10th December 2002

Email this Page |

The University of Ulster is to host a UK-wide conference examining how relationships between students and the wider community can be enhanced.

The ‘Town and Gown’ event follows a gathering of professionals in this field in London last week addressed by UU Community Liaison Officer, Anne Monaghan.

She said: “Guests at the conference saw UU as a leader in the field of university-community relationship management and delegates were eager to see at first hand the kind of pioneering initiatives we have developed here in Northern Ireland”.

The conference – Students and The Community - is to be held in May 2003 at the UU Jordanstown campus. It will draw together delegates from Leeds, Hatfield, London, Southampton, Edinburgh, and from universities in the Republic of Ireland and further afield.

One of the key aims will be to establish a network of university community relations officers, to enable sharing of ideas and best practice for the benefit of the academic organisation and the communities they serve.

At a conference of the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) in London last week, Anne told delegates about the UU’s work and commitment to fostering good relations between students as short-term residents, and existing long-terms residents of inner city communities, particularly in Belfast’s Holyland area.

Delegates at the conference were so impressed by the UU initiatives that they decided to explore the issue more fully on the ground.

Paul Elmer, Public Relations Manager at Bath University, said: “The University of Ulster has a focus that is more properly concerned with managing relationships within a community over the longer term. For best practice I think they have a lot to offer the CASE community.

“They have researched the arena with some sensitivity, are not absolutely in a tight spot and panic-stricken, and are monitoring outcomes over time. I'd have stood any amount of time with them, and I am convinced we will be able to learn a lot from their experiences.”

For further information, please contact:

Press Office Department of Communication and Development
Telephone: 028 9036 6178
Email: pressoffice@ulster.ac.uk