Senior Leadership blogs

Strengthening Research, Partnerships and Community Impact

UKVI Compliance and the University of Bedfordshire

Feedback from recent town halls highlighted a desire for greater clarity about UKVI compliance and how the University has responded to changes in the UK's international student visa regime.

It is important to emphasise that the University has maintained a strong compliance record over the last five years and has consistently remained within Home Office thresholds. However, the environment for international recruitment has become significantly more challenging.

Over the past three years, successive governments have introduced a series of measures aimed at reducing international student numbers, including:

• Removal of the right for taught postgraduate (PGT) students to bring dependants (January 2024).
• Reduction of the Graduate Route, which allows students to work in the UK after graduation, from two years to 18 months (January 2026).
• Introduction of a visa “brake” on applicants from Cameroon, Afghanistan, Myanmar and Sudan (March 2026).
• Lowering of Basic Compliance Assessment (BCA) thresholds and the introduction of more severe penalties for institutions that fail to meet them (June 2026).

The first two changes had a major impact across the sector. The removal of dependant visas led to a sharp decline in PGT recruitment, while the reduction in the Graduate Route made the UK less attractive compared with the ever-increasing number of competing study destinations. Like almost all universities in the UK, Bedfordshire experienced a significant fall in postgraduate recruitment, although international undergraduate recruitment remained more resilient. However, the recent tightening of BCA requirements has now increased the challenge across all international recruitment.

The BCA annually assesses universities against three measures: visa refusals, enrolment rates and course completion rates. Historically, institutions that breached thresholds could expect increased scrutiny from UKVI, such as an audit or inspection. In May 2025, the Home Office proposed significantly tougher requirements and introduced a public Red/Amber/Green (RAG) rating system, alongside a range of potential sanctions for those that are Red or even Amber-rated. These sanctions could include limiting sponsorship numbers, or removing the right of the university to assess English language ability, right up to full revocation of an institution’s sponsor licence.

The revised thresholds are:

The first of these new thresholds came into effect in June 2026, with course completion following in June 2027. Maintaining at least an Amber rating is now critical for all universities. Two successive Red ratings, even across different measures, would most likely result in suspension or loss of a university's sponsor licence for up to two years.

The University has always monitored compliance through a dedicated UKVI Working Group. Following the government's announcement in 2025, we implemented additional measures, including limiting sponsorship from markets with historically high visa refusal rates. Despite this, in January 2026, visa refusals increased unexpectedly across the sector, with clear signs that specific countries and regions were receiving greater scrutiny from UKVI.

Because compliance data is continually monitored, we were able to respond quickly. During the July recruitment cycle, visa refusal rates increased further and information from UKVI feedback suggested that they were predicting that we would be Red-rated for visa refusals in our annual assessments. To protect our sponsor licence, we took a number of difficult decisions for September’s intake, including closing recruitment early for some courses with the highest refusal rates, withdrawing a limited number of sponsorships and requesting our annual assessment at the earliest opportunity.

Our modelling indicated that these actions would enable us to achieve an Amber rating. I really want to stress that these decisions were not taken lightly. We recognise the impact on academic areas and, most importantly, on applicants affected by those decisions. Nevertheless, protecting our sponsor licence is essential to the University's future ability to recruit international students.

The wider sector faces similar challenges. A recent survey suggested that 19 universities expect to receive Red ratings under the new framework. We have already seen one private provider lose its sponsor licence and a public university have its licence suspended pending appeal. A dozen other universities have been placed on  UKVI Action Plans in the last 18 months.

As a result, international student recruitment has entered a new phase. To maintain compliance, we must further refine our recruitment strategy, placing greater emphasis on students who can clearly demonstrate their ability to finance their studies. These students are statistically more likely to secure visas, enrol and complete their courses successfully.

Competition for such students is intense. Universities in the UK are competing not only with each other, but also with an increasing number of English-speaking institutions worldwide. I do want to be very clear that we have not and will not be giving up on growing our international recruitment – international students are not just financially important to Bedfordshire but they also provide a richer academic experience for all of our students. But it is the reality that in this highly restrictive and punitive compliance regime, those numbers will not reach the levels we saw in the post-Covid boom years, which is why the focus of many growth conversations is necessarily around growing back our core constituency of Home undergraduates.

Once again we come to one of the busiest and most important periods in our recruitment cycle, Clearing. 

We already know that this will be more competitive than ever – high tariff universities have made more offers that ever before, and this has trickled down through the sector. What remains to be seen is how students perform in their exams compared to those offers, particularly locally, as this will dictate how many are released back into Clearing. We know last year that many of those high tariff and medium tariff universities lowered their grade requirements substantially in order to mitigate for lower international recruitment.

We do go into this period with a stronger story to tell than at any point in the last decade. Strong league table performance in all main tables, particularly around the quality of teaching. Excellent NSS scores for the second year in a row. Fantastic support for students, especially around the cost of living, from subsidised meals to the cheapest accommodation in East, South and South East of England. Even now we are looking to add more to these stories and we will keep you informed about these key selling points throughout this period.

We also have a fantastic marketing campaign and a clear message around employability, and have focused our efforts in the last six months on getting this across in particular in key local markets. I hope you seen some of this around the region, on bus sides, posters, even at the Mall. I hope you’ve seen less of it online, because we’re targeting a very specific audience, but rest assured it’s most definitely out there (and remember, if you do see one of our ads online DON’T click on it. It costs us money! I’m more relaxed about you clicking on everyone else's).

The best thing about Clearing is that is does bring everyone together with a single objective. It is a whole-University effort. Whether you're welcoming visitors to campus, responding to academic enquiries, supporting admissions, sharing our successes on social media, or helping ensure our campuses provide a great first impression, every interaction contributes to a prospective student's decision to choose Bedfordshire. As the title of this blog states, Every Conversation Counts.

For many applicants, Clearing can feel uncertain and overwhelming. A friendly conversation, a prompt response or a warm welcome can make all the difference. These moments help demonstrate what makes our University special.

The coming weeks will be incredibly busy, but they are also an opportunity to showcase the very best of Bedfordshire. My heartfelt thanks to everyone who has contributed so far and to those who will continue supporting our recruitment efforts over the remainder of the Clearing period.

As you’ll know, if you’ve heard me speak at any of the all-staff events over that last few months, this year has been one of the most challenging for student recruitment, both for us and also for universities like us.

Internationally, the postgraduate was severely impacted by the removal of dependants’ visa rights, and the sector has not really recovered from that impact (and in reality is not likely to in the foreseeable future). As a result of this we took a strategic decision to redouble our efforts on international undergraduate recruitment, and with some success as we hit our internal targets for the 2025/26 recruitment year. However, as we move into the new recruitment cycle we have already seen the impact of escalating conflict in the Middle East, with student’s paying initial deposits but clearly unwilling to fully commit until the situation normalises.

The knock-on effect of this reduction in international student numbers has been for universities to reduce their entry tariffs across the sector, and for high-tariff universities to make more offers of study than every before. This has impacted hugely on application numbers to lower tariff universities like ours and our UG application numbers are significantly down on last year. This puts even more emphasis on conversion, as every one of those applicants now has an even greater value.

It also means that Clearing will be more important than ever. We know that a great many students will be holding offers at high and medium tariff universities at grades that they may not achieve, and it remains to be seen how many of those students will be released back into Clearing on results day. We have been putting considerable effort and investment into ensuring that we go into that Clearing period top-of-mind, especially in Beds, Bucks, Herts and Northants.

This included a “disruptor” campaign across our region during April and May to firmly plant our brand and newly-minted success metrics in the hearts and minds of our prospective students and those that influence them, including high impact outdoor media, 65,000 free newspapers across 120 supermarkets and a leaflet door drop in Northamptonshire.

Our Clearing campaign this summer includes a premium package with UCAS that incorporates a results day mailing and a prominent advert on the UCAS hub that all students use on results day. In addition to the key student influencer platforms, we have extended our out of home reach and will also be running a new TV advert on streaming platforms including Netflix, Disney Plus and Amazon Prime. 

Results day this year is Thursday 13^th August, we look forward to seeing you at the all staff clearing briefing at 10am on the 12th August. Our Recruitment, Admissions and Marketing Teams look forward to working with you all this summer on achieving our shared goals. 

Getting meaningful results from the staff survey
 
Our Staff Engagement Survey has now been open for just over a week, and thank you to everyone who has already taken the time to complete it.

I know surveys can sometimes prompt a degree of scepticism. Colleagues will naturally want to know whether their feedback will genuinely be listened to and whether anything will change as a result.

Over the years, colleagues across the University have shared feedback in many different ways and experiences will vary. Some colleagues will have seen positive local action and support. Others may feel less confident that feedback has always led to visible change or clear communication about what happened next.

One of the reasons for introducing an annual University-wide survey is to help us build a clearer and more consistent picture of colleague experience across the institution over time.

This is important because, while we rightly spend a great deal of time understanding the student experience, we have not previously had the same consistent university-wide approach to understanding how colleagues experience working here.

The survey gives us an opportunity to better understand what is working well, where colleagues feel supported and engaged, and where we need to improve.

The survey is confidential and independently run by People Insight, with responses going directly to them rather than to the University.

What matters now is that we use the feedback properly, are open about the themes we hear, and demonstrate progress over time. Some issues will be easier to address than others, and not every change will happen quickly. But colleagues should be able to see a clearer and more consistent approach to listening, responding and improving year on year.

So if you haven’t yet taken part, I would really encourage you to do so. The more colleagues who participate, the more meaningful and representative the picture will be, and the more useful the insights will be as we shape future priorities and actions together.

Thank you again to everyone who has already contributed.

I wanted to write to you personally as I step into this role of Interim Vice Chancellor. This is a university to which I am very committed and feel privileged to serve. We are a university with a powerful social mission focused on social mobility, career-powered education, and a strong civic role rooted firmly in Bedfordshire.

At the same time, I am very conscious that these are difficult and unsettling times for many colleagues, as we continue to make significant changes to meet our financial targets and secure our future.

Like you, I care deeply about where this university goes next. I have stepped into this interim role at a moment of transition, with the recruitment process for our permanent Vice Chancellor now in its final stages. With that in mind, my objective in taking on this position is simple - to maintain momentum and stability, and to ensure the next Vice Chancellor inherits a university that is resilient and ready to grow. Over the last few years, we have made real progress together, including improving our league table position and responding decisively to the sudden financial challenges caused by falling student numbers. It is critical that we do not lose that sense of direction now.

Looking ahead, my immediate priorities are clear. First, we must complete the academic staff restructure in a timely and transparent way, with the consultation now closed and outcomes to be announced shortly. I know the waiting has been hard, and I do not underestimate the impact it has had on individuals and teams. Second, we need to continue to innovate in our revenue generating activity, including recruitment and transnational education, and prepare the university for growth in key areas, so that we emerge from this period stronger and more sustainable.

Our Transforming Bedfordshire strategy has achieved much, but the external environment has changed rapidly. Working with the new Vice Chancellor, we will need to focus sharply on future growth - particularly international activity and career-powered education - while holding on to our values and our role as Bedfordshire’s civic university. Our Race Equality Charter work, our civic agreements, and our partnerships with organisations such as the airport, Bedford College Group, the NHS and local Chambers of Commerce all position us to ensure students benefit from the opportunities that will be created by regional growth and inward investment.

I am already working closely with the Vice Chancellor’s Executive Group, the Students’ Union, our governors and colleagues across the university to ensure that the incoming Vice Chancellor has a clear picture of our strengths, our plans, and the challenges that still lie ahead. My approach to leadership during this period will be grounded in listening - to staff, students and our external partners - so that the voices and concerns of our communities help shape the next phase of the university’s strategy.

Staying connected matters to me. Over the coming months I will have opportunities to meet colleagues informally through Coffee Chat events, speaking at University Leadership Forum meetings, and spending time with students at key moments such as graduation.

I know the past year has been one of the most challenging many of us have experienced, with difficult decisions and the departure of valued colleagues. While the tough times are not over yet, my hope is we can focus on shaping a future in which the university flourishes, delivers an outstanding, career-powered education for our students while continuing to make a positive contribution to our local economy and to society.

I want to thank you for everything you do, and for the commitment you show to the University.

The long-awaited Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper sets out a major reform agenda for our sector and is the most significant policy statement on HE and skills in over a decade.

While much of the detail is yet to be finalised, the direction is clear: simplify qualifications, align more closely with employer and regional skills needs, improve progression routes, and emphasise lifelong learning.

For our university, there is positive news and many opportunities, but also some threats, all of which will need more than a blog to explain!

Taking a step back from the details, it’s clear that there are some key and interrelated themes. The first is in relation to the use of quality measures. There is a commitment to increase the undergraduate student fee by inflation but only if certain quality measures are met, and the same is the case for growth in student recruitment, with caps imposed by the regulator where these measures are not met. The paper provides no detail as to what the measures will be, though it’s clear that the Teaching Excellence Framework will be a major factor. 

There is a strong emphasis on the need for more collaboration both within the HE sector and between HE and FE, for efficiency, financial sustainability, and to create local ecosystems for skills provision, which could see mergers, federations and other alliances emerging. The government wants to see a comprehensive local education offer, with universities as part of the skills ecosystem, working with FE and local employers to deliver workforce pipelines.  It’s clear that the Industrial Strategy is at the heart of this plan for skills and that alignment with the eight industrial priorities will be incentivised through new funding regimes and refocusing of current grants for teaching and research.

The introduction of vocational levels (V Levels)  to sit alongside A levels and the new T (Technology) levels further indicates the centrality of the industrial strategy, as does the launch of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement where students will be able to take out loans for anything from short courses to a full degree or postgraduate study and where initially the focus will be on subjects linked to the Industrial Strategy.

There is a challenge to universities to be more differentiated and to specialise, focusing on teaching and research, or teaching only, or teaching and applied research, rather than all universities trying to deliver on all these areas, again with funding levers used to create this sectoral change.

There is a welcome acknowledgement of the sector’s achievements in widening participation, with a recognition of more to be done, particularly in relation to postgraduate study, and a new higher target of two-thirds of under-25s engaging in higher-level learning, in and outside universities, with apprenticeships emphasised.

Finally, for this short blog, the already heralded 6% levy on international fees in part to fund the reintroduction of home student maintenance grants, is a risk to recruitment if passed on to students and a financial loss if universities have to absorb it. Tighter controls and thresholds for visas are promised and unsurprisingly, international recruitment looks set to remain a major governmental focus in the context of immigration.

There is much more, and more detail to come. I’ve highlighted these issues because apart from the levy, they offer real opportunities to our university and we are already well placed strategically to benefit: from improved academic quality to educational and employer partnerships, from Career Powered Education to applied and impactful research, we are ready, and already a key player and anchor organisation in the county and wider region.

We’re proud to announce that the University of Bedfordshire has officially been granted the University Mental Health Charter (UMHC) Award, a national accreditation led by the UK charity Student Minds. This significant achievement recognises our commitment to fostering a whole-university approach to mental health and wellbeing for both students and staff.

Bedfordshire was among the first universities to join the UMHC programme when it launched in 2021. Since then, we’ve worked tirelessly to embed a whole university approach to good mental health practices into every part of university life, learning, support, living, and working environments.

To guide this process, a dedicated Mental Health Charter Working Group was formed in 2022. With leadership assigned across each of the Charter’s four domains—Learn, Support, Live and Work—this group collaborated with staff, student representatives, and external experts to assess and evidence our progress against the Charter’s 18 core themes.

As part of the rigorous assessment, the University submitted a detailed 20,000-word self-assessment and a separate student-led report. In April 2024, the Assessment Team visited our campuses, meeting over 60 staff and students to explore our practices, strengths, and challenges.

In July 2025, we were thrilled to receive confirmation from the UMHC Award Panel that our status had been upgraded to full Award holder, in recognition of our continued commitment to mental health. The panel commended our Education and Student Experience Strategy, which promotes a personalised and flexible approach to support student wellbeing and success. 

Looking ahead, our Mental Health and Wellbeing Group will continue developing this work, using feedback and recommendations from the UMHC Outcomes Report to shape future plans.

I would like to thank Ruki Heritage, Director of Student Experience, for her leadership and success for the University in achieving the Mental Health Charter, in addition to Sarah Thompson and Helen Randall in the Student Experience Projects team for all their work to achieve this award. Thank you also, to all staff who contributed to achieving this award.

Join us in celebrating this milestone on World Mental Health Day – Friday 10th October 2025. Find out more about our progress and the support available to all staff and students.

I want to start by acknowledging that the university-wide restructure has brought real challenges, and I know it has been a difficult time for many. Our restructure was a difficult but necessary decision driven by the need to secure our longer-term financial sustainability and ensure we are in a strong position to seize future opportunities. It has helped us to build a more resilient foundation for what lies ahead.

At the same time, it is important to pause and reflect on just how far we have come on delivering our Transforming Bedfordshire strategy. While the external environment continues to shift - politically, financially, and socially - we have remained focussed on our core mission. We have strengthened our position, delivered on many of our strategic priorities, and created a platform we can confidently build on.

Strategy in context

When our Transforming Bedfordshire strategy was written, the world looked quite different. It was pre-Covid, before new OfS regulation, before recent hikes in pensions and national insurance, and before international recruitment became a political flashpoint. Despite all that, our strategy remains relevant. It focusses on financial sustainability, student experience, retention, and graduate outcomes. These are all areas that are just as important today as they were then.

We know the league tables don’t always show the full picture, and it is frustrating to wait for them to catch up. But the progress we have made is real. Our student satisfaction ranking in the Complete University Guide has jumped from 114th in 2022 to 42nd in 2025. That’s a huge achievement, and a reflection of the care, effort, and commitment shown across the University.

Other metrics, like Graduate Outcomes and Continuation, are improving too, even if not yet visible externally. The most recent CUG data still reflects graduates from 2021–22, so we won’t see the full impact of our Employability Plan and Curriculum Change Programme reflected in the league tables until 2027 and beyond.

This year’s student surveys show just how far we’ve come. In the NSS, scores improved almost across the board, placing us first in the East of England for learning opportunities and second for both assessment and student voice. Postgraduate taught students ranked us third nationally in the PTES, while satisfaction among postgraduate researchers rose sharply in the PRES, putting us among the UK’s best for progression and research skills. These results confirm that the progress we’re making is being recognised by our students.

All of this gives us a strong sense of momentum as we think about what comes next.

Looking Ahead

A new University Strategy will be developed by the new Vice-Chancellor on appointment. That will take some time. For now, we need to continue to focus on the priorities I set out above, of which the most urgent is to increase recruitment across all our provision and to develop new courses that will attract students. Competition for students in the cash strapped HE sector is more acute than I have ever known it, which means it is crucial that our course portfolio stands out in this competitive market.

Now that Clearing and Confirmation are coming to an end, we can see that enrolments will be lower than target, which means we will need to review the academic staffing position. As soon as we are able, proposals will be shared and form the basis for consultation on change.

We will continue to develop our Career Powered Education ‘brand’ ensuring that students have direct experience of employment sectors and develop the skills employers look for. We will also continue our good progress on the quality of our courses and retention.

We are evolving towards a more skills-focused, community-connected, and outcomes-driven university. We know our value lies not only in awarding degrees, but in preparing students for employment, contributing to local economic success, and supporting lifelong learning.

Opportunities for growth and impact

We are already playing an important role across the region, and that will continue. New developments such as the football stadium at Power Court, the Airport Enterprise Zone and second terminal at Luton Airport, and longer term, the Universal Studios development near Bedford all offer scope for new courses, partnerships, civic engagement and importantly student opportunities.

Our Luton Council Civic Agreement and imminent Agreement with Bedford Borough Council, along with the recent news that we will be hosting a Community Diagnostics Centre on our Luton Campus, reinforce our role as an anchor institution and our commitment to serving our communities at every level.

Our research and business engagement will remain key pillars of this as we continue to align our academic strengths with areas of local and national need.

Staying financially sustainable

The financial environment remains extremely challenging. With the majority of our expenditure tied to staffing, and with increased non-pay costs and on-going pressures from pensions, national insurance and reduced income, we must continue to manage our resources carefully. This means finding new ways to generate income and making sure our structure matches our size and purpose.

It also means continuing to adapt. We are still awaiting the government’s next steps on higher education, including future HE regulation and national policy on international recruitment. Whatever comes, we must be ready.

Our next steps

It is clear the fundamentals of our current strategy are sound, and we have made real progress. Our Super KPIs will remain central: continuation, student satisfaction, graduate outcomes, attainment gap reduction, and, most importantly, recruitment. The University of Bedfordshire is an ambitious, diverse, and inclusive community. As we look to the future, our focus will be on building from a position of strength and staying true to our mission, while evolving to respond to a rapidly changing context.

Although Clearing technically begins on July 5, it’s only now that we approach the main results period that most people think of as Clearing, with A-level results coming out on August 14. We enter this phase with our firm offer acceptances broadly in line with last year. This has been a particularly volatile year, with applications down as other universities continued to lower tariff from the start of the cycle, and then a long period in which our acceptances were continually up, right up until the “decline by default” deadline when the sector saw significant numbers of applicants dropping out with selecting a firm or insurance choice. We are therefore reliant on Clearing to bring in the remainder of the registrations we need to help us to reach our targets. The good news is, we’ve been here before and we know what we’re doing. 

As of July 5, our Admissions Team has been making Clearing offers to applicants who already meet their entry requirements. Enquirers are also able to make contact with us now to make early clearing enquiries, enabling us to capture data before the main event launches.

Our Clearing marketing campaign

The Clearing marketing campaign this year expands on the success of the launch of Career Powered Education last summer, with a focus on our targeted, qualification-led scholarships that we launched this year. The scholarships, which target high tariff students who have a huge choice of universities, are the most attractive we can find in the entire country, with a maximum value of £2500 per year of study. We know these have resonated well at recruitment events this year and fully expect them to have a strong impact for Clearing 2025.

Over the course of this year, we have worked closely with our media agency to secure the best possible media packages for Clearing, including the traditional out-of-home advertising, student-influencing websites and search engine marketing, and on-demand TV/gaming platforms, including Netflix and Disney+. Additionally, we have successfully secured the top UCAS media package for the first time this year. This is only available to a limited number of universities and includes digital placement across the UCAS site, and also a results morning mailing to all unplaced applicants. We shall be segmenting that data to target applicants in particular who meet the threshold requirements for our scholarships.

Our Clearing operation,

The main Clearing operation, based in the PG Centre in Luton, will operate similarly to previous years with a team of Student Recruitment and Admissions Staff and Clearing operators. Our specialist academics will be available remotely to call firm acceptors and Clearing offer holders to help with conversion (and also to ensure we minimise “poaching” by other institutions). A key strategy this year is to segment our data by UCAS points achieved, to identify main-cycle offer holders who have declined us or have not made a decision and tell them about the scholarship they would be eligible for if they choose Bedfordshire.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that many applicants are not placed through choice, as they had been considering degree apprenticeships, or they have chosen to wait until their level 3 results are received and apply directly to clearing. Our campaign and targeted scholarship marketing is designed to influence these applicants. About 20% of Clearing offers are to those who only put in an application during the Clearing period, and this has the potential to be higher this year and those who did not find a degree apprenticeship place may reconsider traditional HE. In short, there is still everything to play for!

I know that recruitment has been a concern for everyone this year, as it has been across the sector. Looking forward to next year, it’s worth stating that there is every sign that students interest in Bedfordshire is beginning to grow. Leads generated at recruitment fairs are up by nearly 50%. Footfall to on-campus recruitment-focused events is also already up on last year, with some events still to come. And with our new CRM system, we are in a better position than ever to communicate with those leads and to convert them to applications and enrolments. 

A big thank you

My thanks to everyone who has been involved in getting us to this point, from those who get the estate ready for Open Days, to everyone who gets involved at the Bedford UCAS Fair and other on-campus events, to all the Faculty staff who go out to Schools or follow up with applicants and do all they can to ensure they make Bedfordshire their firm choice.

Improving student recruitment in the Faculty of Education, English and Sport

The Faculty continues to work closely with the Recruitment, Outreach, Admissions and Marketing (ROAM) team and the International Office (IO) on student recruitment activity. This work continues to be the top priority for the Faculty. Highlights of this year below.

School of Sport Science and Physical Activity (SSPA)

Luton Town Football Club (LTFC) day

Over 200 school students took to the pitch at Kenilworth Road, the home of LTFC, for an unforgettable football experience organised by the University. Find out more here:  https://www.beds.ac.uk/news/2025/may/university-brings-festival-of-football-to-luton-town-fc/

The Chartered Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (CASES) Outreach Experience Day

In July 2024 SSPA became one of 20 UK universities that are CASES Outreach Hubs. Working with CASES, we ran the national CASES Poster Competition 2024. 124 school and college students attended Sport and Exercise Science sessions producing a poster based on data collected at the sessions.  Students took part in practical workshops focussing on physiology, biomechanics, nutrition, psychology and sports therapy & rehabilitation.

SSPA Taster Sessions and Outreach Activities

SSPA/ROAM, has conducted 41 taster/outreach activities this year involving 1,172 students from local schools/colleges. We have further bookings for the remainder of the year involving an additional 227 students.

School of Education

Get into Teaching events

In addition to our attendance at regional Department for Education (DfE) Get into Teaching events, this academic year the school launched a series of ‘Get into Teaching’ sessions at our Luton and Bedford campuses focussing on Postgraduate teaching opportunities. This week the school is hosting Teacher Training for career changers - opportunities for students to understand postgraduate teaching pathways, bursaries available to train, and experience a range of subject-specific seminars.

Welcome packs

Following a successful pilot last year, we launched our applicant welcome pack project. The book project for Education and English introduces applicants to our courses and has supported conversion activities.  Applicants receive a course book and follow up activities that introduces them to their course and enables communication with their future course team.   In addition, the school has developed teacher welcome packs of teacher essentials accompanied with a ‘congratulations on your successful interview’ certificate.  We have identified an increase of accepts after each posting.

Centre for English as a Foreign Language (CEFL)

Providing language testing for admission to Bedfordshire, and pre-sessional language courses.

International Festival of Culture

Student experience is key, and word of mouth is a powerful marketing tool.  We expanded our International Festival of Culture this year and saw 1070 participants in 20 different activities.  The event was promoted on social media, and friends and families of our international students were able to see a rich and varied programme reflecting our diverse student population.

Pre-induction sessions

We ran our first pre-induction session for our International Foundation programme, to help students to feel more confident and prepared for their studies. Feeling supported right from the beginning is important in the whole recruitment process, and assists in retaining students and their subsequent progression.

Final thoughts

Thank you to colleagues across Bedfordshire for all you are doing to support student recruitment. We all contribute to our University community and the reasons for students choosing to study with us.

Advancing Race Equality: An Update on Our Race Equality Charter’s Bronze Application

At the University of Bedfordshire (Uob), we passionately believe that a truly inclusive institution is one where everyone, regardless of race or ethnicity, can thrive, feel valued, and reach their full potential. We are committed to applying for the Race Equality Charter (REC), a national framework led by Advance HE, aimed at improving the representation, progression, and success of minority ethnic staff and students in higher education.

Our REC application will include an 8,000 word report, a five-year action plan with measurable goals focused on improving race equality across the University, and extensive appendices summarising equalities data collected as required by Advance HE. 

We are very grateful to all colleagues and students for their valuable contributions in shaping the journey of developing our application and becoming an anti-racist University. This is not a tick-box exercise. It is a long-term commitment we are making together to equity and justice. 

Where We Started

Our journey began with a clear commitment to look critically at how our structures, policies, and practices impact our minority ethnic staff and students. In late 2022, we formed a REC Self-Assessment Team (RECSAT) to inform our application, made up of staff and student representatives from across the university, bringing a range of lived experiences, academic expertise and perspectives to the table. 

What We've Done So Far

Over the past two years, we have undertaken a comprehensive process of reflection and analysis aimed at enabling us to become an anti-racist University. This has already resulted in some key changes in university policy and practice. A complete overview of these efforts and their results can be found here.

UoB Proposed Restructure & REC 

Our REC application submission date was originally in late March 2025. Due to the university’s current proposed restructuring and consultation, Advance HE advice was to delay the REC application submission until July 2025 This extra time will allow us to take account of the Equalities Impact Assessment (EIA) that will identify the effect of the proposed restructure on our minority ethnic staff and students which will in turn help with refining the REC actions moving forward. 

What’s Next

We are now in the final stages of preparing the REC application for the Bronze Award with a submission deadline of 31 July 2025. There are a number of activities taking place that will help us better understand the impact of the University's proposed restructuring on minority ethnic staff and students. For example, the People & Culture team organised a meeting with REN members to discuss the potential impact and how this can be mitigated through the REC action plan. We will also respond to any EDI issues raised in the proposed restructure consultation feedback. We value the feedback we have received on the REC application as progress only happens when we’re pushed to do better! 

We are incredibly grateful to everyone who has contributed their time, energy, and voices so far. The REC application is not just about achieving an award; it's about making real change. And with your continued support, we’re moving in the right direction. 

As the Vice Chancellor said in 2024, “I am committed to ensuring that this University is a place where we champion equity and the principle of inclusion and where we respect the rights and dignity of all people. We will be an antiracist university”. 

So, colleagues, let us build this university where equity is not just an aspiration - it is the norm! 

Professor Andrew Church and Dr Mohammad Alramahi (REC Co-Chairs)

Since the start of this academic year, I have been providing updates on the challenges faced by the sector. I have highlighted the actions we have been taking to position ourselves for the future and to respond to the complex and challenging environment in which we now operate. Rising costs and falling student numbers remain a challenge to the sector and to us. The end of January saw the end of the main UCAS application cycle, and applications to our university, and to our competitor set, have fallen again, as have applications from international students.

In my January blog, I highlighted that we are now a smaller university, and as such we are required to take a hard look at our size and structures. Sound financial management over previous years has put us in a stronger position than many of our competitors. However, to ensure on-going financial sustainability, it is clear that we need to do more and build on the action that we have already taken.

We have already taken action, and I know this has not been easy. We have reduced our non-pay expenditure, limited our recruitment to vacant roles and undertook a voluntary severance exercise last year. However, it is clear that we need to do more, and we need to accelerate the review of our structures, to ensure they are right to move us forward, as well as reducing costs to align with our income.

VCEG colleagues have been reviewing their structures and ways of working, and over the coming weeks we are likely to enter a period of consultation. I have committed to transparency throughout this process and whilst this will be a difficult period, no final decisions have been made, and we want to ensure everyone has the opportunity to input into these decisions, question, comment and feedback on proposals before final decisions are made.

We expect proposals to be finalised over the next few weeks, and I will update you again with next steps as soon as I can. Please be assured that I and my VCEG colleagues are committed to working with you, and our trade union colleagues, to ensure the right decisions are made to support the future of our University and our staff and student community.

The opportunities for our students to engage with real-world challenges and help to create solutions as part of their studies is the cornerstone of our Career Powered Education marketing campaign that launched last summer. Aligned to its launch, staff from around the university recently audited content to ensure that employability skills are evident across the curriculum of each course.

Supported by colleagues from ROAM, this year we brought industry leaders onto campus to support our Open Days and together with bold visuals and displays, the campaign has markedly improved the vibrancy of our recruitment events and external promotions.  Building on the improvements seen by CATS courses in the NSS 2024 survey, the outcomes of the postgraduate taught and experience survey (PTES), where the university secured a top 3 place in several key areas, is further evidence of the commitment and application of our staff to the positive development that students experience during their time with us.

Artificial Intelligence at Bedfordshire

Recently, the Prime Minister delivered a keynote speech in which he stated his ambition to make the UK an artificial intelligence (AI) "superpower" and he placed AI at the heart of his ambition to grow the economy. The speed at which this technology has developed has been reflected in our response in the CATS faculty to its potential. The opportunities offered by AI in Higher Education featured at the start of this academic year in our first Faculty AI Symposium where external contributors and staff from across the university presented their vision of the impact of AI in HE. Since then, our staff in CST in partnership with colleagues in the Research and Innovation Service, have launched Luton.AI (https://luton.ai/)– an externally facing forum that aims to support organisations in the AI transformation of their services and products, creating a fertile ground for driving the impact of our research and providing students live projects to work on during their studies.

Presentations to businesses have already begun to attract live projects in this key area, and this will allow our students to contribute to both the development and application of AI tools that will provide innovative solutions for the future. Luton AI will attract more companies to the university, creating partnerships such as the one with Switchshop, a leading specialist in IT network infrastructure & cybersecurity. In October, they signed a student-focused agreement with the university through which students will learn from industry professionals through a range of immersive workshops and be invited to visit companies and learn more about their IT and security practices.

Building our students careers

This year, our School of Life Sciences secured 3 year-long placements for our Biomedical Science students with the Luton and Bedford Trust and a paid year-long placement with Pharmaron, a leading life science service provider that provides a broad spectrum of R&D and manufacturing service capabilities throughout drug discovery, preclinical, clinical development and commercialisation. Professor Scott Summerfield, their Senior Director of Pharmaceutical Metabolism, joined us as a Visiting Professorial Fellow. In our School of Arts and Creative Industries, our media team have secured an ongoing commitment from the BBC to provide work experience for students on the One Show.

The success of our research staff continues, and their supervision of postgraduate research students provides another way through which we deliver career-powered education. This academic year, Anastasia Giannakopoulou from the School of Psychology secured research funding to work on a 10-month project with a company to develop personalized interventions with children with dyslexia and varied reading ability who have language disorders. In recent promotion rounds, we were particularly delighted that Enjie Liu, Tahmina Ajmal and Erica Cook successfully secured promotion to titles of Professor and Associate Professor, respectively, highlighting our commitment to supporting the career advancement of women in Science.

Providing real-world skills and facilities that hone the practical skills that prepare our graduates to secure graduate-level employment through work-based practice and working with research-active academic staff is a cornerstone of the CATS career-powered student experience.

The challenges faced by the sector are no secret. The Office for Students predicts that three out of four universities will be operating at a loss this year and expects the sector to make bold and transformative changes to address an anticipated £3.4 billion drop in income. We are not immune from these challenges.

I know from my conversations with other Vice Chancellors that we are fortunate to be in a stronger position than many other universities. A clear focus on strategy and years of careful financial management have allowed us to build up cash reserves, and we were pleased to report an operating surplus last year. However, even we are now feeling the strain, and our costs now exceed our income. The recent small increase in tuition fees is more than outweighed by the rise in employer National Insurance contributions.

We have made significant efforts to reduce our costs. Last year, our voluntary severance scheme saw 78 colleagues leave the University, saving us close to £3.8 million annually. Many of you will have also noticed our decision to limit recruitment to vacant posts wherever possible, as well as our work to make savings on non-pay, such as property costs and utilities. These choices have not been easy.

We’ve worked hard to control spending in other ways – reassessing priorities, streamlining operations, and asking everyone to find efficiencies. Your input during our last Team Talk brought home to me just how committed you are to helping us through these times.

At the September town hall, I promised transparency about the challenges ahead. Our student numbers have been finalised and I want to share more about what this means. We are now a smaller university, with student numbers down by nearly a third, requiring us to take a hard look at our size and structure to ensure we are set up for future challenges and success.

We need to question everything we do: why are we doing it? Could it be done differently? For now, we are pausing recruitment for all but the most essential posts. At the same time, we are working to diversify and grow our income through initiatives such as expanding apprenticeships, forming new partnerships, developing online courses, and finding ways to commercialise our campus spaces.

There are encouraging signs. The international student recruitment market is seeing green shoots, and our home marketing campaign is gaining traction.

Thanks to our Transforming Bedfordshire strategy we’ve achieved so much already. We rank 64th in the NSS positivity index and 3rd in Postgraduate NSS and have seen improvements in graduate outcomes, while our continuation rates have jumped from 64.3% to 71.5%. We’ve also narrowed the awarding gap significantly, from 10.6% to 4.3%. These aren’t just statistics; they’re stories of students thriving because of your hard work and dedication.

There’s still more to do, and I won’t sugarcoat it—there are hard decisions ahead and I will keep you updated on these. But I am confident in our ability to adapt, innovate, and thrive. Together, we will navigate this period of change and come out stronger on the other side.

It’s the time of the year when you can really see the changes of the season, where the leaves on the trees have fallen, the nights are drawing in and the air is that much crispier - you can see your own breath, when out walking.

At home the heating is now on, and the lights help illuminate the house at night. I don’t know about you, but I’m very conscious of the cost of energy in my home.  I know I can have a limited impact on the price (per unit) of the energy we consume (as Martin Lewis keeps telling me), but I can (and do) actively have a role in reducing our household usage.

Over the years, I’ve invested in future-proofing our home to reduce consumption. We’ve installed roof and wall insulation to preserve heat, changed halogen lights to LED, installed an energy smart meter, and next week we’re replacing our 30-year-old boiler, that’s at the end-of-its-life with a new (hopefully) more efficient one.

Over time I’ve also changed my personal habits:

• Using “white goods” (e.g. dishwasher, washing machine) when the utility provider offers cheaper prices,
• Turning down the thermostat by a degree or two and managing the time the water and heat is turned on and off.
• Not overfilling a kettle when making a hot drink.
• Turning off lights and appliances, at the wall switch when leaving a room.

As a well-known retailer says - “every little helps”. In our household, we can see a visible reduction in our energy usage.

The pressures we all face at home, managing our personal family finances, are just the same at our workplace. The financial challenges facing the higher education sector are all over the news. In the short-term, there are concerns about the sector’s financial health - in simple terms, this means “do we make enough money to pay all the bills” (such as staff costs, maintaining the estate, supporting the student, paying back loans).   In the longer-term challenge, there are concerns about the sector’s financial sustainability – will we survive and thrive on an on-going basis (i.e. do we generate enough cash to both operate and invest in the student experience)

For us, in the short term, we do have sufficient money in the bank to pay the bills. Some our peers do not! However, we are not immune to the financial challenge of the sector. This year, we have seen our student population fall by a third, and are now in the position where our costs are greater than the income we generate.  

Increasing the student fees alone is not the solution. Since 2012, home undergraduate fees have increased by a total of £250 (2.7%) per student over the 12-year period. I do welcome the first increase since 2017 of home undergraduate fees being allowed to go up 3.1% from September 2025 onwards, as recognition of the financial challenges facing the HE sector. However, that extra income generated by the fee increase will be “wiped out” by the extra staff costs, attributed to the increase in employers' national insurance announced in the Autumn Budget 2024.  

So, we must look at all the options to generate additional income and ensure we only spend the money we need to.  

We need to explore new revenue streams. You may be aware that we have created a new Commercial Directorate (under the leadership of John Hodson), with the purpose of commercialising our estate.  We have some amazing campuses (Luton, Bedford and Putteridge Bury) and facilities (simulation suites, sports facilities, theatres, conference and teaching facilities), that we must “shout about” and market to our local communities and businesses in a coordinated and professional way.

We must also manage our costs wisely.  

I’d like to thank you again for engaging so passionately in the recent Team Talk discussions on how we could collectively reduce our ongoing spend. It’s been really encouraging to see the generation of so many ideas - ranging from the implementation of common-sense solutions to more innovative “out-of-the-box” options - on how, together we can reduce costs, and protect the delivery of our strategic goals. We are now in the process of reviewing your suggestions and will seek to implement quick wins and consider the longer-term opportunities for changes.

We have also been acting. Just like in my own example, we’ve been taking university-level steps to reduce the energy bill.

• We have invested in future proofing the underutilised space in the old library (F-Block) in Luton, bringing our professional services back on to campus from the leased Atrium building. 
• We have an ongoing programme of works to replace all halogen lights with more energy-efficient LED lighting.
• We’re Investing in timing sensors to switch off equipment when not in use
• Sharing space to cut down on heating and lighting

There is still so much more for us to do to manage the energy bill. Some involve further investment, but there is also the challenge of how we work together to change our university energy conservation culture to – switch off lights – switch off appliances – close doors and windows.

There are other opportunities to stop or reduce spend.  For example, areas that we are currently reviewing include

• our catering provision to ensure best value for money (you may also have seen my earlier message about hospitality),
• software licenses and
• centralisation of furniture spend

We aim to identify more opportunities like these where targeted investments may be needed. Please do share your ideas on opportunities - there is no such thing as a silly idea. We’re listening!

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog, and I appreciate your ongoing support in helping the university thrive and continue to be financially sustainable.

In our busy lives here at the University it’s important that we take a hard look at those areas when the call on our time is not as productive as we would like. I’ve lost count of the number of times people have said to me, ‘I’ve had back to back meetings all day when am I going to find time to do some work’. So we need to look at why we need to collect a whole group of staff into a room and ask ourselves, is this the best use of everyone’s time?

I’m beginning a piece of work with Mo Casillas to review of our internal governance, looking again at our committee structure and working with the Chairs of those committees which are part of our academic governance and considering:

• Is the committee absolutely necessary?
• Could the work be combined with another committee?
• Could it meet less frequently?
• Could we reduce the membership – have a core membership that always needs to be there with additional members called in for particular agenda items?
• Are agenda items for action or simply to note?
• Is the committee effective, what has it achieved over the last academic year? 

When we looked at this whole area a few years ago, we stripped out a lot of committees in the period since they do seem to have proliferated again. This might be absolutely justified, but we just need to take a look and reflect.

We also need to be mindful that it is a fundamental feature of universities that our committee structures allow staff to participate in the decision-making. So we’re not talking about stripping everything away, this is more about ensuring that when we pull a group of staff together those meetings are effective.

Whilst we can look at the formal committee structure, there are more fundamental principles that we can all reflect on to ensure that we have effective meetings. Committee meetings should not be used as a substitute for consultation – that should have happened outside of the meeting. Staff should not attend committee meetings to find out what is happening – we need to think about how we communicate our decision-making. We shouldn’t ask staff to work on lengthy reports that are ‘to note’ – a paper or report should be for decision/approval.  We need our committees to focus on decision-making, which builds on the knowledge and expertise of staff around the table.

We also spend a lot of time in meetings which are not formal committees. Many of these are regular weekly/monthly meetings.  How often do we try to generate an agenda for our regular meetings? Again, can we think about whether we could combine meetings, meet less frequently etc.? More importantly, if we don’t have issues which need a decision, then let’s cancel the meeting.

I do appreciate that a lot of us have different thoughts on what makes an effective Committee and how we organise our meeting diaries. I’m really keen to hear from everyone as we go through this process. So please do contact me directly with your thoughts, particularly if you’ve seen a good methodology elsewhere (HE or other sectors) – ALL FEEDBACK WELCOME.

As we begin this academic year, we are also entering my fourth year at the University of Bedfordshire and the mid-point of implementing the Education and Student Experience Strategy 2022-26.

Perhaps not surprisingly, little information about higher education has come from the new government. Media coverage is increasingly, and rightly, picking up the financial crisis facing a sector damaged by a regulated fee (only increasing by £250 since 2012) and by recent catastrophic government interventions in one of our key markets (international), as well as by inflationary costs over which we have no control. This is the context for the crisis, yet we are exhorted to behave like businesses and to trade our way to financial sustainability with our hands tied.

Continuation is one of the four University Super KPIs delivered through the Education and Student Experience Strategy. In Summer 2023, I initiated a programme of work to enhance support for resit assessments and for new students undertaking their first assessments in AY2023-24. I am pleased to share some positive outcomes in our Semester 1 data indicating early evidence of improvements, with more students submitting and passing assignments at the first opportunity:

• Analysis of the first assessment submission rate for Foundation Year and Level 4 students across the university has seen a notable increase, of up to 21.58%* in comparison with the last two academic years (*this refers to UBBS, FY, Luton delivery)
• Outcomes from February Exam Boards show overall FY and L4 first time pass rates across the university have increased by 5.5% with the resit rate decreasing by 4.5%, compared to the previous two academic years.
• Cumulative in-year non-retention data demonstrates a reduction in the number of new undergraduate students that have left the University since registering, compared to the same point in time (beginning of April) in the previous academic year (6.7% as of April 2024 vs 10.9% as of April 2023).

In September 2024, we formed a new Continuation Project Team, with investment in additional resource, to increase capacity in three priority subject areas where the data indicated the largest cohorts with lowest continuation rates. Our Academic Success Tutors (UBBS and CATS) and Academic Success Coaches (HSS) have been working directly with students and collaborating with academics and professional service teams, with a particular focus on supporting Foundation Year and Level 4 entrants to succeed in the crucial first year of study. These teams have provided vital support to hundreds of students, helping them to overcome barriers to engaging with their studies and working to build the students’ academic skills and confidence. The advice and guidance provided covers all aspects of the student experience, from helping with registration and BREO login issues to supporting with assignments and resit work.

Additional posts of two Academic Leads for Continuation, Retention and Success and a Project Officer complements the work of these teams, taking a lead role in co-ordination and monitoring of Success Coach and Tutor activities. They have also been engaged in wider University projects to improve retention and continuation such as: improving student attendance and engagement, the development and distribution of the Learner Analytics spreadsheet sent to faculties on a weekly basis and input to key policy changes.

It has been fantastic to see the impact of these interventions. Institution-wide approaches, with targeted support in the areas of greatest need, have been followed by improvements in student retention rates across most undergraduate provision. I am proud to see colleagues across the University working collaboratively to achieve positive outcomes and we anticipate further evidence of success to come in our Semester 2 data.

Stepping into the role of Executive Dean of Health and Social Sciences has been both exhilarating and daunting. It's a journey filled with challenges, learning curves, and moments of triumph. As I reflect on my first six months in this position, leading the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences (HSS), I will share the insights, experiences, and lessons I have gathered along the way.

Month 1: Embracing the Vision

In my inaugural month, I immersed myself in understanding how the University strategic goals aligned with the HSS Faculty vision and strategic goals. I engaged with key stakeholders, faculty members, and administrative staff to grasp the nuances of our academic and partnerships landscape. By aligning myself with the overarching vision, I could effectively chart a course for the faculty's success.

Month 2-3: Building Relationships

Relationships are the cornerstone of effective leadership. During these months, I prioritised building rapport with faculty members, fostering an environment of trust in me as their Dean, collaboration, and open communication. I held regular meetings, both formal and informal to listen to concerns and to solicit feedback. I learnt what was working well and what needed my immediate attention. The conversations with staff groups have helped me to see where we need to focus our attentions going forward.

Month 4-5: Navigating Challenges

Every leadership role comes with its share of challenges. From budget constraints to faculty disputes, I encountered various hurdles that tested my resolve and problem-solving skills. By adopting a proactive approach, leveraging resources efficiently, and fostering a culture of resilience, we tackled challenges head-on. A good example of this was how the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Education pulled together when the NMC came to carry out a monitoring visit, where 14 inspectors arrived to scrutinise the provision at Bedfordshire. I saw teams pull together, partner organisation help with getting data and personnel in place for when the NMC visited their organisation and the wider Bedfordshire community come to help us with their expertise and valuable guidance.

Month 6: Celebrating Milestones

As I reached the six-month milestone, it was essential to pause and acknowledge our achievements, no matter how small. Whether it was successfully launching a new academic program, securing research grants, or fostering student success, each accomplishment fuelled my motivation and reinforced my commitment to excellence.

Lessons Learned: Reflecting on the past six months, several key lessons have emerged:

• Vision and Alignment: A clear vision serves as a guiding light, aligning efforts and galvanizing the team towards common goals.
• Relationship Building: Investing in relationships fosters trust, collaboration, and a sense of belonging within the faculty community.
• Resilience and Adaptability: Challenges are inevitable, but it is our response that defines our success. By remaining resilient and adaptable, we can overcome obstacles and thrive in the face of adversity.
• Celebration and Recognition: Taking time to acknowledge and celebrate achievements fosters a culture of positivity and motivation, driving continued success.

In Conclusion:

As I embark on the next phase of my journey as the Executive Dean of Health and Social Sciences, I carry forward the invaluable experiences and insights gained during these first six months. With a steadfast commitment to our vision, a focus on building relationships, and a resilient spirit, I am confident in our ability to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of Higher Education and the health and social sciences sector, driving innovation, and excellence every step of the way.

I remember regularly hearing the phrases – “I would not have believed it if I had not seen it with my own eyes” and “seeing is believing”. We are preconditioned to believe all that we see is true. Today, however, technological advances have blurred the lines between reality and an “artificial” reality. Using a mobile phone, tablet, or laptop it is easy for those with a rudimentary knowledge of video editing software or apps to create and share content that is unreal or artificial.

Seeing is now no longer believing. Miquela Sousa, better known as @lilmiquela, is one of the most popular virtual influencers on Instagram. With over 2.9 million followers at the last count, “she” has partnered with fashion brands, including Prada and Calvin Klein. 

Such developments are fundamentally changing our lives and offer tremendous opportunities for many. Staff in our School of Arts and Creative Industries are responding by creating an exciting new degree course entitled BA Social Media and Content Creation. 

Our School of Computer Science and Technology (CST) is working to ensure the next generation of cybersecurity experts are equipped to deal with misinformation, social manipulation and cybercrime by building a new Security Operations Centre Lab on campus, where students will get invaluable hands-on training in detecting and responding to simulated cyber incidents.

Just over one year ago, Chat GPT 3.5 was launched, followed by Chat GPT 4.0 in March 2023. This software creates “original” content sourced from the wealth of information available online. In contrast to the challenges raised by the internet some two decades earlier that allowed students to source and copy information online and pass off content as their own work, Open AI software creates “original” content in seconds. Whilst educators grapple with how to identify its use, the industry seeks to harness its potential.

Colleagues in CST are reviewing their course offers in this area and in May, staff in our Robotic Research Team will deliver a workshop on Cloud Robotics & Connected Intelligence at the world’s largest conference on Artificial Intelligence and Robotics in Yokohama, Japan. We can expect yet more advances in the (near) future. In response, the sooner we can review and adapt our approaches to teaching and assessment, the more we and our students will benefit. We need to avoid seeing these technologies as threats – they will not go away; rather, we should seek to educate students on how to use them as tools within their disciplines.

During AY 2022/2023 Fiona Factor in Health and Social Studies (HSS) led an evaluation of academic communities, promoting belong@Beds. This included a roundtable discussion with 40 staff and a survey completed by 801 students, about their perception of belonging to our academic community.

One key finding from the survey is that 97 percent of respondents identified the link between belonging and success. I have been reflecting on enhancements to our community, with a focus on the Bedford Campus and students in my Faculty.

Creating spaces and activities for our staff community

On Thursday 28th September, alongside the Macmillan coffee morning, we officially opened the new staff room at Bedford. This is for all staff working at and visiting the Bedford Campus. Staff asked for this in the staff survey, and I hope you enjoy using this space. This was a real team effort – thank you to everyone involved.

This year we promoted free gym membership at out Luton and Bedford gyms, along with our free Get Active programme. This has been an amazing success, and we now have over 1,000 staff and student members. Check out UoB Sport on the intranet for more details.  

Promoting student and staff community through Treehouse

Treehouse Community and Faith Chaplaincy had a fresh look and start in September with the arrival of Helen (Lead Chaplain) and Luke (Assistant Chaplain) on the Bedford campus. They have been working hard to help students and staff find the Treehouse and enjoy its warm welcome and hospitality. Welcome week included a welcome challenge with a map to the Treehouse and a reward on arrival. Treehouse has a prayer room, a living room area with games and even a football table, a kitchen area and a large table to eat together, play games, and share conversations.

Thursday is a great day at the Treehouse, with lots of students enjoying lunch with a purpose, soup and a roll, conversations and games.

Local residents feel part of the University community through the Community Exercise Clinic

The Clinic provides support to many of our local residents, and we work with a range of partners, including Lifestyle Hub (referrals from Bedford's GPs surgeries); Bedford Hospital Primrose Centre (Oncology), Diabetic Department and Cardiac Rehabilitation Services; East London Foundation Trust (ELFT); Bedfordshire Community Mental Health Services; Tibbs Early Onset Dementia Charity: Stroke Association.

The positive feedback from our clients and students working in the Clinic demonstrates the positive impact on students, staff and the local community. Many staff and students from the School of Sports Science and Physical Activity (SSPA) contribute to the clinic.

New opportunities for our international community through the International Foundation Year

In September 2023 the Centre for English as a Foreign Language (CEFL) launched the Bedfordshire International Foundation Year, eight new courses across a range of subjects. CEFL, the four Faculties and the International Office worked together to develop this fantastic new opportunity for our international community.

Final thoughts

Thank you to everyone involved in all of the above developments and initiatives, and thank you to everyone for all you are doing to contribute to belong@beds. We all contribute to our University community and the success of our students.

This year is my 17th year of working at the University of Bedfordshire, so clearly I feel I belong@beds!

As PVC Research & Innovation, I sometimes feel the innovation aspect of my title has a lower profile compared to research. This is not surprising given recent high profile research initiatives including the £4m NHS funded Bedford Luton Milton Keynes (BLMK) Integrated Care System Research and Innovation Hub. In addition, our long-term focus on research is emphasised by our decision to fund 12 research impact acceleration projects in the University as part of our planning for REF 2028. In this blog, however, I want to focus on the innovation dimension of the university’s work because it is delivered by our teaching, research and professional staff – we’re all involved. We’ve had some great successes, and I would like to help ensure your innovation-related work can be fully supported.

Innovation emerges when our teaching and research include a process of knowledge exchange (KE) with non-academic partners and audiences that ultimately benefits our economy, society and natural environment. We have had some notable innovation successes linked to the recent publication (27 September 2023) of Research England’s Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF) results. You might recall receiving an all-staff email announcing our KEF successes compared to similar universities on seven measures. We performed exceptionally well in three of these:

• Graduate Start-ups and Continuing Professional Development where we are consistently one of the top 5 universities in the country for creating businesses that survive.
• Public and Community engagement linked to our new Civic agreement with Luton Borough Council launched in March 2023.
• Research Partnerships based on doubling our joint publications and collaborative income from business and community organisations

SOURCE – HESA https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/business-community/ip-and-startups#spinoff

KEF results are published annually so it is challenging to keep performing well year on year. The success this year made, myself and the Research and Innovation Services (RIS) team assess how to maintain our strengths in KE. In short, we need to maintain the excellent work of staff already involved in KE and involve more staff in this activity. So, my call to academics and to professional staff is to please consider getting involved in KE if you have not already done so.

As staff you work with many different types of partners, generating KE - ranging from members of the public, the NHS, arts organisations and multinational companies. KE activity is not just about links to business, it might include placements for students, public speaking, allowing businesses to access specialist facilities or academics undertaking consultancy. 

So, what’s in it for you? There are good reasons for you to engage with KE.

• Teaching - It can enhance teaching and the student experience. For example, last year over 1,000 students in the Business School took part in assessed ‘live’ projects involving regional businesses under the team leadership of Alexander Kofinas. We would like to help roll that out across other schools.
• Research - The total budget of UK Research and Innovation is £8bn, whereas business spends £46bn on R&D in comparison so KE is a route to major research funding.
• Careers - At any given time, there are 100,000 people doing a PhD in the UK but fewer than 10,000 jobs for them to go into so KE can build non-academic links that create career pathways for good researchers.
• Developing your personal project - Did you know we have funding to offer to any business to work with you? If you just want to explore ideas together with a business, we can fund your time to do that.
• Personal Development - you can get free training on how to work with business and access to free or heavily discounted CPD opportunities. Remember, this is for Professional staff too, not just academics.

We are keen to build on our excellent KEF results but we can only do this if we hear from you. Please help us by telling us more about your KE work.

The RIS team can help you work locally, regionally and internationally with business, communities, the NHS, government, NGOs and voluntary organisations. Every year we advise over 150 academic and professional service staff, but we want to hear from more of you. If we know what it is you do, we can raise your profile by reporting on it as part of school, faculty or University activity, or help you with publicity or information.

The RIS team have an excellent Customer Relationship Management system where we can store all the information about your links with external partners, helping you manage the relationship, so others don’t randomly approach your contacts. Through this we have identified 40 Key Accounts such as Tui, Easy Jet, the London Luton Airport and Whitbread. Each of these now has a dedicated University business partner who can help you work with these organisations.

We have also identified 89 Key Business Influencers (KBIs); those groups who have significant connections with lots of other organisations. These include local partners like NHS providers, Luton and Bedford councils and the Chamber of Commerce along with national bodies such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants. We work with these influencers to ensure they promote our KE services to other organisations. This has been key to us being a leading University for working with SMEs. The influencers direct SMEs to us for support and advice. If you want to work with these key accounts or influencers don’t go it alone, come to us to build on what we are already doing. Many staff use contact networks based on our Business Influencers to involve students in knowledge exchange. This can enhance student’s learning experience and employability by engaging with live cutting-edge activities with business and other organisations.

We have also recently updated our website - outlining how we can support you with your KE activity. You can also enter your contacts and projects into the CRM system as your relationships.

Please also tell us about your public engagement so we have a record of all of this important activity.

The RIS team look forward to hearing from you and growing our successful knowledge exchange activity.

I have quite a long daily commute to Luton, taking in the M40, M25 and M1. Whether moving or stationary, I can’t stop myself reading the sides and backs of vans and lorries and marvelling either at the brilliance of their slogans or cringing at the chutzpah of their claims. I love the gentle mockery of the Tesco delivery vans that tell me ‘no carrots are left in this van overnight’ and ‘baby carrots on board’ (legal note: other vegetables are available). I love the furniture removal van I saw last week that set out the history of the firm in pseudo medieval script across the back doors: ‘1976 John passed the company on to Tina’. Shout out to John for breaking gender barriers in the 1970s.

The ones that intrigue me most, though, are the ones from the logistics industry, usually on the M1, which are always serious, very often impenetrable and use a vocabulary limited to half a dozen words. From ‘delivering today for tomorrow’; ‘all your logistics solutions’; ‘complete delivery solutions’; ‘delivering solutions’ (my favourite: do they come in boxes?) to the slightly more creative ‘listening, responding, delivering’, they all reflect a need to stand out in their sector, but the outcome is that they are indistinguishable.

This has set me thinking about our sector and how universities might fare if they were to celebrate their purpose on the side of a lorry. Is it even possible to render the complex, wide ranging work of a university in such a way? Are we reducible to a slogan?

It is quite instructive to look across the sector at how universities are positioning themselves in our market. A paper from 2017 by David Roberts of The Knowledge Foundation did just that, reviewing UK university straplines and slogans. Some of the straplines he included were time limited marketing/recruitment campaigns, others were university branding, but what they shared was an attempt to reduce their purpose to a few words, with varying success.

They ranged from the literal, ‘a top 100 university’, ‘a global university at the heart of an ambitious city’ to rather meaningless exhortations such as ‘discover your story’, ‘dare to be fearless’. I’ll let you guess which university was using ‘graduate as a professional’ back then!

Being able to express succinctly our purpose is important, but it is about more than slogans or straplines. It’s as much about behaviours as words and is a vital conversation we need to have as we review the future shape and profile of the university.

So much seems to be happening at the moment that it’s hard to know where to begin.

Academic Registry are continuing to drive forward our SITS Change Programme. We have 4 projects in flow at the moment; Admissions, Assessment, Student Data Management and Access & Security. A week ago we had a preview of the new prototype Online Application Form (OLAF) which will be used by all non-UCAS applicants. This will be ready for October 2023 applicants. We’re also working on an improved link from SITS to the website to ensure that our course information on the web is up to date and accurate and reduces the volume of manual processing of data. Other developments will include an applicant portal and a similar portal for agents.

On the Assessment Project, we’re currently working on the mark schemes to ensure that they reflect our academic regulations and are fit for purpose and deliver the correct course stage outcomes and reports for the Exam Boards. We will have the agility to adapt to changes in assessment practice as this is reviewed by the Assessment Working Group led by our ADSEs. We’ve already rolled out a student-facing option on E:Vision to allow students to check the progress on their mitigating circumstances applications so they don’t need to contact SiD or SEAM to check whether their claim has been accepted. This initiative has also significantly reduced the burden for SEAM in terms of their decision recording. Academic staff will be delighted to know that one of the next work streams for this project will be online mark entry which is the solution due for deployment in October 2023.

The Student Data Management project is underway and we’ve already rolled out a number of ‘quick wins’ such as E:Vision tasks to allow students to update their own personal details and name changes creating time efficiencies for SiD staff. We will shortly be releasing a new ‘My Units and Assessments E:Vision view for students which will include the option for students to download a PDF version of their interim transcript.

We’re also working on a new process to review and confirm Unit diets so that we have a user-friendly and accessible system to allow academic staff to check and confirm Unit diets, replacing our previous system which staff found difficult to use and made the checking process laborious and time-consuming.

There will be changes to how staff access SITS and which student records they can see. This is part of our strategy to improve security, data protection and data quality.

We’re about to finalise the procurement of a new/updated timetabling system. We expect to have a new/revised system ready to support the timetable build for the academic year 2024-25. This will support our strategic and operational objectives for timetabling.  Finally, we are working on plans to extend the use of Wiseflow to support other assessment types, such as in-class tests and enable student feedback via this system.

At the end of May, like all other universities, we will make our first Data Futures student submission. Data Futures replaces the old-style HESA return and eventually, we will make 3 returns a year, rather than a single annual return. This will impact on many of our internal processes, especially late registration and the management of students and the Student Records team is working with colleagues to better understand the impact Data Futures will have.

Mo Casillas, has been appointed as our Head of Governance & Compliance but she will retain some elements of her data protection work in her new role. Whilst Mo is busy getting to grips with all things governance and the support for our Board of Governors, an upcoming project on her agenda is to review the new internal committee structures that we introduced with the Strategy Delivery Boards. We’ll be coming out for your thoughts soon.

Following the HSS Faculty’s implementation of Learning Analytics through the StREAM project, I’m working with Minesh Tailor, Chief Information Officer and Steve Briggs, Director of Learning & Teaching Excellence to roll this out across the University. We’re also looking to bring in a facility to monitor student attendance. Thank you to everyone who took part in our consultation. We received a very consistent view point that we should use learning analytics and attendance monitoring to focus on identifying students who might need support to keep them on track to a successful outcome. This project is moving at pace and we’ll keep you updated.

We’ve sent out an invitation to staff to work with us on delivering the graduation ceremonies. If your workload permits then please do consider stepping forward. It’s good to be part of the joy of students and pride of families as students graduate. When I’m stuck trying to interpret the latest missive from the OfS it’s good to remind myself of why we’re all here and doing what we’re doing and memories of the graduation ceremonies certainly do help!

The International Office, along with Centre for Academic Partnerships, is the face, the voice and image of the University of Bedfordshire to the international world. Through our relationships, recruitment, and student support, we bring the world to the University, and in return our international graduates take the University back to their worlds.

Our overarching objective is to build on the University’s historical success in recruiting international students, whilst ensuring compliance with UKVI regulations in a sustainable manner. As such we are made up of 3 teams with 15 areas of services, covering all parts of the student journey from application, enrolment, student support and working after graduation, all with 6 intakes a year. We are unique in the sector and no other UK universities can compare.

Our 3 teams are:

• International Recruitment and Marketing
• International Admissions and Compliance
• International Student Support 

Our 14 areas of services are:

1. Recruitment & marketing
2. Admissions
3. UKVI Compliance
4. Visa and immigration advice & extensions
5.  Student attendance monitoring
6. Graduate route
7. Student deposits and refunds
8. Pre-CAS interviews
9. Financial document checks
10. Student filing & records management
11. International student placements (for 2-year PG courses)
12. Student support (e.g. on-boarding, welcome/orientation student enquiries, counter service, etc.)
13. Pre-registration document checks & registrations
14. Agent commission

In 2021/22, the International Office, with support from colleagues across the university, successfully recruited the highest number of international students in more than ten years. This success has continued and this year we are on target to break the all-time record for international recruitment. Despite these growing numbers, we have managed to continuously improve our compliance, and as a result, ensured successful submissions of the Basic Compliance Assessment this January.

The growth in numbers is in part due to the popularity of the new Graduate Route visa. We have successfully implemented this at Bedfordshire, we have supported students with workshops and many are now successfully receiving these visas.

We continue to work on our admissions and enrolment processes. We are working with colleagues to develop the new online admissions form and portal and also worked closely with the registration team to ensure students are registered on time. The journey of a student from CAS to enrolment is tracked by the International Office and students are only registered if we have checked their visa documents.

To increase the diversity of international students on our courses and campuses, our recruitment team have been actively travelling and building our profile in a range of new markets, particularly mainland Europe, North and South America, and the Middle East and North Africa, to open up new markets whilst continuing to grow and develop in our existing markets. We have also been actively promoting a wider range of courses than has historically been the case and hope to see the results of these efforts over the next two years.

We have been working hard to deliver the plans aimed at building the culture and the organisation that we want. In our work, we are guided by the University Strategic objectives and the feedback we receive from our staff through the Staff Culture Survey, Team Talk and other internal channels.

Since the last update in November, we have made good progress across several areas:

Building our ideal culture, and living our values.

Employer of choice.

• Living our values: We continue to make sure that all we do is inspired by, and connected to our values, across all layers of the organisation. We dedicated the latest Team Talk to the values of Inclusion, Ambition and Compassion, to ensure that every team and every individual are included in the values conversation. To create the 'golden thread' in the way we think about values, and to foster high quality discussions, our Senior Leadership team members were provided with the dedicated space for reflection and development during the January and April SLT meetings.
  
  
• Building a culture of inclusion and belonging: We continue to build a foundation for embedding inclusive behaviours and practices.
  • Over the past months, we have trained over a hundred key staff on inclusive behaviours, and over 50 staff on inclusive recruitment and selection.  
  • The REC Chair, Dr Alramahi, delivered the 'Supporting culturally and ethnically diverse teams'.
  • Staff have also been invited to take part in training on 'How to be a good ally' and 'LGBTQ history, culture, policy and legislation'.
  • As part of the welcome work, we are reviewing the way we deliver induction and onboarding for our new starters, to make it the most positive, relevant and supportive experience.
    
    
• Staff development: We continue growing our staff development offer, guided by the feedback from our staff and by the needs of our organisation. Since the last update, we have provided a range of training and development opportunities, including financial wellbeing, and minute-taking. We continue to monitor staff training requests via PDR, Team Talk and other internal channels, to make sure we provide the most relevant development.
                                                
• Building a culture of collaboration: We believe in working together across the University and breaking down silos. We work closely together with our Staff Networks, to provide the best experience for our community of staff. This includes delivering joint University-wide culture and development events for our staff, such as Mental Health Awareness Week and the 8th March International Women's Day. Our own Aurora programme participants delivered workshops and shared their leadership stories on ‘inclusive leadership’, ‘motherhood at work’, and ‘disability and women in the workplace’.  

Staff wellbeing:

• Mental Health First Aid (MHFA): We continue to invest resources in providing effective and timely support for our people's wellbeing and mental health. Alongside relevant manager training, we have trained 25 members of our staff as Mental Health First Aiders, available to support all members of staff. We are working to ensure that the University staff are aware of this service and can access a MHFA as and when needed.
  
  
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP): We are working to ensure that all our staff can make the most of the benefits and services that the University provides. Specifically, the confidential and anonymous support that everybody can access when they need it, via our EAP provider.
  
  
• Universities Mental Health Charter: several designated groups across the University are working on our submission for the Universities Mental  Health Charter quality mark. We are using this process to reaffirm our strengths and establish possible gaps in provision.

Building our capacity as a learning organisation

• Living our values: Coaching and mentoring. Developing and supporting our leaders is crucial to building our ideal culture. We continue creating opportunities for our leaders to enhance their leadership. This includes values conversations (SLT development days January and April); and coaching and mentoring Masterclass programmes. To encourage cross-university collaborations, this development has been offered to academic, professional and research leaders and managers.
  
  
• Employment Relations support training: It is crucial for us to build areas of expertise that make us a successful organisation. We are developing a community of experts trained to a high, consistent standard in supporting mediation, investigations and hearings.
  
  
• Women into leadership - Aurora: The Aurora programme is supporting a number of women aspiring to leadership positions, both formal and informal. We are half way through the second 2023 cohort, with participants reporting the positive impact Aurora is having on their confidence and motivation. We plan to grow our Aurora community from year to year, building leadership capacity for our women.
  
  
• Academic Promotion Framework: We have now appointed our first group of Associate Professors and Professors, as a result of the Academic Promotion Framework launch. 

• Leading and Managing at Bedfordshire: Our expanded leadership and management development provision continues to support our current and aspiring managers, as well as non-managers in leadership roles. Since the last update we have delivered the following training:
  • Inclusive Interview Skills Workshop
  • Leading Difficult Conversations
  • Coaching Skills for Leadership
  • Nurturing a Culture of Trust
  • Happiness Conversations with Leaders
  • Inclusive Interview Skills
  • HR for People Managers
  • Tricky Conversations
  • Identifying Training and Development Needs

Creating a high-performing organisation

Our staff want to work for a high-performing organisation. Our Staff Culture survey indicates that we want to be proud of our University, and of what we can achieve. To address this feedback, and to improve our experience of PDR process, we have been working hard on preparing a 'Creating a high-performing organisation' programme.

Since joining the University in October 2021 I’ve concentrated on transforming the research & Innovation systems, processes and governance that I hope will enable our very dedicated staff, to do what they do best – to make a difference. I continue to be impressed at the breadth and strength of staff relationships with the key players and businesses in the region. I listened carefully to what you said when developing the Research and Innovation strategy about what you need to enable you to build on those relationships.

External funding for your R&I has been highly successful over the past 10 years, we have won £22m of funded projects such as Innovation Bridges to enable academics to build relationships with external organisations and then create further funding bids of their own. Sadly, the funding environment is changing fast and most of those sources of funding are now gone as EU structural funds disappear post Brexit and new funding schemes usually run through local authorities are much smaller scale. This means we have to redesign what we do in R&I services. 

As Nathan March, Senior Business Partnerships Manager reflected: “The good news is that 2/3 of all UK research funding still comes from business and third sector organisations so there are opportunities out there. Recent data also shows that 57% of the companies who seek our help to grow create new jobs and 29% increase sales within just a few months, so we devise a new funding programme that builds on these opportunities and strengths. The previous Innovation Voucher model from InnovateUK works very well nationally. We repurposed that model within the University of Bedfordshire to set up a Business partnership seed funding programme. From a standing start in March 2023, we already have 51 seed funding opportunities where academics are funded to work with any non-academic organisation on any form of commercial application of their work, and we have funding for another 70 of these.”

Typically, the seed funding offers part-funding or rebates which the business can use toward bought-in academic expertise that will benefit their organisation. This creates an incentive for that business or organisation to invest initially, gives the academic the opportunity to build a relationship with the organisation, and then they can jointly bid for larger funding from a variety of sources identified with the help of our Bid Support Unit. Nathan’s team have developed a 2-tier model providing 2/3 funding for “initial exploration work” or 50% funding for Master/PhD projects where these lead to joint publications.  Projects range from intellectual property development by Professor Nasreen Ali with Luton Borough Council to developing a strategy for Keystage Housing by Dr. Sarah Wadd, Principal Research Fellow. This funding also supports live student projects with businesses following the example of Ioana Stoica, Dr Sajeel Ahmed, Senior Lecturer Business Systems & Management and others in UBBS. This seed funding will be expanded in future and the new Civic Agreement launched with Luton Borough Council will support this process.

One of the other systemic changes we’ve delivered is a change in the Short Course approval process.  Short courses up to 60 credits carry significant behind-the-scenes benefits in various government audits so I asked for this to be addressed. Anna Carluccio, External Short Courses Programme Manager in Research and Innovation Services identified that the existing short course approval process did not enable us to take advantage of business development opportunities and was not agile enough to empower academics to deliver new workshops or one-day programmes efficiently. Anna worked with TQSC to establish a new process which will allow you to develop courses, workshops, events and public seminars more efficiently and easily. The new RIS-led approval route for non-credit bearing courses aligns with Research England requirements - the key consideration for course approval will be whether there is evidence of paying demand for it before we start writing the course.

When I first arrived, I thought I was lucky that Research and Innovation Service is a high-performing team where individuals want to take ownership of problems and grow external income. I’ve seen a lot of evidence that attitude is widespread across the University of Bedfordshire and I want to empower our staff wherever I can. Giving you the tools such as seed funding, short course approvals and the Bid Active training to support grant applications hopefully means staff will be able to take our Transforming Bedfordshire strategy out beyond our institution and into the communities we serve.

The Education and Student Experience Strategy has a particular focus on five of the Transforming Bedfordshire Strategic Goals and priorities. Underpinning all activities within the strategy, is our ambition to support students to thrive, both academically and personally, throughout their student journey.

Our success in widening access and providing opportunities to students from a wide range of backgrounds, can bring challenges to their levels of engagement, which is particularly reflected in our historic and current year Continuation data at Foundation Year and Level 4. However, we also recognise the type of provision and support that is required to help students overcome these challenges and have been working towards enhancing this over the past 18 months.

Student Success Framework

Through the Retention Working Group, a mix of academic and professional staff and Beds SU representatives have worked collectively to develop the Student Success Framework. This brings together key work and student support strategies from across the University into a coherent framework for delivering student success. Key examples include: the support and opportunities available through Begin@Beds, personal academic tutoring, support for developing academic skills and the range of physical and digital resources available to students.

Support for students post-Exam Boards

We have identified some key approaches to support students who receive resit or retake decisions at the next round of Examination Boards, this includes:

• Streamlined process of sharing Exam Board outcomes with appropriate colleagues so they know where to target support.
• Tailored academic support within each Faculty, to ensure low level engagement concerns are addressed at the earliest opportunity.
• Reminder communications of the academic and personal support services that are available and can continue to be accessed throughout the summer period.
• Designated contacts within the course team and scheduled resit support sessions so that students have clear access to subject/ assessment specific guidance.

The First Year Experience – setting our students up for success

In addition, we are planning ahead for AY2023/24 with a focus on practices targeted at our Foundation Year and Level 4 provision:

• Further enhancements delivered through the ‘Begin’ phase of the student journey, such as Book for Beds pre-arrival course information and course induction schedules being released further in advance.
• Belong@Beds toolkit, to support staff understanding of the factors that promote belonging and how these can be embedded in the course experience.
• Tailored support within each Faculty, to ensure low level engagement concerns are addressed at the earliest opportunity.
• Review of assessment practices around the first assessment experience, such as the timing and intensity of assessment and provision of feedback to inform the second assessment.
• Evaluating the implementation of Personal Academic Tutoring and the StREAM Learner Analytics Project (HSS) to inform our future approaches.

Cream or jam first? The great scone dilemma.

The afternoon tea following the Vice Chancellor’s Awards at Putteridge Bury was elegant and delicious. You might have expected the conversation to be about the awards, the weather, or the lovely gardens we looked out on, but no, the conversation was very much about whether to put jam or cream first on a scone. Technical knowledge was aired (putting cream first acts like butter, on which to spread the jam (jam fulfils that function better); geographical knowledge was drawn on (it’s a Devon v Cornwall issue apparently); the practicalities of eating one in two halves or burger style were debated and memories of family traditions were shared (recipes handed down, which kind of cream is best). In the end, I think we were pretty much 50/50 on this very English tradition of the filling of the scone.

I realised as I drove back to my office, replete, that there was something to take away from these conversations. It struck me that we can’t assume everyone shares our experiences, traditions or preferences and that it’s good to learn from others and to be open to the richness of varied contributions to everything we do, even matters as minor as eating scones.

I’m now going to give cream first a try……

It has been another fast-paced academic year as we continue to work together in Transforming Bedfordshire. I hope you enjoy reading through this special edition newsletter to find out what the Education and Student Experience teams have been working on, to support our students to thrive and fulfil their potential.

Access and Participation update

As we eagerly await the outcome of the Teaching Excellence Framework exercise, my attention is turned towards the Access and Participation Plan (APP). Late in March, the Office for Students released their guidance for a new approach to regulating equality of opportunity. We also received updated data on progress against our university-level APP milestones for access, continuation and attainment (with progression data to follow).

Our current APP has been in effect since AY2020-21 and sets out our aims for improving access into, and success in and beyond higher education, and the actions we are taking to achieve our ambitious targets. The APP is fully embedded within our Education and Student Experience Strategy and a short summary of our plan and strategic measures can be found on our website: https://www.beds.ac.uk/app

The OfS have published an Equality of Opportunity Risk Register (EORR), which provides a national picture of the key risks faced by students and how they might be affected. We will be expected to demonstrate, through out next iteration of the APP, that we understand the most significant risks impacting Bedfordshire students and have designed specific and tailored interventions to support our students to succeed.

The APP Steering Group will have oversight of developing the next plan, which will come into effect from AY2025/26. Alongside evaluating and monitoring the impact of our current interventions, the group will support a wider team of colleagues in interrogating the wealth of data available across all stages of the student lifecycle, to inform the objectives and interventions that will support our future cohorts to thrive and succeed.

As the process unfolds, there will be many opportunities for colleagues and students to feed into the development of the Access and Participation Plan, so do look out for further communications in the coming months.

For the last year, a team in the University have been working closely with senior staff in Luton Borough Council to produce a joint Civic Agreement for Luton. We are very pleased that the agreement will be launched on 7th March 2023 in the postgraduate centre building to an invited audience of staff from the University and the council, the University governors and Luton residents who represent key community organisations. Civic agreements involving universities have been encouraged nationally by the Civic University Network and are designed to ensure universities embed civic aspiration at an institutional level and best serve the place in which they are based.

The Civic Agreement for Luton will be the start of a new era of joint working with the Council, communities and other anchor institutions in Luton. Our interactions with communities and organisations across Bedfordshire will be further strengthened in 2023 as we develop a new Community Engagement Strategy that will deliver our Transforming Bedfordshire Strategy goal for communities to embrace our civic and economic role, taking pride in our positive engagement in the communities and sectors we support. Watch out for internal communications later this year promoting the events we will hold to obtain staff and students' inputs to devising the Community Engagement Strategy.

The Civic Agreement is a binding document that will direct our collaboration with the Council focussing on key priorities and special projects centred on place, public and partnerships. The Civic Agreement is important for the University and the Council as it is an opportunity for two institutions central to the future prosperity of Luton to work together for the benefit of the town’s people, businesses, partner organisations and environment.

Our civic agreement will be distinct nationally as it is rooted in an existing joint vision for Luton. It will support the delivery of the Luton 2040 Vision: A place to thrive, a shared town-wide vision that all the key anchor institutions, including the University and Council, worked together to produce and are committed to achieving. The Vision is that Luton will be a healthy, fair and sustainable town, where everyone can thrive and no one has to live in poverty.

The Civic Agreement will build on the University’s existing strengths in local collaborative work, especially for health, arts, heritage and culture, skills, schools outreach, business enterprise and community engagement. Our civic agreement and partnership work with Council will align with the Luton 2040 vision’s five priorities:

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New governance and working structures to support the delivery of this Civic Agreement will be established including a Programme Board comprised of leaders to oversee the strategic progress of the agreement and monitor performance against a set of measures of success. A Knowledge and Innovation Group comprised of staff with key strategic roles in the Council and University will meet three times a year to serve the Civic Agreement process by identifying actions for collaboration and partnership working against the five priorities. The Knowledge and Innovation Group will also arrange an annual Civic Agreement forum that will bring together a range of stakeholders to celebrate success and present priorities for coming year.

A key early action for the Knowledge and Innovation Group will be to map existing University staff and student involvement in community engagement in Luton. I’m very grateful to all staff who have commented on drafts of the civic agreement especially in the Communications Team and in particular Emma Gill in the Arts and Culture team, Gordon Brady in Research and Innovation Services and Professor Gurch Randhawa in the Institute of Health Research who all attended a number of key meetings with Luton Council. I look forward to hosting further events to involve more staff in delivering the Civic Agreement.

The last year I have been an apprentice, re-learning all things Apprenticeships which culminated in our recent Ofsted visit.

Apprenticeships are an area that has growth potential for the University. They will contribute to the diversification of our portfolio, help our recruitment targets and positively affect our graduate outcome statistics.

The Government, as part of its “levelling up” agenda, has asked the Office for Students to: “strongly encourage providers to set themselves ambitious, measurable targets to significantly increase the proportion of students on higher and degree apprenticeships.”

In my own discipline of social work the Department for Education has recently announced there will be 500 new Apprentice social workers recruited in England every year.

What’s not to like?

Well, apprenticeships come with a whole set of new requirements and new responsibilities. They are heavily regulated and learners have different needs and expectations than undergraduates.

On my own informal “apprenticeship” I have been on a steep learning curve and have learnt lots of technical information to prepare myself and my team for an Ofsted visit.

But, more importantly, I have learnt much about what it means to prepare for something new which can be replicated in lots of other parts of working life and it is this that I thought I would share what I will take away for myself.

Firstly, if you don’t know about something don’t pretend that you do! Seek help from an expert, accept rigorous scrutiny from a trusted critical friend and then, when they advise what you need to do, don’t hesitate; to implement their advice. Defensiveness is a difficult emotion.

Secondly, you are blessed if you end up with a group of people who trust each other are kind to each other, want to do well and are willing to put the work in when the chips are down. I have been truly blessed.

Thirdly every day is a school day. Be open to learning, you won’t always get it right, the trick is not to repeat mistakes more than once but if you do, realise you have and do it right next time.

My apprenticeship in all things Apprenticeships is still ongoing but the best thing about the last couple of weeks has been seeing the great people of the University of Bedfordshire all pulling together with kindness, skill, knowledge and expertise.

This is what will enable the University to achieve Transforming Bedfordshire and I will truly miss all the wonderful people I have worked with here as I move on to new pastures.

For the last year, a team in the University have been working closely with senior staff in Luton Borough Council to produce a joint Civic Agreement for Luton. We are very pleased that the agreement will be launched on 7th March 2023 in the postgraduate centre building to an invited audience of staff from the University and the council, the University governors and Luton residents who represent key community organisations. Civic agreements involving universities have been encouraged nationally by the Civic University Network and are designed to ensure universities embed civic aspiration at an institutional level and best serve the place in which they are based.

The Civic Agreement for Luton will be the start of a new era of joint working with the Council, communities and other anchor institutions in Luton. Our interactions with communities and organisations across Bedfordshire will be further strengthened in 2023 as we develop a new Community Engagement Strategy that will deliver our Transforming Bedfordshire Strategy goal for communities to embrace our civic and economic role, taking pride in our positive engagement in the communities and sectors we support. Watch out for internal communications later this year promoting the events we will hold to obtain staff and students' inputs to devising the Community Engagement Strategy.

The Civic Agreement is a binding document that will direct our collaboration with the Council focussing on key priorities and special projects centred on place, public and partnerships. The Civic Agreement is important for the University and the Council as it is an opportunity for two institutions central to the future prosperity of Luton to work together for the benefit of the town’s people, businesses, partner organisations and environment.

Our civic agreement will be distinct nationally as it is rooted in an existing joint vision for Luton. It will support the delivery of the Luton 2040 Vision: A place to thrive, a shared town-wide vision that all the key anchor institutions, including the University and Council, worked together to produce and are committed to achieving.  The Vision is that Luton will be a healthy, fair and sustainable town, where everyone can thrive and no one has to live in poverty.

The Civic Agreement will build on the University’s existing strengths in local collaborative work, especially for health, arts, heritage and culture, skills, schools outreach, business enterprise and community engagement. Our civic agreement and partnership work with Council will align with the Luton 2040 vision’s five priorities:

New governance and working structures to support the delivery of this Civic Agreement will be established including a Programme Board comprised of leaders to oversee the strategic progress of the agreement and monitor performance against a set of measures of success. A Knowledge and Innovation Group comprised of staff with key strategic roles in the Council and University will meet three times a year to serve the Civic Agreement process by identifying actions for collaboration and partnership working against the five priorities. The Knowledge and Innovation Group will also arrange an annual Civic Agreement forum that will bring together a range of stakeholders to celebrate success and present priorities for coming year.

A key early action for the Knowledge and Innovation Group will be to map existing University staff and student involvement in community engagement in Luton. I’m very grateful to all staff who have commented on drafts of the civic agreement especially in the Communications Team and in particular Emma Gill in the Arts and Culture team, Gordon Brady in Research and Innovation Services and Professor Gurch Randhawa in the Institute of Health Research who all attended a number of key meetings with Luton Council. I look forward to hosting further events to involve more staff in delivering the Civic Agreement.

University Retention Working Group (RWG)

I Chair the Retention Working Group, which had its first meeting on 26 January 2022. I thought given its first anniversary, this was an appropriate time to reflect on the work of this group, which is supported by Scarlett Dawson, Project Manager for the Education and Student Experience team. Membership is from a range of university teams to ensure that strategies to support retention are considered from a range of perspectives, and personalised to suit different students. Members are from: Faculties; Academy; BedsSU;  International Office; Student Experience; Strategic Improvement; Centre for English as a Foreign Language; Registry; Academic Liaison; Student Information Desk.

What we achieved in our first year

In AY 2021/2022 we had two key priorities

1. We will review, develop and enhance our personal academic tutoring (PAT) approach.
2. We will develop a UoB Student Success Framework, a whole University approach to supporting the student journey and student success.

Personal Academic Tutoring progress

• A new PAT policy was approved AT Academic Board for AY 2021/22, revised and approved for AY 2022/23.
• A new student PAT guide was launched for AY 2021/22, updated for AY 2022/23.
• A new staff PAT handbook was launched for AY 2021/22, updated for AY 2022/23.
• All Faculties had PAT staff development events to introduce the new guidance.
• A new e-vision PAT recording system was designed, developed and launched in September 2022. This includes an automated referral system for a wide range of University services.

All resources are now available on the UoB website.

Staff documents are on the Academy website:

https://www.beds.ac.uk/academy/learningandteaching/ click on Personal Academic Tutoring

https://www.beds.ac.uk/academy/about-us/resources/  Search for PAT Staff Handbook

We have also created a specific Personal Academic Tutoring page for students:

https://www.beds.ac.uk/student-experience/personal-academic-tutoring/

UoB Student Success Framework progress

This Framework is written/completed. We are in the process of putting the content online, and making it available for staff and students. It will be launched very soon! 

What is the Student Success Framework?

The Student Success Framework brings together key work and student support strategies from across the University into a coherent framework for delivering student success.  It aligns with our work undertaken to support the student journey, ‘begin, thrive and succeed’. 

The approach focuses on seven key aspects. These are aligned to the six themes identified in A Student Futures Manifesto (UPP Foundation*), with the addition of ‘support for academic studies’. The Student Success Framework will be used as the building blocks for developing a University of Bedfordshire Student Futures Manifesto, with the intention that this is co-created with students for September 2023.

Themes for Student Success

1. Support for students before they reach university
2. An induction into university life for each year of study
3. Support for mental health and well-being
4. Support for academic studies
5. A clear outline of the teaching students will receive and the necessary tools to access it
6. Activities inside and outside the curriculum that build skills, networks and communities
7. A clear pathway towards graduate outcomes

* UPP Foundation: A Student Futures Manifesto

(https://upp-foundation.org/student-futures-commission/news/a-student-futures-manifesto/)

The UPP Foundation Student Futures Commission is asking Universities to commit to co-create and publish a Student Futures Manifesto with students and students’ unions by the end of the 2022/23 academic year.

Thank you!

Thank you to the Retention Working Group and our PAT e-vision task and finish group. We achieved much in AY 2021/22 and we look forward to sharing our AY 2022/23 developments with you.

With a cold spell upon us and as we move rapidly toward the Christmas holiday and New Year I will use this opportunity to share with you all what we in the Faculty of Creative Arts Technologies and Science have defined as six objectives in our revised Faculty Strategy Plan for this academic year. These objectives align directly against the University's Strategic Plan and its Key Performance Indicators.

Increase on-campus student numbers and ensure that budgets are managed to deliver financial viability.

Each of our four Schools are focused on developing a more vibrant course offer, particularly to improve our appeal to the UK applicant market. This includes closing courses with small student numbers, increasing the number of shared units across courses and creating new courses with a solid market analysis of employer-led demand. Importantly, working together with the excellent team in the International Office, for semester one, our recruitment of overseas students on campus has significantly exceeded the target notably in our School of Computer Science and Technology.

Deliver a student experience and satisfaction in line with the UK HE sector.

We look to build on the significant improvements in student satisfaction seen last year as measured by NSS 2022 and BUS surveys compared to years impacted by Covid restrictions. Most striking was our improvement in overall satisfaction scores in the School of Arts and Creative Industries illustrating just how damaging the pandemic was to students in an area so dependent upon access to facilities on campus. Implementation of school action plans with a key emphasis placed on course-level initiatives contributed to the improvement. The initiative led by the School of Psychology where students provide feedback via postcards in the first three weeks of the semester is being rolled out across all schools.

Improve the continuation and retention of our students.

An emphasis to improve student continuation and retention is key not only because of their contribution to OfS Condition B3 and the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) indicators but also due to the emotional toll upon students and their families. With excellent analysis performed by our colleagues in Planning, areas of focus are now clear and it is evident that improving our performance in this key area will help us improve our position in the league tables.

Ensure that the curriculum and employer engagement prepares our graduates to secure highly skilled employment (and remove any disparity in academic outcome based on any protected characteristic).

We continue our efforts to bring more employers onto campus either through Poster Days where students exhibit their work or through initiatives such as the STEM Expo. With the development of initiatives such as a Skills Lab, our graduates from the School of Life Sciences lead the percentage of graduates in highly skilled employment or further study. In Arts and Creative Industries, we continue to develop Media Junction and WOW Wednesday forums that bring practitioners and industry professionals onto-campus to engage students. Working with colleagues in our Careers and Employability team, staff in the School of Psychology are currently exploring the potential of Virtual Reality funded by Capital investment bid, to help students with interview techniques.

Enhance our staff experience by creating a collaborative, discursive, vibrant academic environment.

There has never been a greater emphasis placed in the faculty on the staff experience and the opportunity to inform and involve staff in university-wide projects. We continue to publish a weekly bulletin to all staff and a newsletter each semester. We have installed a screen to promote events and achievements by students and staff outside our faculty office. In addition to feedback from our course and School reps, our FEG meetings have a standing item on Staff Voice collating key feedback from School meetings. We are reviewing office facilities across all Schools and will shortly launch a faculty guide to all new staff and visiting staff as part of their local induction.

Ensure that the potential of our research and enterprise activity is fully realised and that it enhances our taught delivery.

Following the outcomes of REF 2021 we are reviewing research activity in the faculty and allocations in workload plans. Our Research Institute Directors are busy working closely with colleagues in Research and Innovation Services to ensure that we maximise our capture of research activity and outputs in preparation for the next assessment exercise.

As you see, a busy time for all in the CATS Faculty but a huge opportunity to better serve our students and staff. In closing, I extend a BIG thank you to all who are helping to support us on this journey and I wish you all a happy and healthy Christmas holiday and New Year.

Hello everyone, it’s great to have the opportunity to share what’s happening in my world. 

First of all, I wanted to say a big thank you - I truly appreciate the warm welcome I have received since my arrival. As a newbie, there’s a lot to absorb and discover about this great University and its wonderful potential. I’m still learning and will continue to work my way around and understand the workings, challenges and opportunities that make us ‘Bedfordshire’. I can see we are all really, really busy and I’m eager to work together to simplify, streamline and speed up our policies and procedures to make all of our lives just that little bit easier.

The cost-of-living crisis is constantly at the forefront of my thoughts, as I’m sure it is for you all. These are really challenging for the finance of the nation, the University and all of us personally. We are all experiencing rising energy, fuel and food costs and the recent Budget acknowledges that we are entering challenging times members of my own team have spoken to me about their own personal pressures. At these times we all need to see what we can do to manage our own finances. I’ve reached out to the University’s banking partners, to ask if they can offer free (no obligation) online workshops and guidance on managing personal finances. Working with colleagues from People and Culture I expect to be able to announce something shortly.

For the University, our income from a domestic student remains frozen (and in real terms is reducing) for the foreseeable future. With no increase in income, we need to actively manage financial costs too, and ensure we continue to be a thriving community - now and in the longer term future. The recent increases in the cost of wholesale oil and gas have also had an impact on the University, the government has offered a cap on the price of energy for the coming winter months (similar to all family homes)… but there is still a huge increase on spend from last year - we expect costs to at least double…. and we await to see what will happen from April 2023 onwards. This is a £million+ increase in the annual cost of energy! To manage the cost, we need to be creative in reducing our consumption of energy.

I have set up an Energy Task Group that has identified a list of opportunities (some quick wins and some needing investment) and it is taking action to reduce consumption. Some visible examples include a programme of conversion of lamps to LED lighting across the campuses, and also less visible actions like reducing hot-water temperature and switching heating-off earlier in the evening and at weekend (whilst retaining a warm space in our Luton and Bedford libraries for students). We will actively be looking at opportunities to automatically switch off lights and IT/AV equipment too – we will keep you updated on progress. Hopefully, you are considering similar opportunities at home too.  

Another saving review you may have heard from colleagues is that we have been reviewing the opportunity to move professional service staff based in the Atrium on the Luton campus. This brings our staff back home, onto campus, and saves us the annual costs of running the Atrium (e.g. rent, maintenance costs, energy, etc.). I was very pleased to announce that the Board of Governors approved a multi-million investment to relocate staff from the Atrium into F Block, Park Square. Part of the investment will be on future-proofing F-Block, replacing the roof and making improvements to heating and ventilation. This project will be moving at a fast pace – look out for future updates over the coming months. 

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. I’m always happy to hear your views and ideas. Please do feel free to stop and say hello if you see me walking around campus.

This summer, on a very hot day I was given the opportunity to visit our beehives at Putteridge Bury – with thanks to Martin and Adam. It was not the best day to have chosen to dress in full protective clothing. I was melting! However, I learnt a lot about a day in the life of our bees and I reflected afterwards on the similarities with the way we operate as a community in our university.

For a successful and fruitful beehive there are several important factors. Bees recognise the importance of inclusion and belonging, determination, efficiency, flexibility, leadership, communication, quality and have a clear common purpose.

Our work in creating a culture of inclusion and belonging is a priority. The diversity of bees is what makes the hive flourish.  A colony of queen bees would not survive, nor would a swarm of drone bees. It’s the combination of each bee’s skill set coming together in harmony that ensures the bee survival. 

I can see how we are growing and creating an environment where our people feel comfortable to be themselves in, one where they feel heard, included, and valued. We are proud to be a diverse and global community. Our network groups are growing, we have made our commitment to work towards the Race Equality Charter. We are talking about our prejudices and privileges that they may create bias and we are learning from the feedback response to our workplace index survey. We are also reviewing our language in our policies, how we write our job adverts to attract diverse candidates and how we develop inclusive behaviours.

I understand that honeybees gather nectar from 2 million flowers to make one pound of honey. They must remain focused and work hard to achieve the end goal. We must stay focused and determined. A determined person's intent is always focused on moving one step closer to achieving both individual, team and university goals. We must also remain resilient to our challenges and how we can support one another. In our values we talk about ambition, and we should be ambitious for our staff and our students.

There are several job roles within the hive. The forager, queen, worker, drone, guard to name a few. Each bee is very clear about their role, accountability and responsibilities. There are many roles within our University. Our people are committed and are working hard. I would encourage us all when we are having our PDR discussions to allow time for reflection and consider how we are organising ourselves and that we agree priorities and objectives that helps us maximise our efficiency.

Bees adapt to their environment; they are agile and can transit to maximise their output. Agility is one of our core values, we aim to be flexible and responsive. We are putting considerable effort this year in looking at our systems and processes to ensure that we maximise our outcomes.

The queen bee performs her task and trusts her colony to get on with their individual duties.  Each member of the colony can be left to work autonomously and with purpose, but also has a very clear chain of command. This year we have been investing in leadership development and have a comprehensive suite of resources to support and promote inclusive and compassionate leadership.

Bees conduct a figure of eight waggle dance that provides insight as to where the best resources are. We recognise that communication is key. Open communications create a culture of transparency and learning. I think that our team talks could be our waggle dance. I hope that you have enjoyed and have got something out of yours.

One bee can have an impact on the quality of the whole hive. Bees do not compromise quality for speed. Another one of our values is excellence. We seek to be excellent in all aspects of our work. So what does good look like? When it comes to our people, I think that the secret is not finding the most skilled, most qualified, most experienced in the sector, it’s finding the right person for us.

Each colony instinctively knows its purpose and where it fits. Bees do not work in silos. No role is greater than the other, each is critical to survive.

So let us reflect on what can we learn from our bees.

Perhaps inevitably, my recent thoughts have turned to Royalty past and future, and I remember the time I attended a Buckingham Palace garden party. It was a very hot and humid day and just as I was about to be presented to the Queen in the long snaking line that is a feature of the garden parties, the sky darkened, thunder and lightning started and monsoon quantities of rain fell. We were ushered hastily and rapidly onto a sheltered terrace, all guests soaked through. It became clear that the party was a washout and so we slowly departed. To make matters worse, the dye in my black straw hat started to run and I experienced my very own Rudi Guiliani moment as black streaks ran down my neck. Back at home I noticed a label which said ‘do not wear in the rain’.

This memory was triggered by seeing footage of the palace gardens during the broadcast of the state funeral. We will all have our thoughts about the lying in state, the funeral and the service of committal and will have experienced the many overt and implicit messages communicated throughout. One of the messages that came through strongly for me was about transition, no more so than in relation to the new King, whose life now becomes very different.

We all go through transitions in our personal and professional lives, and of course, we are in the midst of a further major transition in Government. As I walk around the University I see our students dealing with their own transitions and life changes as they move into higher education, perhaps leave home and become more independent, or balance their new status as students with their family responsibilities.

It’s easy to underestimate the significance of this transition for new students. They have to learn not just the routines, practices and regulations of university life, and for many how to live independently and often in a new country, but all of them have to think and learn differently, to engage with knowledge, skills and professional practice in a way and at a level not expected of them before. These aspects of higher level learning, including the development of autonomy, self-direction, the ability to develop their own views and the confidence to deal with uncertainty and difference, are very easy to list but not automatic in the transition to higher education. They must be taught and nurtured, made explicit in our teaching. They are attributes which will certainly serve students well in their lives beyond and after university, but are absolutely essential to their success within the university.

We all have a role to play in ensuring that students’ transition to higher education and the life of the university sets them up for academic success and provides the support they need to thrive.

My previous blog in March outlined a positive start to the new academic year, with a refreshed Personal Academic Tutoring Policy in place and investments in the Student Experience Enhancement Fund and Student Experience Ambassadors Programme to widen opportunities for students. I am pleased to share with you the further progress that has been made against the Education and Student Experience Strategy and would like to take this opportunity to thank all staff involved for their hard work.

Curriculum Change Programme

The Curriculum Change Programme launched in 2022 to promote course enhancements in three key areas: inclusive curriculum and assessment, mental wellbeing, and employability. Course teams undertook a mapping exercise to establish the current position and the outcomes were discussed at the Curriculum Planning Day in April, hosted by Faculty Associate Deans (Student Experience). This day also provided the opportunity for colleagues to consider some current challenges in these areas and to hear about innovative and creative practices at Bedfordshire to support course enhancement planning across the board. Smaller changes are being implemented via the course modification process this month and work will continue throughout the next academic year to embed more significant changes.

Retention and Success

The Retention Working Group has been busy reviewing the Personal Academic Tutoring scheme and the PAT policy for AY2022/23 has recently been approved at Academic Board. Supporting guidance is being developed to ensure that both staff and students are aware of their roles and to support staff in easily recording their interactions and making referrals for support.

The Student Success Framework is also in development, which will be published to staff and students early in the new academic year. This brings together all the avenues of personal and academic support that are available to students, from the point of accepting their place on a course to the lifelong graduate support provided by the Careers and Employability Service. The framework is being developed with the Student Journey Group, which is working to map the critical events in the student lifecycle and identify when a proactive offer of support may be most beneficial.

Access and Participation

For the AY2021/22, the 21 strategic measures of our approved Access and Participation Plan have been embedded within the activities of the various working groups and progress is monitored via the Education and Student Experience Delivery Board and the Access and Participation Steering Group. The Office for Students appointed a new Director for Fair Access and Participation in February this year and set out four key priorities to consider in our activities moving forwards, including strengthening our partnerships with schools to help raise pre-16 attainment, setting out how access to HE leads to successful participation on high quality courses and good graduate outcomes, and expanding our diverse pathways into HE.

Colleagues are preparing an update for the OfS demonstrating how we are addressing these priorities and to highlight any requested changes to our plan, for submission in July. Our current approved APP, strategic measures and accompanying action plan are available on the external website: www.beds.ac.uk/app

Learning and Teaching Excellence Conference

Finally, just to highlight that planning for the Learning and Teaching Excellence Conference is also well underway and in the coming weeks we will be able to share the programme of sessions for you to book your attendance. Please save the date – Tuesday 13^th September – in your diary and keep an eye on emails for further information.

We are very excited about our upcoming Learning and Teaching Excellence Conference on the 13 September 2022. The conference is a key part of the Education and Student Experience Strategy towards supporting and inspiring enhancements and innovations in staff teaching practices. It will provide a fantastic opportunity for colleagues to network, share best practices and disseminate educational research outcomes. The conference will also act as the full launch for our new Academy for Learning and Teaching Excellence. 

The overarching theme for the conference is ‘Learning and Teaching Excellence’ and we anticipate will include sessions related to inclusivity, students as partners, digital learning, employability, lessons learned during the pandemic and evaluation of teaching and learning impact.  

We are strongly encouraging all presenters to be innovative and creative when delivering sessions. For examples and inspiration see https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/blog/formats-to-refresh-your-conference-ds00 

Session proposals will be open until 30/06/22 and can be submitted using our online form: https://forms.office.com/r/KAWExLwRbB 

If you would like to discuss your proposal ideas before submitting, please contact your Associate Dean for Student Experience or email academy@beds.ac.uk 

We are really looking forward to seeing you there.  

I am so proud of our university and of all of our researchers for putting together such a strong entry into the national Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021. This is an audit of our research that occurs every 6-7 years and so the results are the culmination of immense hard work over a long period of time, not to mention the added pressure of submitting it all during a global pandemic. 

I am happy that we can now share the results of that hard work with you all and celebrate the incredible research of our teams across the university. 

Our colleagues at the Centre for Research in English Language Learning and Assessment (CRELLA) achieved exceptional results and should be incredibly proud of their work. Through the REF, CRELLA has pitted itself against the more traditional universities and is placed above both Oxford and Cambridge in the English Language and Literature unit of assessment, ranking 3rd out of 92 submissions. 72% of their research is classed as world leading, the highest possible rating. Coming third in the national ranking for English is an outstanding outcome and no university similar to Bedfordshire has achieved a result like this in any subject area.

Huge congratulations to Prof Tony Green, and the CRELLA team for their exceptional achievement. However this could not have been made possible without the work and contributions of the late Professor Cyril Weir who established the Centre and left an incredible legacy.

However CRELLA's achievements are not the only research areas where there is real cause for celebration. Colleagues for the Institute of Applied Social Research also made an outstanding impact in the REF with 81% of their research being classed as internationally excellent or world leading. It is a rewarding recognition of the invaluable research that the institute is doing exploring the social issues of our time and bringing real benefits to some of the most vulnerable groups in society. Our research in Business and Management, Education and Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism also made really significant progress compared to our results in the earlier REF 2014.

All of our research colleagues should be incredibly proud of what they have achieved, the REF is a tough challenge every time, and everyone involved deserves a hearty congratulations. 

In all we submitted in nine units of assessment across the sciences, social sciences and humanities with aspects of internationally excellent or world-leading research in all of them, clearly demonstrating the breadth of our research efforts. Overall, I am very pleased that 60% of our research and 50% of our impact was judged to be world leading or internationally excellent. Much of the research we submitted to the REF was undertaken by staff with substantial teaching loads, especially in the science areas, and I’m very grateful to those colleagues who produced very high quality research whilst delivering for our students.

Now our eyes turn to the future, there are some areas where we have not been able to achieve as much as we may have liked and the REF has highlighted some of the issues we must improve on. As the PVC for Research and Innovation I have already set out a plan in our new Research and Innovation strategy on how we can improve our research effort, and I can happily say that this plan already addresses the issues that our REF results have highlighted. 

Going forwards we will be focusing on providing a more supportive environment for research as well as generating investment in research and ensuring we have even more significant impacts on society, the economy, the environment and people’s lives. 

I would like to thank all of our colleagues across the university that gave their time and energy to help us achieve such amazing results. It was a colossal effort and I hope you all will join me in celebrating all of our amazing research colleagues.

There is much great work that has been going on this academic year and planned for the remainder of the year that is contributing to the delivery of the Transforming Bedfordshire Strategy. Some key areas in the Education and Student Experience Portfolio are noted to follow. 

Personal Academic Tutors and Feedback

We started the academic year with a revised Personal Academic Tutor Policy with a Handbook and Guidance for both Staff and Students, with associated training delivered by each Associate Dean, Student Experience in Faculties. Connected with this was the introduction of university wide feedback weeks with students supported by the use of Student Feedback Trackers to support their reflection and action planning from their assessment feedback; this was brought in to support our aims to improve assessment and feedback scores with the National Student Survey (NSS).

Our Student Experience

Further work this year to help improve overall student satisfaction has been our investment in Student Experience Ambassadors that we have employed to work on targeted activity to support key areas of School and Faculty work. The Library and Learning Resources Team have also benefitted from working with Student Experience Ambassadors where students have been working on activity to support future improvements to the design and service offer. 

Schools in all Faculties have also made the most of the new Student Experience Enhancement Funding to support improvements to student satisfaction and graduate employability, organising and taking students on a wide range of trips and employability activities and events: from student visits to Photographers Gallery, Tate Britain and Dochouse; BETT Education Technology conference (London, ExCeL); field trips to Brecon/Snowdon where students have applied theory to practice; taking students to DHL Air UK based in East Midlands Airport and Midland Air Museum; and a “Witness for the Prosecution” student trip with follow up Mooting competition. All activities were focused on Level 6.

A second round of all staff opportunities in Oct/Nov 2021 were provided (in addition to the University-wide Open Café sessions earlier in the year) to provide insights for the development of the new Education and Student Experience Strategy, with on-going staff feedback providing updates for the final Strategy for approval at Academic Board in March 2022. Alongside the Education and Student Experience Strategy are five Strategic Action Plans that are being developed with a wide range of academic and professional service staff as part of the five new working groups: Retention Working Group; Employability Working Group; Teaching & Curriculum Working Group; EDI Student Success Working Group; and the Student Experience & Student Voice Working Group.  Much exciting work is being planned to help support all staff in achieving improvements in the University's Super KPIs – continuation, student satisfaction, graduate outcomes, and in reducing the awarding gap.

Access and Participation

The University are delivering the approved Access and Participation Plan as set out for 2021-22 that can be seen on our website - https://www.beds.ac.uk/about-us/our-university/public-information/ofs/). Our new UoB Student Success Framework plays a key part in this and is being led by Juliet Fern, Executive Dean of Education, English and Sport, as Chair of the Retention Working Group. This Group is currently in the process of identifying all of the work that we do across the University to support student retention and success, in order to build on our current practice. In addition, the Group are reviewing our current PAT policy and process, and identifying how we can enhance PAT for September 2022, allowing time for training and development for staff before September 2022.

Following the presentation of the results to the Town Hall meeting, I have been working hard at cascading the findings to smaller local groups and identifying priorities for action.

The questions raised at the Town Hall have been themed into several topics, including:

• Sharing results, interpreting data and how we will measure outcomes.
• People development, and leadership & management.
• Working practices,
• PDR’s,
• Inclusivity and bullying, and
• Visiting staff and quality of services.

These questions are not always easy to answer and there are not always quick solutions, but we felt it was important to listen and explain how the University is responding. Responses can be found here.

The survey results indicates that there are several behaviours that we would like to see more of. You have said that you would like to see more activity that encourages active participation of staff, individual growth and development opportunities, genuine listening and involving people in decisions. You have told us that you would like to see how we demonstrate care and support to our people, how we can become more creative, and take considered risks that could result in improving our services.

You have told us that you would like to see less blame when things do not go according to plan, and you have said that at times mistakes are perceived to be punished or negative behaviours are perceived to be rewarded. You have also said that many of us are working long hours. We are very concerned about this.

Addressing your concerns

We have considered which priorities to be addressed university wide. These are:

Looking further at developing or streamlining our systems and processes, this includes workflow and developing the performance review objective setting.

We will be prioritising and investing in people development, including investing in academic development this year, leadership training, developing mandatory provisions, improving our delivery – our customer service, equality, diversity and inclusion education and developing how we demonstrate that we are living our Institutional values.

We have also committed to looking at how we can develop our communication channels further.  We want to ensure that we are hearing the right messages and we would like our people to be engaged and be part of our decision-making process.

I have been talking to my team about what we can do as a team to support the people and culture strategy.  I want us to be seen much more than a team that processes recruitment or advises on policy interpretation.  I will be working on creating an environment that develops an ethos of teamwork and quality in our day-to-day operations.  We want to create an atmosphere that fosters positive challenges, fun, where appropriate, and positive wellbeing in everything we do.

I hope that you will be able to see us developing best practices and adopting a proactive, caring attitude, respecting colleagues’ values that may be different to our own and accepting responsibility for promoting ethical conduct in our personal and professional practices. To reflect this change in style HR will re-brand as The People & Culture Team.

For these changes to happen and for us to make a positive move towards the culture we have said that we would like our University to operate in we all have a part to play. We have established a People & Culture Delivery Board to oversee our progress and action planning.  I will be inviting representatives from across Faculty and departments to join me on this Board shortly. I look forward to working with you over the coming months.

At the time of writing, we are in the final approval stages of the University’s International Student Recruitment Strategy and International Partnership Strategy. These represent two of the three constituent parts of the Internationalisation Strategy, the third being our International Mobility and Experience Strategy. Once approved, we will communicate these internally as widely as possible, and I apologise in advance to those who will inevitably get to hear them over and over again.

Recruitment

In terms of recruitment, our principal objective is to build on the University’s historical success, meeting the University’s annual international revenue targets whilst ensuring compliance with UKVI regulations. Each element of this is critical - in particular we must ensure that our activity is compliance-led to safeguard the long-term success of the institution. A huge amount of work has gone on behind the scenes already this year to meet that goal.

Along with other universities, we have experienced a small boom in international recruitment since the end of 2021, due to the pent-up demand created by the global pandemic and the lack of alternative options in other Anglophone destinations. Although that demand is unlikely to be sustained beyond September, it has highlighted the need to better resource our international office to match the University’s recruitment aspirations. We have over the last five months undertaken a reorganisation of the International Office, which will increase the number of front line staff in Admissions and Compliance, and also put a clearer structure in place for career development. Despite that distraction and any number of other challenges, the IO team delivered the second-largest January intake for a decade and also held our first post-pandemic on-campus international welcome event for them, which was fantastic to see.

International Office and Partnerships

We have also undertaken a physical reconfiguration of the International Office space so that we can welcome colleagues from the Centre for Academic Partnerships into our new shared home. The University’s overseas partnerships offering has expanded considerably over the years, and we are reviewing this provision to ensure that it all meets the University’s objectives (and that we meet those of our partners). The new International Partnerships Strategy will also lay out a framework for our future ambitions, whether for more students progressing to study here at Bedfordshire, more studying overseas with our TNE partners, or broader ambitions around building our global reputation.

We have also put in place new oversight on recruitment and partnerships, in particular, to give the faculties a stronger voice in both areas and ensure that our approach is truly collaborative, and I hope that anyone, staff or student, with an interest in Internationalisation, now feels welcome to come and engage with us.

There are a number of other changes we’re in the process of proposing or implementing – registration for the US loans system, reviewing our international preparatory programmes, proposals for international scholarships and rationalising our agent network to improve performance. All of this is designed not just to meet our key objectives, but to diversify the countries from which we recruit our students, broaden the range of subjects they study, and increasing the number of international students at the Bedford Campus, to make studying at Bedfordshire a truly global experience.

The University’s Transforming Bedfordshire strategy is underpinned by a range of enabling strategies, detailed elsewhere in this newsletter. We have developed an Infrastructure Plan to ensure that the delivery of those initiatives is not impeded by a failure to provide an infrastructure which actively enables change and facilitates swift and efficient implementation. We have seen in the responses to our staff culture survey that staff are concerned about the effectiveness of our systems and processes and the Infrastructure Plan will address this. 

Investment in infrastructure and the processes surrounding them is an essential part of delivering Transforming Bedfordshire.  We have made significant financial investment in key areas of infrastructure.

Estates

We have improved visibility of services on campus such as the relocation of the SiD desk in Luton to a larger and more accessible area.  Architects and surveyors have reviewed the Luton and Bedford campuses with Executive Deans to scope out modernisation and refurbishment to make the campuses more effective and attractive, particularly to new students. Combined with feedback from conversation café’s held last year, our next step is to follow up on all the recommendations.  We are also looking to identify a new social learning area in the Campus Centre at Luton and we’ll be consulting with students on this.

ICT

We’ve updated teaching room audio capture in 50 teaching rooms.  A significant programme to update the ICT infrastructure is already underway with network, storage and data centre replacement.  We continue to implement a range of initiatives to keep our ICT systems safe from cyber security attacks with multifactor authentication (MFA) introduced for staff and we are now rolling this out for students.

MARC

We have undertaken an in depth review of our admissions cycle and as a result have introduced a number of changes. We have already made more than double the number of conditional offers to students at this stage of the cycle compared to last year. We’re now working hard to convert these additional offers into student acceptances with a range of enhanced ‘offer holder’ events led by academic staff. New campus branding has been introduced in reception areas and we will shortly be meeting with colleagues to develop subject location branding within faculties.

Systems and Processes

We are committed to a fundamental review of our systems and business processes. We have committed a £4m investment in SITS to ensure that it provides a significantly improved student experience alongside automation which will free staff from manual interventions and improve our data quality. Many staff will have been involved in the delivery of our online Registration Task which went live on October 21' and we’ve made further improvements for the February 22' intake. Next up are projects to transform our admissions processes, student management and assessment processes. The SITS programme is due to complete in December 2023. Our sincere thanks to everyone who has contributed to this so far.

We have commissioned an external review of our timetabling system and processes and we’re implementing the findings. Our target is to be able to provide students with timetables 6 weeks before the start of teaching. 

The Academic Registrar and Head of Quality are reviewing all of our quality assurance processes to ensure that they are appropriate and proportionate. We’ve already delegated responsibility for some processes to Faculty level and are looking to rationalise other areas, particularly the ‘UIFs and CIFs’. The target here is to ensure that our systems are effective and the academic administrative burden is reduced.

We have an agreement in principle to implement Learning Analytics, a project group has been established and we are about to go out to tender. This will help us identify those students who are at risk and intervene earlier to support them.

Planning, Monitoring and Reviewing

A crucial part of our ability to deliver Transforming Bedfordshire is to ensure that we have the data/intelligence to be able to assess both our current performance and to be able to understand where our initiatives are having an impact. We’ve recruited a new Director of Strategic Improvement and we’re now looking to recruit the team to support the work. We’ve rolled out subject and course level data to understand our performance in delivering our Access & Participation Plan which includes detailed information on retention and the awarding gap. Further datasets are on their way. We’re about to introduce a streamlined planning process to ensure that our effort is focused on priorities that will deliver change. We have introduced a new governance structure which is centred round the delivery of our enabling strategies, we will review this in the summer. The Board of Governors have undertaken a complete review of their own effectiveness and are now implementing their development plan to embed the findings of the review.

The Infrastructure Plan will need to be flexible and adapt to changes in how we deliver the enabling strategies. The Plan is focused on ensuring that we have the infrastructure in place to deliver Transforming Bedfordshire.

Since I joined the University in mid-October 2021, I have had the pleasure of working with a wide range of academic and professional service colleagues to develop a new Research and Innovation Strategy for presentation to Academic board in March 2022. The strategy has five goals focussed on People, Postgraduate Researchers, Education & Students, Investment and Impact. I am pleased that we have already made progress on each goal. 

People

For our People Goal, we aim to ensure we engage much more strongly with the national Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers. We have established a new Researcher Concordat Committee, which held its first meeting in January. Dr Victoria Carpenter the Head of Researcher Development is chair and I am very grateful to Professor Emily Munro, Dr Amanda Egbe, Dr Emma Wilkinson and Dr Sarah Wadd who have kindly volunteered their time to sit on the Committee. This will ensure we improve the support provided for early career researchers and staff on research only contracts.

Postgraduate Research 

Our Postgraduate Researcher Goal aims to grow our doctoral community. A piece of very good news is that the university is going to invest £450,000 over three years so support a series of new PhD studentships. More information will follow in the next blog on how we will invest these funds.

Education and Students Goal

Our Education and Students Goal aims to ensure research and innovation play a role in transforming the student experience.  We are now recruiting a new Entrepreneurship Officer to the Research and Innovation team to support our student business start-up advice programme, branded as “Be More Entrepreneurial”.

Investment and Impact

The Strategy’s Investment and Impact Goals received an early push forward when we were able to invest £94,000 of Research England funding on research that either addresses policy priorities or enables participatory research. We put out a call across the University for projects and received 27 applications. The projects funded and lead researchers are summarised in Table 1. 

Table 1

The Research and Innovation Service Team is now very much back working on campus and we hope to support more academic staff in achieving their research and innovation plans. I was very pleased to meet the team in person when we held an away day at Putteridge Bury last week to discuss how the team can collectively deliver the new Research and Innovation Strategy. 

Global Higher Education has always had its challenges. We’ve seen changing patterns of demand and delivery, higher student expectations, changing employer needs and increasingly rigorous government regulations and immigration controls. We can now add to this a global health pandemic, increased volatility in the global marketplace and Brexit. These are all placing a significant burden on all players within the academic environment – schools, colleges and universities – and the communities and countries in which they are placed.

It is certainly a lively time to be joining the University of Bedfordshire as Interim Pro Vice-Chancellor International.

But if there is one thing that we have learnt from the current Covid-19 crisis, and from our responses; if there is one thing that we realise we cannot do without, it is each other. The situation has brought home to all of us the power and the pivotal need for cooperation, collaboration, and partnership – all at the very heart of any definition of internationalisation.

Yes, most of us have become, literally, more locked into our local environment. We may not be travelling as much or as far, we may not have been able to physically meet, but we have found other ways to compensate for that in the short term. People will always need to be mobile. There will always be the need for physical travel, for physical real-time interaction in a shared environment, but we may in some situations do this less often and avail ourselves of the marvellous digital opportunities in front of us.

There has been perhaps an inequality perceived within internationalisation. That for education it is about a weaker partner being helped and assisted or controlled by a more dominant one. But Covid-19 has highlighted to us all that importance is a word that we should not apportion lightly. Who have we needed at this time of crisis? What have we needed? Who has been important to us? Yes, the top researchers are vital as they work, across their national and international boundaries, on a vaccine for the human race – not a small act – but so too are the doctors, the nurses, the teachers, the shop workers, the fruit pickers, the waste disposers and so many more.

Over the coming months, we will all be working together to shape and develop our new Internationalisation Strategy. This will give us the opportunity to define what internationalisation means for Bedfordshire, describe the contribution international activities make to the achievement of the University’s academic strategy, recognise and celebrate the success of our current international activities and ensure a proactive and strategic approach to our future endeavours.

Many of the values we seek to encourage in our students as they move to be global citizens are values of empathy towards others, the desire to learn more about the world and to work together to combat the challenges of our world – values that are at the heart of internationalisation. In this age of ongoing global crisis, we need more than ever to embrace these values.

I haven’t made any New Year’s resolutions this year; I tried that in 2020 and it didn’t work out quite as I’d planned. As someone once said, ‘Man makes plans… and the Gods laugh’.

That’s not to say that the new year hasn’t brought new opportunities and new challenges for me. I am thrilled to have joined the University of Bedfordshire as Interim Pro Vice Chancellor Education and Student Experience. I have a new portfolio for the University, one that brings together Education, Learning Resources and Service Excellence, Student Experience, the Centre for Learning Excellence and the UK elements of the Centre for Academic Partnerships.

It is an opportunity to build on the strengths that already exist in each area and better integrate the academic and academic-facing professional services to deliver teacher, teaching and learning excellence. I look forward to working with colleagues to take what we know is already good, let go of what no longer serves us, and nurture fresh ideas to design and shape a new teaching and learning strategy for the University.

Adaptation and change is something that we have all become accustomed to over the past 12 months; looking at things in different ways, learning from others, and finding creative solutions to both long-standing and emerging problems have become the ‘new normal’.

I hope to add to this flexibility and changed way of working by bringing a range of perspectives on higher education to the PVC role. I have worked as an academic, Associate Dean and Deputy Vice-Chancellor at a number of UK Universities and, through my post as Director of the UK Quality Assurance Agency, led a number of national and International teaching, learning and quality enhancement projects. I can definitely live up to the description of ‘poacher, turned game-keeper… turned poacher’.

Immediately prior to taking up my post as PVC, I was putting my academic and professional training in Public Health to use, working for Public Health England on the Covid-19 programme. It was both a rewarding and, on occasion, emotionally taxing experience. But, I continue to be inspired by the resilience shown by people across all walks of life and the willingness to give a little bit extra to anyone who finds themselves in need of more support, whatever that may be.

So, I look forward to working with University colleagues and stakeholders with resolve and renewed enthusiasm for the contribution that higher education can make to transforming the lives of individuals, communities and the socio-economic prospects of the country.

Now, that’s quite a New Year resolution to live up to!

Government policy for higher education has been delayed during the period of the pandemic, but late January saw the publication of a number of policies and consultations which will have a significant impact on our university. On a single day, we had the publication of the White Paper: Skills for Jobs; the interim conclusion to the post-18 education and funding review, known as the Augar Report of 2019; and publications on the TEF (Teaching Excellence Framework) and on PQA (Post-Qualification Admissions). We await more detail and consultations on each of these over the next few months.

The White Paper and the response to the post-18 review are clearly linked and the key issue arising from them is an intention to create parity between academic and technical education, with accelerated approvals for higher technical qualifications building on the newly introduced T levels; the establishment of eight more Institutes of Technology; the introduction of local skills implementation plans and lifelong loan entitlements of up to four years. All of this is about diversifying post-compulsory education options.

Under these proposals there would be a move towards standalone level 4 and 5 courses on the grounds that employers need qualifications below a full degree, though this point should be read alongside extensive evidence that employers need qualified employees up to level 6 and above.

There is a proposal to set a minimum entry level to higher education in order to access the student loan, which could be seen as a means of controlling student numbers and redirecting resource, without reintroducing a student number cap. Such a move could have a damaging impact on universities like ours and on lifelong learning, widening access and social mobility. There is also reference to the treatment of the foundation year (level 3) and whether this should be funded in higher education. Again the implications are profound. It is expected that these funding matters will be addressed in the forthcoming Comprehensive Spending Review, as will the matter of the level of the undergraduate fee, which the Augar review proposed as £7500.

Further evidence of higher education policy responding to skills and the need for economic recovery is evidenced in proposals about the teaching grant paid to universities. It is proposed that this will be reduced in relation to creative arts subjects and re-focussed on stem subjects, health and care, and other subjects of national importance. The London weighting allowance is being removed which is of great concern to London universities and the capital grant which is currently distributed on a formula basis will become a competitive bidding process, reversing policy of the last few years which moved away from competition as part of the development of the Better Regulation regime.

On the TEF, plans for subject-level assessment are not to be taken forward but there will be new quality measures particularly around graduate outcomes and retention, and a new grading system is proposed with grades 1 to 4 replacing the current bronze, silver, gold, in order to create greater differentiation across the sector and to identify poor provision.

Finally, PQA is a fundamental change to how students apply to universities and has been on the cards for several years. There are two options for the consultation: one where applications and offers are made when results are known, possibly with changes to the start of the university year and one where applications happen as now, with offers being made when results are known. We very much favour the latter option, which seems both the most pragmatic for universities and most fair to students, acknowledging that either will necessitate major changes to our recruitment and admissions processes.

So there is much to consider in the external HE environment as we develop our university strategy and respond to these new imperatives. The balance of activity between FE and HE is at the heart of the proposals and will be the subject of much debate, as will the impact of the proposals on equality and inclusion.

What is clear is that skills for employment, levels of graduate employment, the value of a degree and teaching quality as measured through outcomes will be more important than ever and that we must work together at some pace to improve our standing on all these measures.

Thinking ahead

It is only February, but the snowdrops are out, and my thoughts have turned to Spring and planning what I will grow in the greenhouse. Also, I find myself dreaming of day trips and walks in the Cotswolds or a Norfolk beach – hopefully soon!

Current Faculty developments

I am delighted to share that the Faculty of Education and Sport is changing its name to the Faculty of Education, English and Sport. Additionally, the School of Education and English Language will become the School of Education and English. These changes will be from 1 September 2021.

The proposed new Faculty title better represents the provision in the Faculty. The change in title embraces the three main subjects in the Faculty (Education, English and Sport).

The Faculty has a substantial amount of English provision, and three Schools/Centres have English as central to its provision:

• School of Education and English Language (SEEL)
• Centre for English as a Foreign Language (CEFL)
• Centre for Research in English Language Learning and Assessment (CRELLA)

The Faculty has a substantial number of students studying an English related course and many staff who have English as a specialism and work on courses with this subject focus. We also have research in this subject area, with CRELLA being our largest Research Institute. Additionally, English Literature recently joined the Faculty, and there are now plans to further develop English as a key subject area.

Thank you for assessment work completed

I end my blog with a thank you, and given the time of year, my thank you is for the incredibly hard work of the academic and professional services teams in marking assessments and managing our Boards. It is the collective team effort that creates our success, so thank you to everyone for your work on this. This has been an incredibly busy time, and I know how much assessment work my own teaching staff have completed – thank you!

March is the month when Spring brings new hope, a chance for change, and new beginnings. This year I have noticed the signs of spring much more keenly, the snowdrops in the hedgerows and the birds singing seem to be more visible. Indeed, this year there seems to be an added poignancy to these indications of Spring as we also have hope for a route out of lockdown.

March is also a month marked by days of professional celebration, including International Women’s Day on 8 March and, for my profession, it is International Social Work Day on 15 March.

I have been asked to give a lecture to mark International Social Work Day this year and the theme is Ubuntu. Whilst researching this theme, and preparing my talk, many things that I have been thinking about recently seemed to come together.

Ubuntu is a South African word meaning “I am because we are”.  It is also a philosophy that stresses the importance of interdependence and the view that everything we do is linked to others. Archbishop Desmond Tutu in his book ‘No Future Without Forgiveness’ describes someone with Ubuntu as "open and available to others, affirming of others... has proper self-assurance." It speaks to the fact that we are all connected, and that one can only grow and progress through the growth and progression of others. Certainly, then, something to aspire to.

As part of my role in thinking about our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, I have been talking to my colleagues Professor Judith Lamie (Interim Pro VC International) and Sue Shutter (Director of HR) about how we generate and foster a sense of belonging. I have no doubt that the importance of celebrating everyone who is a part of the University of Bedfordshire as individuals and our interconnectedness will be crucial to its success.

At a Faculty level, I have been holding discussion forums to mould our Strategy for success. The talent, ambition and ideas emerging have been impressive. 

Commitment to the values of mutual respect, empathy, social justice and inclusivity have been features of all my discussions about our teaching, research and student experience. What has also shone through is that we are all interconnected and that good ideas can and do emerge from tiny beginnings if we approach conversations with openness and appreciation.

So, as we move towards warmer and longer days, out of lockdown and begin to be part of wider conversations about the direction of the University, I have a sense of hope for the future. I am sure the success of this will only be strengthened if we can capture the sentiment behind the phrase Ubuntu.

As we leave winter behind and the days become longer, this year we look forward to Spring more than ever before. In addition to Covid vaccinations and relaxation of lockdown, we shortly have our first Graduation Ceremonies of 2021 held on 25 March. Each graduation ceremony is the culmination of every student’s personal journey and it allows us a time to celebrate their success with family, friends and staff following all their hard work and sacrifice. Our ceremonies in March will continue to be held online, however the joy and hope for the future in the faces of our graduates remains evident as it appears on our computer screens thanks to the hard work of many including the staff in our Graduations Office.

On 22 February in his statement at the coronavirus press conference, the Prime Minister announced that schools and colleges across England would reopen on 8 March. In addition, students on practical courses would be able to return to university adding to those courses training critical workers. All others were to continue online. In response, the Heads of School in the CATS faculty confirmed a prioritised list of units allowing students an opportunity to return to campus and engage with practical sessions and workshops. This was well received by all but particularly so by students on Creative Arts courses given the practical focus and the need for skills development that their courses require.

There was more good news on 3 March when the Chancellor announced his plan to inject £408m in additional funding to support the UK’s culture sector decimated by the impact of Covid-19 pandemic. More than £300m is to be added to the £1.57bn Culture Recovery Fund, with national museums receiving £90m in emergency funding before they are permitted to open on 17 May. Community cultural projects will receive £18.8m to support community libraries, museums and gallery spaces.  This boost to the arts coincides with a re-launch of Luton’s Strategy for Arts & Culture “Harnessing Momentum” later this month to which the university and the CATS faculty will continue make a significant contribution. It also coincides with the recent move of the Arts & Culture team including Ms Emma Gill and Ms Jitty Marwaha into the CATS faculty from CAP. This team recently secured investment of £250,000 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support cultural practitioners engaged in community heritage through capacity building opportunities and thus complement Luton's cultural ecology.

In recent years the University has supported over 9000 current and budding creatives to develop their resilience and sustainability, including helping 65 artists generate over £800,000 of investment for delivering local creative projects. We have also supported local artists to develop over 500 new collaborative partnerships across 14 interdisciplinary sectors and across 50 UK local authorities. Artist-led activity has also been supported by us to work in international contexts as well as through deep collaboration with 14 Luton schools.

The White Paper: Skills for Jobs was published in January and serves as an interim conclusion to the post-18 education and funding review known as the Augar Report of 2019. Further detail and consultation are to be expected over the coming months. Whilst the report recognised the strong contribution to the economy made by the creative industries sector and to society through careers in the arts and design, it questions whether the sheer number of students taking Creative Arts and Design and Social Studies represents good value for taxpayers’ money based on these graduates’ predicted earnings.

As we now pass the first anniversary of Covid lockdown, how many of us – having watched more TV, movies and box sets than ever – cannot wait for the reopening of museums, galleries, theatres, live music venues, festivals and cinemas? We would not have any of these to enjoy without the dedication of Creative Arts graduates. Although we are indebted to the efforts of Medical, Healthcare and Science professionals in supporting us through the pandemic, we should also thank our Creative Artists and the Creative Industries for their positive social impact, helping our well-being, and supporting good mental health over the past year and as we move forward leaving lockdown behind.

When we left our offices in March 2020, I did not expect that a year later we would all still be working remotely. I think if you had asked me then if we’d have been able to keep our university up and running remotely for a whole year, I would have been very sceptical. It is a testimony to everyone’s hard work and determination that we continue to graduate cohorts of students from their online studies. 

I have found the last few months of lockdown the most difficult of all and speaking to staff I find that many of you have had a similar experience. I’m not sure whether this is due to being locked down in winter, the loss of Christmas with the family or just the accumulation of months staring at everyone on a Teams call! I suspect that it is a combination of lots of different things and for many of you the delights of homeschooling will have brought its own special joy….
 
I do feel that as we move into the spring there is a more positive mood. The vaccination programme is rolling out and those moments in Teams meetings where we chat before the meeting starts are now filled with folk discussing which jabs they’ve had and what their side effects have been. For the moment, we seem to be on track to come out of lockdown and although I don’t think it will be a straight path out, the figures on infection rates are very heartening at the moment.
 
I am at times mildly astonished at what we have all managed to achieve over the last year. I’m delighted by all the hard work from Jo Coward and her team to ensure that the SITS Change Programme is developed and delivery is underway coupled with a review of our timetabling operation which is also progressing. We have all simply; reviewed, adapted and carried on.
 
I’m invigorated by the fresh ideas and new ways of thinking that are a fundamental part of discussions in the senior team and I’m really enjoying the interactions that are part of the development of our strategic plan. Some really good ideas are coming out of those discussions. We know there is lots to do to improve what Bedfordshire offers but I’m confident we’re on the right track and am looking forward to being back on campus and working with you all face to face rather than via a screen.

It was great to be back on campus last week and seeing what needs to be done in preparation for further opening next month. There will still be Government guidelines to follow and the Facilities Team will be ensuring everything is as clean as possible on campus and refreshed where necessary. We are also busy looking at developing more branding and identity of place around our campuses to make everywhere more welcoming for the academic year in September.  

Turning now to home student recruitment for next year, the good news is we are ahead of this time last year and our competitor group. However, as always some areas are struggling and we are taking initiatives to boost these subject areas. There is also an urgent drive to ensure our website is showing our courses in the best possible light.  

Thanks to many areas of the University, our financial position is currently strong. This is allowing us to propose a number of estates improvements to our heating and ventilation systems and to the roofs of our buildings, all managed to reduce our carbon emissions. Furthermore, proposals on modernising our technology network, storage and servers, taking more into the cloud and improving our security. 

These investments will lay the foundations for sustainable campuses over the life of the new strategic plan, now being consulted on, and beyond. I look forward to discussing thoughts on how everyone thinks all these areas above should develop at the Conversation Café on Tuesday 27 April at 3 pm or from posts on the microsite.

Click here to share your thoughts on the new strategy through our online form.

Over the past few weeks, I have been fortunate enough to host, and participate in, a number of Conversation Cafés. They have all been stimulating with lively discussion and thought-provoking ideas and perspectives, proving to me that despite the physical distance between us at the moment, and the occasional technology glitch, it’s still ‘good to talk’.

The HE sector bodies, regulators, Government departments, think-tanks, research institutes and professional networks have also been busy disseminating information, updates, guidance and research findings on both staff and students experiences of HE during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The key messages appear to be that the ‘pivot’ to more technology-enhanced learning was, for most HEIs, an emergency measure and now needs to be reconsidered, alongside other forms of learning, teaching and assessment to determine what has been effective, what we would like to keep, what other elements in the blended model we need to review and what is no longer fit for purpose; all themes picked up in our Café conversations. 

It is not only formal teaching, learning and assessment that has been the subject of review and reflection. How educators are thinking about the range of skills students acquire during their time at university is also being discussed. Insights into how those with responsibility for curriculum and student development are thinking about skills development and the 'wider' student experience have implications for how we support our particular student demographic, particularly as the existing inequalities in access, participation, attainment and success are, in many instances, reported to have further widened as a consequence of Covid-19.

Several reports and commentators are increasingly concerned about ‘lost learning’ and how students experiences of learning during the pandemic are preparing them for higher level study. With our student population comprising of a high proportion of mature students and non-standard entry qualifications, we will need to consider carefully the different type of challenges these experience bring and how we can adapt and support our students to maintain their education and succeed.  

As a learning community, seeking out and disseminating information in order develop our own practice is second nature to us, but creating the conditions to support dissemination of learning (from our successes and failures) are also necessary to support change and for individual and organisational development.

So, thank you for sharing your experiences and suggestions in the Conversation Cafés. I have learnt a lot about the dreams and realities of education and student experience at the University of Bedfordshire and, together, we will be using these exciting and creative ideas to ensure our collective learning, and the enthusiasm with which these ideas have been shared, continues.

Universities play a vital role in the long term prosperity of the communities, cities and regions in which they are located and have an important role to play in driving forward the knowledge economy, providing countries with the opportunity to bridge their skills’ gaps and confront and combat the world’s greatest challenges. But educational institutions cannot, and should not, operate alone. They need to work collaboratively with businesses, agencies, communities and governments on a local, regional, national and international stage.

Partnerships and external engagement lie at the heart of the University. As part of our new strategy, we need to determine the extent of our ambitions for new and established partnerships both internationally and within the UK. We also want to develop our role as an anchor institution for the region, recognising our civic responsibilities and our contribution to the communities in which we are located and the employment sectors we serve.

Universities and colleges support their local area and communities in a number of ways. At a micro level, they boost employment. Universities are major employers in their own right, very often one of the largest in the area. Their benefit is not only through direct employment, but it is also through their supply chain. According to Universities UK, for every 100 jobs at a university, 117 are created in the wider economy. They increase spending in their locality, primarily through the students they bring in and they help train the very people that the community relies on – nurses, doctors, dentists and teachers. They connect their research to local priorities and can act as important advocates for their town, city or region.

The support that they give goes beyond economic benefit. They offer advice and guidance to local residents and provide facilities for the community, from free spaces for business start-ups to sports facilities for schools. There is a strong cultural impact; more than 100 university museums are open to the public across the UK, attracting nearly 4 million public visitors a year; universities hold free public lectures that are attended by more than 2 million people every year. They operate at the very heart of the local cultural community.

At the macro level, the civic role of universities is of course affected by national policy drivers. Brexit will be a major challenge for all in the UK, local communities, businesses and the higher education sector. There will be challenges associated with new trade deals, for large companies and for the supply chain, challenges as a result of changes in immigration regulation and challenges on the governance of local and regional economic development. The impact will be felt on all businesses from heavy manufacturing to the service industries.

With regard to education, the UK government has in theory committed to continued support for research funding, collaboration and exchange, through associate membership of Horizon Europe, but with the financial challenges placed on the government due to Covid-19, uncertainty remains and student and staff mobility will be severely impacted on with the withdrawal from Erasmus+, and even though a new Turing mobility scheme is being created this will only support limited outgoing student mobility. 

As the only university in our county, we take seriously the responsibility we have to drive the economic, social, cultural, education and environmental prosperity of the region. Working with others, and with the full commitment of our staff and students, we can raise aspirations and improve the education, skills, health and wellbeing of current and future generations across our region.

We can and do play an important part in positioning Bedfordshire as a key region on the national and international stage.

Planning some holiday time

In my last Blog, February 2021, I said that “I find myself dreaming of day trips and walks in the Cotswolds or a Norfolk beach – hopefully soon!” Well, that dream has become a reality and I have recently had a walking holiday in Dorset. It reminded me how important it is to have some time away from work, to think about and experience different things. I hope that you are planning some well-deserved holiday and fun activities this summer.   

Thank you for your flexibility and adapting to change

At my recent Faculty Planning Day, my Faculty Executive Group (FEG) discussed our achievements and challenges this year. We all identified the hard work of our staff and our achievements in maintaining an excellent student experience in another challenging academic year. To all of my staff, and all staff across the University – thank you!

Current Faculty developments – spotlight on The Sports Partnership Department

The Department, which joined the Faculty of Education and Sport in December 2020, is changing its name. From 1 September 2021 it will be called:

University of Bedfordshire Sport

Promoting active lifestyles for all

Supporting wellbeing and promoting active lifestyles is central to our vision. As part of a review and re-launch of the Department for the academic year 2021/22, we are enhancing our support for activities related to health and wellbeing. I am delighted to share that VCEG has given approval for the Get Active Programme to be offered free to all University of Bedfordshire students and staff from the academic year 2021/22.

What does the University of Bedfordshire Sport provide?

• Get Active Programme for staff and students – free from 1 September 2021
• Aspire gyms on the Luton and Bedford campuses for staff and students
• Coordinated sports opportunities within satellite campuses 
• Competitive Sport offer
• Representation in British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) and varsity competitions
• Governing Body Ambassador roles for students
• Volunteering opportunities in sport
• Sports sponsorship
• Sports Scholarships Scheme
• Sporting National Governing Body courses
• Owned and contracted sports facilities
• Partnership working with Bedford Blues RC and Luton Town FC
• Host to national level sport
• Annual graduate post
• Employment and upskilling of students through employment within the department
• Employment opportunities with local partnered companies 

More information on the university's 2021/22 Get Active Programme will be released soon!

Thursday nights during lockdown were, for many, an opportunity to clap for carers. Frontline workers were celebrated for their contribution to the country. Nurses, social workers, midwives and paramedics became people we looked up to and admired. For the first time in my career neighbours and friends were curious about my profession and what I was doing to support the nation’s response to the pandemic. The response from staff and students in our Faculty to the pandemic has been immense and a huge thank you must go out to all of them as they have adapted and changed to the challenges faced.

As a consequence of all this publicity careers in the helping professions have become attractive as has the academic study of policy and research to address social and health inequalities.

A perfect opportunity for the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences. That is certainly true but with that opportunity comes challenges that we need to address.

These challenges need careful consideration if we are to have students equipped to address a repeat of the pandemic.

Questions are numerous and include:

• How do we make sure that students are educated alongside frontline professionals and are kept safe and their learning assured?
• How do we make sure we can teach practical skills online and still give students the opportunity to learn relationship-building skills and compassion and care when we are having to socially distance?

We have learnt a lot about what works. Technology has been rapidly deployed to help teach student midwives through videos how to care for a newborn and social work students have honed their skills in virtual interviewing and assessment. We have also developed virtual placements with the opportunity for inter-professional working made more possible. Students in the social sciences have seen how the study of their social and health inequalities can contribute to help solve real life problems.

Effective education of those in the helping professions is not just about theoretical knowledge. Exploring emotions, building relationships and developing resilience is nigh on impossible to learn online, as is the teaching of fundamental skills in nursing. So we do need to ensure that students have the opportunity to learn in person face to face.

The challenge for our Faculty will be to take the successes and gains we have made in online learning and ensure that the time we have face to face is maximised to prepare our future frontline professionals to be compassionate, caring, agile, responsive and resilient.

If we do that well it will be something more to celebrate.

I’m typing this blog at my makeshift workstation at home looking out into a sunlit garden. It doesn’t seem so long ago that I was looking out on several inches of snow. The sunshine is very welcome, and it makes a difference being able to spend more time outdoors now the weather is fine. The relaxation of some of the restrictions has also been very welcome, re-connecting with friends and family has certainly lifted everyone’s spirits. It feels like we’re turning a corner and although there will still be some obstacles to overcome, there’s a sense that we’re not far from a ‘new normal’. I’m a real sports fan and it has been good to see fans back in the stadiums supporting teams, the England football fans seemed to have a good time though probably not those who turned up to watch England cricket. 
 
At the University too, there is a real sense of a fresh beginning. The new ‘Transforming Bedfordshire’ strategy is starting to take shape based on the excellent feedback from the Conversation Cafes. Underpinning projects are developing and starting to roll out. The SITS change programme is focusing on the registration task for the students arriving in September. Our timetabling review is coming to an end and I’m eager to see what the recommendations are for us to work on. We’re running an exams pilot over semester three to consider the future of online exams but also to support the infrastructure of exams such as making sure that our exam papers are managed efficiently. The projects underpinning the delivery of our Access & Participation Plan are rolling out and it will be good to see what impact they have on student engagement and success. The Student Experience team have been working hard on gathering information from our APP target groups on the reasons why they struggle to maintain their studies and that has made interesting reading. Colleagues will now work on how to translate that intelligence into activities to support those students. 
 
There is so much happening that I’m really excited about, and I’m looking to what we can achieve together in the new academic year.

Among the many strange experiences I have had over the past 18 months, the experience of being on the Luton campus pretty much on my own has been one of the strangest.

You might think that it would be a quiet experience, but empty buildings have their own lives when we are not there: automatic windows open and close; lights hum; voices from reception carry all the way to the third floor; water flushes through pipes and, so lovely, the voices of children in the nursery next door rise into the building as a reminder of life outside.

I have walked the building when it was empty, finding spaces new to me: corridors that don’t seem to go anywhere; spaces that once had a purpose but are now just spaces; signage that doesn’t quite work; temporary notices still stuck on doors (Blu-Tack!);  noticeboards heralding events that never happened. In some offices, through the glass panel, I could see evidence of an orderly exit in the first lockdown. In others, coffee cups still sat on desks and the everyday business of a working office lay abandoned, all very Marie Celeste.

I found myself wondering how I would know I was in a university, what explicit and subliminal messages we are giving about who or what we are, our community, our aspirations, our values. All of these contribute to creating a sense of belonging for our students and staff. I sensed that those messages are unclear or missing, yet they matter a great deal. You will see some changes soon on both main campuses as we work to ensure that our physical environment reflects our vision and purpose for the university.

Of course buildings and spaces don’t define a university. They are the backdrop against which the life of the university is played out, where our community develops. We need voices back on our campuses, not just those of happy children, but the everyday sounds of people engaged in the work of the university, being together, doing what we do best. Let’s make a joyful noise.

Listen more and talk less, a statement I recently read as advice for white people in Black History Month.

It’s true that Black History Month is a time to celebrate Black people’s contribution to the world and not a time for white people to take up space, but this is not a reason to do nothing at all.

Reading, listening and continuing to educate ourselves about the contribution of Black people to British society is something David Olusoga talked about in his recent talk as part of our ‘Proud to be Black’ campaign to mark Black History Month. 

So my commitment for this month is to read and watch as much as I can to educate myself about the contribution of Black academics in my own discipline and to watch more films and read more literature from Black writers and screen writers.

Talking less and listening more is good advice.

Spotlight on the Bedford Campus

This year part of my planning for Welcome involved working closely with our estate's team and my Faculty Executive Group to ensure that the Bedford Campus was ready for a staff and student return to on-campus teaching. Many improvements to the Bedford Campus have been made, these include:

Four newly refurbished and repurposed specialist teaching rooms

H Block Sensory Centre

Creation of a specialist sensory building for the teaching of Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Early Years Courses across two Schools in the Faculty. It opens directly onto the Forest School, which supports outdoor learning and play, and provides a range of outdoor sensory experiences.

L Block, Science Labs

Reconfiguration of a specialist building used for teacher training courses including PGCEs in Biology, Chemistry and Physics, as well as short courses. This development has resulted in a refurbished science lab and a newly created Design and Technology (D&T) and Art practical working space.

P0.81 Strength and Conditioning gym

Creation of a new gym space for the teaching of Sports Therapy and for Strength and Conditioning courses in the School of Sport Science and Physical Activity (SSPA).

P.31 Community Exercise Clinic

Creation of a new clinic space for staff and students in SSPA, who run exercise clinics working with people in the local community. This includes individuals directed to an exercise programme for those with Type 2 Diabetes by a local Diabetes Support Group, and patient referrals from the Oncology Department at Bedford Hospital. The Space is also used as the studio for the university’s free exercise programme ‘ Get Active’ which offers free lunchtime and evening classes to staff and students, in activities such as yoga, Pilates and Zumba.

Impact

All of these developments are to enhance the staff and student experience.  Three of these spaces are now on timetable and being used for teaching and learning, and to showcase our campus and courses at Open Days.

The H Block Sensory Centre is still in development, both the internal and external spaces. It will be ready for Semester 2 teaching. We have colleagues from the School of Education and English and the School of Teacher Education planning how best to use the space.

Putting Beds SU and UoB Sport at the heart of the campus

Relocation of Beds SU

The Beds SU office has moved to a more central location on campus, it is now in the Campus Centre. Already we have received positive feedback on its improved visibility.

Relocation of University of Bedfordshire Sport

The UoB Sport office is moving to the Hub space in P Block. Although final moves are still taking place, this has increased the visibility of UoB Sport at Bedford. It will also provide easier access to the Hub space for activities and events such as e-sports.    

Thank you!

Thank you to all of the people involved in creating a campus in which we want to work and study.  There are too many names to mention, however, I must recognise the outstanding work of Alan Burch, who led the four projects, in what was a challenging year. 

We have had an event to celebrate our new teaching spaces. The official opening will be later this semester when all works are completed.

Meet Dr Julie Brunton our new Pro Vice Chancellor (Education and Student Experience). Julie took up her new role in September after having previously been at Sheffield Hallam University where she was Associate Dean Teaching, Learning and Student Experience.

Julie brings a wealth of experience to her role after having led on similar portfolios across three different institutions in the UK, internationally and at both single-site and multi-site universities. 

We caught up with Julie to find out how she's settling in and how it feels to be at Beds. 

"Bedfordshire is a very inspiring place to work, staff are working so hard to make the student experience the best they can and that is exciting to be part of." 

While at Bedfordshire Julie will be working to "develop the Education and Student Experience Strategy for the University and all the related plans linked to this such as improving student satisfaction, retention, attainment and graduate outcomes." She will also be responsible for leading on overseeing all our UK partnerships with FE Colleges and other organisations where we have links.

Although Julie is still new to the University she's excited to hit the ground running and begin transforming our student experience and improving Bedfordshire's league table position. 

"I'm excited to work with the staff and students to transform the University Education and Student Experience performance and metrics and in doing so, improve our position in university league tables. As part of this I’m excited about making a difference to the student experience, both within their course and the wider student life." 

"I had an excellent student experience myself and know the benefits and enjoyment that it can bring so I’m motivated to try and enable the student experience to be great in the different ways that different students would like as we know one approach will not serve all."

On 13 September the Faculty of Creative Arts Technology and Science completed a reorganisation. This involved restructuring three of our Schools - Art and Design, Culture and Communications, and Media and Performance to create one School of Arts and Creative Industries. This was the culmination of a lengthy consultation process that involved staff, unions and students, each of whom contributed to the outcome.

The Creative Industries were first defined in 1997 to describe companies based in the Creative Arts that significantly contribute to the British economy and employ large numbers of people. In response to their demand for graduate employees, many HEIs significantly revised their curriculum and course portfolios in the creative and cultural arts. Typically, their new curriculum content embraced and embedded computer-based technologies and business skills required by the creative economy.

Our 2-year Faculty Operating Plan placed an emphasis on improving recruitment and graduate outcomes. By creating a clearer identity and further development of our course offer, we look to improve student recruitment, strategic alignment and the development of courses alongside other specialisms in the faculty that better meet skills gaps in the Creative Industries sector.

Consolidating our provision in the Creative Arts into a single School will better facilitate the development of our course portfolio and delivery to align with the expectations of prospective students and graduate employers who form the Creative industries. 

The reorganisation was designed to ease the administrative burden of multiple activities such as periodic review, portfolio executive committee meetings, staff meetings and exam boards. Importantly, the change also aimed to simplify the development and marketing of the course portfolio needed to ensure that our courses meet the needs of the Creative Industries sector and in turn ensure that we can better meet the needs and career aspirations of our current and future students

John F Kennedy once said “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future”.

As we have each found through the Covid pandemic, we have all had to adapt to change. Not only can we adapt, but typically we adapt well and come out stronger from the experience. However, many of us dislike change and we can often be resistant to it. Change is an irresistible force in nature and however challenging, we should try to embrace it as it provides opportunity.  We should note that the quote does not say that we should not remember or reflect on the past. Instead, it tells us that to do so will mean that we would risk missing the best of what’s to come.

Meet Professor Andrew Church our new Pro Vice Chancellor (Research and Innovation). Andrew took up his role in September after having previously been Associate Pro Vice Chancellor (Research and Enterprise) at the University of Brighton.

Andrew spent 20 years at the University of Brighton, beginning as a Professor of Human Geography before taking up the role of Associate PVC (Research and Enterprise) five years ago. During his time as an Associate PVC at Brighton Andrew gained invaluable experience in improving the scale, quality and impact of University research and will now be bringing that experience to bear at Bedfordshire.

As well as working to promote University research, Andrew is an active researcher himself, who publishes journal papers, supervises PhD students and attracts research funding. He is currently part of an interdisciplinary team funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and the Global Challenges Research Fund to undertake research into the economic, cultural and scientific aspects of faecal sludge management in off grid communities in Nepal, Ethiopia, Ghana and India.

We caught up with Andrew to find out how he’s setting in and what his plans are for research at Beds.

Andrew says: “In my first few weeks I’ve aimed to meet a wide range of staff and I’ve been made to feel very welcome. I’ve also been inspired by the commitment of the students I’ve met as they have had to deal with such immense disruptions to their personal lives and academic studies under Covid.”

“Outside of University life I’ve been taking the time to experience some of the cultural activities taking place locally including an exhibition in the Hat factory, a self-guided walk around Bedford and watching Luton Town.”

“I’m also delighted to have been asked to take part in and Evening with Jamal Edwards MBE where I will be co-hosting with two the elected representatives from Beds SU, Laura Tamara and Catalina Nita, as we will be discussing his life as a leading young entrepreneur. So already work at Bedfordshire is busy, stimulating and inspiring.”

Despite only having been here for a short time, Andrew is eager to work on building our relationships with outside businesses as well as local and international communities. Andrew said: “I was really attracted to this job as the work of the Pro Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation includes an exciting range of activities linked to engaging with our partners  including overseeing our apprenticeship programmes, strengthening our interactions with business and developing new forms of civic engagement with public and community partners in Luton, Bedford and internationally. I am looking forward to working with a wide range of University staff to develop new strategies, one for Research and Innovation and the other for Community Engagement.”

Taking on research and innovation is a big job, but Andrew says that the major positive impact that research can have on the world keeps him motivated. “Covid-19 has shown just how important University research, including work at Bedfordshire, is to the health and well-being of societies around the world. I’ve always been motivated by the belief that new knowledge generated by universities is fundamental to promoting fairness and justice, stimulating economies and tackling environmental degradation including biodiversity loss and climate change. I’ve been inspired by finding out more about how Bedfordshire has a strong reputation for creating knowledge that has impacts on some of the major challenges facing our world.”

“Bedfordshire is already known as a university that does cutting edge research in specific areas and for developing innovations that tackle social inequalities and improve people’s livelihoods in many different countries. My ambition is to develop new programmes and initiatives that ensure staff and postgraduate research students feel their research and innovation is valued and celebrated and that they have the resources they need to expand their high quality research. I also want to work closely with the Research and Innovation services team and the Research Graduate School to generate additional funding to support research, expand postgraduate research and strengthen our relationships with a wide range of partners.”

Adrian Dutch is our new Pro Vice Chancellor (International), having taken up the position in October. 

Since entering the education sector with City University London – where he founded the university’s International Office – over ten years ago, he has held positions such as Head of Marketing, Head of Student Recruitment and Director of International.

We checked in with Adrian to see how he’s settling into life at Beds and to find out how he plans to use this vast experience to enhance the International strategy at the University.

“Firstly, it’s good to be back on campus. After a year and a half of working from home I had convinced myself of the benefits of remote working, but it’s been great to be working face-to-face with people again, and to be around students.

“It’s probably been good for my health to be climbing a few stairs as well! The people are very friendly and welcoming here, it has been a really positive experience so far.

“In my new role at Beds I hope to draw on my varied background. Although my degree was in Engineering, I actually started my career in advertising at Saatchi & Saatchi, which back then was the biggest and best known ad agency in the world. Since then I have worked in Poland, where my eldest daughter was born, and Turkey, before returning to the UK to work for companies such as Reed and Getty Images.

“I joined City University London in a marketing capacity, eventually moving into the recruitment side of the institution with a concentration on international students. I’ve loved working in Higher Education so far, and I am passionate about the role that post-92 Universities play in 21st century education, having been a product of Sheffield City Polytechnic – now Sheffield Hallam University.”

Adrian hopes to use his experience to build on the already successful international strategy in place here at Beds.

“International is one of the success stories at Beds. The International Office, and indeed everyone in the University, have done a tremendous job in building our profile and recruiting significant numbers of international students.

“What I hope to do is to build on that success, increasing the diversity of the countries our students come from, the diversity of courses they come onto, and also diversifying the income streams that generate revenue for investment in the University, such as Summer Schools, Study Abroad, TNE and overseas partnerships.

“I also want to ensure that our international students are well looked after and their particular needs well catered for, and also that all of our students have opportunities for international experience, as we know that this can have a hugely positive impact on their employability.”

For Adrian, these goals are helped by the undeniable potential of the University and the excellent team that is already in place for him to work with.

“We have a great campus in Bedford that doesn’t have that many international students currently but would have great appeal to certain overseas audiences. We have some fantastic courses that also should be getting more attention from prospective international applicants. Whether it’s the research we’re doing, or the facilities we have, there is just untapped potential everywhere really!

“I hope I can tap into this by listening, and also by helping to solve problems or clear obstacles. I have a great team here at Beds so mainly I just want to ensure I’m helping them to do what they need to do.

“Early on in my career my manager gave me the following guidance: ‘Be the manager you wish you had. Be the colleague you wish you had. Be the employee you wish you had. And try to solve more problems than you create.’ If I can do that, it’ll be a start.”

My home is in Kent, near to my elderly parents, so one blessing about being in lockdown has been the loss of the daily commute to Luton. I’m very glad that I made the last minute decision to take my desktop computer home with me, I’ve been able to set up a workstation pretty similar to the set up I have in my office.  

I’ve commandeered the dining room table and stationed it in the front room of my home looking out over the main street of the village where I live. I didn’t quite think this through carefully enough as being in this room means that my 2 dogs are within earshot and my noisy Norwegian Elkhound has made her presence felt in one or two meetings over the course of the last few weeks. My other dog is a Labrador who is too busy snoozing on the sofa to interrupt any meetings.

I was anxious that the first couple of weeks of lockdown would be quite chaotic as we adapted to new systems and ways of working. It went so smoothly, odd glitches here and there but on the whole it was excellent. Staff at Beds have been amazing.

I chair the planning group that organised the detail of us moving off campus and we’re busy at work now figuring out how we might return. The level of co-operation and ‘can do’ has been seriously impressive.  

I passed my one year anniversary at Bedfordshire at the beginning of May and I know I made the right decision to accept my post here.

There is something rather special about the way that staff here really believe in what they’re doing and work so well together to make things happen.

It’s easy to be cynical about working life but we should acknowledge our strengths and we’ve shown just how good we can be in the way that we’ve coped with this difficult time.

It feels very strange to be in the little village where I live during the week as I’m usually absent from early in the morning to late in the evening.

Like many of you I’m concerned for my parents who both have underlying health issues so I’ve been doing their shopping for them so they can both stay at home. I’ve learnt to love the queuing system at Tesco!

When higher education is challenged to explain how it matches up against other types of post-secondary education, it regularly cites its capacity to develop higher-order thinking skills and the confidence of thought, idea and action that comes from thorough enquiry and sound evidence. And we often cite the final-year dissertation or project as the culmination of our efforts to develop learner independence in exercising these skills.

We know that with these projects we have moved far from the historical priority to develop the next generations of academic researchers. We are preparing graduates who can identify the potential and the need for change, who are both creative and careful in scoping that change, and who have the drive and the skills – soft and hard - to make it happen, and to make it stick. Perhaps it has never been clearer that than it is right now just how important these skills and attributes are.

But those who supervise these final-stage dissertations and projects know also that they have a responsibility to help their students succeed in a competitive graduate careers market by achieving the best degree outcome possible. They must make sure that their supervisees don’t over-reach, or go off the methodological rails that lead to a good grade, even if ensuring this limits the ambition or scale of their project. How do they do this? How do supervisors balance the expectations placed upon them in their supervisory practice – to deliver a satisfactory immediate outcome, and at the same time to develop their supervisees’ autonomous learning and research?

I have not been idle in these locked-down weekends of beetroot growing (the only seeds I could lay my hands on at the end of March, so now searching for pickling jars and stain remover). In research to be published soon, I suggest that supervisors compartmentalise their task into three stages. Initially, they take a significant role in shaping a student’s research question and plan, ensuring as far as possible that each supervisee chooses a subject and a research method that gives them good opportunity to succeed. Only once the scene is set, do supervisors change gear and allow their supervisees more or less of the independence that is a documented hallmark of this particular learning experience.

In recent weeks of rapid academic policy-making we have made some positive changes that have the potential to stick and become new ways of working for us. Some of our students have had to adjust their academic projects to make sure they deliver something rigorous but realistic in the face of sudden obstacles to their research. Perhaps it is time to look again at the honours project and think about how we take and manage the risk of making it more completely and transparently an opportunity to learn the skills of planning, re-planning, and persisting with changed plans that are the hallmark of research, and of making things happen.

As I'm sure many are finding, the days are busier than ever dealing with both the current issues and then planning for different scenarios on returning to campus. 

I do miss the interactions on campus which add a dimension that is just not possible on Zoom and Teams. Having said that, online meetings are a lifeline for us and it is great they are working well. We have certainly put them to the test over the last few months, and although not ideal, we have managed to successfully hold interviews for a couple of key staffing posts within the Resources area.

My day is full of working with the Executive, Estates, Finance and IT teams, ensuring all areas are in good shape for the challenges we have. 

Estates issues on returning to campus, relocating to a new campus in Milton Keynes, student accommodation matters.

Finance issues - having a very good current year but significant uncertainties for next year - lots of scenario planning for the Executive and Governors - we are on Scenario Z!

IT issues with ensuring all systems are fully up and working, as we are so online dependent now, and making sure we are safe from phishing attacks - do watch out everyone! 

So another day swiftly passes, too much screen time, must go for a run - do some exercise and remember to switch from work to home! 

Some of you may know I have three grandchildren. The eldest is age seven, attending primary school. Impossible I hear you say but true, nevertheless. As we at Bedfordshire moved the university to remote delivery, schools shortly followed and, as many of you know, the need to consider home schooling.

With her birthday on the horizon I took the opportunity to source a present that would not only provide some fun but also educational value. Following some online research (technology in practice) I came across a 'Make your own computer kit' by Kano at a discounted price. I draw your attention to the fact that this product is marketed for ages 6+.

The online transaction completed, I awaited the reports about how it might have inspired a future tech entrepreneur. It was about this time that the Space X rocket launched in the US and it brought back memories as I reflected how far we have come since the Apollo missions in the 1970s with the development of personal computers, tablet computers and mobile phones.

Indeed, these advancements in technology have allowed us to successfully move our entire portfolio online almost overnight enabling us to continue teaching our students, run examinations and exam boards and most aspects of our university business from home. Personal computing has come a long way from, a flashing C:> prompt and waiting an eternity for a tape recorder to stop screeching as it loaded a piece of software.

On one of our subsequent Facetime calls I enquired about what progress had been made with the present. I was told that it had arrived, that my granddaughter carefully followed the instructions, assembling the 5 pieces and connecting 2 leads. However, when powered up… nothing.

Undeterred, she announced, “Don’t worry, Grandad will fix it”.

Eventually I recovered the kit and following an appropriate period of isolation I looked to find the assembly error. There was none. I disassembled the parts, put them back together and... again nothing.

A small red light comes on but no signal on the TV. After a brief consultation with our Head of Computer Science and Technology we narrowed down the possible problem and I have ordered a new part to test our diagnosis.

I am confident that we will revive our Kano PC, but it reminded me that all technology has its problems. We must reflect on our successes with remote delivery and not focus on the inevitable hiccups along the way.

We may not always be able to fix problems immediately, but remain positive, and by working with the feedback from colleagues and our students, we will emerge from this time wiser and able to deliver blended learning opportunities and assessment strategies that might otherwise have taken years to embed. 

During this period of working from home I am working in a little bedroom that was already set up with a desk area (see picture below). I have adjusted things as I am in a lot of meetings, to make sure that the screen is at a good level.

I have now settled into a new routine. I typically start the morning early with a walk around the garden watering the plants. I then tell my husband I am off to work and then it is only a short climb up the stairs to the office. It seems amazing that I have not driven a car since the 20 March. 

My day is not too different – apart from meetings being online. I am in meetings 4-8 hours a day, a combination of Faculty, University, External and partnership.

Since working from home I have really enjoyed attending School/Team meetings online. Joining these meetings is something I will continue when we return to campus. Although it is nice to see staff online, one of the things I miss about being on campus is chatting to staff informally and having a 5 minute personal hello as you pass in a corridor. 

I speak to my Faculty Executive Group (FEG) every day and we are working very much as a team to support staff, who are doing an amazing job supporting students. All of us are working in different groups/teams and my key support groups are FEG, the Deans and VCEG. The strong sense of collaboration that we have when on campus continues as we work online, and one of the pleasures of working in education is a shared sense of purpose. 

As the VCEG member located at the Bedford Campus I work very closely with estates colleagues to manage the Campus. Now that we are putting in place more plans for campuses re-opening I am involved in more campus planning work with Alistair, Alan, Nici and Steph. This work I enjoy, as I think having a pride in our campuses is important for staff and students. Knowing that some campus developments that we had planned can go ahead is positive, forward looking and keeps me motivated.

The time has passed quickly, and I think this is because there has been much to do. However a lot of events have happened in this time, different for each of us, and that will be an important thing to recognise as we start to plan ahead.

During the early days of the lockdown, staff from the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences were extremely busy as we began to adjust to the changes we needed to make to all of our professional and academic courses. Response from staff to a change to online teaching has been impressive.

Colleagues worked hard to ensure that students on placement could either pause this element of their studies or complete them safely. This was when everything was changing on a near hourly basis and a lot of effort was made by all to ensure we met the requirements of the professional regulators and at the same time, endeavoured to prioritise student and staff wellbeing. 

Many of the Faculty’s Nurses, Social Work, Midwifery, Paramedic and Operating Department Practitioner students have worked through the pandemic and lots of other students have also worked in care homes and in other key roles. I have been overwhelmed by their efforts and forbearance of us as we adjusted to the new challenges and opportunities.

It has however been a time of sadness for many of our colleagues and their friends and many people’s lives have been changed irrevocably during this time. The support offered by staff to those facing bereavement and ill health has been impressive to see.

On a personal note, just before the lockdown, my Mum came to live with us, which has been a blessing. I live in North Buckinghamshire and connecting with the countryside and my garden has been really beneficial to my wellbeing and I have felt truly grateful.

I have also started running again and am on week 9 of couch to 5k which I have enjoyed. Unfortunately the benefits have been somewhat undone by my love of baking and the amount of cake that has been consumed during the lockdown.

Like many of you, I have really missed seeing my friends, adult children and colleagues. I have disliked staring at myself on camera for seven hours a day and not being able to make real and meaningful connections with people. However, new connections have been possible. Our Faculty Executive Group met daily at the start of the lockdown and has continued to meet every other day. This has helped us to touch base with each other and to share ideas. I think we have become much closer as a Team and have worked well to address any issues that have arisen.

I have also enjoyed virtual coffee meetings and whole faculty meetings - with two meetings being joined by in excess of 120 people. I doubt that in “normal” times this many people would have been able to physically to get together at any one time. Doing things remotely has enabled some improved communications and it is important that we maintain this.

But for me I can’t wait to bake a cake(s), bring it to work and share it with all my colleagues in the Faculty as a way of properly reconnecting. 

I live in Northampton, 38 miles from our Luton campus, and pre pandemic I have regularly struggled through the chaos on the M1 due to motorway expansion, spending at times three hours travelling from home to our campus. There has also been a lot of overseas travel to achieve our ambitious International and EU recruitment targets for 2019/20.

The lockdown has stopped all travels which has given me more time to work without traveling and the complications of jet lag, delays or traffic jams. As a result, productivity has increased, communication has become more timely and efficiency gained. Thanks to technology, I and my teams have been able to reach out more, not less, than before the lockdown.

My day starts early, the first couple of hours are usually spent on catching up and responding to emails accumulated overnight from around the world ending up with responding to WhatsApp, WeChat, Viber messages from regional offices, link institutions, agents, students and applicants.

After breakfast, I spend most of the early mornings meeting with senior colleagues of the University and then I get in touch with my teams who are in my areas of responsibilities to make sure colleagues are well and work is progressing as planned.

My teams (IO, MARC and CAP) are used to working collaboratively and creatively together to achieve goals and business objectives so you would think that lockdown and homeworking might cause us to grind to a halt. However, this is not the case at all, and if anything, collaborative and creative flair has multiplied. We have learnt a lot working independently away from campus but pulling together to achieve our targets.  

We had to think very quickly and creatively about how we would continue to deliver our high standards of service to our home and overseas enquirers, partners, agents as well as our internal stakeholders. This included moving all of our on-campus events online for Home applicants. For International and EU applicants, we have been running regular agent training sessions and arranging webinars for new applicants. We have been offering a near to normal admissions service whilst the world stayed at home.

Since the closedown of our campuses, we have registered 475 new international PG students for the year 2019/20 adding £6 million plus to our income. We also continue to receive increased numbers of international applications and deposits for September intake, a total of 10,280 applications have been received against 3917, deposits received are 94.48% up compared to the same point in time last year. 

What has pleased me most is that the hard work we have put into to developing Beds brand overseas over the past 10 years has worked well even during this lockdown. At this very difficult time, when most UK Universities are predicting a 50% drop in international registrations, we are forecasting to achieve our target for next year provided students are allowed to travel.

MARC staff have worked hard to deliver online open days and outreach seminars for our school and college feeders. The Web and Digital Team have done a great job to support stakeholders across the University as the need for digital content spiked in demand overnight. FTUG conversion is currently about 15% behind last year, but in line with sector expectations as applicants are making later decisions. Plans are well underway to deliver a COVID safe clearing operation this summer where we hope to make up much of this shortfall to achieve our target.

CAP staff are doing very well with regularly staying in contact with all our UK and International partners, to help them to transfer their provision online and seeking internal approvals. We have also started to work on a new strategy to further improve our working relationship with our biggest partner LSC, I am really pleased to report that so far things have moved in the right direction. 

We might be doing things in a different way but we have been outreaching, efficient and flexible and by supporting each other, we are confident we will meet our objectives and achieve our targets for next year and hope to maintain some of these new ways of working in the new normal.

When I made my first briefing to our Faculty way back in March – it seems that way doesn’t it –  after week one of working away from campus I talked about our priority being to allow our students to meet their aspirations and thinking about what we would want a University to do for our children. I rightly applauded the dedication, commitment and resilience demonstrated by all of our staff and how proud I was of them. My admiration has not diminished one bit since that week.

As the weeks went by my FEG colleagues (many of them new to their role) kept up a magnificent stream of training and support placing our arms around our dedicated HPL staff and maintaining the sense of community and togetherness of staff in difficult and uncertain times at a professional and personal level.

We tried to keep in our sights the individual behind the professional as we heard of illness amongst our staff and some of our students, isolation and in a small number of cases death amongst our student community. Staff lost family members during this period. We mourned with them but critically, we carried on and got better at our online model of delivery. Staff shared their successes and although student from time to time naturally needed steadying, we were all uplifted by equal numbers of students thanking us for our work.

As we entered a mature phase of the lockdown, I talked of the importance of achieving calmness ad connectivity to allay fears and the importance of maintaining a sense of purpose as to our task and staying focused in our endeavours for our students as they approached the critical phase of assessment and, in some cases, degree defining outcomes. At the same time, we were trying to maintain the shape of our extended student communities through partnerships and maintaining admissions to our PGT block delivery courses which we believe is key to the Faculties sustainability. Our staff and staff around the University have done that admirably.

This brings me to where we are right now. I know that the work undertaken by staff has been   unique and at a unique time in our lives. I think there may still be lingering beliefs that it was nice and easy working from home. Well there have been some benefits. I have really appreciated spending more time with my three children. They have been brilliant during lockdown and I am proud of them. Mostly home schooling has been a pleasure!

I have learnt no new skills, I’ve not got any fitter, but I have done a lot more cooking and cleaning! Time to take stock of what is important in life perhaps. But seriously, isolation in some cases has created less than ideal home working conditions for staff. Only now are we realising the intensity, tiredness and fatigue that has crept up on us all.

As I said at Easter, I do hope staff will now be able to take a much-deserved rest during the summer period that is now upon us. We as the Senior Leadership Team are committed to supporting our staff to take that rest.

We all need to professionally and personally refresh with our families to address the challenges that we will face for the new academic year ahead. I think we can do so with confidence. We have honed new skills and become much more flexible in our approach to work and teaching in general, but perhaps most of all, I sense a greater sense of community amongst our staff. A sense of purpose and greater strength and resilience going forward. This will serve us well.

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Firstly, I hope that everyone has managed to take some much needed leave and time away from the computer. This year my holiday was walking and cycling day trips from home, much needed exercise to ensure that I fit into my work clothes!

As we move our focus to the AY 2020/21, I think it important that over the summer we reflect on our successes in AY 2019/20, as much was achieved. I am really looking forward to our online graduations and seeing staff and students celebrate together. This always marks the end of an academic year and provides time for us to reflect on the positive impact we have had on the lives of our students, providing them with the foundations for their future careers.

To my teaching teams – thank you, for the learning opportunities that you provide and for the care and support that I see every day.

I had my graduation rehearsal with Eleanor this week, and I would like to thank Eleanor and the team for everything they are doing to ensure that we have a special, but different, celebration event.

Many staff will be reading this during a quiet moment of Clearing – if there is such a thing I can imagine Bob, David, MARC and the IO team thinking. Thank you everyone for all of your recruitment work. We all know how important it is to start the year with good student numbers. Bob, David and Beverley have had many emails from me recently, so I can imagine how many questions and queries they have dealt with in the last few weeks.

As the VCEG member located at the Bedford Campus, estates colleagues are keeping me up to date with campus developments. This week Nici and Steph gave me a tour of the Bedford Campus. A huge amount of work has been completed over the summer to prepare for our return, thank you F&E colleagues.

It was really nice to be on campus, and to see how the campuses have been prepared. It was pleasing to see that although it was different, and of course with an incredible amount of new signage, it still felt like the same campus. I've shared with you a few of the pictures taken during my visit.

It is impossible to thank all teams personally in this blog, but we all know that it is the collective team effort that creates our success, so thank you to everyone for your work in 2019/20.

I am looking forward to returning to campus in September and seeing in person friends and colleagues. Enjoy the rest of the summer period and come back refreshed for what I am sure will be a busy and exciting AY 2020/21.

I hope that each of you have found time to enjoy the wonderful summer sunshine, to rest and relax in order to restore your energy levels.

This week we begin our return onto campus and preparations for the start of the new academic year commence. This year there are many changes to get used to with temperature checks, new signage and arrows on the floor to assist our movement around the campus.

It reminds me of visits to a well-known Swedish department store only I am unsure if the canteen is now serving meatballs, hotdogs and gravlax! It is important to remember that are all these changes are in place to maintain our health and safety when on campus. 

Amongst the many changes that have taken place in recent months has been numerous upgrades to our teaching facilities.

In the CATS faculty this includes updates to the TV studio and installation of a new editing facility for our Media students. As I reflected on all the wonderful work that the investment will allow, I realised that each of us, in every waking moment, records live footage that is selectively edited to produce content that is stored as memories for later recall.

The new EditShare facility can easily handle hours and hours of digital data before storing to the final product into the cloud. In this way, edited content can be accurately downloaded on demand and faithfully reproduced.

Our colleagues in Psychology and Life Sciences can explain the biological basis of memory and why the editing and storage performed by our brains although wonderous is less reliable that EditShare.

Although we cannot complain this year, why does it seem that when we were young, summer days were always sunny, and the summer months seemed to last forever? It’s all in the editing.

Similarly, I believe that in time, thanks to the editing and recall performed by our brains, we will in the years ahead look back on 2020 selectively, maybe even fondly.

I hope that we will retain the very many positives and remember less well the inconvenience and worries that may have preoccupied our thoughts periodically in recent months.  

I hope that we will remember how well we managed, how it brought out the best in people and how all the changes we implemented were later adopted to deliver to us many improvements in the future. 

For me, September and the new academic year evokes feelings of new beginnings, and that is true of this year as well. Yes, it’s going to be different but there are still opportunities to look back and celebrate our achievements and also to look forward to what this year will bring.

The new academic year always starts with a treat; a trip to Paperchase, the purchase of new stationery and the smell of fresh paper, and this year is no different.

In the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences, we marked the transition from last year to the new with an all staff Faculty development day with over 80 staff. The theme of the session was “Looking forward; Moving out of Crisis into Bridges for the Future”.

The theme was inspired by the Royal Society of Arts' (RSA) future change frame work which was developed as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

RSA created a series of tools to help organisations consider how to make sense of the ways in which the crisis is changing the world as we are living through it (their guide can be accessed here).

It provides a toolkit for facilitating discussions about what activity has stopped or paused, which activities should or should not recommence, what activities we started or amplified, and whether they should continue. Its aim is to help organisations capture innovation and focus on new ways of doing things.

I presented this framework to the Faculty to get discussions started.

In response a series of word clouds were produced. Feedback started on what new things they have found helpful and what should be continued (Figure 1) and then things that have been missed and are now important to restart (Figure 2)

What is evident from Figure 1 below is that colleagues have really benefited from the use of technology to facilitate online meetings as well as greater use of blended learning methods. Inter-departmental activity and improved student contact was seen as notable advantages.

Figure 1

As shown below (Figure 2) colleagues do want to get back to meet students and have face to face contact. More opportunities for informal contact with colleagues on Campus is anticipated.

Figure 2

I have been on campus this week with my new stationery and I have really enjoyed the greater separation between work and home, as well as seeing my colleagues, at a safe distance of course.

I do however know that working online has facilitated opportunities for connections with a greater number of people than would have been possible in the past and I really want to build on this going forward.

Following a restructure, the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences starts the new Academic year planning the change to a three School structure.

We will have a School of Nursing, a School of Applied Social Sciences and a School of Society, Community and Health.

The changes give us new leadership, focus and opportunities to look forward to as well as capitalising on innovation required to meet the challenges COVID-19 throws at us in the coming year.

I am excited to address these challenges, to deliver a great student experience, to take the team on a year of innovation, learning and growth personally and professionally. So here’s to a new year and thanks to everyone for working so hard in the last one.