It has been a few weeks since my last blog, and I hope many of you managed to take some time off at home or away – or have some planned soon – as we speed towards the start of the new academic year. I was pleased to spend some time doing some coastal walking, accompanied by our two dogs, and catching up with family not seen for some months. Around this summer period, many people have been busy with recruitment (open days, tours, admissions) and ongoing readying of the University (campus care, timetabling, maintenance), as well as other critical work.
August is a special time in Edinburgh, not least because of the many and varied Festivals that you can participate in. Like everything else, they are adapting to the pandemic and providing many events and shows either outdoors or, indeed, online. And we’re pleased to be a part of the Fringe Festival this year by hosting an online show presented from Panmure House. Father of the Fringe explores the hypothesis that Adam Smith, the father of modern economics, is also the reason why the Fringe actually exists. It will be presented by comedian and financial writer Dominic Frisby, and also features comedians Jimmy Carr, Al Murray, Shazia Mirza, Henning Wehn and Arthur Smith. Panmure House will host Father of the Fringe digitally from 6-30 August. You can find out more information about tickets here. I think Adam Smith would have approved of seeing a globally accessible Fringe and it means it’s open to all wherever you are.
Early in July, I had the chance to visit colleagues in Orkney and my thanks to everyone there for arranging such a useful series of conversations. I had a chance to reflect on the last year with staff and students and to look ahead to the new session. Circumstances have hardly allowed much use of the marvellous new campus but it’s a great community and campus environment there, working alongside other marine and energy partners. Guided by Sandy Kerr and Jo Porter we had a chance to meet other council leaders from Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles to discuss the Islands Deal and future developments. Also, in other meetings, there was an opportunity to discuss thorny issues over securing accommodation for students, since in common with other coastal locations in the UK, the pandemic has raised the demand and price of housing such that many landlords and owners have sold up or chosen short-term lets over long-term lets. This is creating a significant problem for local communities. We also had a chance to discuss future plans for renewables business with the Harbour Authority and other partners. Within Orkney, there is a strong sense and passion for demonstrating sustainable lifestyles and related community action, such as the Reflex project that Heriot-Watt co-leads. As our focus on sustainability gathers a stronger pace this academic year, we will be looking for leading-out more ardently in these areas – more on this in the future.
In the UK, this is a particularly busy time for ‘Clearing’. Each year the environment is very different and this year it is the first time the Scottish (projected) exam results and English (projected) A-level results have been released on the same day! I visited the Clearing Centre, held in the GRID building, to express my thanks to everyone for their time and commitment – some of whom volunteered and took time out from their own regular roles. Currently, overall recruitment appears positively positioned for us for 21/22 and it is our wish to grow students from ‘rest of UK’ (as Scottish student numbers are capped). Recruitment in Dubai has been very strong. There will be some outcome updates at the next All Staff Executive Briefing on 23 September once the overall position is better known. For those who missed the All Staff Executive Briefing held yesterday, you can find it on the Sharepoint Site and catch up on recent research news, financial updates, preparing for the new academic session and a briefing on the University’s digital transformation journey.
Professor Richard A. Williams
Principal and Vice-Chancellor