Kent Sport prides itself on the knowledge of its staff in and out of the Fitness Suite. In order to keep up on trends, open itself to new ideas and provide first-rate classes, Kent Sport Fitness Instructors attend various fitness events throughout the year.

For the 10th year running, Jeni Dexter-Mullane, Emma Cooke and Liz Coult attended the Fitness Fiesta in Camber Sands at the beginning of October. It’s a gruelling schedule with up to six hours a day of back-to-back classes. Classes included everything from Yoga to Spinning to Dancing to even Nordic Walking (perhaps not one that you’ll see one of our timetables soon). Each instructor did more than 36,000 steps a day!

The team attend these events to upskill themselves, learning tricks of the trade and insider secrets to make their classes the best they can offer.

Why not have a go at one of the many fitness and dance classes available at Kent Sport and experience how fun they are for yourself?! Visit www.kent.ac.uk/sports/events for class information or pick up a copy of Active Kent in the Sport Centre or Pavilion receptions.

The crew expect to check out the next event in the upcoming months of November 2019 and March 2020. To learn more about the event, visit fitnessfiesta.com.

Not a member yet? We have new membership options to suit your fitness journey. For Kent Sport news, events and special offers, Like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram and Twitter @UniKentSports.

To stay up to date with Kent Sport news, Like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram and Twitter UniKentSports. If you have any questions you can email sportsenquiries@kent.ac.uk.

Colleagues are invited to attend the CSHE Seminar on Thursday 24 October,13.00-14.00, in Grimond Seminar Room 1. The seminar titled ‘Exploring students’ experiences of race through interdisciplinary collaboration in higher education’ is presented by Dr Sonya Sharma, Kingston University London.

In this seminar Dr Sonya Sharma will address an interdisciplinary and collaborative four-year project, Taking Race Live, that explored lived experiences of race among second-year students. Utilizing qualitative methods to evaluate the project each year, she draws on students’ voices to address their experiences of race, partnering with interdisciplinary peers, and learning about each other. Attention is given to how this was done through engaging with the arts and embodied practices found within drama, dance and music.

To register to attend please complete the online booking form.

In the latest episode of the Nostalgia podcast series, Chris Deacy, Head of the Department of Religious Studies, interviews Martin Bloomfield, who is currently studying towards a PhD in Philosophy at the University of York.

Martin explains why Lampeter was a ‘collection of caricatures’, and we also find out about the range of schools he attended when he was young. The pair talk about how Martin (and his native York) have changed over the years, studying in Lampeter, seeing Bad Manners at Gassy Jacks in Cardiff, the karate and fencing societies he was involved with, why going to university helped him to discover who he was, how he did (and did not) stand for Parliament in 1992, being a floating voter, the days when ‘Top of the Pops’ was the gold standard, the time when Radio 1 didn’t play Status Quo, why Martin chooses the sweet over the bitter, being tested quite late for dyslexia, how happiness is not just about smiling, what advice he would give his 15 year old self, and why Martin has a synchronic view of time.

The All Party Parliamentary Group on Social Care has acknowledged “a great debt of gratitude” to a team led by Kent Law School Professor Lydia Hayes for providing “expansive, thorough and vigorous” research in support of their All-Party Inquiry into the care sector workforce.

Professor Hayes explained: ‘We investigated how care workers could be better supported to develop as career professionals and why this was necessary. We analysed care standards regulation in each of the UK’s four nations and identified the complex skills that care workers need.’

With financial support from the GMB Union, Professor Hayes collaborated with Dr Eleanor Johnson and Alison Tarrant to produce the report ‘Professionalisation At Work in Adult Social Care’.  It provides a picture of professionalisation in adult social care across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and is cited frequently in the APPG Inquiry Report entitled ‘Elevation, Registration & Standardisation: The Professionalisation of Social Care Workers’.  To support the Inquiry, the research team considered policy initiatives, current skill and knowledge requirements, workforce registration, induction, training and the legal regulation of workforce standards.

In an introduction to the Inquiry Report, Louise Haigh MP and Gillian Keegan MP said: ‘We owe a great debt of gratitude to Dr Hayes, Dr Johnson and Alison Tarrant for their expansive, thorough and vigorous report to us, which has proved to be a great help in increasing our understanding of how this sector presently functions, and the challenges that it faces.’

As a result of their research, Professor Hayes’s team found that training issues, workers’ occupational registration, regulatory concern for service-user safety, terms and conditions of work, and sector funding are intricately connected.

Professor Hayes is Principal Investigator for a Wellcome Trust project on The Legal and Social Life of Care Standards Regulation in England, Scotland and Wales.

Colleagues are invited to attend the CSHE Seminar on Thursday 17 October,16.00-17.00, in Kennedy Seminar Room 10. The seminar titled ‘Why and how we need to research White students’ racial ignorance’ will be presented virtually by Dr Nolan Cabrera, Centre for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Arizona.

In this presentation, Dr Cabrera will outline his concept of White immunity, link it to structured White ignorance, and then explore what this means in terms of the educational experiences of Students of Colour.

To register to attend please complete the online booking form.

The latest issue of the journal Debates in Aesthetics, Volume 14, Issue 1, has just been published.

Debates in Aesthetics is a peer-reviewed, open-access journal for articles, interviews and book reviews. Published by the British Society of Aesthetics, the journal’s principal aim is to provide the philosophical community with a dedicated venue for debate in aesthetics and the philosophy of art. The issue is co-edited by Dr Shelby Moser, who completed a PhD in History and Philosophy of Art with the School of Arts at Kent.

The issue focuses on the work of Professor Jenefer Robinson, in particular her views on the paradox of fiction, pictorial expression, the nature of the emotions, and the centrality of the emotions for understanding certain works of art.

It also features a short article by Dr Hans Maes, Senior Lecturer in Art History, entitled ‘”Are You Talking to Me?” Conversations on Art and Aesthetics’, which explores the aims of his recent book on conversations with prominent philosophers of art.

The issue also features an interview with Professor Murray Smith, Professor in Film, by Dr Angelo Cioffi, entitled ‘Aesthetics Naturalised’. Angelo also completed his PhD in History and Philosophy of Art programme at Kent.

The issue is open-access and available for free here:
www.debatesinaesthetics.org/

Kent Hospitality has released new menus across their Canterbury and Medway outlets, increasing their vegan options available. Their efforts have been recognised by PETA, who have included the University of Kent on their list of 20 Most Vegan-Friendly Universities.

Origins Bar & Grill in Darwin College (Canterbury) now serve eight vegan main meals, including meat-free ‘beef’ burgers, bean chilli and meat-free ‘chicken’ nachos.

The Street Kitchen on Jarman Plaza continues to serve a vegan option on its weekly menu, with dishes ranging from pakora burgers to Malaysian curries.

The Galvanising Shop Café and No1 (Medway) have plenty of vegan options for breakfast and lunch, including vegan sausage and cheese paninis, dairy-free breakfast pots and toasties packed with marinated vegetables.

PETA Director Elisa Allen: ‘Students in the UK are going vegan in huge numbers, and it’s great to see universities joining the revolution. PETA commends the University of Kent for offering “healthy and delicious vegan food options that everyone can enjoy.’

A list of all vegan options available at Kent Hospitality outlets is available on the UniKentFood blog.

Follow UniKentFood on Instagram to find out more about catering at Kent.

Welcome back! If you’re returning to Kent after the summer break, here’s a helpful summary for settling back in.

Timetables will be on the Student Guide before term starts on the 23 September 2019.

• Lectures for all modules and stage 2 & 3 module group allocations will be released on Monday 9 September 2019.
• For Stage 0 & 1 modules, group allocations will be finalised by Friday 20 September 2019.
• You must be registered on your modules for your personal timetable to show. Continue to go back and check your timetable regularly for updates including other events. Read our Timetabling FAQs.

You will need to register on SDS from Tuesday 17 September 2019 so we know you’re definitely coming back. You don’t need to register in person or attend arrivals weekend. This is for new students. Please pay any outstanding fees to the University so you can register and delays are avoided. To ensure swift payment of your student loan, you are advised to re-register by Wednesday 18 September 2019. It takes 3-5 working days from the point of registration for funds to be released to your account. Read more.

Term starts on Monday 23 September 2019. Welcome Week is the week before (16-20 September). View term dates

If you’ve got a new phone, tablet or laptop, get it Kent WiFi-ready before you come back to campus by running our WiFi setup tool. For friends or family visiting campus, WiFi Guest is available for those who don’t have a Kent IT Account, an eduroam account or govroam account.

Living off campus is very different from living in University accommodation. Read our community webpages for information on bills, bins, neighbours and much more!

New developments include:

• The new Kent and Medway Medical School – with their first students starting in September 2020.
• The Mandela Building is becoming the new home of Jobshop, the Full Time Officers, the Advice Centre, sports, societies and volunteering. Mandela will also have a small study/social space, a student kitchen, student toilet facilities and union offices.
• The School of Economics has moved to the Kennedy Building, which is located between the Sports Centre, Jennison and opposite Sibson. The Kennedy building provides more dedicated social and meeting spaces for students and staff. There are also 11 new central teaching rooms in the building including an IT suite.
• Over at the Pavilion in Parkwood, Kent Sport is working on a brand new indoor tennis and events area open to members.

Have a great 2019-20 at Kent!