Lecturers’ stress levels on the rise according to UCU

Three quarters of staff say deadlines were unachievable causing academics to feel increasingly stressed

Photography: hwaterman (Flickr)

Research has suggested that heavy workloads and a lack of time are making academics more stressed on the job.

Around four-fifths (81%) of those working at UK universities found the job too stressful in 2010, according to a study by the University and College Union (UCU). This has increased from 74% in 2008.

This research comes amidst a series of demonstrations amongst senior academics against pension cuts.

The main reasons the research found for these increased stress levels was the lack of time lecturers had to conduct research, excessive workloads and unreasonable expectations from students and the institution itself.

It has also been suggested that the gap created by the gradual influx in students and the decline in the number of lecturers is to blame. The difference has been on the increase for the past ten years as UCAS applications reached their peak. However, application figures so far this year could close the gap.

Around 73% of university lecturers said that they were given unachievable deadlines on some occasions, while 89% said they end up neglecting some tasks because they have too much work to do.

Around two-thirds said they were unable to take enough breaks some of the time or on occasions the entire time, whilst just under a quarter said they were never pressured into working longer hours to meet demands.

UCU general secretary Sally Hunt stated that it was unacceptable that the majority of staff found their jobs stressful. “Universities are getting a reputation as stressful places to work and this report reveals that the problem is getting worse.

“As we enter uncertain and challenging times in higher education we need universities to start taking the problem seriously.

“We hope institutions will engage with the UCU…with a view to tackling the issues raised in the report”.

This problem could be averted by the decrease in the number of students applying under the new tuition fees; a rare positive to come out of the changes set for next year.

New policies to impact popular student areas

New policies regarding excessive noise, HMOs and ‘To Let’ signs to be implemented within student communities

Estate agent signs could be a thing of the past with new council proposals Photography: Susie May-Beever

The strained relationship between a selection of students and some local residents of Newcastle’s student-concentrated communities could be subject to change with the implementation of new policies from the city council.

The proposals aim to control excessive noise levels and anti-social behaviour in addition to placing new restrictions on housing provisions.

In a study earlier this year by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Newcastle was highlighted as having some of the strictest guidelines when it comes to disciplining students for noise complaints.

This September, 139 students were warned of excessive noise in North Jesmond alone, leading Northumbria police to implement a series of initiatives to crack down on anti-social behaviour and other disturbances.

oise complaints and anti-social behaviour have lead to a continual strain within local communities. Last year, the heavily student populated North Jesmond was found to have the highest number of noise complaints in Newcastle with 796 reports.

South Heaton received 614, and there were 462 in South Jesmond. Throughout Newcastle as a whole the city last year had 7,648 noise complaints, an increase from 6,318 the previous year.

With a bad history of noise complaints, especially in Jesmond, Northumbria Police have laid down new ploys to reduce such disturbances.

Operation Oak provides a mid-week police patrol during ‘prime times’ (11pm-4am) in the ‘trouble spots’ of South and West Jesmond. This has increased the visible presence of police in the area.

Inspector Louise Cass-Williams has applauded the new strategy saying, “The scheme, which has been really well received by residents – including students – and has helped to reduce disorder in Jesmond”. There are tens of thousands of students residing in Newcastle at any one time and only a “small number ever comes to our attention.”

“In the vast majority of cases once people have been spoken to once, they don’t come to our attention again.”

These proposals could have an impact on the links between students and local residents, and could even result in a decline of students choosing to live areas such as Jesmond and Heaton, the most popular student areas.

Along with the Environmental Health Agency, Northumbria police have also highlighted certain premises across Jesmond that have been connected with anti-social behaviour and are keeping them under closer surveillance.

The Council has also opened up consultation with residents in areas such as Jesmond and Heaton based on the number of student dominated Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO’s).

Residents alongside local politicians have also brought forward the issue of the plethora of ‘To Let’ signs that are scattered along house fronts.

The opinion of the Council is that ‘To Let’ signs are an “unattractive eyesore […] particularly in neighbourhoods containing many private rental properties, mostly catering for the student market.

“They can put off potential family buyers and renters and act as an advertisement to would be burglars”.

Local politicians are asking central government to remove the right for agents to freely put up ‘To-Let’ signs in selected areas – such as Jesmond and Heaton.  These restrictions will also include the font sizes, colour and will place limitations on when and where the boards can be displayed.

A legal order regarding HMO’s also came into force in November, making it more difficult to convert a family home into a property that can be let out to multiple residents. Over time, this could lead to the gradual decline of the rental market in these areas, and thus a potential decline in student tenants.

The North Jesmond Focus newsletter, stated  “We all know that the character of North Jesmond has been radically altered – often for the worse – by the huge increase in the number of HMO’s over the last decade.

“Your councillors agree with many, many residents who think that there should be a stringent controls on any increase in the number of HMO’s in this area”.

November means Movember

November only means one thing…Movember. For the first time ever I will be doing it so will be updating photos of my progress on here, even though the results probably won’t be too obvious for a few weeks.

It will never last...but will it?

After watching the Magpies defeat of Stoke last night, Sky Sports standardly showed the league table as it stands. Going up, the likes of Spurs, Liverpool, Arsenal and even Chelsea are underneath Newcastle, riding high in third, a point behind Manchester United. Third place? After the turmoil of the summer and the exile of the key senior clique, who could possibly have thought that the Toon would be where they are? The majority of neutrals say with a degree of confidence, “it won’t last”, but many are starting to think that it actually could.

Demba Ba’s hat-trick took his season tally to eight, showing that more than  satisfactory  progress has been made towards solving the infamous striker dilemma that the side had over the summer. Yohan Cabaye has more than filled the boots of Joey Barton, proving to be one the best bargains of the summer. Four million with his current form looks like it should have been at least ten, and his two screamers against Wigan and Blackburn has showed that his playmaking can easily turn into goal scoring. The return of Hartem Ben Arfa and injury-prone Danny Guthrie has even given Alan Pardew a selection head-ache, showing that the midfield unit has the potential to take on many of the best in the league.

However it is the solid, wall like defence that has proved to be Newcastle’s biggest point of success. With the departure of Jose Enrique over the summer, many were sceptical about how the defence could perform consistently in the premiership, but the very small goals against record (the best in the league) has again proved otherwise. The love of many of the Geordie faithful’s life, Fabrico Coloccini has been solid as a rock at the back, and is arguably the best full back in the league based on current form. Free-kick extraordinaire Ryan Taylor, has turned left-back extraordinaire, managing to keep expensive signing Davide Santon out of the side.

Last but not least is statistically Newcastle’s best player, Tim Krul. Despite a few shaky moments on Monday night he has seemed to have caught every cross within his vicinity since the start of the season, with only the best strikes managing to find the back of the net. The question of who would be Newcastle’s first choice keeper at the start of the season was a contentious one. Eventually, veteran Steve Harper was forced out of the side in favour of the Dutchman, who has proved to be nothing but a rock-like force in between the posts.

“It won’t last”. Pessimism gets you know where and if the current performances are anything to go by, optimism is seemingly getting the Magpies somewhere. It is common knowledge that the Britannia Stadium is a hard place to visit and get a result, and for Newcastle to take three so convincingly shows that third place isn’t is as surprising as it sounds. There is still a video of Shola scoring at the Nou Camp, maybe he will be doing the same next year.

Police reveal optimistic statistics

Student burglaries steadily decreasing in addition to arrests during Freshers declining from the previous year

Photography: smlp.co.uk (Flickr)

Figures released by Northumbria Police Student Liason Officer Faye Paterson provide a sense of optimism for students.

During Freshers’ Fortnight this year, only 51 arrests were made in comparison to 76 in 2010, highlighting a possible improvement in student behavior. The most common arrests were based on drunk and disorderly behaviour, drug possession and various assault offences. The police also reported that during the most recent Carnage bar crawl, a popular event amongst students, there were no incidents and students appeared to be “good natured” according to Neighbourhood inspector Darren Sweeney.

Figures also show a decline in burglaries involving students. “[B]urglary has steadily declined over the past five years,” says Paterson. The last academic year saw 215 burglaries of student properties around the city, with 22 occurring in halls of residence. The majority were carried out in Jesmond and Heaton, accounting for over half of all the student burglaries last year.

Since the start of Freshers’ this year, 18 student properties across the city have been burgled, with one being at a hall of residence.

The typical items that are stolen from students are laptops, phones, MP3 players and game consoles, and occasionally car keys and cars.

One of the more negative figures is the problem of bike theft that still affects students. Last year, 258 students had their bikes stolen and so far this academic year, 49 have already been stolen.

“This tends to be because cyclists use cheap or chain style locks which are easily cut through with bolt cutters,” suggests Paterson.

Nightclub chain goes under with 3,000 jobs set to be lost

lub chain at centre of student death goes into administration

Photography: BruceTurner (Flickr)

Britain’s biggest nightclub chain, owning 75 night clubs, including one where student Nabila Nanfuka, 22 died this month, has gone into administration.

Luminar, which is said to pull in around 11 million customers a year and owns branches such as Liquid (which has a chain in Newcastle), Oceana and Lava said that it was unable to meet some of its repayments, which where due on October 27.

Around 3,000 jobs are now at risk if the business can not improve its financial situation in the coming weeks. Even though most clubs will stay open until they can be sold, office jobs could be lost in the near future.

The company recorded losses of £198m in the year to the end of February as sales dropped by just under 20% to £137m.

This news comes in the same week that a 21-year-old student from Northampton, who was involved in the same stampede that killed Nanfuka, was downgraded from critical condition. However, a 19-year-old still remains in a critical state in Northampton General Hospital.

Last week an inquest into the death of Ms. Nanfuka heard that the student had died of traumatic crush asphyxia as staff in the ‘over-capacity’ venue ‘lost control’ as the night was coming to an end.

The Milton Keynes-based company tried to sell the business recently, but only received offers for small parts of the business, an insufficient method of generating their returns to share-holders.

Some of the reasons suggested behind the downfall of the company are high levels of youth unemployment and poor economic conditions. Nights such as ‘Fuzzy Logic’ did show some ‘encouraging’ signs of stability during Freshers’ Week. However, performance has been consistently under par and the company has been unable to meet its financial demands.

UCAS reveals drop in demand

UK sees 12% decline in those applying to university with the North East seeing one of the largest regional falls in applicants

written in conjunction with David Hiscocks

Over 95% of students that pass through the Armstrong arches are satisfied with their curent degrees Photography: Sam Tyson

Recent statistics released by UCAS have shown that applications for university have dropped by 9% in the year before the tuition fee rise. This amounts to a drop in over 7,000 students in comparison to the same time last year

The number of UK students applying has dropped by 12%, despite a survey by the BBC amongst A-Level students finding that only one in ten were put off by the rise in fees. Applications amongst those over the age of 25 have dropped by over a fifth; however, the amount of overseas applications has seen a surprising increase.

In the North East, specifically, 14% fewer young people have applied via UCAS, one of the biggest regional declines in the country. Only East Midlands, Yorkshire and Humberside saw a larger drop in applications.

Newcastle North MP Catherine McKinnell expressed her concern at the results: “[The results] backs up my initial fears that the Government’s new fees regime would put off a significant number of people from the region considering higher education.

“Even more worrying is the fact that this fall in applications comes at a time of high unemployment in the North East when you expect more young people to want to go to university”.

The figures are based on those applying for Medicine, Dentistry and veterinary sciences, alongside Oxbridge applications and those who have already handed in applications.

Politicians have stressed that the figures published by UCAS are an early indication of the impact that fees will have on the numbers vying for positions before the January deadline.

There have been widespread concerns within England and Wales that there would be a fall in University applicants since the current Government lifted the maximum charge for University tuition fees. Many Universities intend to charge the maximum allowable, £9000, when this change is introduced in 2012.

A BBC ‘Inside Out’ poll suggested that two thirds of A-level students would consider an apprenticeship instead. Moreover, UCAS figures show that the hardest-hit demographic are mature students in their forties, where there is a reported 28% drop in applications. However, UCAS has warned that these figures may be misleading as they are preliminary, as for most courses, the deadline for applications is January. Universities, such as City University London and Brunel, are reporting a drop in applications, but others such as the London School of Economics have shown an increase .

In addition, it may be a mistake to link the decline in applications to the increase in fees. The 12% decrease in applications to university also applies to Scotland where, there has been no fee increase. Indeed, Scottish students do not pay tuition fees if they go to a Scottish University, they pay a one-off top-up fee of a relatively insignificant amount. Therefore, the supposed drop in applications may be more to do with the overall economic climate, rather than Government policy. Unfortunately the evidence is inconclusive and contradictory.

To try and clarify whether the decline in applications is due to the tuition fee increase, a poll was conducted outside Newcastle University’s Union on October 25. Students were asked if they would still have applied to Newcastle University to do their current course if the fees were set at 2012 levels. 95% answered that they ‘probably would’ apply even if the fees were set at 2012 levels. However, most of these students did express their concerns that it would be financially difficult. The remaining 5% either said they wouldn’t bother to come; or they said they would have to think about it carefully. This creates the assumption that some of the students who are unsure would apply regardless after they had considered it.

These results lead to the conclusion that over 95% of current students at Newcastle University are so satisfied with their course that they would pay to do it even at 2012 levels. Although virtually every student who was polled said that they were unhappy about the rise in fees from 2012, few of them would consider this a sufficient reason to abandon the prospect of a Degree.
Evidently, it does not follow from this that all potential students who lack the experience of university to guide them think along the same lines as the students who were polled. However, the poll results indicate that there remains a tendency amongst young people towards valuing a degree, even if it were to cost £9000.

The poll suggests that the initial figures from UCAS will be proved to be too pessimistic. We can only trust that despite the increased financial difficulty of attending university due to Government policy and the depressed economy that these factors will only have a negligible impact on the final figures for university applications.

Leeds student passes away in hospital after attack on night out

A talented and ambitious 19-year-old student dies after brutal attack outside nightclub

Jagdip Randhawa was a second year student at Leeds University

A 19-year-old student from Leeds University died last Monday after a suspected attack in the city centre.

Jagdip Randhawa, also known as ‘Jagz’, was rushed to Leeds General Infirmary in a critical condition in the early hours of Wednesday October 12, but sadly passed away on Monday 17. The incident is suspected to have occurred outside Tiger Tiger nightclub on Albion Street. The student from Hounslow suffered severe injuries as a result.

Five males, three being students, were arrested on suspicion of affray and assault in connection with the incident. Clifton Mitchell, 21, from Derby, appeared before Leeds Magistrates Court charged with grevious bodily harm on Thursday October 13. Three others were released without charge as another 23-year-old remains on police bail pending further enquiries.

It is alleged that Mitchell punched the second-year English student, causing him to fall over and hit his head on the floor.

A statement by his family said, “He was an ambitious, talented young man who had his whole life ahead of him but that life has been suddenly cut short.

“His death has devastated us and things will never be the same again.”

Leeds University’s School of English said, “Our thoughts are with Jagdips’s family and friends at this time..” and the university has said that, “The university would like to express its profound sorrow and deepest sympathy to his family and friends.”

Harriet Rankin, the Union’s Welfare Officer said, “It’s incredibly upsetting to hear that this has happened to one of our students.”

During his week in hospital, his family travelled from Middlesex to hold a bedside vigil.

A Newcastle student said of him “Even though I only spent a few days with him, he was one of those people who left a lasting impression. He was always happy and a true friend to those he was close to.”