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Dear colleagues,
Welcome back to the start of Trinity, for what I hope will be a term full of success, joy and fun. I hope you had some time to recharge during the Easter break.
I am delighted to be speaking to you from the home of Oxford University Sport at Iffley Road, where next month we will celebrate the 70th anniversary of Roger Bannister's four-minute mile: a landmark achievement of sporting success and human endeavour, a legacy that this very sport ground proudly owns. Do look out for ways you can get involved, either by taking part in the Community Mile, or spectating to cheer us runners on.
What can I say about the Boat Race? Well, congratulations to Cambridge, and of course, our Osiris women's crew, but commiserations to those of our crews who lost. There is always next year – and we will win again.
Naturally, we remain deeply concerned and shocked at the situation in the Middle East. Let us remain firmly together as a community, respectful and tolerant, and ever hopeful for a peaceful resolution to the conflict, a permanent ceasefire, the safe return of the hostages, and the immediate delivery of vital food and medical aid to those who are so desperately suffering. We are doing all we can here at Oxford to support our students and staff who are affected by the conflict.
There is so much happening this term, what with examinations, end-of-year celebrations and starting the process to elect a new Chancellor – something that has caught the media's attention, often in unhelpful and misrepresentative ways. I can only hope that the attention will encourage fantastic candidates to apply for this key role. And we will, of course, have plenty of opportunity during the term to thank our dear current Chancellor, Chris Patten, for his many years of extraordinary contributions to this University, a place I know, like you and me, he and his wife Lavender love.
There are many pieces of work underway aiming to improve working conditions for our staff. Now, in my message to you all at the end of last term, I confirmed that University Council had met to discuss the findings and recommendations of the Pay and Conditions Steering Committee on 4 March. This review will have important implications for how we reward and invest in people across all the different roles at Oxford. I appreciate your trust and patience in waiting to hear about outcomes.
This week there was some further discussion, as part of Council’s scheduled Week 1 meeting of Trinity term. And, since Easter, aspects of the recommendations have been discussed by Finance Committee and the Planning and Resource Allocation Committee, with divisional leadership and with the Conference of Colleges Steering Committee. This is to ensure that Council members have the information they need to discuss a plan of action when they meet in Week 4 of term on 13 May. I look forward to sharing details with you all as soon as we can after that.
Meanwhile, a separate but closely related piece of work, the academic Career and Reward Framework Project, is progressing well. It's taking on board feedback you've shared through the staff survey and the Pay and Conditions Review, and it aims to recommend a set of proposals for improving the career paths, workload, and reward and recognition for all staff with teaching and research responsibilities. Thank you to those of you who have taken part in focus groups, and to everyone who's involved as part of the cross-divisional delivery team and steering group, including those of you representing the colleges. The support web pages are being kept up to date with frequently asked questions and progress, and the proposed framework will be shared for consultation early in 2025.
Now back to this term: I'm looking forward to speaking to staff at a number of upcoming events, including the VC in Conversation event on 24 April and the Open Forum on Finance on 29 April.
I am also thrilled to be revealing the winners of the Vice-Chancellor’s Awards at the ceremony on 8 May. This joyous occasion is a moment to celebrate the achievements and contributions which make Oxford the community we are proud of. I encourage all colleagues to review the shortlist, and sign up to attend the awards showcase taking place on 7 until 9 May in Blackwell Hall.
Meanwhile, to all of you working in departments, colleges, libraries, gardens and museums or in central administration, thank you for all you are doing to make Oxford great, and such a special place to work.
I wish you all a great term, and I look forward to seeing you out and about.
Take care.
News items mentioned in the Vice-Chancellor's message
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