Values reflect the culture we want to create and how we want to work together, creating an environment which enables us all to achieve our goals. They are a set of core ideas about who we are, how we work and what we collectively value.

Behaviours are the practical application of these values – translating them into day-to-day actions, how we do our jobs and how we work together.

Having an effective set of values and behaviours helps create a culture and shared sense of community, which actively supports individuals and the organisation to deliver their purpose and achieve their goals.

Values influence behaviour, attitude, thoughts, and decision-making and our experience of being a member of the University community.

Shared values create the environment, which enables us to succeed, acting as a guide on how we work together and support each other, how we make work more rewarding and how we enable people to focus on the things which will make an impact and deliver real benefit.

Your manager or head of department will want to discuss the values with your team, and you will be encouraged to collectively consider what the values will mean for you in a practical sense, in your everyday work and working relationships.

Importantly values also act to empower you in your role and give you more licence to try new things, to challenge and improve what we do.

We have created a PDF for you which breaks down the values and behaviours, which you can share with your team.

We would encourage you to consider how your values map onto the new cultural values because there’s likely to be considerable cross over. Our University values are positive indicators about our community and do not exist in isolation of other principles or values, but explain who we are as a combined single institution.

Our value of ‘thriving on difference’ represents a way of proactively talking about difference and how we create inclusion. It is about the diversity of all of us, takes on board the diversity of everyone and not just protected characteristics defined in Equality Act 2010.

Our vision is about creating a place where we can attract difference in our employees, students and partners that we work with. Create a culture where we understand ‘what we owe each other’ and where we know how to leverage diversity of thought and experience through inclusive behaviours and environments (thriving on difference). And where we are a thought leader, sharing our expertise and we want to learn and co-create with others.