Turning around our student recruitment prospects is one of the most urgent priorities we face as a University. It sits at the heart of our Recovery and Rebuilding strategic plan, and underpins our ability to invest in our students, staff and academic ambitions. This is work that no single team can deliver alone – it depends on all of us.

Across our Faculties and Professional Services, there is already excellent recruitment practice taking place every day. Colleagues from Faculties and Communications, Engagement and Advancement (CEA) have worked together to identify practical examples of what is genuinely making a difference at programme, Department and School level. We are now launching a series of initiatives to help us all share that expertise more widely, so we can all benefit from what is already working.

Instead of a set of guidelines and static documents, we are taking a practical and collaborative approach. An ongoing community of practice will be established through Viva Engage - a place where colleagues can ask questions of each other, share ideas and showcase successes. This will be supported by a series of focused workshops running over the coming months, when conversion activity is at its most critical. These sessions will be led by academic staff along with CEA colleagues and will demonstrate real case studies, practical interventions and honest lessons learned.

The workshops will cover areas already proven to have impact: proposition development and competitor analysis; events and presentations; social media and video. Over time, our ambition is for this community to shape and deliver its own sessions, building momentum, confidence and efficiency across the University.

I encourage as many of you as possible to take part, share their experience and engage with the community as it develops. Student recruitment is central to our collective recovery, and every interaction with prospective students matters. By learning from one another and working together, we can strengthen our position and secure Sussex’s future.

To find out more, join the community or register for the workshops please contact Helen Merrills, Director of Marketing, Brand and Content by emailing h.merrills@sussex.ac.uk.