Broadcast: News items

PS Essentials - November

Posted on behalf of: Internal Communications

Last updated: Friday, 3 November 2023

PS Essentials highlights the key priorities for Professional Services colleagues and recent news which you and your teams may find useful. Please take five minutes to read the full PS Essentials below.

If there is information you would like included in a future edition of PS Essentials, please email the Internal Comms team at: internalcomms@sussex.ac.uk.

Quick links

About you

Additional minimum service days for staff and pay date for December

All staff will be awarded two additional minimum service days, Thursday 21 December 2023 and Tuesday 2 January 2024, in recognition of colleagues’ hard work during a challenging year. The last working day before the start of the winter break will be Wednesday 20 December 2023. The December pay date will be on Wednesday 20 December. View the full list of scheduled minimum service days for 2023/24.

As these are additional, non-contractual days you are not required to add them to the MyView absence booking system. If you have booked 21 December or 2 January as leave on MyView you should cancel the booking. If you were not going to work on those days due to your normal working pattern, speak to your line manager about arranging alternative days. Staff who are unable to take the additional days on 21 December or 2 January due to work requirements will have the days tacked on to the end of the winter break. If this is not possible, discuss with your line manager to agree alternative dates. View more information including arrangements for part-time staff.

Join our mentoring community and unlock your potential

On National Mentoring Day on 27 October we celebrated the impact mentoring can have, sharing case studies from colleagues in our Staff Mentoring Programme. Mentoring is a powerful tool for professional and personal growth and we invite you to join our mentoring community at Sussex, either as a mentor or mentee. There are a number of upcoming workshops, including Effective Skills for Mentors on 22 November, and you will have access to our newly-launched MentorNet tool to make meaningful matches at the University. Our Community of Practice also offers opportunities to share successes and challenges and develop with your peers. Find out more and sign up.

Your responsibilities under the Financial Regulations

We ask all staff, even if you don’t carry out day-to-day finance-related activity, to look out for a reminder of your responsibilities under the Financial Regulations which you should receive from your area director this month. We are all responsible for making the most of University resources, including our time, space and technology, to help to get value for money for our students, research funders and wider society. In this context it’s really important to remain fraud aware and to report any concerns so that they can be investigated promptly.

About Professional Services

Support for business travel arrangements

Many staff are currently experiencing significant disruption to business travel arrangements. If you are travelling on University business, or if you make arrangements for others, please be mindful of this and consider making flexible bookings.

The University takes its duty of care to staff very seriously, and staff must arrange University travel insurance for all travel involving either an overseas trip or an overnight stay in the UK. Those travelling overseas on University business must also complete a risk assessment which is part of our duty of care and helps to ensure all trips are safe and successful. Booking through Key Travel will also provide enhanced support, as it can organise emergency accommodation and transport if unexpected issues arise. You can access the Key Travel booking portal and if you have any questions please contact the Finance Service Desk.

Guidance on allowable expenditure and working with charities

You can view information on allowable expenditure relating to staff travel, hospitality and subscriptions and similar costs for research participants, students and visitors. The University has also recently produced guidance on working with charities.

Finance support, training and advice is available from the Finance Service Desk by email at financeservicedesk@sussex.ac.uk or on 01273 87(7172) between 9am and 4.30pm.

Social media policy guidance and external speaker procedure

Take a few minutes to read the University’s Social Media Guidance for Staff and a Social Media Policy. Offering useful support for staff, they distinguish between:

a Personal Account operated by an individual who cannot be easily identified as working at the University, with content of a personal nature;
a Professional Account that has a clear link to the University through a mention in the user’s bio/profile or through their individual posts; and
a Corporate Account run by a faculty, school, department, or other unit within the University.

The guidance does not apply to personal accounts, but the underpinning principles remain good practice.

We also have guidance for when an external speaker is involved in University events:

Events with an external speaker (whether organised by staff or students) must follow the External Speaker Procedure.
Events organised by students, student groups or Students’ Union staff must follow the Students' Union External Speaker Procedure.
All events outside of the Students’ Union remit (for both staff and students), when the Students’ Union procedure does not apply, require completion of the Online External Speaker Request Form, and must follow the University procedure.

If you have any queries about the External Speaker Procedure please contact Louise Spenceley in General Counsel, Governance and Compliance at l.spencely@sussex.ac.uk.

Colleagues are invited to read Senate papers

The next Senate meeting is on 15 November 2023, the first meeting of the academic year. The agenda, minutes and papers are published a week in advance on Sussex Direct. Senate is the highest academic committee in the University, overseeing quality assurance and standards of the education provided by the University and it is vital that Professional Services voices are part of the discussion at Senate.

Two elected senators, Gemma Harman and Kit Eves, act as spokespeople for PS staff, representing your needs and interests. Please contact Gemma at g.harman@sussex.ac.uk or Kit at c.eves@sussex.ac.uk in confidence if there is a matter you’d like them to raise. Upcoming meetings are planned for 6 March and 26 June 2024 and you can view information on past and future meetings.

Libby app offers more books to download and enjoy for free

The Library has extended its leisure reading collection of books and audiobooks on the Libby app, which is available to staff and students. Curating a collection of over 180 titles, the Library team has included popular fiction from prize winning authors including LGBTQ+ writers, African American fiction, autobiography/biography, sci-fi/fantasy and literary classics.

Simply download the Libby app onto your smartphone, select ‘University of Sussex Library’ and log in with your ITS username and password. You can also log in using a web browser. For more information, view our Wellbeing Subject Guide or email library@sussex.ac.uk.

Coming up

Building trust and psychological safety workshops: 8 November and 7 December

Psychological safety is a shared belief held by members of a team that the team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking. It describes a working environment with inclusivity, trust and mutual respect in which people are comfortable being themselves and feel able to ask for help, admit mistakes, express themselves and suggest ideas. You can join one of the upcoming workshops offering an introduction to psychological safety which explore how to create a safe and supportive working environment that fosters inclusion, collaboration and wellbeing within teams.

Menopause awareness for managers workshop: 13 November

Menopause shouldn’t be a taboo subject, and everyone should feel they can have an open conversation with their line manager, especially when they need advice or support. A growing number of people go through the menopause transition experiencing symptoms so severe they leave the workplace, and all managers should understand the impact that symptoms can have and know how to support their colleagues. Find out more and book your place.

PS Bigger Picture: 16 November

Register now to attend our next PS Bigger Picture event in person with Tim Westlake and members of the PS Leadership Team on Thursday 16 November from 11.30am to 12.30pm. During the event you will hear the latest updates on HR topics and strategy development. You will also be able to ask questions and share feedback. A livestream will also be available.

A reminder

Discretionary Pay Review process is open

The Discretionary Pay Review process for 2023 is now open, offering a way to recognise staff and reward exceptional performance results, values and behaviours. This year, to acknowledge the additional work and support from Professional Services teams as a result of the marking and assessment boycott, an additional Team Bonus Discretionary Pay Review category has been added.

You can read the further details about this year’s scheme and if you have any further questions please email reward@sussex.ac.uk.

Join an Open Listening Workshop to explore the dynamics of conflict

You are invited to join one of our in-person Open Listening Workshops taking place between 14 and 21 November. These practical sessions explore conflict theory and offer a safe environment to develop your capacity to take part in inclusive conversations, speak about your own experiences and allow different perspectives. The workshops are open to all staff and you can book your place now.