Senate minutes 12 March 2025

Minutes of the Meeting of the Cardiff University Senate held on Wednesday 12 March 2025 at 14:15, in the lecture theatre of the Hadyn Ellis Building

Attendance

In Attendance

Katy Dale (minutes), Sian Ballard, Laura Davies, Dr Rob Davies, Sally-Ann Efstathiou, Rhodri Evans (Secretary), Professor Claire Gorrara, Dr Julie Gwilliam, Tom Hay, Siân Marshall, Dr Angharad Naylor, Daniel Palmer, Professor Eleri Rosier, Dr Paula Sanderson, Professor Karin Wahl-Jorgensen, Darren Xiberras

1106 Welcome and Introductions

Noted

1106.1 that new members were welcomed to their first meeting (Professor Joy Myint, Dr Oliver Pierce, and Dr Yasemin Sengul Tezel).

1107 Apologies for Absence

Noted

1107.1 that apologies received would be recorded in the Minutes.

1108 Declaration of Interests

The Chair reminded members of their requirement to disclose any direct or indirect interests which could influence their judgement. Disclosure of interests should be made before an item was discussed and the individual concerned should either withdraw from the meeting or not take part in the discussion, as appropriate for that part of the agenda.

Noted

1108.1 that no member disclosed any interests.

1109 Minutes of Previous Meeting

Received and considered papers 24/399, ‘Minutes of Previous Meeting 6 November 2024’, and 24/412C, ‘Minutes of Senate Special Meeting - 6 March 2025’. The Chair spoke to this item.

Noted

1109.1 that minute 1105.1.6 should be updated to clarify that data packs had been shared rather than the quantitative analysis.

Resolved

1109.2 to approve the minutes of the Senate meeting on 6 November 2024;

1109.3 to approve the minutes of the Special Senate meeting of 6 March 2025, subject to the amendment identified in 1109.1.

1110 Matters Arising

Received and considered paper 24/400, ‘Update on Encampment Commitments’. The Chief Operating Officer and University Secretary spoke to this item.

Noted

1110.1 that there was further work to implement the remaining action on the University’s Student Futures Code; this included questionnaires at graduate recruitment events and careers fairs which would next be held in the 2025/26 academic year; it was disappointing the deadlines set by the University to complete the actions had not been met;

1110.2 the view of a member that one of the authors of the paper was conflicted, given a historical expense claim for a visit to Rolls Royce and this should be stated; in response to a concern that expenses reports were not up-to-date it was clarified that expense claims for UEB members were uploaded at the end of each quarter (and therefore were a quarter behind), and no longer included one of the paper authors, as they had ceased to be a UEB member from January 2024;

1110.3 a concern that anonymous donations were reported and a number of named donators included companies with interests in the defence industry;

1110.4 that it had been agreed online support specifically for Palestine students would be published and it appeared this remained generic support for all students;

1110.5 that the Students’ Union had not been updated on progress against the encampment commitments since the previous meeting of Senate and it was felt students had not been engaged in the reviews; the Vice-Chancellor emphasised that student engagement was a key priority and this would be personally taken forward.

Resolved

1110.6 for the Chief Financial Officer to review the publication of UEB expense claims to ensure these were up to date;

1110.7 to confirm that online support specifically for Palestine students had been published and how this had been advertised to students;

1110.8 to confirm the agreed definition of armament companies following the review;

1110.9 to involve students in the review of the University’s Student Futures Code, including alignment with principles from the Funders Advisory Panel and graduate recruitment events.

1111 Items from the Chair

Noted

1111.1 that one item had been undertaken via Chair’s Action since the last meeting, to recommend to Council a proposal to pause the membership of the Academic Promotions Committee from July 2024 until such time as the academic promotions process recommenced.

1112 Report from Vice Chancellor

Received and considered paper 24/401C, ‘Vice-Chancellor’s Report to Senate’. The Chair spoke to this item.

Noted

1112.1 that there were a number of good news stories to report:

.1 Laura Trevelyan had been appointed as Chancellor and would be visiting in April; this first visit did not align with a meeting of Senate but media events would be planned and publicised to staff;

.2 that Dr Liz Wren-Owens had been appointed as the new Dean for PGR and was working hard to progress the University’s aspirations for its PGR community;

.3 the University had been awarded a Bronze Award for the Race Equality Charter, reflecting its commitment to undertake the work needed to achieve its aspiration to become an anti-racist university;

.4 the University had been awarded AdvanceHE accreditation for its Fellowship programme;

.5 that a number of colleagues were involved in the People, Environment and culture pilot for REF;

1112.2 that there was a meeting of UEB in January 2025 to finalise the Academic Future proposals, which had prevented earlier consultation with the Students’ Union; it remained key that students were included in the consultation process going forward and the Interim Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Student Experience was supporting student engagement activities;

1112.3 that it was disappointing the Students’ Union had not been included in the Dean for PGR recruitment process; the College PG Deans would not be removed until the Dean for PGR had been embedded in post, to ensure no loss of student engagement;

1112.4 that due to the high volume of work, there was a risk staff would not be able to respond to all current consultations.

1113 Academic Futures

Received and considered an oral report from the Chair.

Noted

1113.1 that Senate had been briefed on the academic futures proposals in advance of their formal release and that the topic had been discussed at the Special Meeting of Senate; the scheduling of the Special Meeting on 6 March had been due to the availability of key personnel; time had been allocated at this meeting to also discuss the topic and it was advised that this item had been inadvertently left off the original agenda;

1113.2 that at the Senate meeting in June 2025, Senate would be asked to offer its formal advice to Council on the final proposals resulting from the consultation feedback; the final proposals would then be submitted to Council for decision;

1113.3 that a variety of opportunities for consultation from all staff had been offered and scheduled;

1113.4 that Senate members felt consultation with the full Senate had been limited and that the voice of Senate as a whole should be heard in advance of the next scheduled meeting; the Vice-Chancellor agreed to hold a further Special Meeting of Senate in advance of June;

1113.5 that there had been a need to ensure confidentiality in developing proposals and a necessity to follow HR processes, which had required a small group to be involved; the expertise of the wider University was now being harnessed to identify ways to address the challenges and deliver the strategy;

1113.6 that compulsory redundancies were not desired and would be avoided wherever possible; the University was also not seeking compulsory redundancies at this time although this could be necessary in the future, and only following completion of a number of ongoing processes (VSS, recruitment freezes etc.);

1113.7 that the Vice-Chancellor was very aware of the pressure on staff at the present time and the level of uncertainty; there were extraordinarily challenging circumstances across the entire sector and maintaining community throughout the process was challenging;

1113.8 that initial decisions on the narrowing of those staff in scope would be communicated shortly; Senate members were reminded that there was the ongoing possibility to remove staff from scope and members were encouraged to feed into the process as alternative proposals could be submitted at any time until the consultation closed;

1113.9 that no external consultants had been recruited for the process.

Resolved

1113.10 for a further Special Meeting of Senate to be arranged;

1113.11 for the Vice-Chancellor to review the format of webinars to ensure questions were answered.

1114 College and Schools Transformation Project: Engagement on Colleges and Schools Purpose and Function

Received and considered an oral report from the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor.

Noted

1114.1 that the project aimed to deliver clarity on what was a College and what a School, to reduce inefficiencies; feedback from the Big Conversation had highlighted this was a key issue;

1114.2 work was underway on the academic purpose, function and leadership workstream and was in the first stage of engagement with key roles; the output would feature a redesign (where necessary) of leadership roles within the newly defined structures; currently academic roles varied, which was inequitable and unsustainable;

1114.3 that work to undertake a similar review for Professional Services would be undertaken by the Chief Operating Officer and University Secretary and dovetail into this project;

1114.4 that timelines for the project had been aligned with other activities, with final proposals expected in May 2025, to report to Senate in June 2025; the current workload demands on staff were noted;

1114.5 that potential definitions for a College and a School had been identified to provide a direction of travel; these were not final or agreed and consideration would be given to the value of Colleges;

1114.6 that the project did not aim to disenfranchise Schools;

1114.7 that the review of Statutes and Ordinances would also include ensuring they enabled Colleges and Schools to deliver what was needed;

1114.8 that proposals from Academic Futures may include mergers of Schools, resulting in various sizes of Schools and Colleges, and this should be considered within this project;

1114.9 that work on Student Hubs may also impact and was likely to align to the activities of Colleges;

1114.10 that engagement with the Students’ Union was highlighted and would be taken forward by the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor;

1114.11 that the current College structure limited interdisciplinary work and this should be considered by the project; there was also a need to ensure responsibility and controls were clear and aligned; these would be included for consideration within the project.

1115 Report from Students’ Union President

Received and considered an oral report from the Students’ Union Sabbatical Officers.

Noted

1115.1 that the AGM had been held in November 2024, with 4 motions debated and passed (a renewed call to end sexual violence; opposing cuts to teaching for PhD students; protecting freedom to express solidarity with Palestine; protecting student parking rights in Cardiff); the meeting had gone well;

1115.2 that Speak Week had been held in November and would be used to inform the Student View;

1115.3 that student elections for the 2025/26 sabbatical officers would be held at the end of March;

1115.4 that appeals, extenuating circumstances, housing and mental health remained the key issues being raised by students;

1115.5 that a number of events and campaigns had been run, including Revision Aid during the exam period which had been very well received;

1115.6 that the Students’ Union had been lobbying Cardiff Council in regards to its plan to remove resident parking permits for students; support from the University in this had been welcomed;

1115.7 that key upcoming activities were the ‘Find your placement’ campaign and Varsity in April; Academic Futures was a key focus and the Students’ Union had launched its own consultation for students;

1115.8 that live streaming of large cohort teaching had been trialled in the year and not been well received; different models to deliver learning and teaching were being reviewed under the “future pedagogies” work;

1115.9 that it was unclear why students were engaging more with the Students’ Union activities than academic activities; a possible explanation was the cost-of-living crisis and students undertaking more paid work; this was being reviewed by the Students’ Union;

1115.10 that Senate showed its support for the hard work undertaken by the Students’ Union sabbatical officers.

1116 Academic Standards and Quality Committee Report to Senate

Received paper 24/402, ‘Academic Standards and Quality Committee Report’. The Interim Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Student Experience spoke to this item.

Noted

1116.1 that the report included one item for recommendation to Council of the 2026/27 academic year dates; it was noted that future dates may clash with religious key dates (e.g. Ramadan) and the University were mindful of this, ensuring guidance and support was available for learning and assessment during these periods; an EIA had not been undertaken;

1116.2 that the Quality Enhancement Review was likely to be undertaken in March 2026 and was a regulatory requirement from Medr to assess the quality of education in HE providers; a good outcome was necessary to ensure the University could have a Fee and Access Plan; the review would feature a self-analysis report and a visit; engagement with the Students’ Union and Senate would be held in advance;

1116.3 that the Committee had received an update on a proposal to establish a branch campus in Kazakhstan, specifically on the academic standards and quality of provision; Senate was assured that the University’s academic quality system, including regulations and policies, would apply for all provision delivered in Kazakhstan to ensure the maintenance of standards; it was noted that, should the proposal to establish a branch campus be approved, work would be undertaken with the Students’ Union to review how to include elements of the Welsh culture and Cardiff life for TNE students.

Resolved

1116.4 to recommend to Council approval of the academic year dates for 2026/27.

1117 Education and Student Experience Committee Report to Senate

Received paper 24/403, ‘Education and Student Experience Committee Report’. The Interim Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Student Experience spoke to this item.

Noted

1117.1 that confirmation had been received from Medr in December 2024 that the University’s NSS action plans were appropriate; these would continue to be reviewed and their impact monitored;

1117.2 that a new approach had been agreed to the Student View to increase the speed of the University response and action.

1118 Annual Enhancement Report

Received paper 24/404, ‘Annual Enhancement Report’. The Interim Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education and Student Experience spoke to this item.

Noted

1118.1 that the report reviewed the progress in achieving the objectives of the Education and Student Experience Sub-strategy, which concluded in July 2024;

1118.2 that key highlights included:

.1 the Student Success workstream, formed of the Student Voice, Rethinking Assessment, Successful Student Futures, Personalised Support and Success for All (Widening Participation) projects;

.2 the Inspiring Teachers workstream, which included the Fellowship programme;

.3 the Inclusive and Innovative Environment workstream, including work on the Digital Learning Environment and inclusive education;

.4 Implementing the Report and Support system;

1118.3 that next steps focussed on delivery of the initiatives and moving to BAU, evaluating impact, and ensuring continued focus on reimagining the student experience and staff development;

1118.4 that the data baselines used in the report varied, as some reflected the start of the portfolio and some reflected the previous year;

1118.5 [Redacted];

1118.6 that with reference to the Academic Futures proposals it was confirmed that any student currently studying at the University would graduate with a Cardiff University degree.

1119 Recruitment and Admissions End of Cycle Report 2024/25 Entry

Received paper 24/406C, ‘Recruitment and Admissions End of Cycle Report 2024/25 Entry’. The Director of Communications, Marketing and Student Recruitment spoke to this item.

Noted

1119.1 that UG Home applications were down 2%, although still higher than previous years; offers had increased 2% and enrolments 5%; this had resulted in 103% of target; tariff remained a concern and the final results were awaited;

1119.2 that the University was the second largest recruiter in the Russell Group for UG Home;

1119.3 that the University Admissions Policy was changing, to allow for those considered most deprived to be accepted up to three grades 3 lower;

1119.4 that PGT Home recruitment remained challenging, due to the cost of living crisis and a strong job market; applications decreased by 2%, although offers and enrolments had increased by 2% respectively; the target had been missed by 7%;

1119.5 264 students had progress to UG degrees at the University through the International Study Centre, which had increased 35% from the previous year and accounted for a third of UG International students; this reflected an increased reliance on this pipeline;

1119.6 that PGT International reflected a decrease of 35% in applicants, a decrease of 37% in offers and target missed by 20%; this had been affected by the previous Westminster Government rhetoric, the removal of dependents from visas, and the muted removal of the Graduate Route; competition in the market was increasing and pent-up demand from the pandemic was now declining;

1119.7 that there was a reputational risk that negative media would impact on recruitment and it was crucial messaging to potential students was positive.

1120 Annual Report from the Academic Promotions Committee

Received paper 24/409, ‘Annual Report from the Academic Promotions Committee’.

Noted

1120.1 that it would be of benefit to understand if the interactions between the data points explained the results and for further analysis to be undertaken to include in future policy.

Resolved

1120.2 for comments to be issued to the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor for progression.

1121 Research Grants and Contracts Annual Report

Received paper 24/411, ‘Research Grants and Contracts Annual Report’.

Resolved

1121.1 for confirmation to be provided that anonymous funders were not linked to armament companies and that funders were named wherever possible.

1122 Any Other Business

Noted

1122.1 that thanks were extended to those attending their last meeting (Professor Chris Bundy and Professor Tom Hall) it was noted Dr Cindy Carter had ceased to be a member since the last meeting.

1123 Items Received for Information

The following papers were received for information:

• 24/407 ASQC Minutes – 12 February 2025
• 24/408 ESEC Minutes – 23 January 2025
• 24/410 Cardiff University Press Annual Report 2023-24
• 24/405 Students' Union Relationship Agreement and Student Charter