Staff can now purchase additional annual leave via our Staff Connect pages.
You can buy 35 hours of additional leave (pro-rata for part-time staff) to be taken between 1 July 2021 and 30 June 2022.
The closing date for applications is 30 June 2021.
Further information on the Additional Leave Purchase Scheme, including how to apply, is available here.
The University of Kent celebrated Earth day last week (22 April) by joining the Race to Zero campaign along with over 70 other UK HE institutions, making public our pledge to achieve net zero carbon emissions.
Race To Zero is a global campaign to rally leadership and support from businesses, cities, regions, investors for a healthy, resilient, zero carbon recovery that prevents future threats, creates decent jobs, and unlocks inclusive, sustainable growth.
Catherine Morris, Environmental Adviser said:
‘I feel proud that by joining the Race to Zero, our senior leadership has made a public commitment to the net zero agenda and our contribution towards the sector’s leadership on a global level at COP26 in November 2021. I am looking forward to seeing the results of our open consultation with staff and students on how the university can tackle the issues of the climate emergency and I am excited to be part of developing the plans for how we will achieve our net zero target’
We are currently developing the Carbon Management Plan which will set out how we plan to achieve our net zero target.
The university is committed net zero by 2040 in terms of activities it directly controls (such as university vehicles and campus electricity) and by 2050 – or sooner – in indirect emissions (such as those associated with waste and products purchased).
Achieving this will take action across the university from cutting long-haul air travel and reducing paper and plastic use to ensuring that our curriculum and research is aligned with the climate emergency.
All staff and students are invited to complete our consultation to give us your thoughts and ideas on how we can deliver this at Kent. We want to hear from as many people as possible to ensure that our plans reflect the way we want to live, learn and work in the future.
You can also find out more about Kent’s response to the climate emergency by visiting the sustainability webpages or through their social media accounts: Instagram/Twitter
Second year student Harvey shares the best music to revise and study to:
‘Hi, I’m Harvey, a second year Marketing student at the Canterbury campus. I have a secret; I have never studied for an exam in my life. I completely winged it through my GCSEs and got some undeservingly good results; followed by promptly failing my AS levels. Coupled with my first-year exams being online, open book and fairly straight forward, I have never had to do a ‘late night exam study sesh’. With second year exams looming, which are distinctly harder and need a lot more reading to pass, I thought it’s finally time I actually learned how to revise.
‘Plus, with COVID-19 I also have to share the office with my Dad who is on calls all day, every day. So, I turned to my hilariously diametric Spotify to keep me focused and see what music would get me studying best. Oh, and naturally being a data specialist, I did it scientifically through controlled variables and quantitative analysis. Seeing as I know mostly anyone reading this has no interest in that, I have included a “study score” as an amalgamation of how well each genre performed, which, of course, is completely subjective.
‘Lauded by many as the premier thing to play children in the womb, or the perfect accompaniment to a peaceful evening reading a textbook, classical music is the stereotypical study soundtrack. Perhaps to the dismay of my classically trained musician Dad, I never have showed a great amount of interest in ‘the classics’, but I thought now might be the time to invest in some enculturation.
‘I chose the aptly named “Classical Focus” from Spotify’s official playlists for my first experiment. Encompassing composers such as Bach, Beethoven and Mozart, it features all the works I probably should have studied while I was doing my short-lived music degree but didn’t.
‘Classical music has the ability to make you feel smarter while you’re listening to it. It also generally doesn’t have vocals, unless we’re getting into choral works. So you supposedly have less to distract you, according to some (especially my Dad) “it is terrible to focus with music with words, it distracts you! I could not play that in the office!”
‘After using the playlist for a good hour I found it to be a mixed bag. Perhaps this is just personal taste, but I found it hard to focus on the particularly dry article I was reading with anything aside from piano music. Although orchestral works are impressive, and I have been lucky enough to see this in person a handful of times, I find they’re too busy and complex to focus on the task at hand. Even with piano music I was finding myself encountering a déjà vu of melodies I’d heard on adverts or TV shows from across the years; so I found myself pretending I could play the piano, perhaps in a vain attempt to pretend I knew more than I actually do.
‘I think classical music has the ability to be a deeply relaxing and spiritual listening experience, if the right piece appears. As a study tool? I’m less convinced. Maybe if you’re less of a musical person than I am you’ll find it appropriate background listening for an afternoon of reading and revising; if so, I particularly recommend the works of Chopin or the various other pianists and piano playlists available on Spotify. For me, it was time to explore what’s next.
Study score: 3/5
‘What a juxtaposition! From the realms of the concert hall, my next stop was the substantially more modern field of the synthesiser. I’ll be honest, I am very biased – my favourite band is Pendulum (the Australian drum and bass outfit who were popular in the late 2000s). However, bias aside (ok maybe not), I wanted to see how this eclectic musical umbrella fared when I was working.
‘As previously mentioned, this is probably the music I use most while studying. Generally, it is my aptly titled ‘Pendulum’ playlist that I will put on although I also have “Straight bangers, no re”, titled (hopefully ironically) a few years ago with a fairly broad range from the electronic side of music.
‘Personally, I find that depending on my mood, the heavier the better when it comes to writing those essays that ‘you really should have done three weeks ago but now its due tomorrow’, however, as this is an exercise in mainly reading, it’s time to test it in that respect.
‘Again – like classical music – I feel that a lot of electronic, especially drum and bass, has way too much going on to enable you to properly focus on reading. Although, for me I think I like the songs enough that I can tune a lot of the song out, and it’s good for getting rid of the distractions that permeate the estate I live on. As a way to digest material I am not familiar with? I’m less convinced. If we liken it to having a rave with a textbook it’s very similar, I simultaneously wanted to fall asleep and party at the same time. Writing up notes was a different story. I found, especially Pendulum as it’s more melodic (and as we know I am very biased), or anything similar was very good for driving me forward and keeping me energised.
‘So, in conclusion, it’s a great way to get you energised, especially if you’re doing the type of work where you just need to get pen to paper – a bit like this article (this is exactly how I’m writing this segment!) However, I think on our search to find the right accompaniment for all the read I am sure many of us need to catch up on, we need to look a bit further!
Study score: 2/5
‘When I first heard this kind of music non-ironically, I remember I was driving to work on a cold morning as the sun rose; a fairly beautiful scene that I felt relaxed me into what was a pretty stressful job at the time. Nowadays, I have a dedicated “Chill Stuff” playlist for when I’m not in the mood for anything heavy. The music I am talking about here is the kind that doesn’t try to shout loudly, or invest you with intricate melodies; although it must be said I can’t listen to it if I’m particularly emotional, I do not need more reasons to cry while revising for exams!
‘It is a very wide spectrum, especially if you’re looking at Spotify’s pre-made playlists; which vary from electronic to acoustic guitars and even hip-hop. I found these playlists to be very hit-and-miss if I am honest. Although some things I am sure I could play in the background to a cute date night, others seemed to be very loose in their affiliation to “chill” (angry psychedelic-synth playlist, anyone?), and others still just are a bit plain weird (Cat Jazz is my mum’s favourite to wheel out at family dinners); therefore, I think it’s important to clarify what I found myself drawn to.
‘Personally, and given my usual taste I have no idea why, I found myself rather enjoying the most stripped-back guitar and vocal music I could find. I think it is a certain honesty that brought me away from all of the stresses I was experiencing and into the moment (very mindful, I know). From there I was able to look clearly at what I was studying and feel I was taking in information and working with more clarity. If we want to be philosophical, maybe it is this kind of music that makes you realise how fast-paced and hectic life can be unless you take time to focus on the now – how thoughtful, right?
‘In conclusion, I probably found this the most helpful of all the music I listened to in terms of helping me focus on reading. There is a caveat that there is a lot of terrible music branding itself as “chill”. However, whether it is the classic “chill beats to study to” I am sure many of us have used in the past, or simplistic guitar and vocal performances I enjoy, I think personally it is the perfect music to focus to and digest a difficult reading!’
Study Score: 5/5
Photo by Lee Campbell on Unsplash
A new online guide for parents-to-be at the University is now available.
The Parents Pack has been created by our Athena SWAN team, in response to comments, questions and queries from parents and carers via focus groups, workshop, surveys and interviews.
The new pack is a source of key information for both those becoming parents while working at Kent and their line managers. Sections include:
The new guide is available now on our HR webpages. If you have any questions/ comments, don’t hesitate to contact: athenaswan@kent.ac.uk
As the exam term gets closer, remember that we are on hand to help with staying calm, improving your study technique and careers workshops to help you secure work opportunities.
Help us improve our Covid-19 testing service – chance to win £50 Amazon voucher
Take the short online survey about Covid-19 symptom-free testing on campus for the chance to win a £50 Amazon voucher.
Events for you to try this week:
Have you read this?
Keep an eye on:
Let us know what you think of these updates by emailing communications@kent.ac.uk
University of Kent’s Special Collections & Archives service has been awarded over £110,000 to assist with the digitising of its collections, through the Capability for Collections (CapCo) fund, administered by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
Special Collections & Archives, based in the Templeman Library, Canterbury campus, preserve and manage the University’s unique and distinctive collections so that they are accessible for the benefit of teaching, scholarship and society. Collections include the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive and British Cartoon Archive. They are proud to hold Archive Service Accreditation from the National Archives in recognition of their professional standards in acquiring, preserving and providing access to the collections.
Karen Brayshaw, Special Collections & Archives Manager explains:
“The funding will allow us to purchase vital digitising equipment to help with providing online access to the recently deposited Beaverbrook Foundation’s collection of original cartoon artworks and digitising the highly visual original costume designs, theatre playbills and posters from the David Drummond Pantomime Collection”.
The grant will also support collaborative opportunities across the Institute of Cultural and Creative Industries (ICCI) and Eastern ARC, enabling the University to participate in future special collections and archives digitisation projects.
Main image: Illustrated programme for the pantomime Dick Whittington at Drury Lane Theatre from the David Drummond Collection.
For further information contact Karen Brayshaw, Special Collections & Archives Manager.
The Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) is a great resource for staff. It provides emotional support through telephone assessment at any time of the day. If the assessment shows it is appropriate, staff can access up to 8 sessions of face to face or telephone counselling. Care first also operates a system of telephone support with call handlers with trained expertise in life solutions, for example, debt, benefits. legal, family and caring responsibilities.
Care first runs webinars on a variety of subjects every week. You can now watch a recording of a webinar for University of Kent staff that took place on Wednesday 14 April, and learn more on what the EAP has to offer, first hand.
There are a number of Development sessions available for staff to make the most of. To access all sessions and find out further information on each one please visit the HR-T&OD Staff Training MS Teams Channel.
Here’s a summary of each session that you can sign up to:
Eligibility Checking Training sessions available
5 free spaces on each of the following Webinars:
Equality Impact Analysis Module: This module is for staff who are required to conduct an EIA. It introduces equality analysis principles and how to prepare and carry out an effective EIA
This could be the programme for you if you have ever wanted to:
Did you come to Kent via Clearing? Would you like to share your story with others?
The University is putting together short films of Clearing students to help others in the same position this summer. All filming we be carried out remotely.
Complete the quick sign up form to get involved.
Dear Colleagues,
As we continue to follow the Government’s roadmap for ending lockdown, we are looking ahead to how and when we will be able to welcome more staff back to campus. A number of you joined our staff webchat earlier today where our incoming Director of HR Martin Atkinson talked through our overall approach to this, which centres on gradually relaxing criteria for returning to campus in line with key changes to Government guidance.
We have now written to Directors of Divisions and Departments with new guidance in place from 10 May to align with the start of the summer term, with more options for coming back on site for those that want to and whose home set–up is causing them difficulties. This is another important moment for us and, all being well later in the summer, we will be able to open our doors more widely as lockdown eases and more life returns to our campuses ahead of next year.
These changes will need to go hand-in-hand with associated plans for more staff to able to split their working week both on and off campus. These are currently being finalised and will require careful consideration across a number of areas to ensure we get the balance right, including drawing on insights from our Future of Work survey. However, I hope the option of more remote working will be of real benefit to many of you as we think about the ways we want to work in future.
Throughout lockdown, we have also tried to broaden some of our staff communications to help keep everyone fully informed at an especially busy time. As more staff return to campus, we are thinking about how to keep this going in the right way, including ways to evolve the current staff webchats into a regular series throughout the year so we all keep having the chance to come together and talk things through.
We will share more plans on this shortly – in the meantime, thank you for your continued hard work and I hope to see more of you over the summer term as we open up our campuses further.
With my best wishes to you and your families,
Karen
Professor Karen Cox | Vice-Chancellor and President