President's weekly update
5 July 2018
We held our annual Distinguished Achievement Awards in the Whitworth Hall to recognise our outstanding undergraduate and postgraduate students, leading teachers and research staff (other categories of staff and students are recognised in separate awards ceremonies) and staff from our Professional Support Services, Library and cultural institutions, including teams who have made outstanding contributions. Award winners were accompanied by proposers and family and friends for the ceremony and lunch. These awards are one part of our aim to recognise our most valuable asset - our staff and students.
Senior colleagues and I hosted an event for over 60 new staff who have joined the University recently. They were first asked for some views on the future of our University, then they discussed what they found was good about the University and should be built on, what needs to improve and what they could bring from their former employment that would be of benefit. Some felt we should be more focussed and should better promote the University. They recognised the value of our relationship with the city region of Manchester.
One comment, which has been mentioned before, was that academic staff spend too much time on things that detract from core activities. We are working on a Student Lifecycle project that should significantly reduce administrative burden. We are also launching a new web -based expenses claim system that will reduce paperwork and as part of our innovative application of new technology we will be using Robotic Process Automation to remove repetitive manual rekeying of data in our Global MBA. We must all continue to seek opportunities to remove and reduce non-value adding activities as part of our digital optimisation plans.
I met the new interim Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Royce Institute, Chris Barkey, who joins us from Rolls-Royce until the end of the calendar year, while we recruit a full-time CEO. Chris has already started working with us and is getting to know the Royce and the University.
At the Russell Group of Vice-Chancellors’ meeting in London we discussed the latest government announcements on Brexit that are relevant to universities, including positive messages about membership of EU funding schemes and about simplified routes to permanent settlement of university staff. The announcement that EU students starting their course in 2019 (ie: the first intake after Brexit) at universities in England will continue to be treated the same as home students - paying the same tuition fees and with their access to support unchanged for the duration of their degree course - provides much needed clarity and certainty.
We also discussed the possibility of reinstating the two year post-study work visa for international graduates, pensions, widening access, increasing regulatory demands on universities, sustainability of research funding (since we make a financial loss on virtually all of our research funding), potential outcomes of the review of financing of post-18 education and the international profile of UK universities.
Dr Patrick Vallance, the Government Chief Scientific Advisor, joined for part of the Russell Group meeting and we discussed how universities can contribute to attracting more businesses to the UK with strong research and development and how we can contribute to the government’s planned growth in research and development to 2.4% of gross domestic product.
I was interviewed for our application for an Engage Watermark award in public engagement along with many other staff who lead on public engagement, PhD students, early career academics and support staff. I told them that I consider public engagement to be a core activity for this University and something that we recognise and reward because it has so many benefits to our staff, students and stakeholders. They seemed very impressed by the importance we place on public engagement and our many activities and commitment.
I travelled to Cardiff to give the plenary lecture at the UK Stroke conference about our work on brain inflammation in stroke and related conditions and new interventions that we are testing in clinical trials in patients with sub-arachnoid haemorrhage.
Staff communications are very important and we want to hear your views. You can take part in a short survey – the findings will be used to shape future staff communications.
As the summer weather continues it’s good to see that most of the work on Brunswick Park is now complete (the east end will be completed later due to works on the Chemistry building) and you may have seen many staff and students enjoying the sunshine on the new benches.
The University is one of a number of 80 locations taking part in the free public art event ‘Bee in the City’ with individually designed, super-sized bee sculptures. Our ‘Bee inspired’ University sculpture, designed by American artist Kate Eggleston-Wirtz, has just been installed in the John Owens quad and is already proving popular in this lovely weather with people taking photographs.
It is the 70th anniversary of the National Health Service - which in many ways started here in Manchester.
Next week we begin graduation ceremonies, which I hope many of you will attend. These are amongst the most important events of the year as we celebrate the achievements of our students with their families and friends and the hard work of our staff in helping them to achieve their degrees. We hope for more sunshine for the ceremonies, but that it’s not too hot in the Whitworth Hall in heavy gowns.
Nancy Rothwell, President and Vice-Chancellor