Support for academic staff during the COVID-19 pandemic

Immediate term

Children and other caring responsibilities

• We have put in place a number of options, flexible working, paid special leave, and furlough (part-time and full-time)
• We have endeavoured to keep University nurseries open and have not charged staff who have chosen to keep their children at home
• There are also resources on the staff site to support parents in home schooling

Wellbeing

• We have invested in togetherall and provided access to other resources and the Carefirst telephone counselling service

• The Universities and Colleges Employers Association (UCEA) has published a summary of resources to support HE staff during the COVID-19 pandemic, and guidance on facilitating good line manager conversations in particular about workload, priorities and wellbeing

• The Education Support Partnership (ESP) a charity supporting staff working in the Education sector has resources including:
  • ESP’s 24/7 free telephone support and counselling service which is available to all staff
  • Mental health resources on topics which have been highlighted as particularly difficult during the pandemic including dealing with grief and loss, managing anxiety, secondary trauma, coping in self-isolation
• Our Home-working and wellbeing guidance for staff includes resources for staff and advice on how to support others around them
• There are free on-line exercise sessions through our Sports department 

Teaching support

• We have invested in people and platforms to support academic development of remote teaching
• Graduate and post doc teaching assistants have been hired and emeriti staff invited back to help support staff especially in teaching and examining in areas that are stretched
• Additional administrative posts have been filled through the Temporary Staffing Service to help with examining, admissions, IT and HR

 Research Support

• The Covid Rebuilding Research Momentum Fund 
• Guidance has been put in place for externally funded research staff

Support for those working on-site

• Special thanks to those who continue to work on-site to keep the University open and critical services and infrastructure working.  College staff, library staff, technicians and lab staff as well as the academics who will continue to provide laboratory training 
• We have provided parking in central oxford
• We are exploring ways to provide asymptomatic testing and plan to have a pilot up and running soon

 Longer term

• Academic career development – we have agreed to opt-in extensions to IPO and Personnel committee will be looking at further enhancements
• The University-level controls for recruitment into AP, research and academic teaching posts have been delegated down to divisions and the Senior Appointment Panel has reverted to its normal process for approving statutory professor and RSIV appointments
• As well as the Covid Rebuilding Research Momentum Fund a survey of the impact of the pandemic on research staff ran over the summer, and is feeding into the Research staff support structures. This will be a key focus for the new Research Staff Hub, and the Research staff support working groups
• There is guidance for research staff on maintaining an ‘impact log’
• There are on-line resources to support research staff with skills training

Financial support

• Returning carers fund
• Covid Rebuilding Research Momentum fund
• Staff Hardship fund