4 November 2013 Issue 2 Volume 11
unilife The free magazine for The University of Manchester
Manchester honours a model of science history
Message from the President The success of the University depends on many factors - but none more than the quality, commitment and engagement of our staff - at all levels. It’s all too easy to focus on prominent ‘stars’, who are indeed extremely important to our University, but we succeed or fail based on the contribution of every single one of our staff in every area.
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ecause of this commitment to our staff, we put a great deal of effort into the recent Staff Survey with the aim of hearing from as many employees as possible about their experiences and views of our University. Previous Staff Surveys have had such low response rates (below 30%) that we had little confidence in acting on the findings as there was no clear mandate from staff. We know that at least a 50% response rate is needed to draw any meaningful conclusions - so we made this our institutional Key Performance Indicator (KPI) target for this project. One of us (Martin) led a University group that worked with staff to maximise response rates. The result was remarkable - 71% of staff responded to the survey, which made it the largest number of responses to a staff survey run by Capita (the company that carried out the survey on our behalf)
in the higher education sector in 2012/13. So we will probably raise our target for participation next time.
Headline findings of the survey included: • The main KPI was the percentage of staff satisfied with their job - with a target of 80% by 2015. In fact we exceeded that target this year with 81% of staff saying they were satisfied • 94% of respondents said that they think the University is a good place to work. This meant that at the time, our University ranked first out of the 28 higher education institutions surveyed by Capita in 2012/13 • 92% said they are proud to work at the University • 95% said they felt safe and secure on campus • 88% said they knew what they were expected to achieve in their job
Visiting our new student support space The Atrium
These results are extremely encouraging and on the whole show that staff are very positive about working here. But we are not complacent; we know that there is more that we could be doing to make our University an even better place to work. In this context, a key response in the survey was that many staff (actually 41%) did not expect that their comments would make a real difference. But they must do. So we, our senior colleagues on the Senior Leadership Team, and the oversight group are focussing a great deal of attention on addressing those areas where scores were lower than we would hope. University-level themes have been developed as well as action plans for each Faculty, the Professional Support Services (PSS) and the Library/visitor attractions. The University-level themes identify four key areas for immediate action:
Behaviours The Survey highlighted a number of unacceptable behaviours within the University, including reports of
Discussing the Staff Survey with Martin Humphries
Contact us News and story ideas Mikaela Sitford tel 0161 275 2112 email uninews@manchester.ac.uk www.manchester.ac.uk/staffnet/news Deadline 13 November 2013 Events and listings information Philippa Adshead tel 0161 275 2922 email unievents@manchester.ac.uk Deadline 13 November 2013 Ads Ruth Middleton tel 0161 275 2922 email uniads@manchester.ac.uk Deadline 13 November 2013 Next issue 2 December 2013
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News Four Nobel Prize winners under the same Manchester roof
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News Fabulous figurines reveal secrets of ancient Africa
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With Science Minister David Willetts MP at the National Graphene Institute site
discrimination and bullying. Many staff also reported a high level of stress that was triggered by a range of factors, including workload and conflict with managers and colleagues. We therefore aim to define and embed a set of behaviours that will have a transformational effect on the interactions between our staff.
Performance and Development Review (P&DR) One of the clearest messages coming from the Staff Survey was dissatisfaction with the current P&DR processes in the University. Relevant to this issue is the related topic of work-life balance (which covers workload management, time management and the opportunity to take breaks). A P&DR Review Group has already been established, which aims to introduce a new P&DR process for staff in all parts of our University.
Recognition and reward One topic that is closely linked with P&DR, but which will be tackled separately, is recognition and reward. A working group will be established to focus specifically on staff recognition, reward mechanisms
(including re-grading and promotion) and ensuring staff feel valued. Research staff and some parts of the PSS feel particularly undervalued currently.
incorporate on-going projects into their thinking, develop a plan to address the issues raised by the Staff Survey, and identify specific targets for one, two and five years.
Leadership
The Staff Survey is extremely important, but is just one of many means we have to understand what our staff like and are happy about and to identify their concerns. There is an array of other means for communicating your views - through your School or Directorate, via Senate, in open meetings with staff across the University, or simply by presenting your views and concerns to senior staff in the University.
Perhaps the dominant issue raised in the Staff Survey relates to leadership and management. A working group will be established to examine how we can improve the preparation, selection, training and performance monitoring of those in leadership and management roles. This general emphasis would directly address a number of specific issues raised in the Staff Survey, including managing change and listening to and communicating with staff. Effective management also requires a positive attitude from staff and the working group will examine the issue of personal accountability. This would directly address issues such as responsibility for individual targets, ambition and performance, challenging poor behaviour, tolerance, team working, time management and ensuring opinions are heard. Each working group will have senior academic and PSS co-leads and wide representation. Early tasks for the groups will be to scope out their topic,
There will be on-going and regular communications about progress with the actions plans. This is an area to which we and all of our senior staff are highly committed and we want to ensure that we act on your comments. Professor Nancy Rothwell, President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Martin Humphries, Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Life Sciences
Contents 2 4 9 12 14 18 20
Message from the President News Teaching, Learning and Students Research Features What’s On Making a Difference
Front cover: Honorary graduate Professor Peter Higgs
Research Revealing the rowdy past of parks
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Engagement All aboard the Worm Wagon!
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Photo by Craig Strong
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News
Creator of SpiNNaker Professor Steve Furber (right)
New director appointed UMI3 Ltd, the University’s technology transfer company, has announced the appointment of Scott Fletcher as a non-executive Director. Manchester-born Scott is one the country’s leading entrepreneurs, heading up companies with a total valuation in excess of £100 million. Scott said: “It’s a great privilege to be part of the University in this way. It is a university which has a rich, proud history and its innovative vision for the future, excellent world-class research facilities and strong pipeline of novel technologies are what enticed me to join as a non-executive Director.”
Centre stage at Conservative Party Conference
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he University took centre stage when it set up home in the Innovation Zone at the Conservative Party Conference last month.
Science Minister David Willetts also visited the £61 million facility, set to open in 2015.
Prime Minister David Cameron, Foreign Secretary William Hague and Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt were among hundreds of delegates who visited the University’s four stands.
Also exhibiting was SpiNNaker, a massive supercomputer currently being built by a team in the School of Computer Science. The machine is built to mimic the brain’s biological structure and behaviour.
Unsurprisingly, graphene featured prominently. Visitors were able to make some of the wonder material using sticky tape as well as learn about the University’s National Graphene Institute (NGI), which will be the world’s leading centre of graphene research and commercialisation.
iMagiMat – also known as ‘the magic carpet’ – an intelligent mat made up of plastic optical fibres, laid on the underlay of a carpet, also featured along with University spin-out company, Nanoco which develops and manufactures quantum dots, solar inks and other nanomaterials.
Celebrating equality and diversity The University has been awarded five Athena SWAN Awards, which recognise and celebrate good practice in recruiting, retaining and promoting women in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine (STEMM) in higher education. That takes our total to eight Schools carrying the honour – three with Silver awards and five with Bronze. The Schools of Chemistry, Dentistry, Psychological Sciences, Nursing, Midwifery and Social Work and Medicine – which includes six Institutes and Manchester Medical School – were presented with the awards. They are funded by the Equality Challenge Unit, the Royal Society, the Biochemical Society and the Department of Health. Dr Helen Dutton and Professor Nancy Rothwell with one of our Athena SWAN awards
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Honorary graduates (front row, second left to right) Frances O’Grady, Professor Mario Molina, Professor Peter Higgs and Sir Bobby Charlton
Four Nobel Prize winners under the same Manchester roof
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our Nobel Prize winners gathered together at our University to celebrate Foundation Day last month.
Professor Peter Higgs, joint winner of this year’s Nobel Prize for his discovery of the Higgs boson and Professor Mario Molina, who received his Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1995 for his work on CFCs and their impact on the ozone layer, both received honorary degrees. And our own Nobel Prize winners Professors Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov celebrated the Regius Professorship being conferred upon the School of Physics and Astronomy. Sir Andre also became the inaugural Regius Professor.
Honorary degrees were also conferred upon footballing legend Sir Bobby Charlton for his work in landmine detection and Frances O’Grady, an alumnus of our University and the current General Secretary of the TUC. Hundreds of staff, students and visitors packed into University Place to hear Professor Molina speak about climate change. And Professor Higgs took time out from the celebrations to meet with students in the School of Physics and Astronomy who built a Lego model of the ATLAS detector, the part of the Large Hadron Collider involved in one of the two experiments that discovered the Higgs boson.
Manchester to become City of Science Manchester will be European City of Science in 2016, having been selected to host the EuroScience Open Forum (ESOF) which takes place every two years. Professor Luke Georghiou, Vice-President for Research and Innovation, was jointly responsible for the team, in partnership with the City authorities, which prepared the successful bid. He said: “We’re delighted to be able to organise Europe’s biggest general science conference. With Manchester’s unique tradition in technology, industry, engineering, science and innovation, we’re sure that we can offer a superb environment for delegates from all over the world.”
Professor Peter Higgs with the Lego model of the ATLAS detector
The main aims of ESOF are to showcase the latest advances in science and technology, promote a dialogue on the role of science and technology in society and public policy, and stimulate and provoke public interest, excitement and debate about science and technology.
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News
Osborne announces Sino-British health partnership The Manchester Academic Health Science Centre (MAHSC) has formed a partnership with the Peking University Health Sciences Centre to establish an international centre of excellence in genetic medicine. The new Peking-Manchester Centre for Genomic Medicine, announced by Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, will be made up of three research facilities – the International Centre for Rare Diseases, the Centre for Cancer Genetics, and the Joint Clinical Trials Facility. MAHSC’s involvement is being led by the Manchester Centre for Genomic Medicine, with the aim of leading the world in genetic and genomic medicine for research into inherited diseases and delivering services to families with inherited disorders. Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences and Director of MAHSC, Professor Ian Jacobs, said: “This will lead to important health and research benefits in the rapidly developing field of genetics to benefit the people of both countries as well as having a global impact. “The joint venture will contribute to the further development of the research strength of the Manchester Academic Health Science Centre and advance Manchester’s international reputation as a world leader in personalised cancer medicine, while improving care and diagnosis for many people here and in China.”
Graphene pioneers awarded the Freedom of Manchester
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rofessors Andre Geim and Kostya Novoselov are to be awarded the Honorary Freedom of the City of Manchester for their groundbreaking work on graphene.
This is the highest honour Manchester can bestow and is given in recognition of their pioneering work. The Lord Mayor of Manchester, Councillor Naeem ul Hassan, said: “The significance of their work on graphene is breath-taking and we are yet to truly grasp the magnitude of its real-life applications. “Manchester is a city born of innovation so it is only right we recognise the achievements of Sir Andre and Sir Kostya - who have joined the pantheon of scientific giants connected to our forward-looking city.”
Rebels with a cause
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ot one, but two, soundtracks to freedom have been released thanks to University academics.
A tiny 165-year-old pamphlet identified by a University academic as the only surviving copy of a Chartist hymn book has been transformed into a CD by veteran protest singer Garth Hewitt. After reading in The Church Times that Dr Mike Sanders had discovered the ‘National Chartist Hymn Book’ at Todmorden public library, Garth brought the 16 hymns to life. Called “Liberty is Near!”, the CD is the first time Chartist hymns have been recorded. And an album of revolutionary and political music produced by artists from across the globe, has been digitally released as a free download via the website Bandcamp.
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The collection of 33 songs from 33 countries called ‘33RPM – Voices of the Revolution’, chronicles oppression, uprisings, land rights issues, political and social abuses and acts of revolution and is supported by the University’s In Place of War research project. • To buy Liberty is Near! visit: www.garthhewitt.org or www.kevinmayhew.com • To download 33RPM – Voices of the Revolution visit: http://bandcamp.com and for more details visit: http://33rpmvoices.wordpress.com or https://twitter.com/33rpmvoices or www.facebook.com/33rpmvoices
The pair (pictured) will be presented with the freedom of the city at a special event early next year.
Making a difference
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ore than 100 mysterious purple circles appeared across campus during October posing the intriguing question “What does difference look like?”
The answer was revealed a few days later when each circle featured a photo and story from a Manchester member of staff, student or alumni, who are all doing their bit to make a difference to the world. People were also urged to share their own story on the makeadifferencemcr.tumblr.com blog. All of this activity was the work of the Directorate for Social Responsibility which is tasked with showing how our University has an impact on people’s lives on a local, national and global scale. Julian Skyrme, Director of Social Responsibility, said: “We hope staff will be inspired by the campaign to share the ways they are making a positive difference to society.
Social Responsibility and Volunteer of the Year Awards 2012 staff winner Lenox Green
From researching to recycling, public engagement to pedagogy, we want this initial awareness-raising campaign to celebrate and profile the great work colleagues are doing that contributes to our social responsibility priorities.” During November and December a new set of priorities, programmes, a publication and website are being launched as part of a redeveloped strategy to promote our work in this area. Dr Tracey Speake from the Manchester Access Programme
“I encourage staff to get involved in this first campaign” said Julian. “It takes a only a few
minutes of your time but will help recognise and profile what is happening across the University ahead of a range of additional engagement opportunities we have planned.” You can add some text, an image or weblink to the makeadifferencemcr blog. And if you use twitter, please follow @SocialResponUoM and use the hashtag #makeadifferencemcr to join the conversation. • UniLife is running a series of articles, showcasing the social responsibility work of our colleagues. For the latest, turn to page 20.
Medics breathe new life into the arts
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he link between medicine and the arts was demonstrated when the Manchester Museum took part in the annual Manchester Weekender.
The Museum provided the setting for a poetry and medicine workshop led by Caroline Hawkridge, writer in residence at the National Aspergillosis Centre. ‘Open the Windows’ offered readings from cardiologist and poet Denise Bundred, and Rebecca Goss who explored illness, bereavement and new life through her moving and personal works. Chris Davies and Beth Allen provided a musical interlude with their minimal and wordless piece, the result of a new commission by The National Aspergillosis Centre which treats patients with fungal disease of the lungs. Denise Bundred
Rebecca Goss
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News
Brazilian links The University has signed a £100,000 agreement with Brazil’s leading scientific research funding agency to promote research links between the UK and the state of São Paulo. The five-year agreement with FAPESP (São Paulo Research Foundation) will make it easier for UK researchers to work alongside colleagues from Brazil’s top-ranked universities. The memorandum of understanding was signed by FAPESP President Celso Lafer and Professor Colin Bailey, Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences.
Fabulous figurines reveal secrets of ancient Africa
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ecrets of sixty remarkable clay figurines – up to 1,400-years-old - have been revealed at a Manchester Museum exhibition.
This is the first time the beautiful objects have been seen publicly outside Ghana. The figurines, including two-headed humans, a chameleon, a crocodile and a man on horseback, are thought to have been used to invoke the help of ancestors to cure illnesses.
Using computed tomography scanning techniques at the University, the team revealed hidden channels within the objects which they think had a medicinal function, used for liquid ritual offerings. Further analysis by the team, led by Professor Benjamin Kankpeyeng from The University of Ghana, working with Professor of Archaeology Timothy Insoll, will show what liquid ritual offerings were actually used.
University awarded from the heart
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he University has won an award for its first aid policy to install defibrillators and train staff and students to use them.
It was presented with the 2013 HeartSafe Tourism or Leisure Business of the Year award in recognition of its work installing AEDs (automated external defibrillators) across its cultural assets, which includes the Manchester Museum, Jodrell Bank, John Rylands Library and the Whitworth Art Gallery. Judges from the charity Hand on Heart, whose aim is to put defibrillators into schools all over the UK, praised the University for its work to ensure staff and students are trained in basic life support and AED use and their programs to train the local community. Janet Makin, First Aid Co-ordinator, said: “We were delighted to represent the University at such an inspiring event.
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“This will help us to further raise the profile, and promote the work that is continuing at the University, to increase the current provision of AEDs and the delivery of Basic Life Support training to staff, students and the local community.” There are more than 20 AEDs at key locations around the campus. Providing CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) with defibrillation increases the chance of the casualty surviving the arrest tenfold to 50 per cent. • To find out where AEDs are located on campus, look for the green heart symbol on the Campus Map: http://bit.ly/aJ158u (Left to right) Yvette Jeal, Chad McGitchie, Gina Grubb and Janet Makin with Roy Wilding, Creative Director of awards sponsor PushOn
Teaching, Learning and Students
First student-run foodbank opens its doors
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tudents in Manchester have successfully launched the first ever student-run foodbank to support their local community.
No other university in the UK has been able to launch such an initiative to support individuals and families in their local neighbourhoods. The project was launched by a team of 15 students from the University’s St Vincent de Paul Society, a Catholic voluntary group concerned about increasing levels of food poverty in the city. Project manager Joey Ferrigno, who graduated in July said: “We’re only open one day a week for a two-hour session but we hope to expand this to three sessions a week. We feel that we will be busy due to the high levels of poverty in Central Manchester.”
The aim of the Manchester Central Foodbank is to provide support for disadvantaged people from the University’s surrounding areas, some of the most deprived suburbs of the city. Student volunteer Eamon O’Brien said: “We know many students who want to make a difference in their local communities. There are fewer more important issues in Manchester right now than food poverty.” Julian Skyrme, the University’s Director for Social Responsibility, said: “It’s said that what Manchester does today the rest of the world does tomorrow. This student-led Foodbank is another first for Manchester and is part of many other examples we launched this week to highlight the difference our University is making to society.” • Follow Joey on Twitter @joeyf19 or the Manchester Foodbank at @Foodbank_MUSCC
(Left to right) Joey Ferrigno and Eamon O’Brien
Manchester graduates celebrate success
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wo Manchester graduates have taken top honours at the 2013 SET (Science, Engineering, and Technology) Student of the Year Awards.
Laura Howarth-Kirke, a graduate of the School of Computer Science, won the award for the Best Computer Science Student. Laura was also the highest scoring category winner, so also took the overall BP SET Student of the Year Award. And her success meant that the award for the Lecturer of the Year went to Dr Gavin Brown, who supervised her final year project. Adding to Manchester’s success was Joseph Northwood, a Masters student in the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, who won the ARM award for the Best Electronic Engineering Student for the ARTEMIS (Autonomous Robotic Technology Enabling Minimally Invasive Surgery) Project. Manchester students shortlisted for the awards were Michael O’Connor for best Chemical Engineering Student and James Roscow for best Materials Student Award.
Laura Howarth-Kirke (left) receives her award
In step to train social scientists
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he University has been chosen to host one of 15 Q-step centres to train social science students in techniques which help them understand, analyse and criticise data. Q-Step is a £19.5 million programme designed to promote a step-change in quantitative social science training. It will help employers to recruit people with the right skills needed to work critically with data and is funded by the Nuffield Foundation, the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). The Manchester Q-step centre will promote the development of these skills through an integrated set of new courses and work placement
opportunities, providing Manchester students with a boost in a highly competitive graduate jobs market. Co-directed by Dr Mark Brown and Dr Jackie Carter from Social Statistics, it pulls together a diverse team, involving colleagues from Sociology, Politics, Social Anthropology, Philosophy, Criminology and Linguistics. Interim Head of the School of Social Sciences, Professor Chris Orme said: “It’s a huge boost for our students and will give them sought after skills to make them highly attractive to their future employers.” www.nuffieldfoundation.org/q-step • See our feature on improving our students’ employability on page 14
Dr Jackie Carter and Dr Mark Brown
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Teaching, Learning and Students
Student support at the double!
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n-the-spot advice and information for students is now available at two prominent locations in University Place.
The eye-catching new Welcome Desk on the ground floor foyer is open all year round, run by staff from the Student Services Centre. They will be able to deal with most questions and queries from students. The Student Services Centre’s main
base will remain on Burlington Street near the Main Library. And located on the first floor of University Place is The Atrium, an impressive space which brings together a whole range of new and existing student advice and support services. Staff can offer on-the-spot information, advice and guidance on money and finances, careers and employability, studying abroad and health and wellbeing.
A welcoming reception
Thanks to its quirky interview pods, there’s space for confidential as well as non-confidential conversations. Director for the Student Experience Dr Tim Westlake said: “I am tremendously excited about the opening of The Atrium as the University’s one-stop shop for information, advice and guidance for students. I am absolutely certain that The Atrium can deliver tangible improvements to the services we offer to our students and make a real difference to the experience of our students. “Next time you are in University Place, why not visit The Atrium and see what we have on offer for our students?” Confidential interview pods
Raising bags of charity cash
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scheme to raise charity cash set up by University students and their local Sainsbury’s supermarket has passed the £10,000 mark.
The scheme was set up in 2012 when Sainsbury’s and the University’s Volunteer and Community Engagement Team recruited student volunteers from the Manchester Leadership Programme (MLP) to carry out a series of fundraising bag packs at the checkouts – and raised more than £5,000 for Comic Relief. Such was its success, the group decided to continue the fundraising throughout the year, with the funds being distributed to local charities. Local charities and organisations benefitting from the scheme include ASSIST, Fallowfield Food Share, The Christie, Ladybarn Community Centre, Scout Groups, St Ann’s Hospice and Willows Primary School in Wythenshawe. Kirsty Hutchison, Volunteering and Community Engagement Manager, said: “Some of the students have also chosen to volunteer with the organisations that they are raising money for, so they have been able to see for themselves how the money is used to benefit the local community.”
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One of the Manchester Leadership Programme students at work
Manchester-trained medic helps victims of Kenyan mall siege
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former PhD student has told how he struggled to cope when faced with the aftermath of the recent Kenyan mall siege, when he volunteered to treat victims.
ambulance an injured four-year-old girl with a gun shot wound to her leg. She was in obvious pain but she wasn’t crying! She was calm, calmer than most of us who were receiving her.
“I can’t help but be grateful for the invaluable training I received at Manchester,” commented Dr Innocent Orora Maranga, who completed his PhD at the University’s Institute of Cancer Sciences and now works as a consultant gynaecologist in Nairobi.
“I also witnessed first hand the power and resolve of the human spirit in the midst of adversity. Thousands of people were at hand to donate blood. I wanted to donate but had to wait till the third day after the attack, when we had fewer volunteers.”
Sixty-one civilians and six soldiers are known to have died and dozens are still missing after a terrorist group attacked shoppers in the Westgate mall in Nairobi last month.
Dr Maranga completed his PhD under the supervision of Drs Ian and Lynne Hampson at the University’s Institute of Cancer Sciences and Dr Peter Gichangi in Nairobi.
Dr Maranga treated people with serious injuries, such as gunshot wounds and shrapnel injuries, in chaotic conditions. He said: “The most difficult time for me was when I received from an
Ian said: “Orora is a fantastic guy and it was my great privilege to have been his supervisor. Since then he has become a valued collaborator and also a dear friend.”
Dr Innocent Orora Maranga (front) donates blood
A meeting with… Naomi Smith, Education and Interpretation Manager at Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre Naomi, a Manchester alumnus, helps plan and deliver the education programme at Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre for both schools and members of the public. She visits schools as part of our Widening Participation outreach programme and is also involved in projects such as the Science and Technology Facilities Council-funded ‘Explore your Universe’ project. What’s the best part of your job? All the fun of testing out new ideas for workshops and shows is great and the feedback I get from an audience when I’m presenting a show or workshop can be absolutely fantastic. Any challenges? Just trying to fit everything in! There are so many different aspects to my job, but that’s why I enjoy it so much. How did you get to the role you have now? I graduated from this University having studied Physics, then went to
work at the Science and Technology Facilities Council Daresbury Laboratory for eight years. My job there involved designing and operating particle accelerators, and I also became interested and active in public engagement. When the main particle accelerator at Daresbury closed down, I decided to concentrate on a career in public engagement with science. I worked at a couple of other science centres, gradually gaining experience and also studied for my Masters in Science Communication. Shortly after that, I got a communications job at CERN for six months, then landed my present role. Any future projects coming up? I’m continually developing new ideas for our school and public programs. Anything which involves a new audience is always particularly good to be involved in. Who would be your ideal dinner party guests? Just my friends and family!
What would you say to your 16-year-old self now? Not a lot. I wouldn’t want to spoil things by having knowledge of the future! Favourite book, film and TV programme?
of music and exploring new places! On TV, I enjoy comedy and drama. Any interesting hobbies? I play the flute in a local wind orchestra and I enjoy dancing (although I’m not much good at it!) Also exploring places both on foot and by bike.
I’m not much of a reader. My favourite film is probably ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’. It combines my love
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Research
Faster diagnosis for children with cataracts A new test devised by University scientists which speeds up the diagnosis of cataracts in children will become available on the NHS in December. The blood test - developed by Professors Graeme Black and Jill Clayton-Smith, at the University’s Institute of Human Development and St Mary’s Hospital; Rachel Gillespie, also at the University; and Professor Chris Lloyd from Manchester Royal Eye Hospital – checks all genes known to cause congenital cataracts using just one blood sample and will allow faster diagnosis and more personalised treatment. Congenital cataracts is a leading cause of blindness in children, affecting around 200,000 children around the world every year - half of cases are thought to be due to genetic mutations.
Housing crisis hits minorities hardest New research from University sociologists has revealed a deep divide in who gets the best access to the most desirable housing in England and Wales. By analysing Census data from 1991 to 2011, Dr Nissa Finney and Dr Bethan Harries show the nation’s severe rise in insecure housing is hitting ethnic minority groups hardest. The research was funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. The trend, argue the researchers, shows minorities are much more likely to live in insecure, substandard, private rented accommodation.
A youngster examines a toy soldier found on the dig
Research reveals the rowdy past of parks
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University researcher has revealed a rowdy side to the history of our Victorian and Edwardian public parks – including our own Whitworth Park.
Ruth Colton says that children were central to the establishment of our well-loved parks. The Victorians, she says, thought parks were important for promoting social harmony, respectability and family values at a time of rising concerns about children’s behaviour, health and welfare.
social harmony, this was often resisted and parks could be sites of conflict and contrast. “Newspapers reported that children and youths were sitting on park benches shouting abuse at passers-by. Children would also illegally fish in park lakes for ornamental fish or steal fruit off the trees. “I hope that my work will inform our understanding of the parks’ heritage and, in doing so, will help to inform a vision for their future.”
But through postcards, public records, archaeology and children’s literature from the period, the PhD student from the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures, shows that children weren’t always little angels! The work included a dig organised by the University-led Community Archaeology Project, which unearthed a range of different marbles showing how children from different social classes played together. Other objects showed that eating food and drinking alcohol, forbidden in the park bye-laws, took place. Ruth said: “I don’t agree that Victorian and Edwardian children were to be seen and not heard. “Like today, there was a rowdy and unpredictable side too: while parks were supposed to promote
Dr Melanie Giles with one of the toy soliders discovered by the archaeology team
Climate puzzle over origins of life on Earth
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he mystery of why life on Earth evolved when it did has deepened with the publication of a new study in the journal Science.
higher during the Archean than they are today, but tests on ancient fossil soils suggest only modest levels of carbon dioxide during the Archean.
Manchester scientists, working with colleagues in France, have ruled out a theory as to why the planet was warm enough to sustain the earliest life forms when the Sun’s energy was roughly three-quarters the strength it is today.
But another climate-warming theory – one the team wanted to test – is that the amount of nitrogen could have been higher in the ancient atmosphere, which would amplify the greenhouse effect of carbon dioxide and allow the Earth to remain ice-free.
Life evolved on Earth during the Archean, between 3.8 and 2.4 billion years ago, but the weak Sun should have meant the planet was too cold for life to take hold at this time; scientists are seeking to explain the ‘faint, young Sun paradox’.
Dr Ray Burgess, from the School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences, said: “Our results gave a higher than expected pressure reading for carbon dioxide – at odds with the estimates based on fossil soils – which could be high enough to counteract the effects of the faint young Sun and will require further investigation.”
One explanation was that greenhouse gas levels – one of the regulators of the Earth’s climate – were
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The Sun
New cancer imaging centre
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he University has been selected as one of four new prestigious Cancer Imaging Centres in the UK being set up by Cancer Research UK and the Engineering and Physical Research Council (EPSRC) in a £35 million boost to research. The University will team up with the University of Cambridge to form the Cambridge Manchester Cancer Imaging Centre (CMCIC). It will see scientists in Manchester, led by Professor Alan Jackson, develop studies to revolutionise drug development and cancer treatment. Their current work involves looking in greater detail at how drugs used to treat a brain tumour are delivered and distributed around the brain to kill cancer.
Their work also involves analysing how treatment of cancerous tumours with a second drug may increase take up of the first cancer drug. The technology can identify recurrent tumours not seen on conventional scans. Professor Ian Jacobs, University Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences, said: “This is an exciting development which will provide added value to our efforts in cancer research by investing in and linking the expertise and research resources in cancer imaging in Manchester and Cambridge. “We can anticipate that it will, in due course, result in advances in cancer knowledge and cancer care that will save lives and benefit people in the North West, across the UK and worldwide.”
Brain scans showing cancerous tumours
The city that never was
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ight reports outlining ideas to shape our city spanning a 40-year period have been made available to the public in the first project of its kind in the UK. The plans, which can be viewed online at the link below, cover an important period in the city’s history from the 1920s through wartime reconstruction and 1950s austerity to the end of the ‘swinging’ 1960s.
The project, a collaboration between the University and Manchester City Council, shows how the city could have looked very different if the professionals had got their way. • See www.mappingmanchester.org/plans
Identifying the risk of rheumatoid arthritis Researchers at Manchester and King’s College London, funded by Arthritis Research UK, have developed a new method to identify people who are at a very high risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis. The prediction can be made using a simple blood test and information about their smoking habits. Professor Jane Worthington, from the Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences, teamed up with King’s College London to develop the new computer-based technique of prediction modelling which uses both genetic and environmental risk factors to estimate an individual’s lifetime risk of developing this disease.
X-ray vision reveals internal secrets Scientists have developed a new kind of ‘X-ray vision’ that’s able to peer inside an object and map the three-dimensional distribution of its nano-properties in real time. Manchester researchers, working with colleagues in the UK, Europe and the US, say the technique could have a wide range of applications across many disciplines, like materials science, geology, environmental science and medical research. “This new imaging method represents one of the most significant developments in X-ray micro tomography for almost 30 years,” said Professor Robert Cernik, in the School of Materials. A plan of Trinity train station, 1945
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Employability
Helping our students enter the big wide world We all have our part to play in helping our students gain experience and confidence before they leave campus for the ‘real world’. That’s why, as a University, we put a lot of effort into making sure our graduates leave with the skills and knowledge they need to find a job and developing a fulfilling career. Here, UniLife looks at some of the ways in which we’re preparing our students for life beyond campus…
Professor Bill Lionheart with his students
Through our teaching
F
or a great example of how we’re improving our students’ employability, look no further than the School of Mathematics.
“Mathematics Careers Czar” Professor Bill Lionheart and his team have come up with an impressive range of ideas. The team includes fellow academic Dr Louise Walker; Sebastian Rees and Helen Harper from the Professional Support Services and Karen Butterworth from the Careers and Employability Division (CED). Bill explains: “When the recession first started to bite, I was worried about our students getting jobs and also that they were taking longer to get graduate jobs than we hoped. I was determined to put some effort in to the problem.” The Careers and Employability Division was brought into the School to offer maths specific support. Students are now no longer leaving it until their third year before thinking about what to do with their hard-won degree. The annual ‘Calculating Careers’ Fair features 20-25 employers from a wide range of sectors like finance, technology and even intelligence – GCHQ attended. There are also regular careers focussed talks – for both students and academic advisors alike. But the most innovative and exciting activity is student-led: an interview training progamme where second and third-year students interview and shortlist first year students for a mock internship. As Louise Walker puts it: “The second and third years get some wonderful experience while the first years get proactive about their careers. They are able to make their mistakes and get feedback before they have to do it for real.“
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Students at a careers fair
Around 30% of the students in the School are from families who are new to higher education.
This means that they are often not especially skilled at job applications and interviews.
Louise says: “We’re very proud of that, but these students may not have the network of contacts that other students have. They have to start from scratch, and we want to help them.”
“An emeritus member of staff reminisced to me that a well-known accountancy firm once told him “We like your graduates - we like the way they are trained to think,” it still holds true.”
Bill adds: “When we select students we are looking for those who are good at maths and love it.
Through work experience
F
inal year student Max Drakeley’s industrial placement has had a real impact on his future life.
Max, 22, is studying Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology with an industrial placement, and is based at the Faculty of Life Sciences (FLS). He spent his year working in labs at the University of Rhode Island (URI), in the US, and also carried out what turned out to be unique research on the foraging behaviour of small lizards, having chosen and arranged the placement himself. “I found the placement through an ex-FLS student at Harvard, who put me in contact with the people she was working with,” he explains.
Max Drakeley
A male Anolis lizard
“I realised the importance of networking with people. At one point, I was emailing the world expert on the Anolis lizards I would be studying.”
“The work I did helped me secure a place at The Manchester Museum vivarium for my final year project.
Once in post, he learned a wealth of skills that have given a huge boost to his employability – and his confidence.
“I also learned how to present my work, how to work in teams and about problem solving – I would be asked, ‘Max what shall we do?’ instead of a researcher telling me what to do.”
“As well as working in the labs, I spent a month in Puerto Rico, studying the lizards on my own independent project,” he recalls.
Through working with our students
T
he Careers and Employability Division (CED) has a raft of activities to help our students think about ‘the next step’.
They’ve developed a new employability framework to help show students what’s important for future career success. The aim is to provide each
Can you help?
undergraduate with their own employability report by 2014/15.
Paul Lee, who is a member of the University’s Global Leadership Board.
Other activities include Global Graduates, a scheme where groups of students visit alumni and employers in four international locations to learn about global careers. This scheme is funded thanks to a gift from
Bursaries are also available for students in unpaid internships and more than 150 student and graduate internships are on offer either at our University or throughout Greater Manchester.
Do you have a business contact who could offer a student work experience? The Careers and Employability Division would be pleased to hear from you: careers@manchester.ac.uk
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Engagement
All aboard the Worm Wagon! The University’s researchers have a variety of ways of showcasing their work to the public – informing and inspiring, even thrilling and enchanting them. Here UniLife looks at how our academics escape their ivory towers… Fancy a mucus dip or the chance to savour a really good look at the worms that inhabit our guts? It’s not for everyone, but a team of immunologists in the Faculty of Life Sciences has discovered that parasitic nematodes (that’s worms to you and me) have huge popular appeal – particularly when they’re wheeled into music festivals and schools. Professor Kathryn Else, Dr Jo Pennock and Dr Sheena Cruickshank are the drivers of the “worm wagon,” a train of mini-carriages where all the passengers are worms and their reason for travel is to educate us about the pros and cons of our intestinal lodgers. It’s brought accolades along the way since launching in 2009. The team recently took the science prize at the Manchester International Women’s Day Awards, but their greater reward is witnessing the public’s comprehension of the complexities of the global worm problem. “They can kill, but death rates are comparatively low. The real concern is how they make millions of children feel very unwell in large parts of South America, Africa and Asia,” explains Professor Else. “Chronic bowel problems, malnutrition and lethargy mean misery for large populations and many of the affected children will attend half as much school as they need.”
(Left to right) Dr Jo Pennock, Dr Sheena Cruickshank and Professor Kathryn Else
“When we take the worm wagon out we can get that across to people here, but it’s also important for them to understand that we evolved to carry worms and they help to develop our immune systems,” Dr Cruickshank adds.
Part of the team’s ground-breaking research into the use of clove oil to control rather than eradicate worms was achieved through their community work. Students at Trinity High School in Hulme helped discover that cloves reduced worm egg development by half during an eight-week project. “It was exciting to get them involved in what could be a potential remedy,” explains Dr Pennock. “‘However, whilst we know that parasites can have detrimental effects on health, for instance they increase susceptibility to malaria, they can also protect the brain against infection - so getting the worm balance is important.”
Dr Jo Pennock and Museum visitors draw a giant body rangoli
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A Yorkshire schoolboy dips worms in a bucket of mucus at the Big Bang National Science Fair
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Listings International Society Visit some of the most beautiful and interesting locations around England, Scotland and Wales. There are visits taking place almost every weekend throughout the year. Sat 9 Nov Alton Towers – Ultimate Fireworks! Sun 10 Nov North Wales visiting Caernarfon Castle and Portmeirion Village Sat 16 Nov Oxford with Guided Tour Sun 17 Nov Whitby Sat 23 Nov Peak District visiting Chatsworth House (at Christmas) and Bakewell Sun 24 Nov Chester with Guided Tour Sat 30 Nov York (St Nicholas Fayre Market) Sun 1 Dec Keswick Traditional Victorian Christmas Fayre Sun 1 Dec Eureka (The National Children’s Museum) in Halifax Opening times Mon-Fri 9.30am – 7pm (during term time) Mon-Fri 9.30am – 5pm (during vacation)
Batak Bone Amulet. Date unknown. Indonesia Thought to be Water Buffalo, these seemingly decorative bones were used as amulets to ward off evil spirits during magical rituals. (Batak MS 34)
What’s On
John Rylands Library (Deansgate) EXHIBITIONS Locating Boccaccio until Dec 2013 Picturing Stories: British and French Romantic Illustrations until Jan 2014 Polari Mission: Bona Eek until Feb 2014 Morbid Miscellany Jan 2014 Portrait of a Living Archive until Jan 2014 THINGS TO SEE Tues 5 Nov, 3-4pm Curator Tour: Morbid Miscellany Thurs 14 Nov, 1-2pm Curator Tour – Locating Boccaccio in 2013 Weds 14 Nov, 6-7pm Talking About Pictures: A Curator’s View
THINGS TO DO Weds 6 and Sat 9 Nov, 2-3pm Textermination and the Pleasures of Experimental Fiction Sun 10 Nov, 1-4pm Make Your Own Morbid Miscellany Sat 16 Nov, 2.30-3.30pm Explorer Tours: A Peek Behind the Scenes! Weds 27 Nov, 1-2pm Machiavelli the Bandit and the Writing of The Prince Every 3rd Thursday of the month, 12-1pm (booking essential) Tour and Treasures EVENTS Weds 13 Nov, 11-4pm Whimsical Wednesday Workshops: Shadows From the Page FAMILY FRIENDLY ACTIVITIES
Thurs 14 Nov, 5.30-7pm Artists’ Books and Literature
Sat 9 Nov, 12-1pm Here be Dragons!
Sat 16 Nov, 1-2pm Poala Collection Encounter
Sat 9 Nov, 11-12pm Enchanting Tales
Thurs 21 Nov, 5.30-7pm Books for Boccaccio
Sat 9 Nov, 11-3pm Woodcut ‘n’ Colour
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Sun 1 Dec, 11-4pm Winter Fun Day For further details of our events, please visit our website FREE ADMISSION Public opening times: Sun-Mon 12-5pm, Tues-Sat 10am-5pm Reader opening times: Mon-Weds, Fri-Sat 10am-5pm, Thurs 10am-7pm The John Rylands Library 150 Deansgate, Manchester, M3 3EH Visitor / Event Enquiries tel 0161 306 0555 email jrul.visitors@manchester.ac.uk General / Reader Enquiries 0161 275 3764 www.library.manchester.ac.uk/ specialcollections
Small World Café opening times Mon-Fri 11am – 3pm 327 Oxford Road (next to Krobar) 0161 275 4959 email int.soc@manchester.ac.uk www.internationalsociety.org.uk
Chaplaincies St Peter’s House Chaplaincy Sunday, 11am Holy Communion 12.45pm Lunch (1st Sun) Sunday, 5.30pm Student Service (term-time only) Wednesday 12.15pm Eucharist, followed by free soup lunch (term-time only) RC Chaplaincy Avila House Mass Times (term-time only) Sun, 7pm (in the Holy Name Church) next door to the Chaplaincy Mon, Tues, Thurs and Friday, 5.30pm in the Chaplaincy Chapel Weds, 1.05pm in the Chaplaincy Chapel The Jewish Student Centre and Synagogue 07817 250 557 Email Rabbi Mati Kos: rabbikos@mychaplaincy.co.uk Muslim Chaplaincy South Campus Mosque, McDougall Centre Jammaat (Group Prayer) Daily Juma Prayer Friday 1.15pm Honorary Imam: Imam Habeeb, h_chatti@hotmail.com North Campus Mosque Basement of Joule Library, Sackville Street Building Jammaat (Group Prayer) Daily Juma Prayer Friday 12.30pm The role of Volunteer Muslim Chaplain is to provide pastoral support, guidance and a listening ear to Muslim staff and students Chaplains’ email: assia_shah61@yahoo.co.uk
Gig Guide Manchester Academy 1, 2 and 3 Mon 4 & Tues 5 Nov Mon 4 Nov Tues 5 Nov Weds 6 Nov
Thurs 7 Nov
Fri 8 Nov
Sat 9 Nov Sun 10 Nov Mon 11 Nov Weds 13 Nov
Thurs 14 Nov Fri 15 Nov Fri 15 & Sat 16 Nov Sat 16 Nov Sun 17 Nov Mon 18 Nov Tues 19 Nov Tues 19 Nov Weds 20 Nov
Thurs 21 Nov Fri 22 Nov
Sat 23 Nov
Sun 24 Nov
Mon 25 Nov Weds 27 Nov
Thurs 28 Nov Fri 29 Nov
Sat 30 Nov
Sun 1 Dec
Bring Me The Horizon + Guests - £17.50 Joseph Whelan - £12.50 Watsky - £12 Deap Vally - £10.50 Dillinger Escape Plan - £14 KAL & Satellite State Disko - £10 Public Service Broadcasting - £18 36 Crazyfists + Guests - £12.50 Marillion - £25 Unknown Mortal Orchestra - £12 The Union + Tax The Heat £13.50 Whole Lotta Led - £12 Satyricon + Chthonic - £14 Alice in Chains - £27.50 Defenders of the Faith £18.50 The Wonder Years - £12 Gary Numan - £27.50 Stephen Lynch Live - £20 Laura Veirs - £16.50 Road to Warped Tour - £15 Beady Eye (SOLD OUT) Vice Squad + Guests - £8 Naughty Boy + Ella Eyre - £11 Television - £25 Mallory Knox + Guests - £10 Blue October - £16 Karnivool + TesseracT - £10.50 Hayseed Dixie - £17.50 Panic! At The Disco - £20 (SOLD OUT) They Might Be Giants + Wonder Villains - £18.50 The Rifles + Dexters + The Mono Polys - £15 Editors + British Sea Power - £20 The Backhanders - £6 The Temperance Movement + Guests - £8.50 The Virginmarys - £10 Lee Nelson – £22.50 Crystal Fighters - £12.50 Absolute Bowie - £12 Ms Mr - £11 Vuvuvultures - £9 The Passengers perform Iggy Pop songs - £10 Barenaked Ladies - £23 The Dismemberment Plan - £13 Wednesday 13 + Sister - £13 Hudson Taylor - £8 Dan Baird & Homemade Sin - £12 Crisis + One Week Behind + Guests - £6 Flux Pavillion - £14.50 The Complete Stone Roses - £15 The Doors Alive - £11 The Lancashire Hotpots - £12 Capercaillie - £22.50 Littlecrazy + Guests - £6
Tickets from Students’ Union, Oxford Road Piccadilly Box Office @ easy Internet Café (c/c) 0871 2200260 Royal Court (Liverpool) 0151 709 4321 (c/c) Students’ Union Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL 0161 275 2930 www.manchesteracademy.net
Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre
Manchester Museum
Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre offers a great day out for all the family. Come and explore the planets using our model of the Solar System. Find answers to the wonders the Universe, listen to the sounds of the Big Bang and discover what the scientists are researching ‘Live’ in our interactive Space Pavilion. The glass-walled café offers spectacular views of the iconic Lovell telescope and fantastic homemade cakes!
EXHIBITIONS
FAMILY ACTIVITIES
Mon 18 Nov, 6.30pm, £6/£4 Louis de Bernières
EVENTS
Most activities are free and drop-in, some activities may need to be booked and may cost up to £1.50, all ages
EVENING CONCERTS
Sat 16 Nov, 7pm SOLD OUT Telescope Night Information: Live from Jodrell Bank website Tickets: http://ow.ly/hQCFU Tickets include entry to the Discovery Centre. Opening times 10am-5pm For more information and prices please visit our website Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre Macclesfield, Cheshire, SK11 9DL 01477 571 766 www.jodrellbank.net
All exhibitions at The Manchester Museum are FREE 90 Degree Citizen until 17 Nov Fragmentary Ancestors: Figurines from Koma Land until 5 May 2014 Coral: Something Rich and Strange from 30 Nov
Sat and Sun 10am or 2pm – bookings 1 month in advance New! Children’s Birthday Parties Every other Tuesday, 12 and 26 Nov, 10.3011.15am, 11.30-12.15pm, 1-1.45pm, Free (booking essential) Baby Explorers: Sensory Play for Babies Fri 29 Nov, 10.30-11.30am/11.30-12.30pm, Free (booking essential) Magic Carpet for Under Fives and Their Carers Sat 16 Nov, 11am-4pm Big Saturday: Ancient Faces and Places MUSEUM MEETS
The Whitworth Art Gallery Re-opening summer 2014 The Whitworth Art Gallery has started a new and exciting chapter in its history. A major building project is now taking place to transform and extend the 120-year-old gallery, doubling its public areas whilst reducing its carbon footprint and improving facilities for visitors. This new development by architects MUMA will re-connect the 19th century building with Whitworth Park through an elegant contemporary extension. The new Whitworth will bring you more art, more activities, more events and more space. It will be all things our many visitors have always loved about the Whitworth. We look forward to welcoming you back in summer 2014. Watch this space for details of our forthcoming outreach events... Whitworth Art Gallery Oxford Road, Manchester 0161 275 7450 Booking line 0161 275 7450 email whitworth@manchester.ac.uk www.manchester.ac.uk/whitworth
The Martin Harris Centre for Music and Drama CENTRE FOR NEW WRITING Sun 1 Dec, 6.30pm, £12/£10 Jeanette Winterson in Conversation with A L Kennedy LITERATURE LIVE
Fri 8 Nov, 7.30pm, £10/£6/£3 Ad Solem: University of Manchester Chamber Choir Sat 9 Nov, 7.30pm, £10/£6/£3 MUMS Chamber Orchestra and Wind Ensembles Fri 15 Nov, 7.30pm, £13.50/£8/£3 Quatuor Danel Sat 16 Nov, 7.30pm, £10/£6/£3 MUMS String and Brass Ensembles Sun 17 Nov, 7pm, £8/£6 (free for under 16s) Stockport Youth Orchestra Sat 23 Nov, 7.30pm, £10/£6/£3 Manchester University Wind Orchestra (MUWO)
Every Weds and Thurs, 1pm Taster Tours Tues 5 Nov, 1-2.30pm (drop in) English Corner Sat 9 Nov, 10-4pm (£15) Behind the Scenes at the Museum: Geology and Fossil Focus Sat 9 Nov, 7-10pm Student Social: Wonders of the Natural World Thurs 14 and 28 Nov, 6-8pm Wildlife Recording Fri 15 Nov, 12-1pm Dig It Archaeology Identification Session Tues 26 Nov, 5.30-6.30pm (drop in) Manchester Museum Book Club Thurs 28 Nov, 2-3pm (drop in) Rock Drop Sat 30 Nov, 10am-4pm (£15) Hands on Hieroglyphs – What Do Hieroglyphs Mean? Sat 30 Nov, 2-4pm Urban Naturalist: Plant Dyes
Sat 30 Nov, 7.30pm, £12/£9/£3 The University of Manchester Chorus and Symphony Orchestra
COLLECTION BITES Weds 6 Nov, 1-2pm Trading Well-being: The Materiality of Medicine and Religion at a Healers’ Market, Accra, Ghana
Weds 6/Thurs 7/Fri 8 Nov, 7pm, £5.50/£4.50/£4 DS Members Opening Performance
TALKS 1st Wednesday of the month, 1-2pm Collection Bites Thurs 7 Nov, 1-2pm Happy Birthday Alfred Wallace Weds 27 Nov, 1-2pm The Confucius Institute China Talks: Opera Thurs 28 Nov, 6-8pm Ancestors in Ancient Egypt: Images and Practice
FREE LUNCHTIME CONCERTS Thurs 7 Nov, 1.10 pm Joby Burgess Percussion Pioneers Fri 8 Nov, 1.10pm Cosmo Singers Thurs 14 Nov, 1.10pm Quatuor Danel Fri 15 Nov, 1.10pm MUMS Vocal Showcase Thurs 21 Nov, 1.10pm John Turner 70th Birthday Concert Thurs 28 Nov, 1.10pm Featured Artist: Richard Casey ‘Beethoven and …Peter Maxwell Davies’ Fri 29 Nov, 1.10pm Manchester University Commissioning Ensemble (MUCE) UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER DRAMA SOCIETY
Weds 20/Thurs21/Fri 22 Nov, 7pm, £5.50/£4.50/£4 DS Members Autumn Showcase The Martin Harris Centre for Music and Drama Bridgeford Street, Manchester, M13 9PL 0161 275 8951 email boxoffice@manchester.ac.uk www.manchester.ac.uk/ martinharriscentre
Opening times Open: Tues-Sat 10am-5pm Sun-Mon (and Bank Holidays) 11am-4pm FREE admission The Manchester Museum, Oxford Road, Manchester 0161 275 2648 www.manchester.ac.uk/museum Follow us on Twitter @McrMuseum www.facebook.com/ManchesterMuseum
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Feature
Opening our doors The University’s Strategic Plan Manchester 2020 lists one of our goals as contributing to the social and economic success of the local, national and international community. Last month our new engagement campaign to encourage staff to highlight how they are ‘making a difference’ to society was launched featuring campus installations and a new blog. Here UniLife looks at a colleague we can be proud of…
More than 25 youngsters have had their eyes opened to higher education – and their opportunities boosted – thanks to Dr Tracey Speake. Tracey, a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Life Sciences, has been a Manchester Access Programme (MAP) Academic Tutor since 2006. MAP supports talented students who are from backgrounds that are currently under-represented in universities. The aim of the programme is to support potential students who are looking to come to Manchester, or another research-intensive university, by completing a portfolio of work demonstrating specific knowledge and skills.
One element of the programme is to produce an independent piece of research. This gives a real insight into what they can expect during the first year of undergraduate study. Tracey explains: “It’s great to work with MAP students who really embrace the opportunity to develop new skills. “And it’s amazing to see the difference my support can make to young peoples’ lives. Many of my previous MAP tutees have progressed to be undergraduate students here at Manchester and I’ve been able to witness first-hand the way in which MAP has helped in their preparation for university.
“MAP encourages them to think about and develop some of the skills they will need for university; like literature searching, referencing, constructing an assignment and evaluating sources.” • If you have a story to tell like Tracey, add some text, an image or weblink to the makeadifferencemcr blog. • Or if you use Twitter, follow @SocialResponUoM and use the hashtag #makeadifferencemcr to join the conversation.
Please help us distribute UniLife more efficiently. Undelivered copies should be sent to Sarah Davenport at The University of Manchester Visitors Centre, University Place, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL. University staff should send changes of work address to hrservices@manchester.ac.uk Or opt out of receiving hard copies at www.staffnet.manchester.ac.uk/opt-out/
Next Issue 2 December 2013 M950 10.13 The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL Royal Charter Number RC000797
Cert no. SGS-COC-3059