Professor Nic Beech and Professor Clare Peddie, Chair and Deputy Chair of the Quality Council
As chair and deputy chair of the Quality Council, we would like to state our support for and highlight the Union of Jewish Students’ best practice guidance, which was published in May. The concerning increase in incidents of antisemitism over the last few years, both on university campuses and in wider society, means that this guidance is incredibly timely and should be carefully considered by the sector as part of its ongoing efforts to tackle antisemitism.
The Quality Council’s role is to have oversight of and act as a champion for the quality and standards architecture that supports the exceptional quality of higher education provision across all four nations of the UK. But this cannot be viewed in isolation from concerns about the broader student experience, including how experiencing or fearing harassment and hate crime impact how students are able to engage with their learning and experience the quality of their higher education. Work to tackle racism and anti-religious hatred, including antisemitism, is a vital component of this, in order to construct a positive environment for high quality learning. Students need to feel safe and that they belong at their institutions in order to be able to make the most of their time at university or college and to be able to focus on their learning.
Any queries about UJS’s guidance can be directed to info@ujs.org.uk.