The health, safety and wellbeing of our students, staff and visitors is always our primary concern.
The Government announcement of Tuesday 14 April disappointingly confirms that face to face teaching cannot resume for those students not currently on campus until 17 May, at the earliest. Until then, those students not currently on campus should continue to learn online and remain at their home address.
The Guidance states that ‘The timing aligns with Step 3 of the Government’s roadmap, where restrictions on social contact and indoor mixing will be further eased, and aims to limit potential public health risks associated with student populations moving across the country.’
A letter from Universities Minister Michelle Donelan MP to students outlines more about this decision and mentions access to some in person teaching for students on their return. However this will not be the case for most of our students at Hull, or indeed at many universities across the country, as almost all teaching for Trimester 2 will have finished by this time.
I understand this will not be the news that any of us were hoping for and I wanted to express my deep disappointment, which I am certain will be shared across our institution, and many of those across the Higher Education sector. This is not the decision that we have been lobbying those at the highest levels to make, nor the outcome that we feel our students deserve.
Access to campus and facilities is really important to support the wider wellbeing of some of our students, and our advice is that those students who need access to appropriate study spaces or who require additional support, including for mental health issues, continue to be welcome to return to campus.
- Vice-Chancellor Professor Susan Lea