Author: Shaun Williams, Executive Director Engagement and Advancement
- UEB held its meeting this week for the first time in our Sir James Matthews building in the city centre. Members were very impressed to see the space available and the smart way in which it had been converted, and look forward to it becoming an ever-important component of our provision for students as part of our expanding city centre presence.
- UEB discussed a letter sent to higher education leaders by the Universities Minister Robert Halfon MP setting out the steps that all HE providers should take to participate in the National Review of HE Suicides, and urging strong engagement from the sector. The independent review will examine serious incident reports of suspected student suicides and nonfatal incidents of self-harm submitted by HE providers in England. It will assess the quality of reports, providing confidential feedback directly to providers, and identify common factors in these cases. A report for the whole sector with anonymised findings will be published by Spring 2025 outlining good practice and areas for improvement around suicide prevention in higher education.
- UEB was also briefed on a Coroner’s Regulation 28 Report to Prevent Future Deaths, which was published last week following an inquest last August into the tragic death of one of our students, Matthew Wickes, the previous year. We were all deeply saddened by Matthew’s death and our thoughts remain with his family, friends, and all those who knew and loved him. We hear and understand the Coroner’s concerns and are committed to providing our students with what they need to feel safe and supported during their time here, and continuing to evolve and improve the wellbeing support we provide. Many of the recommendations made by the Coroner have already been implemented, including putting in place the MyEngagement system which can highlight changing patterns of attendance at timetabled taught sessions, and which will help us identify those students who may need further support. We will be considering the report further and bringing a fuller response and any further actions needed to a future meeting of UEB, before responding formally to the Coroner.
- UEB also discussed the reports in last weekend’s Sunday Times about the recruitment of international students by a number of Russell Group universities, in which a number of allegations were made concerning some universities. UEB heard the report contained significant misunderstandings and inaccuracies which were being firmly rebutted by the Russell Group and Universities UK. Other elements, including concerns about inconsistent approaches by some international agents, have this week led to Universities Minister Robert Halfon MP announcing the launch of an investigation into allegations of bad practice. Our position is clear: we run International Foundation programmes for international students in a range of subject areas. These are academically challenging programmes and students must meet attainments equivalent to our standard entry requirements by the end of the programme in order to progress onto year one of their chosen degree programme. We monitor the academic rigour of these programmes carefully. Our admissions policies are transparent and international students play an important role in the life of our diverse community, with fees reinvested in providing high-quality education for all.
- UEB discussed the University’s formal position on formal and informal research collaborations with Russia and Iran, as well as other countries, institutions or individuals subject to sanctions by the UK, EU, US or UN. An exercise to review research relationships with high-risk institutions (including institutions based in Russia and Iran, as well as other geopolitical regions of concern) has been completed. Any formal partnerships have been terminated, and the University is clear and unambiguous that it does not permit informal research collaborations with Institutions in countries with UK sanctions, or where there are other research security risks. This would include collaborations that result in publications without a financial or other contractual relationship being in place. Where countries, institutions or individuals are subject to sanctions by other non-UK countries or bodies, UEB will keep a close eye on the relevant recommendations and their context. In all these cases, beyond those covered by UK sanctions where the situation is clear, if there is any doubt then it is strongly advised to seek advance clearance through the normal processes through RIS.
- UEB was briefed about an AI summit held at Southampton last week, convened by the Web Science Institute to join up more strategically our thinking on various aspects of AI. UEB warmly endorsed the initiative and looks forward to hearing more about the developing thinking ahead.
- UEB discussed and gave its strong support to a new proposal for a Centre for Green Maritime Innovation, a really exciting and ambitious initiative addressing a national issue. The transition to zero carbon shipping will radically reshape international maritime trade – and the positioning of all major players within it. But to maintain leadership the UK must invest in systems testing and scale up of effective maritime decarbonisation solutions. Our proposal, for which we are seeking significant investment, is a new national centre in Southampton that will accelerate the adoption of green maritime technologies and will unlock substantial economic benefits including inward investment and job creation for the UK. These will be realised through business growth, manufacturing and skills development that will place the UK at the centre of the green maritime revolution. UEB was very supportive of the proposal, which could become a flagship project for the University, and we look forward to seeing the business case and funding model develop further.
- UEB had a discussion about the development of a long-term parking and transport strategy, with sustainability at its heart, as part of our overall estates transformation. We recognise parking is a legitimate concern for many colleagues, but providing and encouraging greater use of sustainable transport is an important part of meeting our sustainability goals, which we know is deeply important to much of our community, as well as supporting Southampton City Council’s aim to reduce car usage in our city.