How can I get involved?
There's a variety of ways you can join in. If you are interested in finding out more about staff events within the College or are interested in volunteering, do get in touch with the College Manager Jo.
Furness College Teams Group
There are plenty of opportunities to get involved with College life as a senior member. To find out more and get involved, please do not hesitate to join the Senior Common Room (SCR) Staff Teams Group. We'll also send you an Senior members newsletter with information, news, activities and events.
Come to a Syndicate meeting
All University employees who are senior members automatically become members of the College Syndicate, which usually meets once per term. This happens before the meeting of the University Senate and will discuss the Senate agenda and any matters relating to the College. Syndicate provides a useful forum in which senior members can discuss University matters and raise particular items of interest, and a light lunch is provided to attendees.
It is normally attended by the College Officers, the JCR Executive and a few members of staff who don't hold a formal role. We're always welcoming new faces! Our final Syndicate meeting of the academic year has been scheduled for 12.30 pm on the 18 June 2025.
If you would like to join us, please register via LibCal, Network booking so we can order enough refreshments.
Nine College Lunchtime Staff Quiz
Do you enjoy quizzing? If you are interested in joining our College team and meeting members, we have a private Teams channel. Please contact your College Manager, Jo who will add you to the group.
The Staff Quiz will run during the Lent term, starting in week 13, on Thursday 30 January 2025 at 12.30pm for refreshments, with the quiz starting at 12.45pm prompt. Each week we will determine who our team of six players are, to give everyone the opportunity to take part. The quiz lasts for 30 minutes, so there is plenty of time to get back to the office within the hour.
Details will be included with the Senior Members newsletter and also on the Nine Colleges Team Channel.
Furness Memorial Day
On Saturday 15 March 2025 the college held its Memorial Day.
Thanks to the gracious permission of those involved, the Nick Lewis Football match and the Richard Slatter Pool Competition take place during the course of the day in the hope we can have a day of commemoration (and hopefully celebration), which will be enjoyed by both past and current members of the college.
Network - Join us for a meet and greet
Join us when we host a 'Meet and Greet' for all new and current staff who are affiliated with Furness College. New starters to the university are encouraged to join us and meet staff from other Departments who all have one thing in common, you are all members of Furness College. So join us over the lunchtime period where you can relax, find out more about the College and we'll provide the refreshments.
The final Meet and Greet for the current academic year will take place:
All events will take place in the Furness TV Room between 12.30 and 1.30 pm. If you would like to join us, please register via LibCal, Network booking so we can order enough refreshments.
Join in on Graduation Day
Graduation Day is one of the key events of the year as we see our students off in style. The University encourages staff members to sit on the stage for the ceremony and will send out details about hiring robes (at no cost to yourself of course) in advance. Registration opens during the summer term and details can be found on the graduation webpage. Graduation week this year takes place between the 14 until the 18 July 2025.
Furness College will host its celebrations on Wednesday 16 July 2025. All staff who are part of the procession on the graduation platform are invited to join the main College photograph which takes place at 12noon in Lancaster Square (County). Staff taking part are then welcome to come and join us in the college for our celebrations, as our guests from 1pm until 5pm.
Give us a talk or start a group
If you have something interesting to talk about and want to give a presentation we can facilitate a lunchtime talk in our TV room. In the past we've had talks on managing the Lake District, exploring the Chornobyl exclusion zone, and the history of the University and the Lancaster County Mental Hospital. All very varied! If you'd like to set up a group such as a book club or lunchtime walking group we can help facilitate that. If this is of interest to you, please contact Jo Dickinson, the Furness College Manager.
Take up a college role
Aside from the informal opportunities we occasionally recruit for more formal roles within the college team, for those that want to take on something else besides their main employment within the University. The Principal, Dean, Senior and Deputy Advisor are all honorary roles, as are the College Advisor Team. Keep an eye on the Teams group for upcoming opportunities within Furness and other colleges.
Current Opportunity | Furness College Advisor (x2)
Furness College is looking to recruit two experienced and enthusiastic individuals to join the College Advisor Team.
The team is responsible for responding to welfare needs of students in Furness College and are a well utilised lifeline for those in need of support. Students can contact the team at any point for support or someone to talk to about any aspect of life at Lancaster, such as homesickness, wellbeing, money worries, personal problems, or any issues. The team provides support face to face, over the telephone, Teams, and by email.
The student welfare provision provided by Furness enjoys a strong reputation and you will have the opportunity to contribute to the ongoing development of the team.
We would like people in post for the summer term and the contract will end on Friday 31 July 2026.
The College Advisor has an honorarium of £700 per annum, paid termly at the end of each term and does not involve any 'buy-out' of time from an existing contract. Applicants should discuss the workload implications of the appointment with their line manager. It provides opportunities for members to extend their skills through appropriate training offered by the University.
See here for a description of the role.
If you are interested in this role or would like to speak with a member of the College team, please contact Sam Cadwallader, Senior Advisor or Jo Dickinson, College Manager.
Please apply with a letter setting out why you are interested in the role and telling us what you think you could bring to it. Please send this along with an up-to-date CV by email to Furness College Office.
Closing date for applications is 12 noon on Monday 28 April, with interviews being held on Thursday 8 May 2025.
