Welcome to our new colleagues!
On this page you will find all the information you need to get to know Oxford Brookes and the IT Directorate you are joining.
Working in IT Services
"Because we are committed to attracting, retaining and investing in the development of female colleagues. The charter’s focus on HR policies that support the recruitment of a diverse workforce, as well as the growing network of organisations signing up, make it an extremely appealing addition to our talent management strategy." Seamus Shaw, CIO
About IT at Oxford Brookes
The IT team is made up of of five departments - Information Services, Information Security Management, Business Services, Customer Services and the Programme Management Office (IT projects). Meet the team (internal view).
The organisational structure can be viewed here (internal view).
Systems that you will routinely be using include:
Google Apps, Moodle (vle), CORE HR, E5 Finance system, eduroam (Wi-Fi), eCSIS & PIP (student record system)
IT training is available to all staff - find out more on the website.
Flexible working
The University is committed to developing work practices and human resource policies that offer flexible working patterns. You can read more about the Flexible Working Policy on the HR website.
IT systems and mobile devices have a large part to play with enabling flexible working like working from home, hot desking or working mobily around the University.
Wi-Fi
If you are on site you will need to register for the free Wi-Fi - eduroam, once you have your staff number and password. This will allow you to use either a Brookes or personal device to work online. Instructions for connecting to eduroam. eduroam can be used at many other Universities around the world as well as some NHS sites and other public service departments.
We are a Google University. We use Google applications for email, document storage, websites, instant and video chat, all hosted externally in a cloud and accessible from anywhere that has an internet connection. If you are new are to Google it is worth taking a look at these simple support pages that describe the main apps we use.
We encourage all staff and students to add an extra layer of security to their Google account by doing the 2-step verification. It is very simple and easy to set up and use. You do need to have your mobile phone with you.
Laptops
As part of the IT strategy for 'mobile first' we recommend that all new staff are provided with a laptop as their normal work PC. This allows for mobile working patterns rather than being fixed to a static workstation.
Remote access to systems
All staff are able to have the Brookes VPN installed on their work and own mobile devices. This allows remote and secure access to Brookes applications like the HR, Finance and Student Record systems, as well as Faculty and Directorate shared drives. The VPN will need to be installed by putting a request into the IT Service Desk.
Acronyms
Most organisations develop acronyms for commonly used names - but at Oxford Brookes we particularly embrace the acronym.
You can find out more in the University's writing style guide.
Your contract of employment
Before you join you will receive a contract of employment and a set of forms and documents you need to return before you start, or as soon as possible once you have started. These are:
- a signed copy of your contract,
- copies of your academic qualification certificates, as applicable for your role,
- a completed and signed medical questionnaire,
- a signed systems IT access request form,
- your P45 (if you do not have a P45, please complete the HMRC new starter checklist form,
- a photocopy of your National Insurance card or a letter from HMRC confirming your National Insurance number.
Travel arrangements and parking
As a major employer in Oxfordshire, the University is committed to minimising its impact on traffic in the local area. Because of this, and the limitations on the number of parking spaces available, we have a number of offers available to encourage staff to use alternative forms of transport:
These options include:
- Public transport: particularly the Brookes Bus which provides various services between the Brookes campuses and the city centre. The BrookesKey also provides a number of staff discounts on bus and coach travel.
- Up to £5000 staff interest free loan for all public transport annual passes with a number of discounts available when purchased through the University.
- Cycling: we offer a regular bike maintenance service, as well as a cycle to work scheme to assist with the cost of purchasing a bike.
- Oxfordshire lift-share service: which allows you to coordinate with others who are interested in sharing the journey to work.
To find out more about parking arrangements and the different travel options available, visit our travel pages or email transport@brookes.ac.uk for more details.
New to the area
New to Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a wonderful county, offering a beautiful rural landscape as well as a vibrant city full of culture and history. With numerous market towns outside the city and many attractive villages, there are a vast variety of places to live. Visit the Oxfordshire County Council website to find out more about living in Oxfordshire.
New to Wiltshire
If your new role at Oxford Brookes is based in Swindon, you may consider moving to Wiltshire. Swindon is located in the North-East corner of Wiltshire which borders Oxfordshire. To find out more about living in Wiltshire, visit the Wiltshire Council website.
New to the UK
If you are moving to the UK for the first time, you may have questions about living here, as well as the preparations you need to make before you arrive. The guide for international staff living in the UK covers the most common topics raised by new members of staff moving to the UK.
Relocation scheme
New members of staff moving to work at Oxford Brookes may be eligible for a relocation package. Reimbursements of up to £5,000 (inclusive of VAT) can be made for expenses necessarily incurred in relocating. To qualify, you must relocate within 50 kilometres of your primary location of work as specified in your contract of employment and have either a permanent contract, or a fixed-term contract of over 2 years duration.
Contract and paperwork
If you have not yet returned these documents to the HR department, you can send them via the internal post. The HR Department is based at the Wheatley campus, Block B, room 2.01. Alternatively, you could email scanned copies of the documents to your link HR team.
Key policies
You should take some time to familiarise yourself with some of the key policies at Oxford Brookes. These include:
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion policy
- The University’s Code of Conduct
- Information Management
- Financial regulations
- Our Guiding Principles
You can find other key policies here.
Staff ID cards and computer access
On joining Oxford Brookes you will be issued a staff ID card. The card also enables you to access the library services, borrow laptops, use Print Anywhere and access security controlled areas where required by your role. More information is available in this Q&A
To log onto your computer and Brookes network you will need a password. You will receive 2 emails (to your registered personal email address) the night before your contracted start date at Oxford Brookes. The first of these emails will contain your staff number (User ID), the second will contain a unique link for you to create a password. If you do not create a password within 48 hours you will have to request another password on the ‘Secure Forgotten Password Page’. After inserting your Staff Number a new unique link will be sent to your personal email address. Use this password both for logging onto a Brookes computer and your email account.
To collect your Staff ID card you should take a form of photographic identification (e.g. driving license or passport) and your employee number (P00xxxxx) to your nearest IT Service Desk Point. If you are based at the Bath site your IT support team will assist.
Email, calendar and telephone
Email account and calendar
At Oxford Brookes we use Google Workspace. This consists of your email, calendar, Google Chat, Google Meet and Google office applications (e.g. Documents, Sheets, Slides). A two-hour ‘Introduction to Google’ workshop is available for new members of staff who are not familiar with Google and its applications. If you have a working knowledge of Gmail but wish to build on this, there is an alternative workshop available for all members of staff. Further details about Google workshops can be found here.
To access your Gmail account:
- Visit gmail.com.
- Enter your 8-digit staff number (p00xxxxx) followed by ‘@brookes.ac.uk’ in the ‘Email’ box.
- Enter your password that you have just created in the ‘Password' box.
- Click ‘Sign in’ and your email inbox will appear on the screen.
To select other Google applications, once logged into your Google email account, click on the 9 dots icon located in the top right hand corner of your screen (Google apps icon). This allows you to switch between Docs, Sheets, Slides, Calendar etc.
Phone
The telephone network at Oxford Brookes operates on an internal network. Your office phone or the phone you have access to use will have a unique four digit extension number. There is also a voicemail facility attached to each phone. To find out more about how to use the internal phone network, as well as how to set up a voicemail account, visit the phone directory.
Staff HR Portal
Each member of staff has their own portal page which is linked to the HR system, CORE.
Your portal page will display your personal details as well as details about your position at Oxford Brookes. You will be able to access some of your personal information yourself and access your online payslips from this page. On your first day, you will receive an email to your staff account asking you to update your bank details and emergency contact details on your portal page.
You will need your staff number and your password to access your portal page. For further information on how to use and navigate around your portal page, visit the Staff HR Portal Training site.
Induction Checklist
Please take a look at the Induction Checklist.
This document will signpost key processes and policies you need to be aware of including information on Health and Safety. Take some time on your first day and over your first week to work through the checklist. You should make sure you have completed this by the end of your probation period.
Introduction to a ‘Buddy’
A buddy is a member of staff who has volunteered to offer support to a new joiner during their induction period. Your buddy will help you get to know Oxford Brookes and settle in. They will be able to answer informal questions about how things are done at Brookes, where to find information about our policies and working practices, etc.
We aim to have a buddy scheme running in most areas of the University. If the scheme is active in your area, your line manager will identify a buddy for you who, depending on your role, may be someone from your own department, or if appropriate, from a different area of the University. You do not have to accept the offer of a buddy if you do not wish to, but the additional informal support a buddy can offer can be useful when settling in to a new role.
Regular one to ones
During your first few weeks, you can expect to have regular one to one meetings with your line manager. The aim of these will be to give you an overview of your induction period, to discuss your role in more detail, and to discuss expectations and any concerns you may have.
Within your first two weeks, you will also have an initial Performance and Development Review (PDR) with your line manager to identify some initial work objectives. This is also an opportunity to explore your skills in more detail and identify any development and training needs.
Mandatory training courses
Oxford Brookes offers a comprehensive induction programme. There are several mandatory training courses you will be required to complete as part of your induction and before your probation period can be complete.
Many of these courses can be accessed via Staff Learning. The login details are your 'P' number (without the @brookes.ac.uk) and your password that you use to log onto your emails.
These cover:
- Welcome to Brookes
- Health and Safety
- Display Screen Equipment
- PDR for Reviewers
- Unconscious Bias
- Information Security
- Prevent
- Bribery Act training
- Manual handling (where applicable)
- First three years (teaching)
On joining Oxford Brookes you will be given access to Moodle which is the University's Virtual Learning Environment (VLE for short). You will be able to access and log into Moodle via a quick link from the main Brookes Staff page.