Mr O’Neill
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx
1 December 2020
Our Ref: FOI/2021/082
Dear Mr O’Neill
Your Freedom of Information Request
Thank you for your email, which was received by the University on 3 November 2020. The
University’s response is set out in the enclosed document.
Your right to seek a review
Should you be dissatisfied with the way in which the University has dealt with your request,
you have the right to require us to review our actions and decisions. If you wish to request a
review, please contact the General Counsel, Aston University, Birmingham, B4 7ET or e-
mail:
xxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xx.xx within 40 working days. Your request must be in a recordable
format (letter, email, audio tape, etc). You wil receive a full response to your request for review
within 20 working days of its receipt.
If you are dissatisfied with the way in which we have handled your request for review you may
ask the Information Commissioner to review our decision. You must submit your complaint in
writing to the Commissioner within 6 months of receiving the response to review letter. The
Commissioner may be contacted at:
Address:
Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire SK9 5AF
Tel:
0303 123 1113 / 01625 545 745 (+44 1625 545 745 if calling from overseas)
Fax:
01625 524 510
E-mail:
xxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xxx.xx
Website
http://www.ico.gov.uk/
Yours sincerely
Alice Mineyko
Counsel
Your request
Our response
1. What activities are recognised by the workload model for Chemistry staff? All non-research activities.
2. What tariffs are associated with each activity (i.e. how much time is
The workload model is split into a number of sections.
allocated for each activity) for Chemistry staff?
(1) Teaching of modules, to include not only hours delivering lectures,
practicals, tutorials etc but also other tasks including preparation time
each year and the time spent handling student emails and concerns,
time spent marking coursework, time spent setting and marking
examinations, and handling of module administration such as updates of
module specifications and evaluation/feedback.
(2) Common teaching administrative tasks, to include, e.g. module boards,
programme boards (both departmental and those involving the external
examiners), programme committees, staff meetings, examination
moderation boards, personal tutees and personal tutor meetings,
individual placements students and their visits, outreach, and access.
(3) Individual teaching and administrative tasks, to include appointed roles,
such as head of department, programme director etc, and to reflect
administrative roles such as examinations and assessments officer,
timetabling, placements officer, year tutors. This also includes college-
level roles, such as attendance at Learning & Teaching, Curriculum
Design and TEF commit ees.
The lists above are not exhaustive but intend to give an idea of the range of
roles and tasks that the workload model captures.
3. How is the total workload of a member of Chemistry staff modelled (i.e.
Each of the tasks in the model has been allocated a number of hours
what protocol is used to combine tariffs)?
duration per year and these totals are summed for each academic based on
what modules they teach, the regular administrative jobs every member of
Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry (“CEAC”) must complete each
year and also the individual jobs and roles that each member of CEAC
contributes.
Your request
Our response
4. What formal guidance is given to managers relating to the link between
We work on a proportion of contracted hours given to non-research
contracts of employment and the calculated workloads of Chemistry staff?
activities. The guidelines aim for equity across the College of Engineering &
Physical Sciences based on a 60% model of total hours for non-research
In particular:
activity. There is no hard maximum or minimum because each case is
different based on the needs of the Department, College and wider
(a) What are the maximum and minimum permissible tariffed workloads for a University and the professional obligations of the individual. The workload
member of staff in a full-time role?
model is a basis for a discussion between the individual and their line
manager and the detailed split between research and non-research activities
may change year on year.
(b) What are the broad subcategories of activity (such as Teaching or
The model aims to reflect all non-research activities.
Research) recognised in academic roles?
(c) What is the division of total workload between these subcategories in
Please see 4(a) above.
contracts of employment (e.g. 40% Teaching, 60% Research)? How does
this division relate to model ed workload?
(d) How are part-time contracts modelled differently to full-time contracts?
They are model ed proportionately.
(e) What is the intended relationship between modelled workload and true
The model is intended to be as accurate as possible. There will undoubtedly
workload? (e.g. modelled workload is expected to be 20% less than true
be some tasks year on year that are not captured, which is why we ask
workload, or to match true workload, or to exceed true workload by 20%)
managers to bear this in mind and to feed back to the model authority to
improve the model year on year.
Document Outline