Student Health and Wellbeing Community of Practice Workshop Series: Term 1

We aim to foster an inclusive community that is supportive, caring and respectful for all at UCL, and we would love you to join us if you have involvement with or interest in student health and wellbeing. Find out more and join our Teams Space here.

In November, we kick off with this academic year’s SHW CoP remote Workshop Series. Join us as a wide range of staff take on topics investigating different aspects of health and wellbeing, equipping us with the knowledge and tools to support our students, our colleagues, and ourselves.

Presentations run fortnightly, on alternating Wednesdays and Thursdays, at 12:30-1:15pm, in the form of a 30-minute workshop followed by a 15-minute Q&A.

Read more below to find out about this term’s workshops and to book your place.

10 November – Samantha Ahern – Learning Analytics and Wellbeing

Learning analytics have the capability to help us reflect upon and respond to student engagement with the teaching and learning process but can also be a potentially powerful tool in supporting students’ wellbeing. However, there are a number of pitfalls to using learning analytics, especially when guidance and policy are unclear. During the move to fully online and blended learning systems, accessing and interpreting analytics has become a key part of many people’s roles. Join Samantha Ahern in a discussion to explore the potential and the reality of these activities and the impact they have had on the wellbeing of our community.

Sign up here.

25 November – Louise Grimmett – Disability Equality and Awareness

UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Disability and Specific Learning Differences Manager, Louise Grimmett, will present on Disability Equality in the UK broadly and specifically within the context of UCL and the Summary of Reasonable Adjustments (SoRA) process. The session will provide some key reflections for disability awareness in light of Covid-19, and more generally, the overarching student experience.

Sign up here.

8 December – Dr Lucy Foulkes - The mental health conversation at universities: What's going wrong?

There has been a huge push to talk more about student mental health. While this has been essential and beneficial for many students, there have been some negative side effects, particularly regarding over-medicalising common problems. Dr Lucy Foulkes considers how the drive to talk so much about mental health has impacted all students, from those experiencing milder or more transient difficulties to those who are most seriously unwell. Lastly, she will discuss what needs to happen next: a recalibration of the conversation to ensure it serves everyone in the most helpful way.

Sign up here.