Campus News
UoN Procurement Team shortlisted for top GO award
May 19th, 2023
The university’s Procurement Team has been shortlisted as finalists in this year’s Government Organisation (GO) Awards.
The UK GO Excellence in Public Procurement Awards are all about showcasing organisations that lead the way in public procurement best practice across all UK nations.
This year, the university’s Procurement Team has been selected as finalists in the coveted Team of the Year category, for the second year running.
To win their place as finalists, the team have shown emerging talent across the board in their dedication to improve customer service and satisfaction at the university over the last year.
Notably during this time period (Jan 21 – July 22), The Procurement team conducted the tender process for the Digital Core project, which replaces multiple finance, HR and procurement systems that are over 20 years old with one modern solution that will enable the university to deliver services more effectively.
This procurement involved more than 230 colleagues from across the university at different stages throughout the process and demonstrates the level of complexity and collaboration undertaken.
In addition to this, the team launched the Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) board and worked with colleagues in the Commercial team on a ‘Getting to Green’ programme with a significant strategic supplier to transform the relationship and set a solid foundation for the strategic partnership moving forward.
This was an emotive project as it required surfacing and addressing many ‘noise’ issues that had gone unrecognised or unresolved for many years to transform the relationship and unlock the unrealised value of this contract.
Head of Procurement at the university, Rosalie Parkin, said: “We are so pleased to be shortlisted as finalists for Procurement team of the year, for the second year running.
We may not be as large as some of the other contenders like the Ministry of Justice or the Department for Education – but what differentiates us from other teams is our focus on continuous improvement which means that we are always evolving and adjusting our approach as we learn more.
The team are known for their positive attitude, and we are always listening to feedback with the aim of providing the best solutions for the wider university. This is the reason why I am so proud to work with the team and what we have delivered so far”
Winners of this year’s GO Awards will be handed their awards at a celebratory event on Thursday 1 June 2023 at the voco St John’s, Solihull.
Find out more about the GO Awards.
Tags: GO, GO Awards, procurement
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PVC EDI blog: Taking time out this Mental Health Awareness Week
May 16th, 2023
In her latest blog, PVC for EDI and People Professor Katherine Linehan talks about events and initiatives the university is hosting for this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week, which began on Monday (15 May), as well as highlighting support available to our staff and students.
Tags: EDI blog, mental health awareness, MHAW, PVC EDI Blog
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Celebrating the university’s EDI Champions
May 16th, 2023
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion is embedded into everything we do at the university, but it couldn’t be this way without our dedicated staff and student community, who help incorporate inclusivity through actions, initiatives and excellent behaviour.
We know that sometimes, these actions can be overlooked – so we wanted to celebrate all of our staff and students who go the extra mile to live by the EDI values the university promotes.
Meet our EDI Champions – staff and students who not only incorporate EDI values into all they do at the university, but also help to encourage and educate others to follow suit.
Each Champion has been nominated by a colleague/s, who has written a short quote explaining why they have been nominated and what their commitment to equality and inclusivity brings to the university as a whole.
Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and People Professor Katherine Linehan said: “I’m so proud of everyone that’s been put forward as an EDI Champion. It’s a shining example of the amount of impactful work that goes on at the university to promote equality and inclusion.
“And the fact that the Champions we’re showcasing are only a fraction of the nominations we received goes to show that the university is building the right kind of culture and mentality.
“Congratulations to everyone nominated and thank you for making the university a place where people feel free to be their authentic selves.”
Each week between now and the end of March we’ll be highlighting three EDI Champions and adding them to our online gallery.
This week, we’re celebrating (click on image to read quote):
Find the full gallery of EDI Champions, which will be updated weekly.
If you’d like to nominate someone to be an EDI Champion, please get in touch.
Tags: edi, EDI Champions, EDI Champions campaign, Equality Diversity and Inclusion
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Print device upgrade schedule
May 16th, 2023
Following on from the initial rightsizing of the print fleet by Xerox, work has begun to upgrade outdated print devices to newer, more efficient models that better meet the needs of the university.
To keep you informed of the project’s progress there is a schedule for each device’s upgrade, the spreadsheet can be accessed here.
Please note that the schedule is subject to change and we will do our best to keep you updated on any changes.
On the scheduled day of the upgrade, Xerox will need access to the area where the device is located, and we kindly ask that you ensure that any confidential documents are securely stored before they arrive.
We apologise for any inconvenience the upgrade may cause.
These new devices are faster, more reliable and more energy-efficient, which will ultimately lead to cost savings and increased productivity.
If you have any questions or concerns about the project, please contact DTS.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to improve our printing infrastructure.
Tags: DTS, print, printing, printing infrastructure, Xerox
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Accelerating UoN’s research ambitions with more powerful HPC service
May 16th, 2023
The university is in the process of implementing a more powerful High Performance Computing (HPC) service, making sure we have the facility to process and analyse larger amounts of data and perform more complex calculations.
The university’s HPC service is a research facility available to academic staff and research students, from any School or Faculty, who have the need for computing resource substantially greater than a standard PC.
Enabling research that changes the world
As one of the UK’s leading research universities, UoN is renowned for the strength of its research, and quality of data, through which ground-breaking scientific discoveries are made, and innovations are fuelled.
But, as technology continues to evolve at an exponential pace, it is crucial to ensure our HPC infrastructure can meet growing demand accordingly.
Our current HPC service (Augusta) will reach end of life in October 2023. We are therefore in the process of implementing a more powerful service, to ensure we have the facility to process and analyse increasingly large amounts of data, and perform complex calculations at high speed to enable high quality and valuable research outputs in key research areas.
Implementing a new, more powerful HPC
The new HPC service is anticipated to be fully functional by November 2023.
The new hardware has been procured, and we are currently awaiting delivery, after which the hardware and software will be installed, tested, and all existing services migrated to the new service.
What are the benefits of the new HPC service?
The new HPC service will be more widely accessible to support increasingly compute-intensive work performed in areas of the university that are not traditional users of HPC, enabling better accessibility to compute service and skills.
In addition, there will be support staff in place to make it even easier for new users to utilise the HPC service.
The service will also be available for experimentation beyond larger, funded projects, leading to more ambitious research and resulting funding, more high-quality outputs, increased inter-disciplinary collaboration, attracting researchers and PGRs.
As well as this, the new service will have:
- A higher capacity and more versatile on-premise compute service will allow for more ambitious calculations
- Better data storage and connectivity
- Higher throughput of jobs and support for more efficient use
- Increased ambition for research on national-level HPC facilities
Want to know more or provide your feedback?
Should you have any questions regarding the HPC, or would like to know more, please contact Colin Bannister in the first instance.
Similarly, we welcome any input you may have regarding user priorities. Should you wish to provide your feedback, please complete the form here.
Tags: DTS, HPC
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People and Culture Survey: deadline extended
May 16th, 2023
The deadline for the People and Culture Survey has been extended to midnight on Friday 19 May 2023.
This staff engagement survey is an opportunity for colleagues across our UK, China and Malaysia campuses to provide feedback on their working environment and culture, and how they are supported in the workplace.
Results will be shared with Departments and Schools to develop detailed action plans in response to the feedback received.
For each survey completed, the university will plant a tree through the Eden Reforestation Project.
Staff should have already received an email from the survey administrators, People Insight. The email will come from survey-invite@peopleinsight.co.uk.
This survey is confidential. People Insight, our external partner, will hold your individual responses and this information will not be released to the University of Nottingham or elsewhere.
It is important that as many colleagues as possible participate in the survey, offering honest and balanced feedback, so that we can build on what works and change things where they are not working.
The responses will also be used to assess our progress against the People and Culture Strategic Delivery Plan.
Initial results will be reported to the University Executive Board in June, with School and Department-level results expected to be shared in June/July.
Tags: People and Culture Survey, People and Culture Survey 2023, Staff engagement, staff survey
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Student surveys – new guidance and approval process
May 16th, 2023
The university has introduced a new approval process for administering student surveys, alongside publication of a SharePoint site offering best practice guidance for managing and communicating surveys and other forms of student feedback.
Following a recent audit of university surveys, a task-and-finish group was commissioned by the Education and Student Experience Committee to develop a set of recommendations for a new policy approach to student surveys aimed at undergraduate and postgraduate taught students.
The audit revealed that at least 95 student surveys were conducted across the university in a single academic year – many of which took place concurrently. This is exacerbating a widespread challenge around engaging students with institutionally strategic surveys as well as compromising efforts to work smartly and effectively in partnership with students and our approach to the student voice. It also undermines trust and engagement with our student communications channels and feedback mechanisms.
Many other universities have developed stringent policies on the use and administration of student surveys, and our guidance is aligned to these approaches.
Under the new guidance, colleagues wishing to run a survey during the 2023/24 academic year where the survey is targeted at 250 UG or PGT students or more will need to acquire approval from the Education and Student Experience Committee.
If you are planning to run a survey that fits the above criteria, please complete the form below no later than Friday 30 June. Any proposals received after this date will not be considered.
Before submitting your survey for approval, please consult the Review Framework for Student Surveys for 2023-24 – even if your survey has operated in previous years. This will support your planning and help you to understand what criteria the Education and Student Experience Committee is looking for in the surveys it is approving.
Details of the approach and guidance for surveys of various sizes can be found on our new SharePoint site below. Anyone looking to gather feedback from students is advised to refer to this guidance before doing so.
Student Voice and Surveys SharePoint site
The site also includes best practice guidance on how to get the most out of your survey, and how best to communicate it with UG and PGT students to ensure a high rate of engagement. It features communications templates and legal guidance on administering incentives, as well as advice on alternative feedback methods such as focus groups.
Operational and departmental leads are asked to consider how best to signpost to this guidance in resources, training and guidance for their staff.
Tags: focus groups, policy, student feedback, student survey, student surveys policy, surveys
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Get involved in Mental Health Awareness Week: 15-21 May
May 15th, 2023
Mental Health Awareness Week is a good time for us to think about our mental health, tackle stigma and raise awareness.
Show your support and come along to our “What mental health means to me” staff and student photography exhibition all this week in Monica Partridge atrium.
To view our Mental Health Awareness Week staff and student blogs, online photography exhibition and information on wellbeing resources, visit our MHAW23 SharePoint site.
Our staff Spring Wellbeing Newsletter also has a spotlight on Mental Health Awareness Week and information on our wellbeing resources, mental health tips, as well as webinars that are running this week through the Employee Assistance Programme.
At the University of Nottingham, we are committed to supporting Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) for our staff and students and we’d like to encourage everyone to get involved, support us in raising awareness by sharing resources within your respective areas.
Wishing you all a good Mental Health Awareness Week where we support and show kindness to one another and ourselves.
Let’s carry this conversation forward in recognition that our mental health is important every day.
Tags: mental health, Mental Health Awareness Week, mental health support, MHAW, MHAW 23, support for staff
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Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey – your support needed
May 15th, 2023
The postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES) helps us to understand the experience of our postgraduate students and make improvements for future cohorts.
This year’s survey – run by higher education specialists AdvanceHE – will open on Friday 19 May, and will be available for students to complete until Friday 16 June.
The survey focusses on the student’s programme of study and includes questions in the following key areas:
- Teaching and learning
- Engagement
- Assessment and feedback
- Dissertation / Major Project
- Organisation and management
- Resources
- Support
- Skills development
- Overall satisfaction
Eligible students will receive an email to their university email address containing their personalised link to complete the survey. Responses will remain confidential.
Feedback from the survey will inform actions in the school enhancement plans and prove instrumental in making improvements to the postgraduate taught experience. We’re asking for the support of staff in encouraging students to complete the survey – please remind them to check their email for the survey link and do disseminate promotional materials where you are able. Our promotional materials include digital screens, social media posts and lecture slides and can be downloaded from this folder.
This year, for every student who completes the survey, we are donating £1 to the Children’s Brain Tumour Research Centre charity.
If you have any questions about the survey, please contact Hannah Sherwood.
Tags: 2023, AdvanceHE, Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey, PTES
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Excel in Science Internship Programme: call for supervisors and interns
May 12th, 2023
The Excel in Science Internship Programme (2023-2024) call for supervisors and interns has opened.
Following the success of last year’s internship programme and our Nottingham Advantage Awards course, we are delighted to share that the call for students and supervisors are now open.
Excel in Science is a programme designed to give budding researchers the opportunity to gain hands-on research experience.
We are committed to the highest standards of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, which are essential to a thriving and ambitious Research Culture.
The Excel in Science internship programme is open to all students from all disciplines, with 50% of its 40 places devoted to Black undergraduate students. We also take into account other protected characteristic and socio-economic status when shortlisting the applicants.
Successful candidates will receive a stipend for 10h/week throughout the 23/24 academic (30 weeks) at the living wage rate.
For supervisors
As an Excel in Science supervisor, you have the opportunity to provide students with a unique learning experience, mentorship and to potentially create lasting connections with emerging scientists.
Your involvement in this programme will also help diversify the scientific community by supporting students from underrepresented communities.
Research-active colleagues from across the University of Nottingham are encouraged to submit their proposals and help us create an enriching experience for our students.
We expect our Excel in Science interns to work as research assistants, spending 10 hours a week on their project over a period of 30 weeks commencing in September 2023.
Projects should run throughout the academic year, be well-defined, feasible, and offer the opportunity for students to gain valuable experience and knowledge in their field of interest.
Successful projects will also receive financial support (£500 – £1,500) to cover the costs incurred by the interns once in post.
The deadline for submission of your research project is Saturday 10 June 2023.
Please submit it completing this MS Form.
We are looking forward to receiving your project and intend to notify you if you have been paired with a student by Friday 7 July 2023.
For further details, please contact Maria Arruda.
Tags: Excel in science, Excel in Science internship, internship, supervisor
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