ARTWORK DONATED TO UNIVERSITY

Professor Ray Pahl, Honorary Professor of Sociology, has donated a painting by the artist Leslie Marr to the University.

A presentation ceremony attended by the artist, his wife Maureen and Professor Pahl was held in the Exhibition Suite. The audience was fascinated to hear anecdotes about Leslie Marr's time studying under painter David Bomberg and to learn more about Professor Pahl's long association with Keele.

Head of Marketing Phil Williams said: "Leslie Marr has exhibited extensively, including at the Royal Academy, and we are delighted to receive one of his paintings for the art collection here at Keele."

Professor Pahl said: "It is a great pleasure for me to be able to mark my association with Keele in this way."

The picture, Poppies & Irises, was painted in 1977 and will be hung in the Salvin Room in Keele Hall.

Pictured: the Vice-Chancellor Professor Dame Janet Finch with Leslie Marr (left) and Professor Ray Pahl (right).

SPIN-OUT COMPANY WINS DESIGN AWARD

Medical device company PRO Medical Innovations – a spin-out company from Keele – was the only British-based firm to win recognition in the life science and medicine category of the 2010 Red Dot Awards for Product Design.

They were awarded "red dot recognition" for the design of Safeceps obstetric forceps, a modern-day plastic adaptation of the traditional birthing tool.

Encompassing a number of patented technologies which allow for the measurement of traction and compressive force exerted on the foetal head during instrumental delivery, the Safeceps are used in conjunction with a monitoring system which visualises and records measurement data in real-time.

Nominations in the awards were received from 57 nations, with particularly strong competition in the medical and life science sector.

Pictured: Dr Khaled Ismail of PRO Medical Innovations and the Research Institute for Science and Technical in Medicine with Safeceps forceps.

APPROVAL OF INNOVATIVE PHYSIOTHERAPY CURRICULUM

The revised BSc (Hons) Physiotherapy programme in the School of Health and Rehabilitation recently underwent a successful re-approval.

The Physiotherapy curriculum has been designed against a landscape of significant change in health and social care. It will educate practitioners to support the needs of a patient led NHS and develop service delivery in light of the NHS modernisation agenda. The revised programme is founded upon project work previously undertaken in the School of Health and Rehabilitation on behalf of the West Midlands Strategic Health authority (WMSHA) which developed a framework for physiotherapy education.

The Panel that reviewed the revised programme considered it to be innovative and widely owned with external stakeholders. Panel members were also very positive in their feedback regarding the team approach and the demonstrated strength of clinical, lay advisor and student partnerships.

ROYAL SOCIETY OF CHEMISTRY NATIONAL SCHOOLS' ANALYST COMPETITION

The School of Physical and Geographical Sciences this week hosted the Midlands final of the Royal Society of Chemistry National Schools' Analyst Competition.  The competition for Year 12 students studying A-Level Chemistry saw 11 teams from seven schools across the region undertaking challenging context-based practical and analytical problem-solving exercises based on analysing natural and synthetic food dyes using chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques. The teams were judged on their practical skills, understanding, analytical problem-solving and team-working skills and the accuracy of their work.

The RSC-funded event, held at Keele for the first time, took place in the new Lennard-Jones chemistry laboratory, and was organised by Chloe Harold and Tess Phillips. The event was thoroughly enjoyed by all the students and their teachers and the standard of competition was very high.  The winning team from Newcastle-under-Lyme School walked away with the £250 first prize.

TWO NEW EXHIBITIONS OPEN IN ART GALLERY

Two new exhibitions opened this week in Keele's art gallery in the Chancellor's Building.

Contemporary Women Artists is an exhibition comprising the work of 16 women artists from Cheshire, Shropshire and Staffordshire, while Women in Art: Paintings from the University Art Collection is an opportunity to see the work of a number of leading British artists from the 1930s to the late 20th Century held within the University collections.

The exhibitions will run until 2 June 2010.

Pictured: Pro Vice-Chancellor Kevin Mattinson with artist Pauline Norton.

LOCALISM AND QUALITY OF PLACE

Dr Philip Catney (Keele European Parties Research Unit) gave a guest lecture to the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (the government's advisor on architecture, urban design and public space) on localism strategies and how these connect with promoting high quality places. With the language of localism being used by all three main political parties in the general election, Dr Catney's presentation outlined alternative models of decentralisation and localism, analysing the opportunities and limitations of each of these, concluding with an assessment of the prospects for localism in the next few years.

PARLIAMENTARY HUSTINGS HELD AT KEELE

Members of the public and students questioned candidates for the Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency at parliamentary hustings held at Keele.

The event, organised by the Students' Union, focused on the future of higher education, but also featured local and national political issues.

Prospective parliamentary candidates Paul Farrelly (Labour), Robert Jenrick (Conservative) and Nigel Jones (Liberal Democrat) took part in the Question Time-style event.

The event organiser, Students' Union Vice-President Democracy & Communications Nick Heath, said:  "This was a brilliant opportunity to see politics in action and for students and local residents to directly question their future parliamentary representative." 

RECENT RESEARCH GRANT

Emerita Professor Anne Worrall (RI for Law, Politics and Justice) and Dr Rob Mawby (Leicester University) have been awarded £77,119 by the ESRC for a research project entitled 'Probation officers, their occupational cultures and offender management'.

Professor Worrall said: "The demands of the probation officer role have changed dramatically in the past twenty years and, while a great deal has been written about the historical and policy changes that have shaped that role, there has been little research on occupational cultures and the ways in which probation officers themselves experience the impact of changes to their role."

APPRENTICE AMONG BEST IN REGION

Estates apprentice Stephen Lewis has reached the finals of the West Midlands regional heat in the Apprenticeship Awards 2010. He will find out if he has reached the national finals at an awards ceremony next month.

LIBYAN LECTURE CONNECTS KEELITES

Peter Thomas (Life Sciences/EPSAM) was last week an invited guest at Garyounis University, Libya, where he gave a series of lectures on plant ecology to staff and postgraduate students in the Department of Botany.

Garyounis University is in eastern Libya in Benghazi, the second largest city after Tripoli. The University has around 27,000 students and includes a number of thriving science departments.

Two members of staff at Garyounis obtained their PhD at Keele in the 1990s: Dr Abdulla El-Mansoury, now Dean of the Faculty of Science, and Dr Miriam El-Barghathi in the Department of Botany.  Another staff member of Botany (Tarek Mukassabi) is currently completing his PhD at Keele in EPSAM. In addition to the lectures, discussions were held to explore the possibility of more doctoral students coming to Keele, funded by the Libyan Government.

KUBE RADIO RELAUNCH

Keele's student radio station KUBE Radio was back on air this week with a special week of shows to welcome students back onto campus. Special features this week included a look at the month-long careers event "What Makes You So Special?".

FROM THE ARCHIVES

3rd May 1995

Labour Education Spokesman David Blunkett was one of the speakers at a forum on adult education held in the Chancellor's Building. Mr Blunkett shared a platform with the VC, Professor Brian Fender, and Sir William Stubbs, Chief Executive of the FEFC, in a session entitled 'Towards 2000 – Adult Education and the future'.