Ambleside Newsletter - December 2023

AMBLESIDE CAMPUS

NEWSLETTER

Issue 003

December 2023

cumbria.ac.uk/Ambleside

this ISSUE Welcome to the December Issue

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Abby Clarke - Resident Life Officer

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Student Support over Christmas

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Coming Back - January Breakfast

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January Enhancement Week

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Say Hello to Penny - Our MA Literature Programme Leader

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Students for Biodiversity Project Update

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An Introduction to Dr Richard Johnson

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Are you missing out? Stagecoach Travel Scheme

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Congratulations to Dr Penny Bradshaw

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Ambleside Students making outstanding contributions

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Career Ahead

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Become a Change Maker and Join the Student Panel

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White Ribbon Day 2023

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Campus Event Toolkit

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Meet Your Accommodation Officer

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Meet You Ambleside Estates Manager

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Welcome to the December issue Can anyone believe we are at the end of the first Semester for the 2023 academic year?

The past few months have been busy, with lots for us to reflect on and we look forward to celebrating some of the successes of colleagues and students alike later in this issue. From newly published Literary Walks to our students from the Institute of Business, Industry and Leadership making a positive impact for locals, we’ve got so much to be proud of.

We are now well and truly in the depths of winter, with frosty, crisp and short days. We would like to encourage you to get out and about during the day and make the most of this colder weather – get yourself out for a nice long winter walk and treat yourself to coffee and cake afterwards. Prioritise your wellbeing and make sure to reach out if you need any support.

We are sorry the Christmas Fair had to be cancelled earlier this month due to the adverse weather conditions in Ambleside. Thank you to students and staff alike for responding so well to the situation and we’re sorry for any inconvenience this caused.

We are currently working on the provision for those who will be remaining in halls over the Christmas closure period. The University will fully close on Friday 22nd December at 17:00 and re-open at 08:30 on Tuesday 2nd January. Further information about the closure period and the support that is available can be seen on page 4.

We hope you enjoy this issue of the newsletter and we are looking forward to welcoming you back after the Christmas Break. Please be sure to keep an eye on your individual programme timetables as to when your academic sessions resume in the new calendar year.

We hope you have a happy and safe festive period and all the very best to you all for 2024.

Rob Wilson Ambleside Campus Manager Max Young Student Network Coordinator

Abby Clarke Resident Life Officer Hello everyone, My name is Abby, and I am the new Resident Life Officer here at the Ambleside campus. This is a brief insight into what I can help you with and where you can find me while you spend your time living in University Halls.

I am here to support you with any issues you have surrounding:

Feeling homesick, isolated, disconnected or ill.

Your flat mates are disruptive, not sharing communal jobs or using your food/ and or possessions.

You feel you are subject to harassment or any sort of intimidation.

You are experiencing problems living in halls.

I also work closely with Wylie to carry out mid-term and kitchen inspections. On that note your new kitchen inspection day will be Thursday/Friday for those of you living in our Halls of Residence.

I am based in Millet room B5, but you will find me all around campus, so please feel free to pop in and say hello. I cannot wait to get to know you all and help in any way I can.

Abby Clarke Resident Life Officer

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Student Support over Christmas

We will be closed from 17:00 on Friday 22nd December and will re-open on Tuesday 2nd January Whilst on-campus face-to-face services will be not be available during the University’s period of closure, the Student Enquiry Point is available to signpost you to useful resources. If you still need help and submit a query, you will receive a response after the university reopens on Tuesday 2nd January 2024.

For students in Student Accommodation who require urgent or emergency assistance please contact the Security team on campus. Their contact numbers are displayed in your flat kitchens (or see the 'Emergencies over Christmas' section the pages linked below).

Scan here for STEP

Scan here for more info

Coming back January Breakfast We recognise that January can be quite a blue month for many.

Although most programmes that run on the Ambleside Campus don’t start until the very end of January, we are working on our welcome back plans at the moment.

A part of this is our January Community Breakfast on Wednesday 31st January 2023. Vouchers will be available from the week before and we will be in touch through our platforms to formally invite you nearer the time however, if you are interested, please do save the morning.

January Enhancement week For all students who do not have compulsory placements, the week beginning 22nd January 2023 is your enhancement week. This offers you an opportunity to engage with extracurricular activities to support your personal, academic and employability skills.

There are three main themes for the January 2024 Enhancement week, consisting of Business Start-up, Get Experience and Class of ’24 Career Opportunities.

The Site where you can access all the resources for this week, will be available from 15th January 2024 on the University Noticeboard in BlackBoard.

For more information, including how to enrol, please scan the QR Code to the right.

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Say Hello to Penny our MA Literature Programme Leader What motivates you to work at the University of Cumbria?

I love everything about working at the University of Cumbria but if I had to identify my two top two motivations, they would be: firstly, the location of our beautiful campuses and especially Ambleside which relates to my own research into cultural landscapes and literary representations of place, but which is also the perfect location for teaching our MA Literature, Romanticism, and the English Lake District; and secondly, the close relationship between staff and students at the University of Cumbria and our really supportive academic community.

That love and kindness are the most important things we can bring to interactions with others in our daily lives.

What is the proudest moment of your career so far?

Being made Associate Professor of English Literature in 2021 was a really proud moment for me but I also fill with pride every time my wonderful students step up on the plinth in Carlisle Cathedral at their graduation ceremonies. I feel both proud and very fortunate to play a part in this life-changing experience within so many students’ lives.

What was your favourite childhood book?

Penny Bradshaw Associate Professor

What is the most important life lesson you have learned?

Oh gosh, that’s really tricky – I had so many!!! I was a big fan of girls’ school stories and pony adventure books and I read many individual books in these genres over and over again. A particular favourite was Wish for a Pony (1947) by Monica Edwards - I loved its depiction of a quiet mid twentieth-century world on the Sussex coast, with long summer days of sea swimming and riding.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

In a house on the shores of one of the beautiful Lakes in Cumbria (so that I could easily nip out for a wild swim each morning!).

Students for Biodiversity Project Update Earlier this semester, we put a call out for any students who would like to be involved in our Campus Biodiversity Project.

The initial group met at the end of November and we discussed key areas of focus and projects to work on this academic year (which are outlined below).

Wooden stile over stone wall Rhododendron removal

Compost Bins Campus Trail Bins @ the Fire pit

Communication

Insect Hives Greenhouses

If you think this is something you would like to be involved in, please email ambstudentconnect@cumbria.ac.uk and we can provide you with some more information.

An introduction to Dr Richard Johnson As a new member of staff at the University of Cumbria I really appreciate the invitation from the Student Network Coordinator to introduce myself to our community via this forum. I have been kindly extended an open brief, so have elected to tell you a little about me and the role I have in the Institute of Science and Environment (IoSE), based in Ambleside.

Whilst the University of Cumbria is new to me, Cumbria is certainly part of my ongoing journey.

I was a PhD student at Durham University and a Lecturer at UCLan, both a while ago, exploring mountain sediment systems and floods in the Lake District, ranging from Raise Beck (Dunmail Raise) in the Central Fells, all the way to the Caldbeck Fells in the north. Hence, I have many stories to tell from the days of surveying, monitoring, and usually carry lots of water and rocks up and down hills.

After a spell in global engineering consultancy, working as a geomorphologist and project manager, I returned to academia, being a Reader in Physical Geography, and Director of the Hazard, Risk and Disaster Research Group at Bath Spa University. There I led a full spectrum of teaching and research activities in the Indian Himalaya, alongside partners from the UK, USA, Canada, and India. I have a real passion to develop a better understanding of, and solutions for, global challenges; importantly sharing these opportunities and life experiences with our student communities. Working in the mountain states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, I have focused on flood history and community disaster risk reduction policy and practice. With 7

some additional work on hydro-electric power plant planning, climate change adaptation and air quality.

In IoSE, I have a few different, yet heavily overlapping hats: I lead and deliver on several undergraduate modules- bringing you challenging and exciting learning opportunities; provide a link in the management and organisation of our academic programmes; and continue to undertake research and knowledge exchange in the things I am passionate about: mountains, hazards, river floods, and India.

When I am not doing these things, you might also find me up a mountain somewhere, with boots or skis attached.

I am really looking forward to being part of our vibrant university and working with staff and students alike; thank you for all the great interactions so far. Remember folks there is so much genuine opportunity on our doorstep which has global resonance, so let us grasp this together as a team; as a community; and as an organisation!

Dr Richard Johnson Associate Professor and principal lecturer in Science and Environment

ARE YOU MISSING OUT? BUS TRAVEL SCHEME With return travel from as little as £1.73 per day for an annual pass, or up to £1.94 per day for a termly pass* Save on Student Travel with The University of Cumbria/Stagecoach Bus Scheme.

Go further, ride smarter and save more with our exclusive annual or termly bus pass. Unlimited travel anywhere across the North West and throughout the Lakes on a scheduled Stagecoach bus service* between 1st Sept to 17th Dec 23, and 7th Jan to 7th July 24. www.cumbria.ac.uk/support-package

*Ts & Cs and travel dates apply. Scan for details.

Congratulations to Penny Bradshaw The rich literary heritage of Carlisle is celebrated in a new walking guidebook by Dr Penny Bradshaw, Associate Professor of English Literature at the University of Cumbria.

A Literary Walking Tour of Carlisle is published this autumn. It details the city’s long history of literary associations through a half-day walk, accompanied by words of many celebrated poets and novelists who visited or had connections with the city, including the Wordsworths, Sir Walter Scott, Charles Dickens, and Melvyn Bragg.

Beginning on the shores of the River Eden at the edge of Rickerby Park, the walking tour takes in a number of key locations which have inspired authors from the medieval period to the present day. Locations include Carlisle Cathedral, where this month the university hosts its annual autumn graduations, as well as the Citadels and neighbouring railway station.

The pocket-sized guidebook is written by Dr Penny Bradshaw, thematic lead for Cultural Landscapes within the research Centre for National Parks and Protected Areas at the University of Cumbria. Penny is also Programme Leader for the MA in Literature, Romanticism, and the English Lake District, based at the university’s Ambleside campus.

Penny is also appearing on screen at this month’s Kendal Mountain Festival, starring as popular Gothic novelist Ann Radcliffe who wrote an influential account of her 1794 visit to the Lake District.

Penny joined a team led by Lancaster University academic Professor Simon Bainbridge for the recording of three short films that recreate historic climbs by literary figures inspired by the Lake District.

Dressed in period costume, Penny took on the role of Radcliffe on horseback and rode as far as Latrigg, along with another actor who played the part of Radcliffe’s husband. The In the Footsteps of Romantic Explorers film to be screened on November 19 focuses on this.

Penny says: “I am interested in the ways in which our imaginative responses to place develop and evolve over time, but also in the powerful sense of place-identity which emerges when you bring together literary responses from a wide range of historical contexts. In the case of Carlisle, it’s the city’s complex borderland status which has been central to both its history and the way in which it has been presented in literature.

This has resulted in a unique and fascinating body of place-inspired writing.”

A Literary Walking Tour of Carlisle is a Countrystride Guidebook and is published by Inspired by Lakeland.

She is also the author of two other literary tour guides: Literary Lancaster (2016) and A Literary Walking Tour of Ambleside (2021). Her latest publication completes a unique trilogy, showcasing the campuses where Penny has worked during the course of her 20-plus year career at the University of Cumbria and its legacy institutions, where she was also a student.

Ambleside Students making outstanding contributions

Two groups of our Chartered Manager Degree Apprenticeship Students (pictured above) have done an outstanding job earlier this month to support our communities in the run up to Christmas.) have done an outstanding job earlier this month to support our communities in the run up to Christmas.

One group decided to launch a ‘festive food drive’ to assist Windermere and District Foodbank in supporting local families, students and elderly communities who are under financial pressures this festive period.

Another group of students undertaking the same degree apprenticeship have created various drop-off points to support Mission Christmas, a scheme run by the Charity Cash for Kids with the aim of providing children living in poverty with Christmas Gifts.

A huge thank you and well done to all of you for your community commitment and contributions.

Get rewarded for your extra-curricular activities!

Employers particularly value graduates who have invested in their personal and professional development and have gained skills through activities over and above their course.

The Career Ahead employability award will help you become more employable. It’s a flexible, points-based programme which formally recognises your achievements. Get rewarded now!

To find out more: Join one of our Career Essential webinars to find out how to get started, scan or search the link below for further information: my.cumbria.ac.uk/Student-Life/careers/Career-Ahead/

Become a change maker and join the student panel Applications are now open for students who want to be part of the 2024 Student panel

Further Register Information your Interest

Make your new years resolution to make a change

White Ribbon day 2023 What is white ribbon day?

White Ribbon Day takes place annually on 25th November, aligning with the UNESCO International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and 16 days of action. The White Ribbon Day 2023 theme is #ChangeTheStory. This year, White Ribbon UK are encouraging individuals and organisations to make consistent choices and actions to #ChangeTheStory for women and girls, so that they may live their lives free from the fear of violence. Violence experienced by women and girls takes many forms. Some behaviours and words may seem ‘harmless’ but normalising them ignores the short- and long-term effects on women and can lead to more extreme violence. This starts with challenging the seemingly ‘harmless’ attitudes and behaviours that perpetuate violence for women and girls.

What did the University do?

To mark the date, members of the university’s White Ribbon Steering Group and student body hosted stalls across all our campuses, inviting members of our university community to make their own white ribbon and learn more about our campaign, accreditation and recently approved 3-year action plan.

Organisational lead Lee McDermott was invited to speak at an event on White Ribbon Day itself, Saturday 25th November and delivered a talk at Carlisle United FC, sharing insights to the university’s accreditation journey and next steps.

Our related communications campaign included a range of internal signposting across staff and student systems and a social media campaign, positioned to raise awareness and empower our community to take action such as becoming a White Ribbon Ambassador or Champion, reviewing our White Ribbon reading list or undertaking the Suzy Lamplugh bystander training. If you’re in need of inspiration or ideas as to what you can do, then please refer to our 16 activities for 16 days of action.

Why is this important to the Ambleside campus?

As such, plans are underway to bring a screening of “A Better Man” to the Ambleside Campus in February 2024 to widen the discussion and support culture change for our community and we hope to see our Ambleside Campus community positively engage and support this initiative.

Ongoing action in this area has seen the development of “You report we support”, a new system students can access to report any instances they believe to be sexual misconduct, bullying, harassment or discrimination.

“The White Ribbon Campaign is important in Ambleside because we are a small, friendly and inclusive community and we do not tolerate any violence towards anyone - we should call out this behaviour when we witness it”

Rob Wilson Campus Manager

Campus Events Toolkit At the beginning of this academic year, we launched the campus Event Toolkit. This is to ensure that all events are recorded, marketed, appropriately scheduled and risk compliant.

It is absolutely critical and the expectation that any staff or students who are running events fill this in, including those run through societies and UCSU. If your event is already compliant, this should not take long and is more a case of alerting us to the event.

Our campus, however beautiful it may be, is open under strict planning restrictions and it is vital we understand events that are taking place on campus and that they are fully compliant with our permissions.

For staff

For Students/societies

Information and links to the toolkit can be found in the StaffHub under the following pathway:

Information and the toolkit can be found on the Campus BlackBoard Site under the following pathway:

StaffHub Home > Mini-Sites > Campuses > Ambleside > Ambleside Events Toolkit

BlackBoard> Courses > Ambleside Campus > Campus Events

GET TO KNOW Your Accommodation Officer I had a fantastic experience studying and living in Ambleside back in 2020/21. I like how close and intimate the community is, and I would like to continue working with young adults, which is my biggest passion.

Wylie Hui

What motivates you to work at the University of Cumbria?

What is the proudest moment of your career so far?

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

If the Lakes can be slightly less wet, I would live here very happily.

When I was in-charge of a project in my former job, I planned and executed an experiential education programme for 1000 students and 100 teachers in Hong Kong. The programme was so successful that the partner schools decided to self-fund it so that future students can continue the experience.

What was your favourite childhood book?

Not really from my childhood, but Jane Jacobs' 'The Death and Life of Great American Cities' shaped how I thought as a teenager hugely. She was an activist from America who challenged the male-dominated field of architecture by questioning: 'what makes a city great'.

The book touches on sociology topics that are absolutely fascinating, and it is still relevant today if you are interested in urban renewal and power struggle between different demographic groups.

What is the most important life lesson you have learned

If you receive a 'no' for an answer, that's because you haven't asked the right person.

GET TO KNOW Your Estates Manager What motivates you to work at the University of Cumbria?

The landscape, I feel very lucky that I can come to work in the Lake District National Park each day and the heritage of the site is of great interest to me. This combined with a team of staff that motivate and support each other, and all feel strongly about the site they work at, make the campus a great place to work.

What is the proudest moment of your career so far?

What is the most important life lesson you have learned?

Being part of a team project managing the removal and replacement of all the top masts from the SS Great Britain with the use of two 100 tonne cranes, whilst the site remained opened to over 1500 visitors a day.

I could easily write a list, but to keep it simple - Be part of the solution, not the problem.

What was your favourite childhood book?

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Cumbria, my family and I moved here five years ago because it is our favourite place in the world.

Steven Lucas-Jones

I could easily write a list, but to keep it simple - Be part of the solution, not the problem.

cumbria.ac.uk/Ambleside