Dear Colleagues,

As we all prepare for a well earnt Christmas break I want to thank you all for your hard work during the year. Yet again the School has had a very successful and busy year. We have continued to deliver on our teaching and research goals while also going through a School Review, the restructure of the BSc, and the PBRF process – all of which will continue in the New Year. Thank you to all staff involved in these time consuming, but necessary processes.

I would also like to echo the Vice Chancellor’s specific congratulations to Distinguished Professor Richard Faull, who was knighted for his services to medical research, to Peter Shepherd for being awarded the Callaghan Medal, and to Alistair Gunn who was awarded the Beaven Medal, and would also like to add a general congratulations to the many other staff and students in the School who in 2017 have achieved success at different levels on the local, national and international stages. It is the continued efforts of all Professional and Academic staff plus our amazing students that make the School of Medical Sciences such a truly successful and excellent academic unit across the whole spectrum of teaching, research and service. In this regard I also wish to congratulate those staff who were successful with their applications for promotion.

I am particularly proud of the process adopted to appoint five senior research fellows to permanent 0.5 FTE senior lecturer positions in the School and I am very happy to announce the successful candidates are:

• Jonathan Astin
• Jack Flanagan
• Chris Guise
• Julie Lim
• Fiona McBryde

The process revealed the depth of talent we have amongst our next generation of emerging research leaders within the School and is a positive step towards ensuring that we have a succession pathway in place to develop the next cohort of research stars.

I would also wish to congratulate academic staff who were promoted in 2017

• Sebastien Barfoot, Department of Anatomy & Medical Imaging promoted to PTF2
• Anuj Bhargava, Department of Physiology promoted to PTF4
• Jacelyn Loh, Department of Molecular Medicine & Pathology, promoted to SRF1
• Catherine Lyman, Department of Anatomy & Medical Imaging promoted to PTF2
• Rebecca McCarroll, Department of Nutrition promoted to PTF2
• Beau Pontre, Department of Anatomy & Medical Imaging promoted to SL1
• Fiona Radcliff, Department of Molecular Medicine & Pathology promoted to SRF1
• Rohit Ramchandra, Department of Physiology promoted to SL6
• Stephen Ritchie, Department of Molecular Medicine & Pathology promoted to SL6
• Leslie Schwarcz, Department of Pharmacology promoted to ST8
• Emma Scotter, Department of Pharmacology promoted to SRF1
• Julia Sekula, Department of Nutrition promoted to PTF3
• Jeff Smaill, Department of ACSRC promoted to AP
• Siouxsie Wiles, Department of Molecular Medicine & Pathology promoted to AP

So finally, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Enjoy a well earnt break and I will look forward to seeing you all back refreshed and reinvigorated to attack the challenges that 2018 will bring.

Best wishes

Paul