Do you have lower back pain, are you interested in exercise, but not sure where to start? The University of Kent are looking for people like you to take part in a study conducted by the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences.

Using ultrasound imaging, they are investigating the effects of an increase in movement and online exercise classes on your lower back.

To be included in the study, you must be:

• a male or female non-smoker
• aged between 18-70 years
• have lower back pain
• partake in less than 150 minutes of exercise per week
• able to visit the University on four occasions (before starting, during, upon completion and a 6-week follow up)

With no prior history of:

• previous lower back, hip or knee surgery
• a displaced or injured vertebral disc or vertebrae (eg. spondylolisthesis)
• corticosteroid injections
• previous surgical interventions including pins or plates near the spine

What the study includes:

Participants will be randomly assigned to one of three groups:

Group 1 – Two weekly online exercise class in small groups for an hour each over the course of a minimum of three months (maximum of six).

Group 2 – Daily prompts to increase movement throughout usual office hours.

Group 3 – A control group where participants should just continue normal activities.

For further information about this study please contact Claire Melanie Boucher at cmb71@kent.ac.uk, or can scan the QR code below.

The Joint Staff Negotiating and Consultation Committee (JSNCC) is the main forum for consultation between the University of Kent and its staff on matters of mutual interest. Staff membership of the committee comprises representatives of each of the trade unions and four representatives of non-union staff: two from the professional services and research support staff in grades 1 to 6; and two from the academic, research and professional services staff in grades 7 and above.

One of the current representatives, Becky Verlin, will be stepping down from this role at the end of her extended term, and so nominations are now invited for one position to represent staff grades 1-6. Staff members working within Grades 1-6 are encouraged to put themselves forward for this exciting and rewarding opportunity.

Nominations can be made by following the instructions in the staff nomination email which was sent on 1 November 2021. All nominations must be proposed and seconded by two other staff members and nominees must confirm that they agree to be nominated. The deadline for completed nomination forms being submitted is 17:00 on Monday 15 November 2021.

Why join the JSNCC?

Acting as a staff representative is interesting and rewarding. It provides the opportunity to discuss and comment on University plans and policies, to meet a wide range of new people and to gain valuable personal development. Training and support will be provided to the successful candidates.

Further information about the JSNCC and the nomination and election processes can be found on the JSNCC website or by contacting Colin Smith in the employee relations team via c.smith-832@kent.ac.uk

Would you like to get involved in our Christmas shoebox appeal to help vulnerable communities across Eastern Europe?

Our Careers and Employability Services (CES) are hosting a wrapping and filling session for students on Monday 15 November – and they need your help with donations of essential items such as:

• toothbrushes
• soap
• small toys
• hats/gloves
• hairbrushes
• deodorant
• stationery
• other new and non-perishable goods.

Please bring any items or, if you wish to make your own, any filled and wrapped shoeboxes to the CES reception before 15 November.

Many thanks for your support with this. To find out more, email the CES team at careerhelp@kent.ac.uk.

Chaired by Professor Richard Reece, this Staff Webchat on Tuesday 9 November will update on the work actively underway to improve the current situation with our student records system, KentVision.

Supported by the new Project Manager Martin Carvey and the KV Project Board, project priorities include re-designing KV Service Desk to better manage emerging issues; and increasing the size of the KV Project delivery team to ensure the planning, testing and delivery cycles are completed fully, including full engagement and consultation with relevant stakeholders. This will avoid issues impacting staff and students. Some benefits of these changes should start to be realised from December onwards.

Alongside Richard and Martin, the panel will include Anthony Brenton, Lead Business Analyst; Paul Sales, IT Trainer; James McCrea, Head of Enterprise Systems; Anita Jackson, Director of Strategic Planning & Performance; Kyra Harwood-Lucas, Head of Student Administration; and John Crook, Director of Operations in the Division of Computing, Engineering & Mathematical Sciences.

The session will take place on Teams on Tuesday 9 November from 13.00-15.00, including time for questions. You can sign up now, and ask your questions in advance, via this link. A calendar invite will be sent to all attendees by Monday, 8 November, with further information of how to join us.

The University of Kent Players are extremely excited to be back with social readthrough events throughout November. We’ll be providing both in-person and virtual sessions to get together and get theatrical!

Our readthroughs are an excellent opportunity to meet up with fellow actors and theatre enthusiasts, and make new friends from across the University. You don’t need any previous experience to get involved; just be welcoming, friendly and supportive of your peers!

What are we reading?

Relative Values | Noël Coward

11th November 2021 | 12.30 – 13.30 | KENSR11 (Kennedy Building)

This comedy of manners, set in East Kent, follows an eventful dinner at the grand residence of Marshwood House. When the Countess’ son invites his fiancé, American actress Miranda Frayle, his mother is by no means pleased…

And Then There Were None | Agatha Christie

16th November 2021 | 17.30 – 18:30 | KENSR11 (Kennedy Building)

Eight disparate guests arrive at an isolated mansion located on an island off the coast of Devon tended by two staff but no host. A recording accuses all ten people of past crimes that went unpunished by the law. Soon they start dying one at a time, and the remaining guests deduce that the murderer is one of their own.

Frankenstein | Mary Shelly, Tim Shelly

25th November 2021 | 17.30 – 18.30 | Microsoft Teams (virtual)

No one can shake free the dark secret that terrifies Victor: not his mother, nor his fiancée, nor his best friend. Even the pleading of a gypsy girl accused of murdering Victor’s younger brother falls on deaf ears, for Victor has brought into being a creature made from pieces of the dead.

How to get involved

If you would like to get involved or have an interest in acting, directing, technical directing or anything theatrical get in touch with us on unikentplayers@kent.ac.uk

You can also follow us on social media for regular updates and events!

Instagram: @unikentplayers

Facebook: /unikentplayers

Twitter: @unikentplayers

Congratulations to Dr Albena Azmanova, in our Brussels School of International Studies (BSIS), on receiving the Michael Harrington Book Award.

The annual award, from the American Political Science Association (APSA), recognises ‘an outstanding book that demonstrates how scholarship can be used in the struggle for a better world’.

Albena’s book, Capitalism on Edge: How Fighting Precarity Can Achieve Radical Change Without Crisis or Utopia, was published by Columbia University Press in 2020.

Capitalism on Edge analyses the mutation of neoliberal capitalism into a more malignant social form Albena terms “precarity capitalism.” Drawing on history, political theory and political economy to reveal the insecurity afflicting a majority of the population under precarity capitalism, Albena provides fresh approaches to thought about radical change in which capitalism is overcome or subverted, rather than stabilized or overthrown.

Albena, Reader of Political and Social Thought at BSIS, comments: ‘This award is precious to me as it marks a critical moment in a journey that began more than 30 years ago when, as a student at Sofia University in Bulgaria, I became involved with the dissident movement against the communist dictatorship. That experience influenced my writing and led me to pursue lines of inquiry that challenge the entrenched views of the day. Receiving the award is also an inspiration to live to its terms of using scholarship in the struggle for a better world.’

Find out more about the Michael Harrington Book Award on the APSA webpages. For more information on the Capitalism on Edge book, see the Columbia University Press website.

The 2021-22 application round for members of our academic and research staff to apply for promotion is now open.

All applications must be made via DocuSign by 12 noon on Monday 6 December.

Guidance, documentation and application forms for candidates can be found under on the HR webpages.

You will also find  guidance and template forms for the Divisional Promotions Panels, promotions committees etc within the Promotions: Academic and Research Staff section of the HR webpages.

Guidance on Mitigating Circumstances, and an accompanying template form, is available in the Staff Information/Policies section.

We’re excited to announce that the 7th annual Human Resources Conference: Keeping up with the Change will be taking place on Wednesday 24 November with a focus on helping you to adapt to cultural change at work and cultivate a new, future-proof way of working.

Once again, we’ll be joined by the University’s world-leading academics and guest speakers who will share their latest research, examples of best practice and tips and tools which can be applied in the workplace. We’ll provide expert advice on change management, discuss the importance of job sharing as a means to enable flexible working, and hear from innovative local businesses about how they manage and reward their teams whilst working remotely. You’ll also have the opportunity to take part in a stress management workshop led by our in-house expert.

The virtual event will run from 09.30 to 14.00 and tickets can be purchased for £20 per person. Book online here.

The HR Network was established by our Knowledge Exchange and Innovation team to enable HR professionals and small businesses owners responsible for HR to engage with academic experts from the University, aiding collaboration and knowledge exchange. Sign up to the HR Network newsletter and our LinkedIn Group to receive news of upcoming training and events, the latest research in the field and best practice from other individuals in the network.

If you want to know more about the HR Network and support we provide to HR professionals you can find it on the Knowledge Exchange and Innovation website or contact the team at keinnovation@kent.ac.uk.