We’d like to remind you about all the steps we are taking to protect our campus community. All the information below is available on our returning to campus webpages.
Keeping ourselves and each other safe
As we begin the new academic year, it’s important to remember that we all have a responsibility for keeping ourselves and others safe. We should be respectful towards each other and understand the pandemic has affected people in different ways.
Keeping you safe
The University is implementing a number of health and safety measures to protect the Sussex community:
- refreshed signage about the use of face coverings
- sanitiser stations in place across campus
- Perspex screens remaining in place where requested
- additional bins in teaching spaces
- QR codes to support the Track & Trace app
- ensuring ventilation systems and windows operate effectively
Working on campus
Most staff have now begun new hybrid ways of working on and off campus for the 2021/22 academic year in line with our new Remote Working Framework [PDF 222KB].
This allows staff to retain increased a level of flexibility over work location. More information on this is set out in our Current Ways of Working FAQs.
You should discuss what this means for you and your team with your manager. If you have not, please contact your manager as soon as possible.
Lanyards
The University is providing red lanyards so staff and students can signal they’d prefer greater social distancing. These are available for collection from the 19 locations where Lateral Flow tests are available as well as Sussex House reception.
Face coverings
We do expect all students and staff to wear face coverings, unless exempt, in crowded and enclosed spaces on campus including in all teaching spaces, and to follow the instructions indicated by signage. This signage will be very visible across the campus.
We will remind all students during the term through regular communication, signage and our new Community Pledge that we do expect students to wear face-coverings in busy indoor spaces – such as the classroom.
We do not expect face coverings to be worn in office spaces where staff are comfortable – although we do advise staff to consider avoiding having meetings with multiple people in crowded spaces.
We recognise that the start of the term is an important point in terms of setting expectations about behaviour. With this in mind, School offices and general teaching spaces across campus will be supplied with face coverings and visors that can be distributed as required.
Vaccinations
The University strongly endorses employees to take part in the vaccination programme against Covid-19, in line with government guidance. We understand that it is each individual’s personal choice, but we request all of our employees to make a fully informed decision on whether to accept the Covid-19 vaccination by reading literature published by official sources. Read our recently-updated guidance on vaccinations – including arrangements for vaccine appointments and sickness absence.
Vaccination status
Following feedback from staff, we have now developed a secure and confidential way for you to share this information with us.
You can now update your vaccination status on the MyView portal. It is your choice whether you supply this information to the University, and you can update or remove this data at any time.
The data will be held securely with access limited to relevant colleagues in Human Resources. The data will only be held for as long as is necessary for these purposes.
Getting tested
Even if you have been vaccinated, it is still advised to be tested until official guidance changes. The Government recommends that people in the workplace get twice-weekly Covid-19 tests. We are making this as easy as possible for staff by supplying home testing kits at 19 locations across campus.
A Mobile Testing Unit is on campus and will remain there for the foreseeable future, offering tests to anyone with symptoms - or who is otherwise advised to have a PCR test.
Students living on campus will be provided with testing kits in their rooms.
What to do following close contact with someone on campus who tests positive for Covid-19
If you find out you have come into close contact with someone who has tested positive for Covid, you should get a PCR test as soon as possible. The University will continue to use its own track and trace system*, but we also recommend staff and students use the NHS Test and Trace app as this will detect clusters of infection and contact those affected.
You should stay away from work until you get your negative PCR test result to ensure we minimise Covid infection rates across campus. However, there is no need for staff who have been double vaccinated to self-isolate once they have had the negative PCR result. See NHS self-isolation rules.
*The University’s own track and trace system requires staff and students to fill out the Covid-19 reporting form if you need to self-isolate due to:
- testing positive for Covid-19
- having Covid-19 symptoms
- being identified as a close contact of someone who has tested positive for Covid-19, if you are not fully vaccinated
- arriving in the UK from overseas
If you feel unwell
If you feel unwell you should contact your line manager and, if possible, work from home until you feel better. People do have other conditions that make them sneeze and cough, so it’s important not to jump to conclusions.
It can help for those individuals to explain to their colleagues if they feel able, and/or to wear masks – appreciating that people may feel more vulnerable in a workplace after the pandemic.
It can be difficult to keep up with the rules around self-isolation relating to Covid. Here is a quick summary of the rules:
- self-isolate straight away and get a PCR test on GOV.UK if you have any of these Covid symptoms: a high temperature; a new, continuous cough; a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
- if someone you live with has Covid symptoms, or has tested positive for Covid, you do not need to self-isolate if you're fully vaccinated or you're under 18.5 years old. Even if you do not have symptoms, you should still get a PCR test
- if you test positive, your self-isolation period includes the day your symptoms started (or the day you had the test, if you did not have symptoms) and the next ten full days. You may need to self-isolate for longer if you get symptoms while self-isolating or your symptoms do not go away
Flu jab
The Government has rolled out a seasonal flu vaccine programme to protect as many lives as possible – and all staff returning to campus can take advantage of this. The University pharmacy currently has a limited number of jabs available on a drop-in basis. University staff who are under 50 who are not eligible can pay for a vaccination and reclaim the cost through expenses. Find out about current information about flu vaccines and who is and isn’t eligible.
Ventilation of rooms on campus
A review of rooms has been carried out on campus including window checks and checks on mechanical ventilation systems.
Additional information on the methodology used to assess ventilation is available on the University Health and Safety Covid resource page.
If you have concerns about ventilation in a room you can submit this form to the Health and Safety team, please let us know by reporting it to the University if you think we have missed a room.
If you have a meeting in a room without windows that you are concerned doesn’t have mechanical ventilation, you can consider; wearing a mask, using an outdoor space for your meeting, or consider alternative arrangements such as a proportion of the attendees joining remotely.
Support for you
It can take a while to adjust to being back on campus, so please talk to your line manager about any concerns and remember that our wellbeing hub also offers many tools and resources to look after your mental, physical and financial wellbeing.
The University’s Employee Assistance Programme also offers a broad range of services for staff and an evidence-based app to improve mental wellbeing. A confidential helpline also provides urgent support to staff on these matters 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Reporting Covid cases
The University is keen to ensure that all staff and students are able to access information on how our community is affected by Covid-19. It is important that everyone is aware of the processes involved for reporting information – and also how information is shared between the University and authorities. The University updates its Covid-19 information on a daily basis as well as providing a daily report to the Surrey and Sussex Health Protection Team and the Public Health Authority at Brighton & Hove City Council. Case numbers for the past week remain relatively low.