Our first week of teaching – with lectures online, labs and some small group seminars face-to-face – is now well underway. This is a huge achievement, ensuring we can do our work in a safe way and being flexible in how we have to respond to a changing external context. I would like to express my appreciation for the hard work that continues to be undertaken by all staff across the University. I had the pleasure of seeing colleagues and students around the Canterbury campus this week and, in particular, at an ‘archaeological dig’ near Blean Church. It was great to hear direct from first years, and postgraduates, how they were experiencing their first few weeks at Kent, even if it was at a distance with face masks in situ!

Like most universities, we have a small number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 amongst students in University accommodation at Canterbury. The students are self-isolating in line with Public Health England guidelines and their close contacts are also self-isolating where necessary. We are providing all those affected with academic and wellbeing support and will continue to work closely with the public health bodies who are advising us at this time. The Covid-19 testing centre remains operational on site for staff, students and members of the wider community.

You do not need me to tell you that we are all in a dynamic situation. We will continue to review and adapt how we are working in response to changes in Government policy and our local environment. One thing is clear; we are going to have to live with the uncertainties arising from coronavirus for the foreseeable future. Our Covid response planning continues and we are working hard to ensure we are able to address the challenges in terms of teaching delivery, campus operations and student and staff health and wellbeing we are likely to face over the next few months. We will continue to keep updated.

With thanks and best wishes to you and your families,

Karen

Professor Karen Cox | Vice-Chancellor and President

Dr Patricia Norvillo-Corvalan, Head of the Department of Comparative Literature, will appear on the BBC’s The Forum: Jorge Luis Borges, on Thursday 8 October at 10.00 on BBC World Service.

Borges’ works have become classics and an influence not just on many Latin American novelists but on countless writers around the world. Yet although he is one of the most analysed figures in literature, even his greatest fans struggle to fully explain his writing. This programme will ask: ‘what accounts for his enduring fame?’

Patricia will be appearing alongside other experts on Borges including Professor Evelyn Fishburn, from University College London, author of Hidden Pleasures In Borges’s Fiction; and Edwin Williamson, Professor at Oxford University and editor of the Cambridge Companion to Jorge Luis Borges.

If you start to experience symptoms of Covid-19 or have been advised to self-isolate, it is important that you know what to do; how this should be reported and the procedures you need to follow.

Key Covid-19 symptoms are:

• high temperature (fever) – you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• new continuous cough – coughing for more than an hour, or three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
• new loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – you cannot smell or taste anything or things smell or taste different to normal.

To ensure we keep our community as safe as possible, all staff are asked to familiarise themselves with the new reporting procedures.

Guidance for staff

If you display any of the key Covid-19 symptoms, or you need to self-isolate, you should follow our reporting procedure for staff, which includes guidance on:

• booking a Covid-19 test – we have testing centres on both our Canterbury and Medway campuses
• what to do if you become unwell while on campus
• reporting a positive test
• self-isolating if someone in your household tests positive or you are contacted by the NHS Test and Trace Service
• how your absence is reported on Staff Connect.

Guidance for managers

Managers are advised to also read the separate reporting procedure for managers to ensure appropriate and necessary action is taken in the event a member of staff reports Covid-19 symptoms, a positive test, or a requirement to self-isolate.

Further information on Covid-19, including updated FAQs on wearing face coverings and visitors on campus, is available on the staff coronavirus webpages.

The University is celebrating the launch of a new Language Centre which offers Kent students the opportunity to study a variety of language modules.

The new Language Centre allows students to study language modules as part of their existing degree programme or as an additional extracurricular module.

Nine modern foreign languages – Arabic, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin, Russian and Spanish – are offered at different levels to suit students who already have some language knowledge or who are starting as complete beginners.

Dr Wissia Fiorucci, Director of the Language Centre, said: “We’re delighted to launch the University’s new Language Centre, which brings all our language provision together and gives students the option to choose from a range of nine modern languages at different levels; they can strengthen existing skills or pick up something new from scratch!

As we celebrated the European Day of Languages on 26 September, there could not be a better time to promote the benefits of language learning and to give as many students as possible the opportunity to benefit from the enthusiasm and expertise of a dedicated team of language teachers from all over the world.”

For more information, email languages@kent.ac.uk.

Dr Alvise Sforza Tarabochia, Head of the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics, and Dr Wissia Fiorucci, Director of the Language Centre, have received a grant from the University Council for Modern Languages (UCML).

The grant supports the Modern Languages Teaching Forum, which aims to bring together teachers of modern languages at all levels to share good practice, discuss the challenges facing the sector, support language teaching and promote the language learning.

The Forum has already met a number of times, discussing themes including grammar, speaking and – most recently – distance learning in modern languages. The group plan to reconvene in late November, once again with a distance learning theme but this time with a particular focus on assessment.

Alvise said: “We are delighted to receive the support of UCML, and to be notified on such an apt day! We have just celebrated the European Day of Languages, which reminds us that linguistic diversity is the best tool to achieve intercultural understanding. The Modern Languages Teaching Forum at the University of Kent, now with the support of UCML, will continue its local, national and international effort to bring together teachers of modern foreign languages, at all levels, in order to promote the wonders of learning new languages and unlocking their cultures.”

The University of Kent invites you to the 6th annual Human Resources Conference: Employee Engagement and Productivity, on Friday 20 November 09.30 – 17.00.

Sponsored by HR GO and hosted by the Knowledge Exchange and Innovation team. “Brilliantly organised as ever. Great blend of speakers and subjects covered. Loads of action points to apply. Thank you!” (Attendee to the HR Conference 2019).

The 2020 annual HR Conference will address both staff engagement and productivity in context to both Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic. This digital event will provide HR professionals the chance to gain insight from academic expertise present at the University of Kent, whilst also listening to diverse group of industry experts.

“Excellent and will recommend to colleagues for 2020” (Attendee to the HR Conference 2019).

Register for this annual event. Tickets can be purchased for this online event for £49.00. Registered Charities and University of Kent students can purchase tickets for £24.50.

Find out more about the HR Network and the support they provide to HR professionals or contact the team at HRNetwork@kent.ac.uk

As more of us start returning to campus and facilities begin to reopen, Mel Clewlow, Director of Sport describes how Kent Sport team members have risen to the challenge, both during lockdown and preparing for the new academic year.

Work during lockdown

‘During lockdown and throughout the summer, our members have been very much at the forefront of our minds. We set up several initiatives to support fitness, mental health & wellbeing during some challenging times, including  ‘Stay well at home Wednesdays’ led by Oli Prior, Head of Physical Activities, and offering a free trial of Les Mills on demand to our members. We also had staff contribute content such as Jenni Mullane’s dance sessions, Karen Drake’s virtual run, Gavin Connor with disco beats and Laeticia Pelacchi on workout routines.’

Kent Sport was also faced with issuing partial refunds to its members while facilities were closed for the five-month period. Susan Hickmott, Head of Business Development, led work on liaising with the University’s Information Services department to develop an online form for processing the requests, liaising with Payments Office to ensure they had all the information to process them, and working with Kent Union to ensure all students submitted in their applications. On lockdown, the Kent Sport team notified payroll immediately to pause the staff monthly deduction and advised public members of their membership options.

Vicky Annis, Head of Physiotherapy Clinic, provided free initial online physiotherapy consultations, in which over 100 people accessed and many of whom were kind enough to help raise money for NHS charities. These free consultations have now become a new offer and Vicky herself swam the English Channel to raise donations for NHS Charities Together.

Working alongside Occupational Health, Kent Sport’s fitness team also delivered a series of activities designed to “give the brain a break” and reduce stress and anxiety levels.

Reopening facilities

Christopher Monteiro-Sharratt, Head of Operations, led his team and worked relentlessly behind the scenes on getting Kent Sport facilities reopened according to Government and University’s guidelines. Liaising with the Safety, Health and Environment Unit and University’s Estates, the Kent Sport duty teams moved the cardio and fitness equipment spaces apart for social distancing, ensured our fresh air units were in great order, worked on a one-way system throughout Kent Sport facilities, and created a schedule to allow the cleaning team to do daily deep cleaning during the day.

The team also reprogrammed sessions to reduce capacities, which turned out to be a very labour-intensive task.

Advance re-introductions were organised for early August to ensure all staff were aware of the new processes and a walkthrough of the new layout of our facilities via the one-way system.

Kent Sport’s reopening also involved its marketing team, led by Susan Hickmott, communicating all the changes to the facilities, videos to showcase reopening policies and social distancing, and liaising with central communications on reopening.

In summary, Mel says: ‘The Kent Sport Team has worked hard on our reopening strategy, ensuring every consideration for a clean and safe operation has been taken into account. We opened our doors in mid-August and have implemented many new policies and procedures including a fully cashless operation and online booking system to manage our reduced capacity and shorter opening hours. Both new and returning members are being asked to visit our website to keep up to date with latest fitness and wellness timetables, our opening hours,  availability and guidelines.

‘It was truly a team effort across the board, and we were delighted to be able to reopen as soon as possible and offer activities to our staff and students within safe measures.’

The Work-Study Scheme (run by the Careers & Employability Service) have nearly 2000 keen and enthusiastic students ready to work for you! We can help you recruit to roles such as Social Media Assistant, Web Content Editor, Administrator, Research Assistant or Marketing Assistant, or shorter-term roles such as Welcome Helper or Promotional Assistant. The students appreciate the opportunity to build their employability skills further, and in turn can bring fresh ideas to your team.

We have a bank of job descriptions so if you have an opportunity that could be filled by a student, just let us know, and we can help you draft a role description. We advertise the role, can shortlist and support with interviews as needed, and undertake all employment checks and paperwork, with no cost to you – all whilst providing support to the students along the way, and ensuring they receive developmental feedback and support.

We recently hired 150+ Student Helpers to work at welcome events at Canterbury and Medway. They have been stationed across campus, welcoming new and returning students and their families, answering questions about student life, and ensuring that no one is left lonely on campus by being a friendly presence. They have also assisted with the Office Lockdown Escape Room, bushcraft and life skills activities, and delivering Campus Tours. These students are all ready to work, hold a contract and have undertaken all appropriate checks, had an induction and even  have a Student Helper t-shirt and face shield, so if you need any to support your welcome activities, or longer-term roles, please do let us know!

We have limited funding available, which can be used to match-fund your costs fifty-fifty, where appropriate (students earn £9.40 per hour if they are under 25, £9.99 per hour if over 25, with no cost to you). We undertake all the employment checks, contract paperwork and training – all we need to know is how many you need, where, when, and their duties, and we recharge costs back to you once the work is completed.

Contact Hannah Greer and Jen Davey on workstudy@kent.ac.uk for more information, or to hire Student Helpers.

Our official Employee Assistance Programme provider, Care first offers a numbers of services and provide useful advice and support, including weekly webinars.

This week’s (Monday 28 September – Friday 2 October) webinars are as follows:

Monday 28 September 2020 –  ‘How Care first can support you & an update on our services’
Time: 12.00-12.30 – to register please click on this Go to webinar link.

Tuesday 29 September 2020 – ‘Positive Minds’
Time: 12.30-13.00 – to register please click on this Go to webinar link

Wednesday 30 September 2020 –  ‘Fake News’
Time: 12.00-12.30 – to register please click on this Go to webinar link

Thursday  1 October 2020 – ‘Returning to the Workplace
Time: 12.00-13.00 – to register please click on this Go to webinar link

Friday 2 October 2020 – ‘Work Life Balance’
Time: 12.00-12.30 – to register please click on this Go to webinar link