence – a first for the University.

Ever since his appointment as lecturer in Health Sciences Dr Windle has pioneered developing digital tools to aid learning and enthuse students.

His success was such that he progressed in a strategic direction – developing, deploying and evaluating digital learning within the curriculum.

Some of his most impactful work has been facilitating the creation of multimedia open resources drawn from expertise from practitioners, patients and carers. These resources have been adopted globally in more than 50 countries and by millions of users.

He joins the ranks of nine other Nottingham academics who hold Higher Education Academy National Teaching Fellowships.

He said: “I am delighted to have received this national teaching fellowship. It means a great deal to me both personally and professionally.

“The opportunity to work with young people in the area of teaching is a real privilege. Their enthusiasm and passion for learning is infectious and fuels my own desire to learn, question and research.

“Digital approaches to learning offer so many exciting possibilities for the future. They do not replace or detract from the importance of face to face teaching, but rather enable us to incorporate novel, exciting and innovative approaches in areas such simulation, communication and interaction.

“I work with an excellent team and this really is a team effort. We have a strong emphasis on making digital technology accessible to both content providers and users. The foresight of the School of Health Sciences and The University of Nottingham in supporting the development of this team has also been very important to this success.”

Miss Johnson’s team works across four countries to develop, implement and evaluate a leadership programme for student nurses and midwives.

The University of Nottingham, team consists of Stacy Johnson, Professor Carol Hall, Dr Ada Hui, students Gavin Hibberd-Smith and Sala Khulumula and from the HELM team, Professor Heather Wharrad, Kirstie Coolin, Lydia Jones, Michael Taylor, George Gadd and administrators Bethany York, Annu Verma and Mara Sprengel. The wider project team incudes staff from University of Maribor (Slovenia), Trinity College Dublin (Ireland), and Escola Superior de Enfermagem de Lisboa (Portugal). The project is funded by the Erasmus +, Strategic Partnerships scheme.

 

The 10-month academy identifies student nurses and midwives who demonstrate leadership aptitude in a variety of ways, develops their leadership identity, knowledge, skills and attitudes. It has established an active community of practice for when they are newly qualified nurses and midwives working across Europe.

Through innovative teaching methods, peer network activities, mentoring, coaching and a policy internship, the EJLA aims to increase student nurses’ and midwives’ capacity and capability to lead early in the career journey and enhance student nurses’ employability by maximizing the early impact they have in the organisations they serve. The EJLA builds on the Higher Education Academy funded National Junior Leadership Academy, Student Nursing Times Awards, Teaching Innovation of the Year 2014.

Next, the team will deliver a Massive Online Open Course which will give student nurses and midwives from all over the world free, open access to a contemporary leadership development programme designed to help them to lead where ever they are. In spring of 2019, the team is hosting a summit of 100 European student leaders in Nottingham.

She said: “This wonderful award demonstrates the extraordinary things that can happen when a vibrant, creative group of academics, learning technologists, administrative staff, and students genuinely collaborate. The EJLA sought to democratise leadership by building students’ leadership identity early. Our premise is that global healthcare and the health status of populations can only be transformed if all health professionals, including students, are leaderly, regardless of how junior they are in their organisations and systems.

I want to pay tribute to the student nurses and midwives from the four countries who were courageous enough to participate in this demanding programme. They inspired us to give our best. This resulted in a game-changing programme. I am delighted at the recognition for everyone involved. “

Professor Joanne Lymn, Head of the School of Health Sciences at University of Nottingham, said: “We are extremely privileged as a school, and a University, to have such a high calibre of teaching staff looking to innovate and develop digital tools to improve the student experience. I’m very proud of Richard and Stacy and the teams who support them.”

Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education and Student Experience, Professor Sarah O’Hara, said: “I am delighted the significant achievements made by Richard and Stacy have been recognised by the HEA. Richard is an outstanding teacher and his innovative approach to teaching has clearly benefitted students in Nottingham and healthcare colleagues on a global scale. Stacy’s work in developing our student nurses as leaders has seen the University been awarded its first award for collaborative working. They join a growing number of colleagues at the University who have been recognised for the excellence of their teaching practice.”

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USS pensions — consultation

August 29th, 2018

UPDATE: USS has extended the closing date and time of its consultation to 5pm on Monday 5 November.

Further to its communications with scheme members in July, the USS pension scheme opened a 60-day consultation on Monday 3 September.

The consultation seeks members’ views on a USS proposal to phase increases in contributions from both employers and members from 1 April 2019, to cover the cost of securing future service benefits under the defined benefit scheme.

The consultation will run in parallel to — but separately from — the UUK/UCU Joint Expert Panel process that is currently reviewing the valuation of the scheme.

The University remains fully supportive of the Joint Expert Panel in its examination of the valuation to inform efforts to secure an agreed solution – its findings are expected later in September. It is hoped that this will help UUK and UCU reach an agreement that may avoid the need for the higher levels of contributions.

The USS has published full details of the proposed changes and their rationale at USS Cost Sharing Update.

In summary, USS believes it needs to increase employer and member contributions to ensure the scheme complies with legal requirements of the Government’s Pensions Regulator, the deadline for which passed on 30 June 2018.

USS is proposing a phased increase in employer contributions from 18% to 19.5%, and member contributions from 8% to 8.8% from 1 April 2019. Employer contributions to the USS Investment Builder for salary above the defined benefit threshold (£57, 216) would remain at 12%, however the 1% employer match into the USS Investment Builder would be discontinued from 1 April 2019.

Further increases are proposed from 1 October 2019, where employer contributions would increase to 22.5% and member contributions would increase to 10.4%, followed by increases to 24.9% and 11.7% respectively from 1 April 2020.

Consultation packs were issued to all USS pension scheme members in time for the start of the consultation on 3 September.

If you have not received your consultation pack by this date, or have any questions, please contact BB-Pensions@exmail.nottingham.ac.uk.

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Pay Award 2018/19

August 29th, 2018

The University of Nottingham undertakes annual pay negotiations via national collective bargaining for UCU-represented staff groups, and locally for staff groups represented by UNISON and Unite.

Research & Teaching Job Family/ APM Level 4 and above:

The national award for staff in these roles is a 2% minimum increase, with 2.8% on the lowest pay point and extra loading for the first 15 pay points to ensure higher increases for the lowest paid staff. UCEA advise that the average pay increase, in addition to pay progression, for non-senior staff will be 3.5% with approximately half the staff covered by national negotiations receiving an average 5% increase.

To ensure that staff receive their pay award as soon as possible, the University will implement this pay award in September’s payroll. Pay award arrears for August 2018 will be paid in October’s payroll.

UCEA advise that this year’s pay increases compare well with projected 2018/19 inflation rates and are competitive considering the challenging financial climate for universities. They also compare well with recent awards elsewhere in the public sector, e.g. NHS average 2.1%, local government average 2%.

Technical Services, Childcare Services, Operations & Facilities and APM Levels 1-3:

The University met with UNISON and Unite to present the 2018/19 local pay offer early this summer, which matched the national offer (above).

The University has also committed to continue to meet the Voluntary Living Wage rate for our lowest paid staff in 2018/19. The new rate is confirmed by the Voluntary Living Wage Foundation in November and will take effect from 1 December 2018.

UNISON & Unite confirmed on 28 August that their members had voted to reject the 2018/19 local pay offer.

The University has committed to further discussions with UNISON and Unite, but will implement the pay award in September, backdated to 1 August 2018, in line with UCU represented staff. The decision has been made to avoid a delay in implementation of the pay award while further discussions are ongoing. Pay award arrears for August 2018 will be paid in October’s payroll.

The University will provide a further update on local pay negotiations following discussions with UNISON and Unite.

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Managing our publications though RIS — update on progress

August 24th, 2018

The outputs module of the Research Information System (RIS) is now operational.

In the first 3 weeks since the outputs module went live over 540 new deposit requests have been input into RIS. 16,300+ output records (and files) held in the e-Prints system have also been transferred into RIS. Training sessions on how to make a deposit through RIS were provided by libraries staff in August and a further round of training will take place in September. Book a place on these training sessions here.

We have encountered a problem in matching individuals to all of their transferred e-Prints records. Within RIS all authors are being listed and can be searched for, but the system is not currently automatically recognising all University of Nottingham authors and making the expected links to all of their transferred outputs from the e-Prints system. We are therefore working in partnership with the supplier (Worktribe) to help us resolve this issue.

The next planned phase of the outputs programme is to transfer appropriate output records from the e-Staff profiles system into RIS. We have tested the import of over 50,000 publications from the e-Staff profiles system. The data quality of the original records is highly variable and when further data quality checks have been completed we will begin the transfer of appropriate records into the live RIS system.

The final step in this part of the RIS programme will then be to turn on the data harvesting from external sources, such as Scopus. Again, this step is currently undergoing testing.

Once the outputs module set up process is completed in RIS we will have a single source for all of our papers and the overall quality of our output records will significantly improve over the fragmented systems we have used in the past.

We have also started to test the new REF module in RIS. Preliminary assessments are very promising with the system providing new functionality for use in the REF Readiness Review. We will begin to pilot the use of this module to record scores for outputs and to build an optimised return in September – prior to the roll out of the module to all Units of Assessment in October.

With all of this work going on, at times the RIS system has run more slowly than we would ideally like and we have also taken it off-line for some evenings and weekends. We anticipate that similar issues may be encountered during September while we implement the e-staff profile data transfers and the data harvesting process. Staff are therefore asked to bear this potential disruption in mind when preparing their grant applications.

Notes

If you don’t already have a RIS account then you can register for one by accepting the terms and conditions on the Moodle RIS Learning page. Your account should be activated within two working days of registration.

Guidance about the new RIS deposit process can be accessed via the university’s Open Access web pages. RIS sponsor Professor Kevin Shakesheff also demonstrates how to make a deposit here.

If you require any assistance with ORCIDs or the new RIS deposit process please email openaccess@nottingham.ac.uk. For all other enquiries please contact RIS-Enquiries@nottingham.ac.uk.

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Summer engineering works on tram network

August 23rd, 2018

A temporary timetable has been introduced on a section of Nottingham’s tram network while track replacement work takes place.

A replacement shuttle bus service will be in operation between the Wilkinson Street and The Forest tram stops from Thursday 23 August – Sunday 2 September 2018.

During the works, the following tram stops will be closed:

  • Shipstone Street
  • Beaconsfield Street
  • Hyson Green Market
  • Radford Road
  • Noel Street

Trams from Hucknall and Phoenix Park will run to Wilkinson Street, and services from Clifton South and Toton Lane will run to The Forest with frequent shuttle buses connecting the two stops.

Road closures will also be in place in parts of Noel Street and Gregory Boulevard, restricting access to The Forest Park and Ride. Motorists will still be able to enter the park and ride from the Mansfield Road side only and diversion signs will be in place on other routes.

Full services are set to resume on Monday 3 September, and further information can be found on the NET website and at tram stops.

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