Author: Shaun Williams, Executive Director Engagement and Advancement
- Operating in Gold Command mode, UEB discussed a number of operational and campus issues as we prepare for the further return of students expected after Easter. We continue to plan to be open and ready for in-person teaching to resume from 12 April, however, this is of course subject to further Government decision and guidance around classroom-based teaching, which has been promised by the end of the Easter holidays. We will obviously update staff and students as soon as there is clarity.
- Regular testing will continue to be a key element of our COVID-secure measures, and all students – and staff who are attending campuses – are expected to participate. A key focus now is the additional testing arrangements which will be required for the return of significant numbers of students in a concentrated period of time. We are getting enormous support from our two regional Directors of Public Health, and further information will be provided over the coming days about the provision of lateral flow tests to students for a limited period to accommodate the large numbers. Staff testing will continue as previously, but all testing, except for staff who are required on site for work during this time, will be paused over Easter with test drop-off points closing on Friday 26 March at 18:00.
- The latest student and staff COVID cases dashboard was reviewed, which includes those students who are currently still living at home. Incidences in our own community continue to remain extremely low, as are case levels in Southampton, but we remain vigilant.
The meeting then reverted to normal UEB mode for the rest of the meeting:
- UEB received an update on the recent UK Government announcement that we will leave the Erasmus+ programme at the end of the 2021/2022 academic year with the new £100M Turing Scheme to support mobility. Great regret was expressed at the loss of access to the Erasmus+ programme, however there are clearly some opportunities for us to explore in the new scheme, including improving our strategic approach to exchange partners, and improving Widening Participation access to international mobility.
- UEB agreed a proposal to set up a Strategic Major Project to carry out reviews of our three Interdisciplinary Research Institutes – Institute for Life Sciences, Southampton Marine and Maritime Institute, and Web Sciences Institute. All three play hugely important roles within the University’s research and enterprise ecosystem, and with the REF 2021 submission completing shortly, and a new University Strategy being developed later this year, and with a changing external environment, the feeling is that now is the right time to review how each aligns with, and positively contributes to, the University strategy.
- There was a discussion about a proposal for a new model for our approach to the five Equality Charters to which the University is a signatory. These charters act as an important catalyst for transforming cultural and systemic change, and demonstrate and progress our commitment to equality and diversity at the University. To date the University has relied on a volunteer model to form Self-Assessment Teams who are largely responsible for the award application process. However, there is a recognition this approach may need to be strengthened further through creating a permanent core team to ensure we achieve the cultural change required to become the really inclusive community we aspire to be.
- There was a further update on the current sector consultations taking place around the USS pension scheme, and a reminder of the series of important update briefings for staff which are currently underway, and which UEB heard are proving useful. Finally, there was the regular review of the University Risk Register.