COVID-19 update: confirmation of arrangements for the spring term

All-staff email sent on behalf of Julian Park and Dominik Zaum, Co-Chairs of the Major Recovery Team (21 December 2021)

Dear colleagues,

Following the government’s announcement of heightened temporary restrictions a fortnight ago, the Major Recovery Team met yesterday to review the current COVID-19 situation and consider whether any changes might be necessary to our control measures on campus or to teaching in the spring term.

It is clear that the picture remains changeable, with public health and scientific evidence still emerging about the impact of the Omicron variant. However, we want to provide you with what certainty we can.

Our main priority remains keeping you and our students safe. Given the impact that our students have already faced, I am sure you also share our commitment to maintaining the quality of their learning experience as best we can, while recognising that some ongoing disruption due to COVID-19 is inevitable.

We know the importance of face-to-face teaching both for learning outcomes and for student, and colleague, wellbeing. We are a campus community and this in-person contact is vital. The current advice from government is that universities should remain open for face-to-face education and support, and so it remains our intention to re-start in-person teaching in the spring term. A message to this effect will go to our students soon. The control measures we have in place have been very successful at controlling the spread of COVID through teaching settings, and we are also keeping all our existing control measures in place, including enhanced ventilation and cleaning regimes. We are constantly keeping these measures under review, and will adjust them as necessary.

We have been in touch with those students who were studying at a distance in the autumn term to share this expectation with them. Clearly, though, those students who have been studying at a distance overseas may now struggle to get to campus by the start of term. As such, we will be writing to them shortly to extend some leeway for ongoing distance study until Friday 28 January 2022 if they cannot feasibly travel to the UK. Schools will know best what this means for their areas, and so we will be working with Schools, especially those with significant numbers of international students still working at a distance, to identify options.

The government has indicated that it will review the additional measures announced recently between Christmas and New Year. Unless this gives rise to significant changes, we hope not to have to message colleagues and students again with an update until the first week of January, following the University closure period.

Until then, we wish you a merry Christmas and a restful festive break.

Best wishes,

Julian & Dominik

Dominik Zaum and Julian Park

Co-Chairs, Major Recovery Team