November message from Khalid Nadvi, SEED Head of School
19 Nov 2025
Our Head of School's monthly message: focusing on wellbeing, taking a moment and Rutherford relocation plans
I hope November is going well for you and that you’ve found some space to breathe after the frenetic start to the semester.
This past month has been very busy for myself and the School team as we met with all Heads of Departments to discuss student number projections for next year. Having taken note of the lower student numbers this year, we have finalised our student number plans for 2026/27 and have put this forward to Faculty. There is a great deal of work being done across the School to improve the marketing of our programmes, strengthen student recruitment and promote student diversification. We are doing these activities in a strategic and coordinated fashion, working closely with colleagues in our SEED departments as well as at the Faculty and Centre.
I was pleased to attend the Geography Forum last week and meet with colleagues. It was great to also hear more about next summer’s move for the Geography Department (except labs) into the historic Rutherford Building. The building is still in the hands of the contractors but last week I got to join Will Fletcher on a tour and it is amazing to see how much has already changed. The attention to detail in preserving the unique character of this listed building whilst creating an inviting, inclusive and modern workspace for the 21st century is truly impressive. You can see some photos from the tour and find out all about the plans for the Rutherford move on our new Rutherford Relocation mini-site.
I know the move will require lots of preparation and we’ll be keeping in regular touch both with Geography colleagues and with the wider SEED team as we enter the final phase of refurbishment over the coming months and to support the physical move over summer 2026. I’d like to especially thank Claire Goulsbra and Jonathan Huck who have been liaising extensively with the Estates team on behalf of the Geography Department throughout the lengthy process of the Rutherford Building refurbishment.
I know that the start to the semester has been challenging, particularly given the overall fall in student recruitment for the School and that this, coupled with the stress of the start of term, the move to Canvas and the lack of daylight, can have an impact on us all. I want to encourage you to take time to look after your wellbeing, and to build the University’s Six Ways to Wellbeing into your day-to-day activities. Taking the time to connect, be active, take notice, learn and develop, and give can really lift one’s mood at this dark and dreary time of year.
One thing that really lifted my spirits was reading about the ‘Voices Beyond Borders’ project that Richard Fay and other colleagues in MIE have been delivering as part of the MA TESOL course. This innovative project pairs the cohort of MA TESOL students here in Manchester (who all come from China) with young women in Gaza who are studying English. The project is coordinated in Palestine by an alumnus from the TESOL degree who is continuing to teach and broaden the horizons of her students, despite the challenges of living in a warzone.
Reading the words of one of our students who is participating about the challenges of communication in Gaza really allowed me to see how this project is not only providing hands-on skills development to our students but also building real connections between the young people who are participating.
This is just one example of how our staff and students build connections and solidarity in their work and study. At last month’s GDI Students for Palestine conference, it was impressive to see people coming from all over the world for this day of solidarity, sharing and learning. This impressive student-led initiative was made possible by funding from the GDI Innovation Fund – I am proud to see the significant impact that is generated by our relatively modest School funding programmes.
Voices Beyond Borders was made possible with funding through the SEED Social Responsibility Catalyst Fund. Please take five minutes to read about Voices Beyond Borders and if it’s inspired you think about your own social responsibility project you can find out about the Catalyst Fund here.
Work continues apace to respond to the Manchester 2035 strategy. It’s been great to hear from our Deputy HoS, Juup Stelma about the success of the recent call for proposals to identify possible new online courses. Thanks to Peter Kahn and the team for organising the School’s Sprint Panel to take these proposals forward.
We had some excellent candidates for the post of Director of Postgraduate Research and I’m delighted to welcome Tanja Bastia to the role, which she will start in February 2026. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Tanja Müller for her three years of excellent organisation and advocacy of our PGR programmes. Tanja M will be working closely with Tanja B to ensure the handover is as seamless as possible.
Whilst we’re on the subject of departures, I was very sorry to hear that our School Operations Manager Lucy Adams will be leaving SEED early in the new year to take up a new role as Operational Delivery Lead in the Registrar’s Office, supporting the delivery of the Manchester 2035 strategy. Congratulations to Lucy on her new role – you will be much missed in SEED!
Congratulations also to colleagues who have been the recent recipients of major research funding: Neil Humphrey and Ola Demkowicz who along with a colleague from SoSS have been awarded £561,745 from the Youth Endowment Foundation for the completion of the co-design for the London Sexual Violence (LSV) Project evaluation and Karen Lucas and Helen Zheng who along with colleagues from SoSS have been awarded £32,457 by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority for a project which will explore the unique barriers confronting women as road users in Greater Manchester. And to our Director of Research, Pam Qualter, who is one of only 12 Manchester academics to be named as one of the Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers of 2025.
Earlier this month I was pleased to attend the University’s Teaching Excellence Awards, where Rui He and Stephen Rayner were highly commended for the Postgraduate Academic Enlightenment (PAE) Programme in MIE. Congratulations to them both! Nominations are not yet open for next year’s Teaching Excellence Awards but they are open both for the University’s Making A Difference Awards celebrating Social Responsibility – you can find out more and make a nomination here.
Finally, you’ll see a message from our Director of School Operations, David Pattwell, about how we’re responding to the results from the university staff survey. Whilst I celebrate the fact that so many colleagues find their work interesting and challenging and are proud to work for the University, I am concerned to see issues around line management and change communication. As a School Executive we are determined to address these and I’d like to reiterate David’s words that we are always looking for ways to innovate and improve and my inbox (or door) is always open for suggestions and questions.
Enjoy the last few weeks before December Graduation and then the Christmas Break. I hope to see many of you at the Winter Warmer on 19th December.
Two key things this month:
- Take a moment: is everyone being included, respected and heard?
- Focus on wellbeing - do something to look after yourself and your colleagues