Changes to College Staffing

The most substantial change involves moving dedicated student support functions out of the individual colleges and into a newly established Central Student Hub.

• Shift in Welfare Focus: Colleges will transition from being the immediate first point of contact for complex welfare and administrative issues to focusing primarily on community, belonging, and proactive wellbeing initiatives.
• Specialist Support: The university rationale for this shift is to streamline access to specialist support. By pooling resources, the Central Hub aims to provide a more consistent and robust level of professional help for matters such as mental health and complex academic administration.

If you're in need of support, please contact the student hub instead of staff you may have formerly contacted at your college.

As part of attempts to improve efficiency, structural changes in college administration have been implemented through staffing reviews and infrastructure adjustments.

• Reduction in Dedicated College Management: The number of full-time, college-specific College Manager positions has been reduced through measures such as voluntary severance. The duties of these roles are now being absorbed by remaining staff who oversee multiple colleges divided between East and West campus.
• College Reception Closures: Several independent College Receptions are being permanently closed or merged. The intention is to centralise administrative access points into a smaller number of hubs, particularly on Campus West.

A key point of contention raised by student leadership is the loss of staff with comprehensive local knowledge of specific colleges. Critics argue that support delivered by a remote hub cannot replace the nuanced, personal care provided by dedicated on-site college staff.

Staff unions and student committee members have raised formal concerns about the increased workload placed on remaining staff and student volunteers. Furthermore, proposals affecting 24/7 on-site support staff have prompted warnings that immediate crisis response and overall student safety could be compromised.