If you’re a student or staff member on our Medway campus  this photo challenge is an opportunity for you to share an image or moment that made you smile.

Enter this free photography competition to win great prizes!

How to enter

The competition closing date for entries has now been extended until 21 October 2022 at 17:00. (Late, incomplete, corrupt or inappropriate entries will not be accepted.)

Please email your image (1 image per entry) to Medway Campus Chaplaincy atmedwayinternationals@gmail.com with the following information:

• Your name, contact email address
• A few words telling us the story behind your image (optional)
• The name you are happy to be made public

The winner and two runners up will be chosen by Medway Campus Chaplaincy and will be notified directly via email.

All winning photos will also be shared on the Drill Hall Library social media and in the Medway Campus Chaplaincy blog.

All participating photos will be part of an exhibition in the Drill Hall Library.

The winning prizes are provided by the Medway Campus Chaplaincy.

1^st prize:  £25 Amazon Gift Voucher & a goodie bag

2^nd prize: £15 Amazon Gift Voucher

3rd prize: £10 Amazon Gift Voucher

To find out how to enter visit the Medway website.

Looking for a break from your daily work routine? Want to meet new members of staff and engage with your colleagues in a fun and social environment? Then entering a team in this year’s Vice-Chancellor’s Cup (VC’s Cup) is just the thing for you and your department.

 Our VC’s Cup programme is delivered by your friendly Kent Sport – Sports Development Team (Charlie, Billy and Dean) and offers a light-hearted, inclusive and fair inter departmental events programme for all staff across the University of Kent, regardless of ability, experience or fitness levels.

From November 2022 to September 2023 staff departments across the University of Kent compete twice a month against each other in a series of different activities, including but not limited to volleyball, benchball, The Cube, rounders, golf, pub games and more. Last year we had 14 teams including Kent Business School, Division of Human and Social Sciences, Estates, Central Student Administration Office, Division of Computing and, Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, Kent Union and more.

Typically departments engage during two lunch hours (12pm-1pm or 1pm-2pm) a month. The Sports Development Team contact team captains and vice captains a week prior to each event to inform them of the location, time and rules of the upcoming activity. All you need to do is get a few colleagues together and show up. You will then play against other departments and begin scoring points. At the end of each event, the Sports Development Team tally the results and share these with all the teams. These results count towards your overall ranking and at the end of the last event, our Quiz and Presentation evening, the VC Cup champion is crowned.

Deadline for entries is Friday 28 October at 17.00 – get your entry in now by emailing sportsdevelopment@kent.ac.uk

You can find out more about the Vice-Chancellor’s Cup, what’s happening and when on the VC’s Cup webpages.

The Sports Development Team look forward to hearing from you! 

On Monday 3 October, the International Programmes team, part of Global and Lifelong Learning, launched a new 10-week pre-sessional English language course for staff and students at Kherson State University, Ukraine.

The pre-sessional English language course helps enhance students’ skills in academic reading, writing and critical thinking, while also helping them gain experience with using academic sources. These skills are invaluable for students looking to conduct further studies in English and helps prepare them for listening effectively in lectures and classes, and for taking notes. It also gives participants a chance to practice speaking in seminars and delivering academic presentations.

According to Anthony Manning, Director and Dean of Global and Lifelong Learning, “We are delighted to welcome the staff and students of KSU to our classes this term. The war in Ukraine has presented the KSU community with a wide range of challenges and our staff have been pleased to support in this small way. It’s inspirational to see how committed, determined, and positive staff and students at KSU remain, despite the obvious impact and unpredictability that their circumstances bring on a daily basis. I’m sure that we at Kent are learning just as much as our colleagues in Ukraine from collaborating in this way.”

Since the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine in February this year, the University of Kent has been supporting Ukrainians effected by the conflict in various ways but has also twinned with Kherson State University as part of a nation-wide initiative organised by UUK and Cormack Consultancy. The Twinning agreement allows our two universities to continue collaborating over the coming years to help Kherson colleagues continue to deliver educational programmes during the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Last month, as part of this agreement, the University of Kent successfully delivered 100 laptops and other equipment to Ukraine to support Kherson State, and we will be launching a new Think Kent for Kherson State lecture series in November.

You can find out more about our work to support Kherson State by reading our news story.

Come join us at our Menopause café on Tuesday 18 October! Head over to the Darwin Conference Suite on from 12.30-14.30, where you can gather to eat cake, drink tea and discuss the menopause – there’s no need to book!

At the Menopause café

At a menopause café there is no agenda – you won’t learn facts about the menopause, and there is no intention of leading café participants to any conclusion, product or course of action. The café simply gives space to anyone wanting to chat about the menopause in a confidential, respectful space. We will have lots of treats, teas and coffees available, and a few facilitators hopping between tables to keep conversation flowing.

We are running this menopause café in partnership with Menopause Café, which is a not-for-profit organisation that supports the set-up of the café with some guidelines, and also run their own #flushfest. More info can be found on their website.

How it started

The Menopause Café came about in 2017, in Perth, Australia, created by Rachel Weiss who was inspired to get more people talking about the menopause after watching the BBC programme ‘Menopause and Me’.

She modelled the Menopause Café on the Death Café, which aimed to ‘increase awareness of death with a view to helping people make the most of their (finite) lives’.

The menopause café has only one purpose: to gather people, often strangers, in one place to drink tea, eat cake and discuss the menopause.

Kent Sport has refreshed their personal training service, offering tailored, one-to-one, individual training sessions or, if you prefer to work out with friends, group training for up to 3 people. Sessions are bookable online and open to students, staff and members of the public.

Individual training sessions

If you are looking to lose weight, improve muscle strength or would like some guidance on fitness and working out in the gym, check out their individual training sessions, which are tailored to you. These sessions aim to teach you how to exercise effectively and equip you with the knowledge and confidence to exercise alone and maintain your goals.

Prices for individual training sessions depend on the type of Kent Sport membership you hold. Don’t worry though, if you aren’t yet a member it’s easy to sign up! Kent Sport offers various membership packages, from Pay and Play to Premium membership, check out the membership page for more information!

Group training

Have fun working out with your friends, with Kent Sport’s group training sessions. Each session is tailored to your group’s aims and can include a range of different training styles, from circuit training, training for a specific sport or personalised fitness routines.

Group sessions last 60 minutes and are bookable online. Prices for these sessions are based on the highest tier membership type in the group.

Don’t delay!

Why not book a personal training session with Kent Sport’s qualified Personal Training team, to get started on your workout goals and commit to getting fit!

CTA – Get Fit

This is a final reminder that SharePoint 2013 will be set to ‘read only’ and cannot be edited after 7 October. Please ensure all content that you need is moved from SharePoint 2013 by this date.  

You will still be able to access SharePoint 2013 sites and download the content but will not be able to make changes to documents, permissions or other content. 

SharePoint 2013 will be permanently retired after 31 December 2022. 

What does this include? 

• All SharePoint 2013 sites, which includes anything beginning with a URL sharepoint.kent.ac.uk. 

• SharePoint 2013 ‘mysites’, which begin with the URL mysite.sharepoint.kent.ac.uk/ and can be accessed by clicking ‘OneDrive’ in the top right corner of SharePoint 2013. 

For further help: 

There is lots of useful advice on the KentNet Support site. 

If you are not aware of the process to move content or where content should be moved to please send your enquiry to Izzy Linthwaite, Digital Collaborative Services Lead, Information Services. 

At Gulbenkian we are committed to offering a diverse programme year-round, working with companies and artists who represent all parts of our community.

In October we have a number of events that celebrate the talents and creativity of Black artists listed below. For further details and how to book visit the Gulbenkian website.

On Stage:

Homeward: Soul Food by Lyrici Arts – Mon 10 Oct, 19.30

Medway based Lyrici Arts at the table for a soulful storytelling feast that will draw you into a journey that is both intimate and epic in scope. Four compelling tales from four remarkable Black heritage artists, take audiences around the world and across time on a passage of self-discovery. This is a Creative Estuary co-commission and supported by Gulbenkian Arts Centre.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo – Tue 18 Oct, 20.00

They shot to global stardom after featuring on Paul Simon’s Graceland album and have been touring the world ever since, winning five GRAMMY Awards on the way. Nelson Mandela called them “South Africa’s cultural ambassadors”, and they tour now to celebrate Black History Month.

On Screen:

Queen of Glory – Thu 13 Oct, 19.00

Queen of Glory is the story of Sarah Obeng, the brilliant child of Ghanaian immigrants, who is quitting her Ivy League PhD program to follow her married lover to Ohio.

New for this year, Gulbenkian have introduced a Kent Staff Membership.

For only £10 you get:

• 4 free cinema tickets
• 20% off all films for 12 months
• plus 40% of selected theatre for 12 months
• and 10% off in the Gulbenkian Café………for 12 months
• AND your discount can be applied for up to 6 tickets per event!

This month just for example, you can save on seeing Florence Pugh and Harry Styles on the big screen in Don’t Worry Darling, or save on tickets to see theatre legend Shôn Dale-Jones (literally) in the flesh on our stage in Still Floating.

Visit the Gulbenkian site to buy you £10 membership.

Celebrate the festive season in style with us this year.

We’re excited to announce that Christmas Parties on the Canterbury campus are now open and taking bookings.

We have packages to suit all tastes, from an organised Christmas Party Night on Thursday 15 December in Darwin Suite, with an indulgent 3-course meal and entertainment, or exclusive use of Darwin Suite for your own private festive event with seasonal menus, drinks and entertainment packages.

For something truly different, why not bring some festive wonder to your Christmas party and work with our events team to plan your bespoke event.

Our Conference and Events Team are on hand to take the stress out of the organisation for you.

So, whatever your plans, support Kent this season by keeping your spend on campus and count on us for fun-filled celebrations and a night to remember!

Find out more on the Conference and Events website.

Send your enquiries via this enquiry/contact form.