buzz COMMUNITY
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WINTER 2018
Celebrating students SUPPORTING THE COMMUNITY
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WELCOME
Welcome In September we welcomed students back onto campus, so in this edition of Community Buzz we are celebrating the fantastic community-focused volunteering that they do – from gardening to marketing, they are a talented group. Our Community Living Hub is now open, already providing a resource to everyone who lives in
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SUPPORTING SUSTAINABLE TRAVEL The University’s Energy Institute, alongside Birmingham City Council and the Tyseley Energy Park, is working with local haulage businesses to make them more sustainable in readiness for the introduction of the Clean Air Zone in 2019. Early in 2019, the Tyseley Energy Park, in which the University of Birmingham Energy Institute is involved, will be opening the UK’s first open-access, low and zero carbon refuelling station. This will include hydrogen, compressed national gas, biodiesel and electrical charging options. Collectively, the Energy Institute, City Council and Tyseley Energy Park will be hosting a series of events to build awareness of the opportunities and support available to local commercial vehicle operators. To find out more, please visit: www.tyseleyenergy.co.uk
Selly Oak. Check out page 5 for more information on what is going on there. And with Christmas around the corner, there are plenty of events and activities throughout the winter for you to get involved with. Happy reading. From the Community Buzz team
UNIVERSITY NEWS
THE NATION’S FIRST DONOR CAMPUS This summer the University hosted the 41st Westfield Health British Transplant Games on campus, at the same time becoming the nation’s first ever Donor Campus in order to support the bid to improve organ donation in the region. University Vice Chancellor Professor Sir David Eastwood said: ‘As a University that pioneered ground-breaking transplantation research, I am delighted that we have been able to support this initiative and become the UK’s first Donor Campus, which can only enhance our contribution to this important area. ‘As one of the region’s biggest employers and most influential higher education institutions, we take the health and wellbeing of our staff and students seriously, as well as the local community.’
Changing 10,000 lives in Birmingham Huge thanks to all staff, alumni and students who ran the Great Birmingham 10k run earlier this year. The team numbered almost 400, and raised more than £3,000 for scholarships, bursaries and opportunities for transforming the prospects of students.
STEP FORWARD. CHANGE 10,000 LIVES.
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CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT
transforming
our campus
Collaborative Teaching Laboratory opens its doors to students On 1 October the newly-built Collaborative Teaching Laboratory opened its doors to students for the first time. The new development, which contains specialist laboratories, will provide a home for students studying a variety of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects.
The building is designed to provide not only lab space, but also collaborative work and study areas, replicating how STEM graduates will operate in the work environment.
School of Engineering breaks ground Working with Willmott Dixon, the University broke ground on a new School of Engineering building in September. Completing in 2020, the building will bring together many different engineering disciplines into one state-of-the-art space. It will provide different and more flexible ways of working for both staff and students, training the next generation of engineers. The school will sit alongside the new UK Rail Research and Innovation Network (UKRRIN) Centre of Excellence for Digital Systems, which is being developed in partnership with industry.
Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences at the University, Professor Andy Schofield, said: ‘It is an honour to be able to break ground on this project, which underlines our commitment to providing a first class education to engineering undergraduate and postgraduate students in the context of a cutting-edge research environment.’
Keep up with all our campus developments at www.birmingham.ac.uk/building
COMMUNITY LIVING
NEW UNIVERSITY DAY NURSERY IS THE FIRST IN BIRMINGHAM TO PLACE SUSTAINABILITY AT ITS HEART A new nursery at the University of Birmingham will be the first in the city to pledge its dedication to becoming a more sustainable environment for young children to learn when it opens in early 2019. The Maples Day Nursery, will be minimising the use of disposable wipes and plastics such as glitter and one use-aprons as well as embedding a plastic free approach to play in this unique setting. The Maples is working towards the Curiosity Approach accreditation, using natural play resources, fostering children’s creativity and imagination, drawing on the learning styles of
Reggio Emilia, Steiner, Te Whariki and Montessori. It places every child at the centre of their own learning and development, with natural play resources and a focus on building confidence and communication skills. To find out more about the Maples and the wider nursery offer at the University of Birmingham, visit: www.birminghamdaynurseries.co.uk
THE COMMUNITY LIVING HUB IS OPEN The Community Living hub at Bournbrook Pavilion in Selly Oak is now well and truly open as a place to meet, share and belong! In the last few months, we’ve hosted local residents, councillor surgeries, meetings, acted as a base for litter picks and community events, and been a hive of strategy development activity as we get ready to launch our pilot year of programmes, seeking to help make Selly Oak a better place to live and work. This autumn will see us hosting events for students living in Selly Oak, engaging in local
research and activity programmes with the ‘Up Our Street’ team, supporting local community leaders and members by hosting and encouraging their work, holding two Selly Oak business network consultations in order to bring the business community of Selly Oak together, and much more. If you would like information on any of our activity, email Claire, our Community Engagement Manager, on: c.e.bent@bham.ac.uk.
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RESEARCH AND EDUCATION
DEGREE APPRENTICESHIPS DRIVING DIVERSITY The University’s computer science degree apprenticeship with PwC is driving positive changes in the diversity of students studying the discipline. One third of students who joined the course in September are female. The students include those who are the first in their families to attend university. Students who applied to the fully funded, four year digital technology programme achieved excellent results in this year’s A levels.
The degree apprenticeship has been designed to develop the UK’s next generation of technology talent to meet the needs of industry. Students will combine university life with practical work-based technology projects at the PwC offices in Birmingham and will receive a salary from the company throughout the course.
EXERCISE COULD DELAY PROGRESSION OF
TYPE 1 DIABETES WHEN FIRST DIAGNOSED
The Findings of a University study suggests that exercise during the first few months of Type 1 diabetes could delay the progression of the condition. Study participants who continued an active exercise regime after Type 1 diabetes extended their partial remission, also known as the ‘honeymoon’ period, five-fold compared to those who didn’t exercise. The research, published in Diabetic Medicine, suggests that exercise during the first few months of diagnosis may in the long term improve blood
glucose levels, reduce hypoglycaemic attacks and the risk of long-term complications, such as retinopathy and neuropathy. Lead author of the study, Dr Parth Narendran, of the University’s Institute of Immunology and Immunotherapy, said: ‘There is now a need for clinical trials to investigate whether exercise can prolong the duration of honeymoon and explore the mechanisms underlying this.’
EVENTS
MUM’S THE WORD AT THE
AUTUMN at the Bramall It’s time for an exciting new season at the Bramall. Turn back the clock with tribute band ‘Kick up the 80s’, performing the biggest hits of the decade on 15 November. Enjoy the latest performance by the Brass Band and Chamber Choirs, bringing together over 130 musicians to give their autumn term concert on 25 November. And on 6 December, the Guild Music Theatre Group will conjure up the Magic of the Musicals as they sing their way through the Broadway and West End songbooks. Tickets for these events – and many more exciting shows – are on sale now at: www.thebramall.co.uk
Leading Post-Impressionist Édouard Vuillard painted his mother more than 500 times – a preoccupation explored in the major exhibition at the Barber Institute of Fine Arts this autumn and winter. Maman: Vuillard and Madame Vuillard focuses principally on the first decade of Vuillard’s career, the 1890s, when he was striving to become one of the leading avant-garde artists of his generation. Sharing a series of modest rented Paris apartments with his widowed mother, Marie. Maman: Vuillard and Madame Vuillard (19 October 2018–20 January 2019). Admission free. Open 7 days a week. Further details: barber.org.uk
SAVE THE DATE
birmingham.ac.uk/events Masquerade in the Cross River Region: The Nicklin-Salmons Collection. 11 September 2018–18 January 2019. Rotunda Gallery, Aston Webb Building. Monday–Friday, 9.00am–5.00pm. Free entry.
World squash on campus – British Junior Squash Open 2–6 January 2019. Sport & Fitness Club. www.sportandfitness.bham.ac.uk/events. Email: events@sportandfitness.bham.ac.uk
Festive Lunches at Winterbourne House and Garden 26th November and throughout December 2018. Call 0121 414 3003 to book.
Hot off the press January to December 2019, Winterbourne House and Garden will be highlighting their collection of 19th and 20th Century printing presses. www.winterbourne.org.uk/ yearofprint
University Carol Service Monday 10 December. Great Hall, Aston Webb Building. 6.15–8.00pm.
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MORE THAN 7,000 UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM STUDENTS VOLUNTEER EVERY YEAR Each year more than 7,000 University of Birmingham students volunteer in the community and on campus. A group of students called the Lloyds Scholars carried out 11 community projects over the course of the last academic year, including supporting patients at West Heath Hospital, working with adults with learning disabilities and maintaining community gardens in a variety of areas.
The scholars’ degrees are supported by Lloyds Banking Group, and volunteering is part of the agreement they make with the organisation. Through another project, called ‘Up Our Street’, 23 students worked with Citizens UK and the Centre for Research in Ethnic Minority Entrepreneurship (CREME) in the Sparkhill/ Balsall Heath area, supporting several community projects.
COMMUNITY WORK IN 2018/19
PROJECTS SUPPORTED VOLUNTARILY BY STUDENTS IN 2017/18 n F undraising to equip a children’s n n n n n n
nature garden D evising marketing materials for community events O rganising community activities C reating pathways through woodland S prucing up the garden at Moseley Hall Hospital D istributing food and resources to homeless people in Birmingham R unning a Christmas craft session for adults with learning disabilities
PLANS ARE ALREADY IN PLACE FOR STUDENTS TO SUPPORT: n A quarius – a social enterprise helping
young people affected by alcohol, drugs and gambling n B 30 Foodbank in Cotteridge n C o-Wheels Car Club – an environmental travel social enterprise n S ENSE – a charity supporting those with complex communications needs
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18076 © University of Birmingham 2018. Printed on a recycled grade paper containing 100% post-consumer waste.
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Volunteers improving a garden enviro for patients
Alison Sharp, Assistant Director of the University’s Careers Network, said: ‘This year our community work will focus on Selly Oak. Partnering with the University’s Community Living Hub in Bournbrook Pavilion, we want our students to build a stronger relationship with our neighbours, by participating in social action.’