Dean's Update
18 Jan 2019
Message from Peter Clayton
The new Dean was in the Faculty yesterday meeting members of the leadership team and preparing for his move to Manchester in a couple of weeks’ time. Graham Lord is very much looking forward to meeting colleagues and is planning a range of visits and meetings for soon after his arrival. He has already expressed a wish to look at the challenges facing the Faculty and University and work with colleagues on developing a 10-year Faculty plan. There are exciting and interesting times ahead.
We started 2019 with a Faculty visit to China led by Nigel Hooper, our Vice Dean for Research and Innovation. The FBMH delegation took part in the inauguration of our strategic partner institution Peking University Health Science Centre (PKUHSC) which has been awarded National Centre status for International Collaboration on Translational and Clinical Research. This confirms the elite status of PKUHSC and endorses potentially large-scale follow-on funding from the Chinese central government and ministries. FBMH is well positioned with PKUHSC and its other international partners - including King’s College London, the University of Michigan and the Technical University Munich - to lead research collaborations largely influenced by the Healthy China initiative. Additionally, last week’s visit included discussions at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine about a Sino-UK Brain Project Research Collaboration in neurosciences. The visit reinforces the importance and value of our research and teaching activities in China and indicates a fruitful year ahead of research engagement in areas including psychology, health informatics, genomics, cancer, neuroscience, antimicrobial resistance, early life development, and immunology.
As we wish Jane Worthington, Head of the School of Biological Sciences, a happy retirement, it was great to hear about the outstanding range of research being undertaken in biology and biomedical sciences at the annual School of Biological Sciences showcase last Friday. These events are important for bringing School staff together and allowing each of the Divisions to bring colleagues up to date on successes, priorities and focus areas. The poster event was exceptional and I was particularly impressed to see a wellbeing programme weaved into the day’s agenda. All this contributes to a well-balanced positive work environment for all staff and students.
Along with Graham Lord and Ben Bridgewater, the chief executive of Health Innovation Manchester, I’ve just attended a meeting with a number of other northern universities to discuss health data research and collaboration. This group supports research to develop cutting edge analytical tools and methodologies that address the most pressing health research challenges. Digital innovation is key for delivering better value for patients and the Northern Health Science Alliance is playing an important role in ensuring a collaborative approach.
The FLT has been considering how to best engage with student representatives at Faculty and School level to enhance the student voice. Students are already involved in our review of assessments and we are also looking at how best to involve student reps in work to redesign the curriculum. We’ve agreed to invite a student representative to FLT on a quarterly basis to discuss key issues from the perspective of the student body.
At the same time as the recent Our Future work is being used to help define the University’s post-2020 strategy, we have been talking about long term scenario planning in a post-Brexit and post-Augar review world. There are obviously many potential implications, not least the impacts on budgets should there be a reduction in student fees, and the impacts of a no-deal Brexit on research funding. It is therefore really important that the leadership team is thinking very carefully about these issues.
Still on the longer-term planning for the Faculty, you may be aware that our Director of Faculty Operations, Joanne Clague is leaving just before Easter to become Registrar and Chief Operating Officer at Queens University, Belfast. We congratulate Jo and wish her every success. When Jo departs, we will be delighted to welcome Vikki Goddard as Director of Faculty Operations. She will transfer from the same role in the Faculty of Humanities. Vikki is a very experienced leader in the University and the sector and she will be very welcome in FBMH.
Professor Peter Clayton
Vice-President and Dean (interim)