Senate Minutes 10 November 2021

Minutes of the meeting of the Cardiff University Senate held on Wednesday 10 November 2021 at 14:15, via Zoom.

Attendance

In Attendance

932 Welcome and introductions

The Chair welcomed all to the meeting, especially the new members and the member of Council attending as an observer. It was noted the meeting would be recorded to assist with production of the attendance list and minutes.

933 Apologies for absence

Noted

933.1 that apologies received would be recorded in the Minutes.

934 Minutes

Resolved

934.1 to confirm the minutes of the meeting of Senate held on 23 June 2021 (paper 20/734) as a true record of the meeting.

935 Matters arising

Received paper 21/195 ‘Matters Arising (Programme Development Policy)’. The Vice-Chancellor introduced the paper.

Noted

935.1 that a number of items had been approved via Chair’s Action:

.1 The Extenuating Circumstances Policy

After feedback was received from staff, a review of the extenuating circumstances policy was undertaken and amendments approved to take effect from the 2021/22 academic year; briefing sessions have been held to advise staff of the changes to the policy;

.2 the Academic Year Dates for 21/22

.3 Applicant Terms and Conditions and Variation of Arrangements Regulations

Following legal advice, changes were made to the University’s Terms and Conditions for Applicants; this included the Academic Regulation for Variation of Arrangements, which is cited in the Terms and Conditions;

.4 Academic Regulations for the MBBCh

The School of Medicine requested a change of assessment for the MBBCh, however, as this affected progression requirements, changes to the MBBCh Academic Regulations were also required;

.5 Academic Regulations for the BDS

The School of Dentistry requested amendments to the Academic Regulations to ensure the secondary rule for the award of the BDS is clearly stated, and to clarify the requirements for the award of exit awards;

.6 Establishing a new Trust Fund [The Professor Bryan D Williams Scholarship in Applied and Experimental Clinical Immunology]. As authorised by Senate at its meeting on 17 June 2009, the Chair approved the new fund;

935.2 thanks were extended to the Pro Vice-Chancellor Education & Student Experience and the Academic Registrar for correcting the error in relation to the publication of the Programme Development Policy; further clarification was provided regarding the communication to Heads of School of the correction to the published policy.

936 Declaration of interests

The Chair reminded members of their requirement to disclose any direct or indirect interests which could influence their judgement. Disclosure of interests should be made before an item was discussed and the individual concerned should either withdraw from the meeting or not take part in the discussion, as appropriate for that part of the agenda.

Noted

936.1 that no member disclosed any interests.

937 Constitution and membership

Received paper 21/196C, ‘Constitution and Membership of Senate’.

The Chair spoke to this item.

Resolved

937.1 to recommend the amendments to Senate’s Terms of Reference to Governance Committee and Council.

938 Constitution and Membership of Sub-Committees (ASQC)

Received and noted paper 21/137, ‘Terms of Reference ASQC’.

939 Report from the Vice Chancellor

Received paper 21/179C ‘Report from the Vice-Chancellor’. The Vice-Chancellor introduced the paper.

Noted

939.1 that the outcome of the ballots for industrial action in relation to pay and USS Pension Scheme had been issued and in both cases the benchmark for turnout had not been reached;

939.2 that a new Chair of Council had been appointed; Patrick Younge, an alumnus of the University, who would commence in the role from January 2022;

939.3 that the new Chief Financial Officer (Darren Xiberras) would also commence in post from January 2022;

939.4 that it was confirmed the University hoped to remove restrictions around social distancing and room capacity for all teaching spaces; in response to a question it was confirmed this could extend to the School of Music’s concert hall from the New Year, subject to national restrictions at that time;

939.5 that an update was provided by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor in relation to Professor Dinesh Bhugra’s review of progress made since his original report on issues of race equality at the University, and the management response:

.1 that Professor Bhugra, joined by Vanessa Cameron, had led a review of progress over the summer, meeting with a number of colleagues and receiving written reports;

.2 that the University was pleased to note the review was positive, with significant progress made and a number of suggestions for further advancements already being discussed or progressed in advance of the review;

.3 the University accepted all recommendations in the review;

.4 that key recommendations were:

• the appointment of a dedicated Director for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) operational and strategic matters, with a dedicated team;
• the creation of an EDI hub or centre point for activities in this area;
• to improve the visibility around EDI works and be more proactive in communicating work in this area;
• to increase the diversity of recruitment panels (an area where work is already in train) and capture feedback from exit interviews in relation to EDI;
• to ensure EDI is embedded in the University’s culture, including work on decolonising the curriculum;

.5 the University would prioritise these activities in the coming year and were working on integrating these recommendation within the Strategic Equality Plan;

.6 that Council would receive the report and consider the management response at its meeting at the end of November and this would also be shared with the EDI committee; feedback is also being shared with those who took part in the review; the report and the confirmed University response would, after the meeting of Council, be shared on the public website and in the staff newsletter ‘Blas’ at the beginning of December;

.7 that the original incident reviewed by Professor Bhugra had related to racism but the focus of the follow up review was the broader spectrum of EDI activities; the Vice-Chancellor confirmed that the specific need to address anti-racism activities was not lost and it would be at the centre of the new structure and the work undertaken here;

.8 that the review of progress report would be made publicly available.

940 Education and Students Sub-Strategy: Prioritisation and Delivery

The Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education & Student Experience provided a presentation on this item.

Noted

940.1 that the updated Education & Students Sub-Strategy had been approved by Council in February 2021, following review by Senate;

940.2 that a large amount of work had been undertaken to develop the implementation plan for the revised strategy, including costing, analysis and implementation of the new Education Governance structure; the business case for investment to be considered by Council;

940.3 that there were three key elements to the proposals: student success, inspiring teachers, and inclusive and innovative environment; underpinning these elements was ensuring a sense of community and belonging;

940.4 that a key driver for this work related to the decline in in NSS scores for student experience and teaching quality; the University had been asked and had submitted to HEFCW an institutional NSS action plan for 2020/21 and subject-level action plans for: Dental Nursing, German Studies, Asian Studies and Software Engineering which were identified as below benchmark;

940.5 that it was hoped to implement a specialist skills base and resource to help academics develop and deliver their curriculum;

940.6 an engagement plan was being developed and consultation would be held on multiple levels;

940.7 that the number of tutees per personal tutor could be very high and it was important to review the personal tutor system to provide clarity on what could be provided without overwhelming staff; it was noted that supplementary methods of student support could be further developed (e.g. peer mentoring and peer learning);

940.8 that discussions were being held in relation to workload and it was intended to provide resources and support to schools which would enable academics, rather than add to their workload;

940.9 that programmes within schools may have differing needs and that resources could be targeted by discipline; the University was keen to involve both academic staff and students in the projects undertaken;

940.10 that discussions were being held with Professional Services colleagues to ensure an aligned approach with other initiatives and that it would be helpful to discuss with academic staff possible improvements to the practical support provided;

940.11 that work on an inclusive curriculum should build on anti-racism activities already in train.

941 Student View and institutional response

Received papers 21/198 ‘Student View’ and 21/199 ‘University Response to the Student View’. The Students’ Union President and Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education & Student Experience introduced the papers.

Noted

941.1 that the Students’ Union President presented the Student View and

noted the main themes were:

• blended learning
• assessment, feedback and workload
• learning communities
• Heath Park
• Student support;
• Postgraduate students

941.2 that the Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education & Student Experience extended her thanks to the Students’ Union Sabbatical Officers (and those from the previous academic year) for delivering the Student View during a difficult year and to colleagues across the University for delivering the institutional response;

941.3 that the University Response had been updated to provide feedback on work undertaken on previous recommendations and was split into three key sections: outcomes on the agreed partnership projects from 2020/21 (complaints, communications on the Centre for Student Life, and the learning community); an update on actions from previous reports; and the response to this year’s Student View;

941.4 that the key partnership projects for the current year were:

.1 Heath Park: work would now be undertaken to scope the project;

.2 Meeting People: that scoping would be undertaken, especially in relation to black students accessing extracurricular activities;

.3 Student Safety: work was progressing in conjunction with South Wales Police and the Student Support team;

.4 Postgraduate Students: this had been narrowed to reference mature students as there remained an issue with retention of mature students;

.5 Learning Community: work would continue on this project from last year.

942 Strategic Partnership with University of Xiamen

Received paper 21/200 ‘Renewal of Strategic Partnership with University of Xiamen’. The Pro Vice-Chancellor for International and Student Recruitment and College of Physical Sciences and Engineering introduced the paper.

Noted

942.1 that the University had had a strategic partnership with the University of Xiamen since 2016 which had been very successful, despite the pandemic;

942.2 that the University of Xiamen was a double first-class university and one of the top in China;

942.3 that the University was aware of the global political context and the UK Government was supportive of such international links provided a risk assessment had been undertaken; the University was looking to mitigate risks in this area to assure the UK Government;

942.4 that there had been links between the two institutions via the Confucius Institute since 2008;

942.5 that by extending the partnership, it was hoped to build on established research links and continue to benefit student and staff mobility and student recruitment;

942.6 that the reference to dual degrees within the paper would be updated to articulation agreements;

942.7 that the University was aware of the environmental impact of students and staff travelling between the two institutions and was looking to develop a policy for air travel which recognised the University’s commitment to carbon net zero alongside the importance of strategic partnerships; it was noted that partnerships could flourish without the need to travel (for example the partnership with the University of Waikato in New Zealand);

942.8 that a virtual signing of the partnership with the University of Waikato had taken place.

Resolved

942.9 to recommend to Council approval of the renewal of the Strategic Partnership with Xiamen University and the financial commitment of £60,000 per annum for a period of five years.

943 University Open Access Policy

Received paper 21/201 ‘University Open Access Policy’. The University Librarian introduced the paper.

Noted

943.1 that the policy had been revised to reflect the updated policy position from UKRI; it was expected the REF policy on outputs would also be updated to reflect the UKRI position and that a further revision of the University’s policy would be created once the REF policy was known;

943.2 that journal articles published as part of a grant funded project would now be required to be immediately accessible, with removal of the current 12 month embargo period;

943.3 that monographs would be required to be open access within 12 months, if funded by a UKRI grant;

943.4 that the block grant from UKRI would be increased, in light of the new requirements;

943.5 that work to update guidance and communicate the changes to staff was being undertaken;

943.6 that once the REF guidance was published, the University hoped to be able to offer staff a range of options in relation to open access.

Resolved

943.7 to approve the revised Open Access Publications Policy.

944 Governance Effectiveness Review 2021: Report, Response and Updates

Received papers 20/765C ‘Report of the Governance Effectiveness Review 2021’, 21/202C ‘Council’s response to the Recommendations of the Governance Effectiveness Review 2021 Report’ and 21/203C ‘Annual Assurance of Academic Quality and Standards’. The University Secretary introduced the paper.

Noted

944.1 that the presenter of paper 20/765C was the University Secretary (not Dr Jonathan Nicholls as incorrectly stated on the paper);

944.2 that three papers had been shared with Senate: the full Governance Effectiveness Review (GER) report; an update on the recommendations from Council; and a report on the system for annual assurance on the maintenance of academic quality and standards (recommendation 10);

944.3 that HEFCW required an effectiveness review of Council, with external input, to be undertaken every three years and the University had procured Dr Jonathan Nicholls for the 2021 review;

944.4 that as part of the review, Dr Nicholls had met with five members of Senate and thanks were extended by the University Secretary to those who had met with him;

944.5 that the remit of the review was detailed in the paper and centred on Council’s effectiveness and culture;

944.6 that the report recommended clear communication between Senate and Council, to ensure an effective relationship;

944.7 that detail of the recommendations in relation to Senate were contained in paper 21/202C:

.1 that Council members were now attending meetings of Senate as an induction activity (recommendation 9);

.2 that Senate members did not suggest further developments or enhancements to the current approach for the provision of effective annual assurance of academic quality and standards (recommendation 10);

.3 that Audit and Risk Committee were reviewing the provision of periodic assurance on the method and evidential base for the provision of annual assurance by the Senate to the Council on academic quality and standards (recommendation 11);

.4 that a discussion on when and how to assess the effectiveness of the relationship between Council and Senate (in the context of the GER21 review) would be held by the Vice-Chancellor with the new Chair of Council once in post (recommendation 12);

.5 that discussions were being held in relation to how Council members may engage and interact with students (recommendation 16);

.6 that work was ongoing in relation to extending the authority and oversight of the University Secretary to include all governance arrangements in the University (recommendation 22).

945 Annual Quality Report

Received paper 21/214 ‘Annual Quality Report 2020-21’. The Pro Vice- Chancellor for Education & Student Experience introduced the paper.

945.1 that the Annual Quality report provided a holistic overview of the University’s academic quality system for the 20/21 academic year;

945.2 that the report provides assurance to Council that the University sets and maintains academic standards, monitors and evaluates its teaching and learning, identifies enhancements activities and supports students to succeed; this enables Council to provide assurance to HEFCW on academic standards and quality;

945.3 that three areas were brought to Senate’s attention:

.1 Student Experience

This was an area of significant risk and identified as a continuing red risk due to NSS outcomes and other indicators; in light of this a number of responses were required by HEFCW including the strategic approach to the NSS results, an update on the 2020 implementation plan, and subject actions plans for Dental Nursing, German Studies, Asian Studies and Software Engineering which were identified as below benchmark; the implementation plan for the Education & Students sub-strategy and the business case for investment in the student experience would mitigate this risk;

.2 Degree Outcomes

That the University was performing well within the sector but that the black, Asian and minority ethnic awarding gap remained an area of concern; ASQC had suggested this is given greater prominence in the report;

.3 Student Complaints, Conduct & Appeals

That the risk in this area had reduced from red to amber, with further resource placed in this area to reduce the time taken to resolve complaints and appeals;

945.4 that work had been undertaken by the EDI committee to review possible reasons for the black, Asian and minority ethnic awarding gap and the outcomes of that review would be considered by ASQC;

945.5 that by highlighting the awarding gap within the report as an amber risk, the University was confirming this was unacceptable and needed to be addressed; the Pro Vice-Chancellor Education & Student Experience was working with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor to align EDI activities with this area of work.

Resolved

945.6 to recommend to Council approval of the Annual Quality report, subject to the addition of the black, Asian and minority ethnic awarding gap as an amber risk;

945.7 for clarity to be provided on table 7 as the 2019 data did not appear to add up to 100%.

946 Report from the Chair of Academic Standards and Quality Committee (ASQC)

Received paper 21/210C ‘Report from Chair of ASQC’. The Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education & Student Experience introduced the paper.

Resolved

946.1 to approve:

.1 a revised Placement Learning Policy;

.2 the acceptance of T level qualifications as recognized qualifications for entry to degree programmes;

.3 oversubscription policies to formalise a process for oversubscription in Schools where there are externally imposed number caps (specifically for the schools of Medicine and Dental).

947 Staff Categories of Council

Received paper 21/204 ‘Staff Categories of Council’. The University Secretary introduced the paper.

Resolved

947.1 to approve that the process for appointing to the Head of School category on Council be on an opt-out basis (i.e. all Heads of School would be automatically included in the ballot unless they requested to opt out).

948 Any other business

Noted

948.1 that there had been reports in the news relating to a coroner’s inquest that had considered the death of a Cardiff University student and returned a verdict of suicide; media reports had wrongly alleged that there had been a miscommunication over exam results; condolences had been extended to the family and all affected by the tragic event; it was confirmed that the coroner had raised a concern that the communication of in-year resit results was complex and had the potential to cause confusion; the school had provided pastoral care and the University was reviewing the process around communicating resit exam results to ensure clarity.

949 Items received for approval

Received paper 21/205 ‘Action Plan Update for the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers’.

Noted

949.1 that work had been undertaken with the Researchers Pathway Group (a cross-University group) to develop an action plan to support career development for research staff which also looked at research culture;

949.2 that it aimed to ensure consistent support across the University and harness areas of good practice;

949.3 that the Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research, Innovation & Enterprise welcomed any comments or suggestions on the action plan.