We continue to look at the work of the leadership team and the discussions of the University Executive Board (UEB).

During the summer, UEB meet less frequently. The work they do in that period tends to be focussed on planning and preparation for the year ahead. This is reflected in the updates below.

Business planning principles

Each year Finance produce a set of business planning principles. These principles are a set of rules which helps the University deliver its strategy, and translate the strategy into actions, targets and budgets. These rules help Faculties and Professional Services make effective decisions and ensure the University operates in a sustainable way.

The UEB discussed the principles at length, allowing Deans to identify any areas of the planning that may cause localised issues, with the aim of moving the principles into action.

Request for additional marketing budget

Due to the disappointing Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) result, the UEB agreed on a proposal to expand on the University’s planned marketing activity to help mitigate any potential impact on student applications and reputation.

The UEB agreed to invest in a short, high-saturation campaign of advertising to key audiences during August, September and early October.

Annual Assurance Statements

Heads of Faculties and Directorate complete, and submit to the Vice-Chancellor, an Annual Assurance Statement. The Annual Assurance Statement confirms that actions have taken place that keep staff and students safe, and that each Faculty and Directorate is fully compliant with legal regulations, consistent in their approach to HR, and accountable for budgets and revenue.

The Annual Assurance Statement document came to UEB after undergoing minor changes to make the process smoother, and to capture some of the additional information that Deans and Heads of Directorates might like to share.

The UEB agreed that these changes were an improvement. The completed Statement is now ready for submission for formal review by the UEB in October, followed by the Audit Committee on 7 November.

Policies

New and updated University Policies need to go through the UEB for formal approval and sign off. During July and August, the UEB saw and approved a number of updated Health and Safety and Financial Polices.