In the latest episode of the Nostalgia podcast series, Dr Chris Deacy, Reader in Theology and Religious Studies in the Department of Religious Studies, speaks to Dan and Lavinia Cohn-Sherbok, who were based at Kent from 1975-97 before moving to Lampeter where Dan was Professor of Judaism.

In this week’s episode, they talk about being born by artificial insemination; being an unmusical child in a musical family; passing one’s driving test while singing hymns; addressing the negative perceptions that colleagues have of oneself by writing a novel about the experience; and whether nostalgia is good for us or not (here Dan and Lavinia take completely different positions).

The next Nostalgia interview will feature Cecilia Sayad from the School of Arts, followed in January by Olly Double – also from the School of Arts – who is a stand-up comedian as well as Reader in Drama.

You are now able to request annual leave and record sickness absence through Staff Connect; the University’s integrated HR and Payroll system.

This is part of the continuing development of Staff Connect which aims to streamline our HR processes and extend employee and manager self-service, providing a one-stop-shop for as many HR activities as possible.

With this new module, requests for annual leave will be automatically forwarded to line managers to authorise. If your line-manager does not usually authorise your annual leave, they can delegate this responsibility to another member of their team. User guides for both managers and staff regarding delegation set up and management are available on the Staff Connect Delegation page.

Staff Connect replaces existing local systems of recording leave and absence. If you have annual leave already booked or agreed for 2019, it will need to be re-entered into Staff Connect. This can be done retrospectively for staff who have taken leave in the first days of the New Year.

As well as booking annual leave, sickness absence also needs to be reported and recorded via Staff Connect which will automatically inform the Pay Office of your absences. This means paper-based or electronic sickness absence forms no longer need to be submitted to the Pay Office.  You will also be able to securely upload any doctors’ notes or medical certificates into the system which will reduce the amount of sensitive personal data that is currently recorded on paper and sent via internal mail.

Managers will also be able to record other absences for their team including compassionate leave, academic visits and trade union duties.

For colleagues in European centres, local arrangements will continue as usual.

If you have any questions about Staff Connect and the launch of this new module, there is further guidance and support available, including;

• Support sessions – available in January and February 2019
• Overview for managers of annual leave and absence management
• User guides for employees
• User guides for managers
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Who to contact for further support (pdf)

This is the latest update in the Staff Connect Phase 2 project. The new staff recruitment system, replacing i-Grasp, will go live in February.

On Monday 17 December, the Canterbury Food Bank came to collect the donated items and were pleasantly surprised. They couldn’t believe the amount of food donated in such a short amount of time.

Kent Bunny hasn’t quite had time to come around to thank everyone for their donations, therefore, would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their kindness and generosity so close to Christmas.

Thank you!

A big congratulations to all Kent Hospitality and Gulbenkian staff who received awards at this year’s Annual Awards Ceremony [link to https://www.kent.ac.uk/hospitality/reward-and-recognition/annual-awards-ceremony.html].

On Thursday 6 December, 130 staff were recognised for having achieved nationally accredited qualifications in the last year, with over 200 awards presented. The event celebrated both departments passion to learn and develop, Pride awardees, achievements and professionalism.

The CECS (Consistent Excellence in Customer Service) Award was also presented at the event by Denise Everitt, Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Chief Operating Officer. Many congratulations to runner-up: Sam Ranger, Street Kitchen chef and this year’s winner: Lucy Galt, Gulbenkian Café Bar Assistant.

Learning & Organisational Development are offering this practical workshop which focuses on aspects such as team dynamics, the realities of managing motivation and morale, as well as understanding how to adapt management style to best effect.

This course is aimed at managers and supervisors and takes place on Monday 14th January 2019. Book your place by logging onto Staff Connect.

I am very pleased to inform you that following a recent competitive selection process,  James Corbin has been appointed as Head of Careers and Employability.  As many of you will be aware James currently holds the post of Interim Head of Careers and Employability and I am delighted that he has been successful in his substantive appointment.  James will commence his new role this week, and I am very much looking forward to working with him, as is Jane Glew in her new role as Interim Director of Student Services.  I am sure you would like to join me in congratulating him in his recent appointment.

Professor April McMahon | Deputy Vice-Chancellor – Education

If you don’t have Windows 10 on your staff PC yet, please help us by installing it this December or early January. It would be great if we can get most staff PCs using Windows 10 by the start of Spring term.

How to install Windows 10

• Read this essential checklist to make sure you don’t lose work or access to software.
• Start the installation just before you leave for the day. It runs itself and can take a few hours. If you run it overnight it should be done by the following morning.

Allow at least an hour to get up and running the next morning.

What’s different with Windows 10

It comes with Office 2016 which will replace Office 2013. The differences are minor. Windows 10 is a little faster than Windows 7 and works a bit differently.

Thank you. All staff PCs need to stop using Windows 7 by the end of 2019 as Microsoft will stop supporting it shortly after.

We are here to help so please get in touch if you have any questions.

• helpdesk@kent.ac.uk
• 01227 82 4888

A busy year in Information Services has meant many well deserved Staff Excellence Awards for 2018!

Each year we reward individuals and teams alike for going above and beyond, be it by working on a project or simply excelling in their day-to-day roles.

Denise Everitt, Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Chief Operating Officer and John Sotillo, Director Information Services awarded the prizes at a ceremony which was followed by a celebratory lunch.

Congratulations are given to all staff members who won an award, and thanks for all the hard work for Information Services.

Kent Hospitality’s catering outlets will be operating reduced opening hours during the Winter Vacation. Please check the timetables below for more information.

• Canterbury
• Medway

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from everyone at Kent Hospitality!

 Ben Thomas, Reader in History of Art in the School of Arts, will take part in a discussion about Raphael at the Italian Cultural Institute at 7pm on Wednesday 19 December 2018.

The Italian Cultural Institute in London is the official Italian governmental body dedicated to promoting Italian language and culture in England and Wales.

‘On Raphael – Indagine su Raffaello #5’ will be chaired by Bill Sherman, Director of the Warburg Institute.

Ben will participate alongside Deanna Petherbridge, artist, writer and curator, and Ana Debenedetti, Curator of Paintings and Drawings at the V&A. They will explore the practice of drawing through the work of Raphael, and its lasting impact on Western art over centuries up to contemporary practice.

Please contact the Italian Cultural Institute for more information about the event.