The Senior Leadership Team would like to thank all those who responded to the Colleague Survey 2023, the highly detailed reports have now been completed and are currently being shared to Heads of Directorates and Schools who have been asked to communicate the results with their teams locally.
The Colleague Survey is integral to the two-way dialogue between colleagues and the Senior Leadership Team and ensuring we can continue to provide an exceptional employee experience at the University of Lincoln.
The University level results will be published on Friday 6th October on the Department of People, Performance and Culture’s website to provide transparency and clarity. This site will be kept up to date throughout the year with actions taken directly in response to the outcomes of the survey.
This month will also see the outcomes of the recent nominations for the annual Merit and Achievement Awards, in which we celebrate individuals, teams and projects who have positively impacted the reputation and performance of the University. Winners will be invited to an event at the Engine Shed whereby they shall receive the recognition award from the Vice Chancellor.
October is also a month which focuses on wellbeing, with the 10th October being World Mental Health Day. As a senior team we would like to encourage you all to take the time to focus on your own mental wellbeing and engage with the activities and initiatives available to you. On World Mental Health Day you are invited to attend an event at the Engine Shed, where you will have the opportunity to explore all areas of mental wellbeing including its intrinsic link to physical and financial health.
World Mental Health Day
On Tuesday 10th October it is World Mental Health Day. Join us between 10am – 3pm at the Engine Shed for an event to support your overall mental wellbeing. The event is open to colleagues and students and provides an opportunity to take time away from work or studying to prioritise your mental health.
There is lots to get involved with including:
- Pumpkin the Therapy Dog
- Tea & Talk Area
- Games Zone
- Reading Corner
- #UoLTeam10k Launch & Sign up
- Money&Me – Your new financial hub launch
- Lived PTSD experience talk with a recent graduate
- Student Advise
Mental Health is Universal Human right. We encourage managers to ensure their team have time throughout the day to attend the event. If you have any questions about the event email staffwellbeing@lincoln.ac.uk
All colleagues and students are welcome!
Wear it Pink Bake Sale at Lawress Hall
On Tuesday 17th October there is will a bake sale at Lawress Hall to raise money for Breast Cancer Now.
The bake sale will begin at 10am, make sure you get there quick before cakes run out!
We encourage colleagues to join us on the first floor to indulge in home made bakes all for a good cause.
We also invite you to wear something pink in support of the charity.
Cakes can be bought with cash on the day or through donating to the fundraising page, the QR will be available on the cake stand.
For any questions email Trisha Ramsay or Rosie Damarell.
Immigration Statement of Changes (4th October 2023)
The Home Office has published new visa application fees, effective 4th October. The statement and explanatory memorandum provide further details.
Kinto-Join – Car Share with colleagues!
Supporting sustainable travel options are part of the University’s plan to reduce our commuting carbon emissions. As such, the University is signposting staff to the Kinto-Join car sharing platform as an external service that can support sustainable travel.
Benefits of Car Sharing:
- Cost savings
- Networking
- Socialising
- Safer – in the event of breakdown
- More parking spaces on campus
- Lower your carbon footprint
- Reducing traffic on the road
Getting Started
- Download the app - The Kinto Join app is available to download via the Apple and Play stores. Search for ‘Kinto-Join’
- Enter your details
- Join a community – we have a community set up for each campus, you can join one or multiple!
- Set your schedule
- Find a car share colleague
Register to attend one of our webinars to learn how to use the product:
10th October, 11:30 – 12:00
11th October 14:00 – 14:30
The Kinto platform is independent from the University of Lincoln and partnerships are operated at individual’s own risk. Car sharing arrangements are agreed on an individual basis and managed locally, not by the Department of PPC or Estates
Apprenticeship Levy Funding Transfer
In a display of collaboration and community support, the University has recently transferred a proportion of our apprenticeship levy funding to a local employer. The Grimsby based company is Focus Independent Adult Social Care. This act of civic duty has paved the way for further apprenticeship opportunities, to enhance skills and development within their organisation.
This company recognised a skills gap when senior compliance managers left their organisation and identified an opportunity to grow internal talent within the business. This enterprise had utilised their own funding to develop their Adult Social Workers through apprenticeships. This was delivered by our College of Health and Science and required further funds to invest in their broader workforce.
Following this first successful levy transfer, our hope is to identify more businesses and enterprises we can support with any levy not utilised by our own organisation.
Please contact training@lincoln.ac.uk with any queries regarding transfer of levy to support another business.
Training and Development Opportunities
The Organisational Development team will soon be releasing the Central Training Programme for October 2023 to January 2024. As a hybrid working University community, we will be looking at how we deliver this Central Training Programme to ensure all colleagues can access professional and personal development programmes, whether this be across different campuses or virtually.
There are a variety of workshops coming up next month that colleagues can book onto via MyView.
- 04.10.2023 – Carbon Literacy
- 12.10.2023 – Mandatory Training – Lincoln Welcome
- 17.10.2023 – Active Bystander
- 17.10.2023 – PREVENT Awareness Training
- 26.10.2023 – Data Protection Awareness
For further information about each course and to book onto any of the above sessions, please visit MyView.
If there is a training or development session not currently on our schedule that you would like to suggest, please email training@lincoln.ac.uk. For any sessions listed without a date confirmed, ensure you add yourself to the waiting list to be notified when the course becomes available.
Personal Tutor Career Conversation Starters Workshop
Within this workshop you will receive an overview of the support available via the Careers and Employability team and hear about the benefits of connecting careers into your conversations with personal tutees, aiding and empowering their career development.
Following the session, you will be able to:
- Identify resources to support the delivery of 1:1 or group workshops within personal tutoring aligned to tutee career queries.
- Understand the benefit of making careers a regular conversation topic throughout the student journey.
- Explore scenarios and discuss how to signpost students & graduates to Careers & Employability.
Upcoming dates include:
- 08.11.2023
- 15.11.2023
To book onto either of the workshops, please visit MyView.
Student Complaints Training
The handling of student complaints is a vital role for all colleagues in the university. Any student, at any time may raise an informal complaint to any university colleague. How we handle these, and any formal complaints is therefore a prevalent part of the institution’s business and of the student experience.
The Student Complaints Regulations have recently been updated and now the Governance Team are holding training sessions for:
- Complaints Advisors training - for colleagues in roles that support formal investigators and colleagues who would like to support the handling of informal complaints.
- Formal student complaints investigators - for Heads of Schools, Services, and Departments, their Deputies, and any other colleagues likely to be nominated to undertake complaints investigations.
Each training session is one hour and held via Microsoft Teams.
Upcoming dates include:
- 03.10.2023 – Advisor Training
- 03.10.2023 – Investigator Training
- 05.10.2023 – Advisor Training
- 06.10.2023 – Investigator Training
If you are interested, please contact contention@lincoln.ac.uk for any other information. Thank you.
Coaching Professional Apprenticeships
We are offering an opportunity to fully fund colleagues onto Coaching Professional Apprenticeships starting early next year. Our application window is now open and will close on 31st January 2024.
This programme is beneficial to those who want to develop their skills to actively listen, provide feedback and use coaching to advance performance. This opportunity is suited to anyone who has line management responsibilities, project lead roles, or those seeking self-development who can evidence that they coach students or colleagues within their roles.
The programme will be delivered by our Holbeach campus using an online delivery model. Their personal tutors have extensive experience in the field of Coaching. The programme aims to develop the learner's knowledge, skills and behaviours expected of a coach. The learner will also be supported in embedding coaching into their everyday practice, working towards the promotion of coaching cultures across the university.
Please visit our webpage and guidance link for further information about Employee Apprenticeships and their entry requirements.
For expressions of interest and enquiries, please contact our Organisational Development Apprenticeships Advisor lross@lincoln.ac.uk.
Developing a Managerial Mindset Short Course
Have you progressed into a role where you are managing people, an aspiring leader, new in a supervisory or management role, and would like some formal training?
The Lincoln International Business School can help you via their short course, ‘Developing a Managerial Mindset’. The course is six full-day workshops once a month taught at the University of Lincoln's Brayford campus.
The programme is designed for anyone wishing to become more confident and skilled in managing others and become better leaders either now, or in the future. The course helps to develop confidence with line management, personal development, change and business management.
Train with us to effectively lead others and prepare for the next steps in your career.
Spaces are now open for the February 2024 cohort.
Contact us at LIBS_Exec@lincoln.ac.uk or visit our website here to find out more.
Payroll Card Competition Winners
Payroll Services wish to say a huge thank you to everyone who visited our stalls during National Payroll Week. It was a pleasure to speak to you all and to celebrate the week with fellow colleagues.
As part of the National Payroll Week we ran a competition and are pleased to announce our winners are Hannah Phillips and Charlotte Parker, who will receive £25 to their Linc-On account.
Financial Education Webinars
For support with financial wellbeing, a programme of financial webinars is available to colleagues.
Upcoming dates include:
- 04.10.2023 – Cost of Living Challenge
- 09.10.2023 – Navigate your retirement savings (UCRSS members)
- 16.10.2023 – Cost of Living Challenge
- 16.10.2023 – Navigate your retirement savings (TPS, LGPS, NHSPS & USS members)
Please visit our Financial Education webpage to reserve your place.
Mercer Money
Members of the Universities & Colleges Retirement Savings Scheme (UCRSS) will soon have access to a new pension and financial wellness platform called Mercer Money.
The website and app-based member portal will become the new gateway for members to engage with their pension. It will also provide tools to support your all-round financial wellbeing. It allows you to bring together all your accounts (including debit and credit cards, savings, investments, mortgages, loans and pensions) and create a 360-degree view of your financial health.
Look out for details coming soon.
Managing Menopause – Information Session
On Wednesday 18th October, as part of our ongoing work to raise awareness of the impact of menopause symptoms on colleagues at work, and to mark World Menopause Day, we are giving colleagues access to an online ‘Managing Menopause’ information session. This session aims to increase understanding and give practical tips on how you can support colleagues. This also supports the launch of the Menopause Policy and Guide which have been produced following extensive employee engagement and consultation and can be found on People, Performance & Culture webpage.
The Menopause Colleague Support Network have arranged for the session to be streamed at Lawress Hall in room LWH1116. Please arrive at 10.45am for an 11am start, tea and coffee will be provided. The online session will run for one hour; however, all are welcome to remain afterwards to continue the discussion if you wish.
To book your place, please visit MyView and book through the ‘My Training and Development’ section. It would be great to see as many colleagues there as possible.
If you are interested in joining the network or have any general queries or comments, please feel free to contact either Joy Knight or Helen Arnold.
Spooktacular offer at The Dungeons this Halloween!
Do you fancy a fright this Halloween? If so, this is the perfect time to take advantage of the discounted tickets that are currently on offer for The Dungeons when you book online, as part of our discounts and benefits platform, Linc-On Lifestyle.
The Dungeons offer a thrilling show of live actors, re-telling spooky historical tales to live audiences. Discounted tickets are available online for attractions in York, Blackpool, London and Edinburgh via Linc-On Lifestyle.
For further details please visit Linc-On Lifestyle.
Book Club
The University Book Club and Mini Bookworm Club provides 10 copies of a selected book each month which are available for free. The Book Club has been created to help promote the benefits of reading to an individual’s wellbeing. When requesting a copy of the monthly book you will be automatically added to the ‘Book Club’ Teams group. This is to help colleagues engage with others, discuss the monthly books and to share them between our community. You are also able to add yourself to the group at any time. As always to get a copy for you, or your mini bookworm please email staffwellbeing@lincoln.ac.uk
Linc-On Book Club
Book Club Book of the Month: “The Enigma of Room 622” by Joël Dicker
Mini Bookworm Book of the Month: “Long Live the Pumpkin Queen” by Shea Ernshaw
Social Badminton
Colleague Social Badminton takes place every Monday 5pm – 6pm at the Sports Hall on Brayford Campus, all equipment is provided. This free social sport is a great way to get some exercise and to meet colleagues. Please ensure you take your ID card which must be shown on entrance.
For any queries please email staffwellbeing@lincoln.ac.uk
Social Football
Social Football has become ever increasingly popular at the University, to ensure that it can continue and be enjoyable and safe for all those who wish to participate the following changes are being made as of Monday 2nd October:
Monday: Social football for staff and students. You must bring a valid Staff or Student ID with you and have appropriate footwear. If you do not wear appropriate footwear you will not be permitted to play. (Football boots are not permitted on the front pitches due to risk of damage to the pitch.)
Tuesday: Staff only social football. You must bring a valid Staff ID with you and have appropriate footwear. If you do not wear appropriate footwear you will not be permitted to play. (Football boots are not permitted on the front pitches due to risk of damage to the pitch).
If you have any questions please just let us know via staffwellbeing@lincoln.ac.uk
Hero Box
Thank you to all those who submitted nominations for the “Community” Hero Box. Congratulations to the following colleagues who will shortly receive their box in the post:
Michelle Wardle-Cousins
Lizzy Wells
Adam Jacklin
Joanne Hadley
Hannah Aldrich
Tanya Spratt
This month we are celebrating those colleagues who deserve an 'Equality' Hero Box. If you know a colleague who deserves to be recognised, send your nomination to staffwellbeing@lincoln.ac.uk and tell us why they are a hero in 200 words or less. Winners will be announced in the next Colleague Line.