Durham University

[KingscoteStaff]

The continuation thread for those with DC at Durham, or applying to Durham, or alumni, or staff!

January 2022 finds our DC packing their big coats, checking the forecast for snow and wondering when Michaelmas actally is...?

Assemble!
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Hi all. Hope everyone is ok
Dd seems very happy this term (after a shaky poorly end to last term) and has managed to avoid covid so far but there’s a lot about in her college. She says there has been a walk-in booster clinic but the horse has already bolted by the sounds of it . I hope everyone’s Dc is covid free and if they have it, I hope it’s very mild/ symptomless
We are going to pop there for a visit at half term. -Half way through their year!! . Using visiting Dd an excuse to visit the area also . Anyone else planning a visit? I fancy a Beamish trip whilst there.

Oooh do go to Beamish, it is lovely. Not quite the same with the restrictions, there are bits of the houses etc you can't go in and not as many volunteers and staff in the houses doing chores and chatting to visitors but it is nice. The sweet shop has definitely suffered a to keep queues distanced etc they have had to reduce selection and have them ready packed and you don't have the demos.

Anyway that sounds negative but it isn't supposed to be, I do still love the place. If you go then plan for an early lunch and go get in the queue for the fish and chip shop around 20 min before it opens. That way you will get your fish and chips nice and quickly. If you wait until they open you can be in a queue for well over an hour.

@OakleyStreetisnotinChelsea .. thanks so much for that. Great tips! We shall definitely go and sample the chips.
My other Dc wants to find High Force waterfall so I’m adding that to the list too (we like a waterfall)

High Force is also lovely, there is a nice, not too long circular walk you can do around low and high force. Low force great for swimming.

Hi all, if you want to get ideas for places to visit in and around Durham, I have recently discovered a Facebook page called ‘I love Durham’ which has loads of absolutely gorgeous photos of the city and country generally.

I was there in the 80s and a lot has changed I expect. I was in a catered college. It was fine-most meals were self service (apart from 2 formal dinners per week) so you could just turn up when it was convenient. There was always someone around in the dining room/common room or bar that you knew or who was friendly. So we made friends at college, on our courses and in clubs. I had an amazing time!

When I was there some first years in some colleges did have to share. In my college it was only for a maximum of 2 terms.

Feeling jealous of talks re visits . DD has Covid ( had her booster at start of Xmas break ) and has felt very unwell for the first few days , has perked up yesterday and today , the majority of her friends have it and one other person in her flat.
She is hoping for her first negative LFT today , she would like some fresh air .
She said her friends had received some lovely packages from home , I sent her anti bacterial and covid killing wipes and a spray and some more masks !!

Longtimenewsee Hamsterley Forest and Raby Castle are worth a visit (about half an hour away from Durham itself). We are going for a few days after half term and hope to explore the coastal side of Co Durham this time. Would like to go to Low and High Force too.
I will be going armed with a book called 100 Walks In County Durham, much to DS’s horror
The I Love Durham FB group has some wonderful photos.
No mention of Covid from DS. I’m hoping his booster will keep it mild if he does get it.

Oh no @Bluebellwoods1. I’m glad the worse days are over and hope she can finish iso as soon as poss. >..I take it not what she was hoping for
@OakleyStreetisnotinChelsea thank you for that walk recommendation .. just the sort of thing I was looking for.
Thanks also to @SpamhappyTootsie .. will add your ideas to list also.
@ChocoholicContralto .. I’m not sure it’s changed that much? When Dd talks about her college, it sounds v similar to how you describe
Just looked at the I love Durham page. The photos are amazing! (it IS also very easy on the eye!)

I’m addicted to that Facebook page!

@Longtimenewsee, there are several new colleges some of which seem to have self catering accommodation, and I’m not sure they all do formal dinners any more. But I suppose life for the students in the older colleges is probably not that much different.

I liked being in catered accommodation - more time for work (and partying!). Plus it made budgeting easier (we were billed termly and had to pay by about week 2 or 3 of the term) and we knew that if we were skint at the end of term we wouldn’t starve 🤣

I thought I'd join this thread as DS has just got his first UCAS offer - AAB from Durham for Business & Management. Hopefully, he'll get some more offers (he's heard from none of his other places either way), but in the meantime, any thoughts about this course?

What are the strikes below about?



Sorry realised that the picture didn't get included

More strikes!
DD has most of her contact hours on Mondays, that's going to be a bit awkward.

Mind you, it's over half term. Maybe the lecturers just don't want to have to find child care

It's outrageous. That's almost half the month! Does anyone know if it's official? Or just incorrect reporting?

@DadDadDad my son has friends who do this course. You might want to check the number of contact hours as I believe it's really low.

Here's the rationale behind the strikes:
www.theguardian.com/education/2022/jan/27/uk-university-staff-plan-10-more-days-of-strikes-in-pay-and-pensions-rows

NB: not all staff will strike all days (not many could afford to lose that many days' pay!) and not all staff are in the union either ... I'm not.

@SchnitzelVonCrummsTum I sympathised for the strike in Dec but no more. Why is it that junior docs only went on one strike in probably the history of the NHS despite their poor working conditions?

Lecturers should have the same sense of responsibility towards their students

Hi @chopc - that question might be better answered by someone who's striking - I'm not! I will never join UCU.

The strikes are about exactly the same issues as December because the December ones didn't achieve anything.

Were all of your ds’s modules affected last time @chopc ? Very bad luck if so. I can understand his frustration.
Dd only had one module affected last time so I’m hoping it will be the same this time .
I think she just used last years lectures to fill in the gap.
Hopefully as @SchnitzelVonCrummsTum suggests it won’t be all staff on all days.
I have a lot of sympathy for the cause.

@Longtimenewsee they were last time but I don't know about this time.
Whilst I have sympathy for the cause I don't for the actions of the lecturers as the people who suffer are the students who can't change anything

I feel for the lecturers as the pension situation is bonkers for them - many women lecturers are not so reliant on the pension as are married to someone who is not a lecturer (my experience not being sexist) and have a second pension to rely on but know men in their late 50s early 60s who are being shafted. To think we pay a serious amount of money for a degree on top of loans and the unis often have extremely lucrative side hustles that generate good additional turnover but those that teach are being squeezed. Also think the students are being given a crap deal too! Don't think striking will help change things but I suppose they have to try if the alternative is living in poverty in your old age then I get it.

My DS rang me this morning from Durham. He said it was extremely windy up there last night. There are lots of trees down and one very beautiful old one in the grounds of the Cathedral

We are going up for a few days over half term and I can't wait. We are staying just outside the city as we will have our pooch with us.

@NotEnoughTime dd was saying yesterday that it was definitely more windy than the time they shut all the university buildings because of threatened wind.

It was indeed very windy. Lots without power, water or both. We were without power Saturday and water Sunday. Was a fun weekend!

Has anyones dc heard any more about strikes over the next 3 weeks? . I asked Dd and she said she hasn’t heard anything else apart from one lecturer saying that if the strikes go ahead then they will be striking next week
She said the LFT testing tents are going soon too which was inevitable I guess -since the pandemic is apparently over