Vice-Chancellor’s Council Update

• The Vice-Chancellor shares an overview of Council’s role and responsibilities
• The agenda for the meeting held on 2 December included the People strategy, the University Risk Register, the Registrar’s annual report and the University’s Financial Statements
• There was a particular focus on the pace of addressing risks related to cyber security, information compliance and health and safety

Thank you for your feedback on the first blog post on Council business last month. Some of you asked for more detail on what Council actually does: in short, Council is the University’s executive governing body, responsible for setting strategic direction and policy subject to the powers of Congregation. You can find out more about Council and its committees on the Governance website.

Council met again on 2 December with a very full agenda. It started by signing off the University’s annual Financial Statements, which will be made public this month, and the Annual Financial Return to the Office for Students, which forecasts the University’s financial position for the next five years. Director of HR Dr Markos Koumaditis then presented the People Strategy for approval. This has been under consultation for the past year and aims to deliver a better place to work for all, where talent can thrive, and where high-quality people services support the delivery of our academic mission. Council welcomed the People Strategy as key to our ambition to create an outstanding work environment.

The University Risk Register is presented and discussed twice a year; at this meeting and in Trinity term. The Risk Register is brought together by our Assurance team, through input of the key risks identified by the main committees of Council in their areas of responsibility, and is monitored by the Audit and Scrutiny Committee. There are currently 16 top risks on the Risk Register, with some of the top-rated risks relating to the ability of the estate to support academic activity, and cybersecurity. Council spends time discussing what the University’s top risks are, any changes since the Risk Register was last discussed, and the actions being taken to mitigate these risks. An area of particular concern at this meeting was the pace of addressing risks related to cybersecurity and information compliance, and health and safety. I would urge you all to engage with any actions in your departments to address risk, including the EveryDaySafe programme, and keep information security and data protection training up to date.

The Registrar provided her annual report, including an update on the Strategic Review of Professional Services. This Strategic Review aims to promote sustainable improvement in Professional Services in alignment with the key change programmes in the University. We also heard some successes of the Professional Services Together programme, including a review of HR grading which resulted in a more consistent approach to gradings and significant time savings to recruitment processes.

The final item on the agenda was the draft Strategic Plan, which we are aiming to consult on in the new year so watch this space for further information.

This 2 December meeting covered some significant strategic areas, all of which need to be coordinated with each other and with other change activities, including the Estate Strategy and Digital Transformation. These activities reflect Council’s commitment to improving our working lives, and our ability to deliver outstanding teaching and research.

I hope that this blog helps to demystify Council and its discussions. Please let us know if you found it useful or have any feedback: you can submit feedback via vice-chancellor@admin.ox.ac.uk.

Council information, including minutes, is published on the website.

Information on the Committees of Council can also be found online.

We encourage all staff to consider putting themselves forward for committees and other governance groups: our elections page provides relevant information about standing for election and getting involved in University governance.