SENATE
SEN12-M8
Minutes of the Ordinary
Meeting of Senate on Wednesday 7 November
2012.
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In attendance: Chris Backhouse (for item 12/104),
Mike Caine (for item 12/105), Chris Dunbobbin, Robert Hamilton (for item 12/104),
Jennifer Nutkins, Caroline Walker.
Apologies
for absence were received from: Jonathon Chambers, Dominic Malcolm, Rob Parkin,
Iris Wigger, Jonathan Wright.
The
Vice Chancellor welcomed Samantha Davis, Constantine Marlas, and Sebastien
Roger, who were attending their first meeting as students of the University,
elected from and by the students involved in the academic representation
structure of the Students’ Union.
12/100 Minutes
Senate RESOLVED to
confirm and sign the Minutes of the Ordinary meeting held on 4 July 2012
(SEN12-M5), and of the Extraordinary meeting held on
11 October 2012.
12/101 Matters Arising from the Minutes
SEN12-P131
Review
of Information Science, Information Systems and Information Management (RISM)
At its meeting on 4
July 2012, Senate had approved a proposal to establish a Centre for Information
Management (CIM) in the School of Business and Economics, but had asked to receive an implementation plan, incorporating
a more detailed timetable, and more in-depth proposals in relation to research,
teaching and enterprise, taking into account the issues raised by DIS staff. An
Implementation Group (IG), comprising SBE and DIS staff had been established to
address these issues, and had consulted widely with DIS staff, students, and
others. The following sections of the IG’s report were highlighted:
i)
Staff
Planning. In the initial proposal, it had been
recognised that some DIS staff might wish to transfer to another area of the
University to achieve a better fit in relation to their research interests, and
this had been addressed by the IG. Most R&T staff within DIS had expressed a
wish to be part of the CIM, but staff within the Publishing Group had asked to
transfer to the School of the Arts, English and Drama (AED), and this had been
accepted in principle by AED. Two other staff had asked to transfer to the
Department of Computer Science, and this move was under consideration. Contract
research staff would transfer to the relevant Schools, depending on the
relocation of the relevant member of R&T staff.
ii)
Accommodation
Planning. All DIS R & T staff joining the CIM
would be accommodated within the Sir Richard Morris Building, and planning for
this was well underway.
iii)
Programme
Planning. The IG had reached agreement regarding the
transfer of DIS programmes to SBE, Computer Science and AED respectively, and
it was intended that those programmes transferred to SBE would be reviewed
during 2013.
iv)
Research and
Enterprise Planning. The proposed vision and focus of the
CIM had been refined from that set out in the initial proposal. It was
emphasised, however, that the focus on six themes, while constituting the core
of CIM activity and the basis of the Centre’s international reputation,
did not preclude staff from also pursuing areas of personal research interest.
v)
Timescale
for Implementation. It was proposed that the Centre be
formally established on 1 March 2013, with the official launch in April/May
2013. The Director if the CIM would be appointed by the end of December 2012,
through an open internal recruitment process, and all DIS staff would transfer
to SBE (or other Schools) on 1 August 2013.
It was noted in
discussion that all LISU staff would transfer to the CIM, and that work was
envisaged to broaden the unit’s range of services, while maintaining and
strengthening its external-facing profile.
Senate
thanked Professor Angus Laing and the other members of the IG for their work.
12/102 Powers and Functions of Senate
SEN12-P98
Senate NOTED the
powers and functions of Senate.
12/103 University
Strategy and Planning
SEN12-P99
Senate RECEIVED proposals for a fundamental
review of University Strategy. The pace of change in the HE sector had made it
apparent that it would be necessary to undertake a major review of the existing
Strategy: Towards 2016, and at its meeting in November 2012, Council would be
asked to begin the process, to be completed towards the end of 2013. As a first
stage, an evidence base would be developed to demonstrate the progress made in
relation to the existing Strategy, and Senate was asked to comment on relevant measures
that. More broadly, Senate was asked to consider what should be taken into
account in the process for reviewing the Strategy.
The following points were noted in
discussion:
i)
Consultation should be as wide as
possible, internally and with external stakeholder institutions and
organisations, including those outwith the HE sector. There was an opportunity
in this context to capitalise on the University’s raised profile in the
year of the London Olympics.
ii)
Designing processes to capture qualitative
data to inform the Strategy was likely to be more difficult than identifying
and incorporating relevant quantitative metrics. It was important, however,
that this “soft-knowledge” was incorporated.
iii)
92% of respondents to the 2012 Staff
Survey had agreed that the University was a good place to work, and asking
staff why they had responded in this way might help to capture information on
what the University did well at the present time.
iv)
Consideration would need to be given
to a number of issues including:
·
The likelihood that there would be
greater private sector involvement in the HE Sector in the next decade and
beyond.
·
The increasing impact on the
University of the global HE environment.
·
The extent to which the Strategy
incorporated specific targets.
·
The extent to which the University
embraced virtual learning in the next stage of its development.
·
Addressing the needs of private
sector/industrial partners.
·
What is the University for/what does
it seek to achieve; and what is the relationship between being a University
which undertook fundamentally worthwhile activities and being a successful one?
Members were encouraged to think creatively
about the issues, discuss them with colleagues across the University and
continue to feed views into the review process.
12/104 British University in Egypt
SEN12-P100
Senate RESOLVED to
approve a recommendation from Learning and Teaching Committee that Loughborough ceases
to validate the degrees of any further cohorts of students at the BUE, and to
note information relating to the honouring of Loughborough’s existing
commitment to validate the degrees of the BUE students up to and including the
cohort entering the Preparatory year in autumn 2013.
12/105 Developing an Academic Activity on the Olympic
Park
SEN12-P101
Senate RECEIVED an update on key developments since the
October 2012 meetings of Senate and Council. Recent external developments had
resulted in a revised timeline for decision-making, and Senate AGREED to defer
a final decision on whether to proceed until early 2013. It was envisaged that
a decision on a final version of the project proposal and associated business
plan would be taken at the March 2013 meeting of Council, or sooner, if Senate
and Council were able to meet prior to this date.
12/106 Matters for Report by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor
(Research)
SEN12-P102
Senate RECEIVED a report for the full
financial year ending 31 July 2012. The following points were highlighted:
i)
Research Applications and Awards. Applications had
been up by 6% (number) and 34% (value) in comparison with the previous year.
Awards had been slightly down by number and value of awards, but 2010-11 had
been an all-time record year in terms of value, largely due to success in the
area of high value manufacturing. Congratulations were offered to staff who had
been involved in successful applications in the first quarter of 2012-13. There
had been nine large applications of over £1M, and the Research Office was
considering how best it could support large, complex, consortium bids.
ii)
Annual Research Income and Overhead
Contribution Levels.
The figures for 2011-12 demonstrated continued growth in the University’s
research portfolio despite increasing external competition for research
funding.
iii)
Research Student Office. PGR student intake
was slightly below target, and PhD completions
slightly lower than in the previous year.
iv)
Outcomes. Reference was made
to some recent successes, including the following:
a) A Loughborough team, led by Professor M.
Sohail had won a prestigious prize of $60,000 in an international competition
organised by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a reinvented
toilet that was clean, safe, durable and affordable for the poor without the
need for connection to electricity or a sewer.
b) Loughborough’s Centre for Research
in Social Policy had conducted the research on which an increase to the Living
Wage, announced on 5 November 2012, had been based.
v) Publications. Research Committee
had established a publications group which would address the issues associated
with the “Finch” report.
vi) Data Management. A working group of
Research Committee had been established to address the issues of research data
management.
i)
REF. Preparations continued, including
the submission of the Code of Practice for the Selection of Staff to HEFCE; the
review of the latest version of impact case studies and associated material;
the finalising of Individual Staff Circumstances forms, and the operation of a
tactical REF appointment budget.
12/107 Matters for Report by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor
(Teaching)
SEN12-P103A
107.1 Student Recruitment 2012 Entry.
Senate RECEIVED an
update.
SEN12-P103B
107.2 National
Student Survey 2012.
The results of the
most recent NSS had been good, particularly for Materials and Ergonomics. A
large number of subject areas were ranked in the top 20, but in some areas
outcomes had been disappointing, and actions were underway to address these.
107.3 Approval of Programmes
Senate AGREED that
responsibility for approval of new programmes of study and amendments to
existing programmes of study on its behalf between meetings be delegated to the
Pro-Vice- Chancellor (Teaching).
12/108 Matters for
Report by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Enterprise)
SEN12-P104
Senate received a
report. The following points were highlighted:
i)
HE-BCI
Survey.
Data made publicly available from
HEFCE’s 2012 HE-BCI survey had enabled useful benchmarking, which would
be used to prompt debate at senior management level particularly in relation to
individual School/Departmental contributions. It was noted in this context that
almost 40% of the total sums reported were associated with support services.
The data showed the importance of a number of other sources of income,
including regeneration grants led from the Enterprise Office; activities led by
SDC and imago; and rents generated on the Science and Enterprise Park. The
survey had financial and reputational implications, and it was emphasised that if
Loughborough wished to maintain its position, it would need to improve on its
performance.
ii)
Grant Activity.
Loughborough’s submission to the EPSRC
for a £2M 2 year Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) grant had been successful.
The IAA would be administered alongside £745k of HEIF project funding,
available to any School on a competitive basis. The University had also been
awarded a £25k prize fund to encourage social enterprise amongst staff and
students. Two submissions to the third round of the government’s Regional
Growth Fund (RGF) had, however, been unsuccessful (continuing a poor record for
the East Midlands under RGF), but further submissions for European Regional
Development Funds were in progress or under consideration for both projects.
iii)
Staff Conditions of Service.
Discussions were underway with Union
representatives to update staff conditions of service to reflect the
University’s commitment to enterprise.
iv)
Economic Impact.
The economic impact of the University was
recently featured on BBC East Midlands Today, as a consequence of a report
commissioned by the University. The report valued the University’s total
expenditure at £886M, with Gross Value Added of £250M and over 12600 jobs
sustained.
v)
Awards.
A number of external awards were highlighted.
vi)
Snapshot of Enterprise.
Data was presented demonstrating the quality
and quantity of enterprise activity across campus.
12/109 Matters for Report by the Vice-Chancellor
The Vice-Chancellor reported on the
following matters:
i)
The Vice-Chancellor had continued to
visit academic Schools and support sections, and all of the 1:1 open door slots
for the current term had been booked. Open staff forums had also been
scheduled. The Vice-Chancellor was keen to continue to meet with colleagues on
a regular basis, and members were asked for suggestions as to how this might
best be achieved.
ii)
There had been some turbulence within
the 1994 Group, with St Andrews, Bath, and Surrey all leaving. The
Vice-Chancellor was speaking with other Vice-Chancellors about the implications.
There was an ongoing debate about the role of the HE mission groups, and
members were encouraged to email the Vice-Chancellor with their thoughts.
12/110 Programme
Proposals
SEN12-P105
On the recommendation of Learning and
Teaching Committee, on the advice of Curriculum Sub-Committee, Senate RESOLVED to
recommend to Council as appropriate:
110.1 New programmes:
International Foundation Programme for Business (three semester variant)
from July 2013
International Foundation Programme for Science and Engineering (three
semester variant) from July 2013
Taught Component of the PhD with Integrated Research Studies for School
of Science from April 2013
110.2 Award, title or major programme changes (with effect from October 2012 unless stated):
BSc Accounting and
Financial Management (addition of DIntS award from Oct 11 for 2008 entrants onwards)
MSc in Advanced Methods in Aeronautical Engineering (reinstatement of
programme) from October 2012
BEng/MEng Automotive
Materials (including addition of DIntS award)
BSc Banking, Finance and Management (addition of DIntS award from Oct 11 for 2008 entrants
onwards)
MSc Building Services Engineering to MSc Low Energy Building
Services Engineering (Oct 13 entry, and existing students by agreement)
MBA (full-time)
MBA International Sports Management (additional intake in January 2013
only)
BSc
Business Economics and Finance (addition of DIntS for new entrants)
BSc/MChem Chemistry
(addition of DPS from Oct 11 for current and new students)
BSc/MChem Chemistry
and Analytical Science (addition of DPS from Oct 11 for current and new
students)
BSc Chemistry and Sports Science (addition of DIntS for
current and new students)
BSc/MChem Chemistry
with Analytical Chemistry (addition of DPS from Oct 11 for current and new
students)
BSc/MChem Chemistry
with Forensic Analysis (addition of DPS from Oct 11 for current and new
students)
BEng/MEng Design with Engineering Materials (including addition of DIntS award)
BSc Economics
(addition of DIntS for new entrants)
BSc Economics with Accounting (addition of DIntS for new entrants)
BSc Economics with
Geography (addition of DIntS for new entrants)
BSc Economics with
Politics (addition of DIntS for new entrants)
BSc
International Economics (addition of DIntS for new entrants)
BSc Management Sciences (addition of DIntS award from Oct 11 for 2008 entrants onwards)
BEng/MEng Materials Engineering (including addition of DIntS award)
BSc/MChem Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry (addition of DPS from
Oct 11 for current and new students)
BSc Retailing, Marketing and Management (addition of DIntS award from
Oct 11 for 2008 entrants onwards)
110.3 Suspension of
programmes:
MSc Communication Networks, Security and Forensics (Last intake: October
2011; Next intake: October 2013)
MSc Economics (Last intake: October 2010; Next intake October 2014)
MSc Economics and
Econometrics (Last intake: October 2010; Next intake October 2014)
MSc International
Economics (Last intake: October 2010; Next intake October 2014)
110.4 Discontinuation of programmes:
BA European Studies (Last intake: Oct 2010)
MSc Exercise Physiology (p/t version) (No intake in last 5 years)
BSc Physics and Management (Last intake: Oct 2012)
MSc Sport and Exercise Nutrition (p/t version) (No intake in last 5
years)
12/111 Ethics Committee
SEN12-P106
Senate RECEIVED a report of the
meeting on 19 October 2012, and RESOLVED to:
SEN12-P107
111.1 Approve an amendment to the constitution of
Ethics Committee.
12/112 Research Committee
SEN12-P108
Senate RECEIVED reports of the meetings on 2
July, 3 September and 8 October 2012, and RESOLVED to:
SEN12-P109
112.1 Approve an amendment to the Code of Practice
on Research Degree Programmes in relation to Leave of Absence, with immediate
effect.
12/113 Health, Safety and Environmental Committee
SEN12-P110
Senate RECEIVED a report of the meeting on 17
October 2012, and RESOLVED to approve:
SEN12-P111
113.1 Amendments to the constitution and terms of
reference of Health, Safety and Environment Committee.
SEN12-P112
113.2 The Annual Plan for the Health, Safety and
Environmental Office.
SEN12-P113
113.3 Amendments to the Environmental Policy.
12/114 Prizes Committee
SEN12-P114
Senate RECEIVED the Annual Report
from Prizes Committee.
12/115 Academic Misconduct
In accordance with
paragraphs 18 and 30 of Regulation XVIII, Senate RESOLVED to appoint the
Academic Misconduct Committee and the Academic Misconduct Appeals Committee for
2012-13, as below:
115.1 Academic Misconduct Committee
Two Associate Deans (Teaching), one of whom shall act as Chair: Dr Brian
Jarvis (Chair), Dr Ray Dawson.
One University member of the Loughborough Students’ Union Executive
nominated by the Executive: Lazar Zindovic.
Two further Associate Deans (Teaching), appointed on an annual basis as
reserves, to act as full members in cases where the Chair and/or other
appointed member have a previous connection: To be confirmed.
115.2 Academic Misconduct Appeals Committee
Two Associate Deans (Teaching) of whom shall act as Chair: Dr Keith Pond,
Dr Lorraine Cale.
One University member of the Loughborough Students’ Union Executive
nominated by the Executive: To be confirmed.
Two further Associate Deans (Teaching) shall be appointed on an annual
basis as reserves, to act as full members in cases where the Chair and/or other
appointed member have a previous connection: To be confirmed.
12/116 Membership of Senate 2012-13
SEN12-P115
Senate NOTED the membership of
Senate for 2012-13.
12/117 Librarian’s Annual Report 2011-12
Senate NOTED that the annual report for
2011-12 from the Librarian was available online.
12/118 Reports from
Committees
Senate RECEIVED reports from the
following Committees:
118.1 SEN12-P116 Advancement
Committee of 24 October 2012.
118.2 SEN12-P117 Arts
Committee of 23 October 2012.
118.3 SEN12-P118 Enterprise
Committee of 12 July and 7 September 2012.
118.4 SEN12-P119 Estates
Management Committee of 27 September 2012.
118.5 SEN12-P120 Finance
Committee of 21 June and 12 October 2012.
118.6 SEN12-P121 IT
Committee of 24 October 2012.
118.7 SEN12-P122 Learning
and Teaching Committee of 27 September and 25 October 2012.
118.8 SEN12-P123 Research
Performance Monitoring Committee of 12 June, 10 July and 11 September 2012.
118.9 SEN12-P124 Student
Discipline Committee of 30 October 2012.
118.10 SEN12-P125
Student Experience Committee of 23
October 2012 (not ready for circulating for this meeting).
12/119 Dates of
Meetings in 2012-13
Wednesday 23 January 2013 (if
required)
Wednesday 6 March 2013
Wednesday 26 June 2013
Author – Chris
Dunbobbin
Date – November
2012
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© Loughborough University. All
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