Diarrhoea & vomiting update

We now have 25 reported cases of diarrhoea and vomiting in the Hall. The Health Protection Agency (HPA) have been involved and they are treating this as a Norovirus outbreak at present. This is unlikley to be food related but our caterers will continue their full food safety review. We expect to have microbiology data within 72 hours and then we should know exactly what has caused this illness. Remember you can tell us that you are unwell by emailing sicknessreporting@connaught-hall.org.uk.

There is more information about diarrhoea & vomiting here: http://www.patient.co.uk/health/Gastroenteritis-in-Adults.htm.

I must again stress the crucial importance of strict hand hygiene for EVERYONE. Use the alcohol gel. (Don't steal it - the 2nd floor dispenser disappeared within hours of us putting it out, and we don't have any more yet!) But remember the best hand hygiene is from thorough washing with soap and water.

We have implemented increased cleaning of bathrooms and other areas with disinfectant to help prevent spread of illness.

Individuals affected can remain infectious for up to 48 hours after their symptoms have gone, so if you have been unwell, keep up your hand washing and try to avoid contact with unaffected people for 2 days after your last episode of diarrhoea. The HPA, however, are being pragmatic and understand that this is exam time so you may have to go to your exams, so long as you fee better, without observing this 48-hour exclusion rule.

So that I do not have to keep filling your inbox with email, further updates will be posted on my blog here: http://connaughthall.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/diarrhoea and links to those posts will be published via Facebook and Twitter (@connaughthall).

I hope everyone affected feels better soon. Let us know if we can help in any way.

Update on diarrhoeal illness

We are now aware of 18 students in Hall with gastro-intestinal symptoms overnight.

REPORTING:
If you've been unwell with diarrhoea in the last 12 hours, please contact the Bursar's Office today or email sicknessreporting@connaught-hall.org.uk. Please visit your GP today if possible, tell them several residents have been unwell with the same symptoms, and ask if they will send a stool sample for you. The purpose of a stool sample is to figure out what organism has caused this outbreak. This can help guide your treatment (e.g. indicate whether antibiotics might be useful) but we also need to know if this is a virus spread from one resident to another or if it might be food poisoning.


TREATMENT:

Remember to drink plenty of clear fluids, use paracetamol to relieve pain and/or fever, and let a friend know that you're unwell. Please observe strict hygiene in the bathrooms and elsewhere to avoid passing any bugs to others! There is more advice about self-treatment of diarrhoea and vomiting here: http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Diarrhoea/Pages/Treatment.aspx.
You must definitely see a doctor if your symptoms last more than 72 hours, if you collapse or feel faint when you stand up, or if there is blood in your stool. you may also need to see your doctor if you have an exam in the next few days: it will be useful to have medical confirmation that you have been unwell, in case you need to make a mitigating circumstances claim or miss your exam.
A doctor from 20 Gower Street Pactice is coming to Connaught Hall around 12.30 this afternoon. If you have informed us before then that you are unwell, we may be able to have the doctor come to see you in your room. Use the sicknessreporting@connaught-hall.org.uk email address.


PREVENTION:
If you are not affected by any symptoms, please remember to wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water after using the bathroom or visiting anyone who is unwell. This will help ensure you don't catch anything. We have cleaners working to disinfect all the toilet blocks this morning.

We have placed alcohol hand sanitiser pumps at reception and on every floor. There is also a pump on the wall in the dining hall. These can help hand hygiene but are not a substitute for proper hand washing with soap and water: some stomach bugs are partly resistant to the hand gel but are easily washed off with soap and water.


INVESTIGATION:
As mentioned above, stool samples are important to help us work out what has caused this illness and whether the local authorities need to be involved. There is currently no evidence of a connection with food: those affected ate different things at dinner last night. This could just as easily be a norovirus outbreak, which is usually spread by personal contact rather than through food. Of course the kitchen will review the food temperature logs to ensure everything was kept hot enough last night, and send samples of any leftovers for analysis.


I hope everyone affected by this feels better soon. If you are not affected, please don't worry: just wash your hands carefully and you should stay well!

Finding Private Housing – Helpful Tips

Zack (Senior Member) put together some tips for residents looking for private housing for next year:

1. DON’T PANIC
2. Decide who you’re living with and stick to it. Preferably people you like. This isn’t too important though. They will steal your milk and block the toilet regardless of how ‘safe’ they seemed during Freshers.
3. Whatever you do, DON’T live with a couple!
4. Decide where in London you want to live – agree on your priorities. If you’re desperate to live in Bloomsbury even if it means sleeping on the floor of someone’s garage, that’s great. Likewise, if you want an en-suite and a roof terrace but don’t mind the commute from Hertfordshire, speak up now.
5. Discuss how much everyone is willing to pay per week or month. If one of you can swing £200/week, while the others will struggle to make £100, a compromise isn’t going to happen anytime soon.
6. Factor in gas and electricity – they can get expensive, especially in the wintertime. Winter lasts a lot longer in a house where the heating comes out of your drinking money.
7. Decide when you want to move in. Most landlords in London will be looking for someone to move in within the next month, so you are unlikely to find anywhere that’s available in September in June. That’s just London. This may mean coming back in August to look.
8. Start looking. Online websites such as primelocation and gumtree are good places to start, particularly when it comes to getting an idea of what’s actually out there and how much it costs.
9. Estate agents are another option. A reputation for underhandedness is perhaps somewhat deserved, but so long as you keep your wits about you (and don’t mind paying an extra £100 or so for the trouble), they are an excellent way of arranging several viewings in a day without the hassle of dealing with some of the less reliable landlords out there.
10. Arrange some viewings by contacting the agent or landlord. The first place you see will inevitably be an absolute hole. Visiting it will scar you for life. Get this out of the way early.
11. When viewing, check the essentials. Windows should keep out the draft, mould can be sorted out provided it’s not cataclysmal... a friend of mine once saw a kitchen with a toilet in it. Discuss with your potential flatmates whether that’s something you’d be okay with.
12. If there are any previous tenants around, ask them questions about any problems they’ve had with the place. Ask specifically about how cold it gets in winter, how much the bills cost and whether the landlord is a top bloke or a premier league knob. Put your money on the latter.
13. Beware the ‘sunny house bias’. Any given property will look nicer on a sunny day than when it’s overcast. Your brain is actually that stupid.
14. Nice places go fast. A decent place at a student price won’t stay on the market very long and chances are you won’t be the first gang of students looking around that day. When it comes to the crunch, be prepared to put in an offer that day, even if everyone hasn’t seen it. A nice house won’t wait for all six of you to come back from Corfu.
15. An offer involves haggling. Undershoot the price and ask for some extras – any mould should be sorted out and you should all have double beds. Estate agents will normally help you with this.
16. As a student, you will need a guarantor to cover you. They normally have to be a UK taxpayer earning over a certain amount. If your parents are living off-shore in the Cayman Islands, have a back-up plan. All they really have to do is sign a form as I remember.
17. You will have to pay a deposit. This can be more than a month’s rent. So don’t spend your Connaught deposit at Moony’s. You’ll need it.
18. Once the offer has been accepted, a contract will be drawn up. READ THE CONTRACT. Get your parents to read the contract. They’re smarter than you and they’ve done this before. Then sign it I guess.
19. Congratulations! You now have a house/flat/barn. Now you just need to sort out bills and the internet, stock the fridge, do a washing up rota and buy a whole bunch of Carly Rae Jepsen posters for the lounge.
20. IKEA.
21. Finally – and most importantly – relax. You will find somewhere to live. You will not be homeless come September. Everything will work out in the end. And if it doesn’t?
22. GET YOUR PARENTS TO DO IT ALL FOR YOU.

The Connaught Hall Resident's Handbook (http://handbook.connaught-hall.org.uk) also gives this advice for those whose re-admission applications were unsuccessful:

Unsuccessful applicants may consider joining the intercollegiate halls of residence waiting list in September. Details will be published on the University of London website in August: www.halls.london.ac.uk. The waiting list is always very over-subscribed, so we advise students to have a back-up plan for accommodation.

If you need help finding somewhere to live, contact University of London Housing Services or visit their website at http://housing.london.ac.uk. 

The London Student Housing Guide is another useful source of information about private sector accommodation: http://studenthousing.london.ac.uk.

Library desks

I received several complaints this weekend about study space in the library being unfairly "reserved" by some residents and even non-resident guests. I must agree with the complainants that this behaviour is very unfair.

The Residents' Handbook says: "The library on the lower ground floor is for private quiet study mainly by students sharing twin rooms. Please do not leave work out on the desks and do not eat in the library or use it for group study as others may be trying to concentrate." (http://handbook.connaught-hall.org.uk)

The library is a facility shared between 230 students and space is limited. Please be considerate of the needs of your fellow residents and do not leave your work and study materials on the desks if you are going to be away for more than 20 minutes.

If this continues to be a problem, we will start making random checks and removing items from desks that are left unattended, so that everyone can have a fair chance of using our newly refurbished study room.

 Remember we are also leaving the dining hall open for extra study space this term.

As always, get in touch if you have any comments, suggestions, or complaints, or if you need our help with anything that is bothering you.

Have you been unwell with diarrhoea today?

If you've been unwell with diarrhoea in the last 12 hours, please contact the Bursar's Office today (Tue) or email sicknessreporting@connaught-hall.org.uk. Please visit your GP today if possible, tell them several residents have been unwell with the same symptoms, and ask if they will send a stool sample for you. This will help us work out which bug has caused people to be unwell, and maybe where ...it came from.

Remember to drink plenty of clear fluids, use paracetamol to relieve pain and/or fever, and let a friend know that you're unwell. Please observe strict hygiene in the bathrooms to avoid passing any bugs to others! There is more advice about self-treatment of diarrhoea and vomiting here: http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Diarrhoea/Pages/Treatment.aspx.

If you are not affected by any symptoms, please remember to wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water after using the bathroom or visiting anyone who is unwell. This will help ensure you don't catch anything.

Residents' Survey 2012 results

Today I have published a summary of the results for Connaught Hall in the 2012 intercollegiate halls residents' survey.

This is a quick summary of the main results and a selection of comments received: http://www.connaught-hall.org.uk/documents/Surveys/residents-survey-2012-results.pdf

And this compares the results for Connaught Hall with the average scores across all eight intercollegiate halls of residence: http://www.connaught-hall.org.uk/documents/Surveys/residents-survey-2012-connaught-vs-all-halls.pdf

Over the next few weeks and months, you will be able to use the "Survey 2012" tag within this blog (http://connaughthall.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/survey%202012) to see other posts about the survey this year, including action we are taking based on your feedback.

Please do not cover smoke detectors

Since we came back to Hall for this second term, I have dealt with three cases of residents covering the smoke detector in their room.

The Connaught Hall Supplementary Regulations state:

Your Licence Agreement requires that you observe all fire safety rules… In particular, we consider:
(a) the covering of smoke detectors to conceal smoking or cooking,
(b) tampering with fire extinguishers, and
(c) deliberate false activation of the fire alarm
to be serious disciplinary offences which in some cases may lead to immediate expulsion from the Hall.

Interfering with our fire safety precautions puts everyone in the Hall at risk. As I said in my welcome speech in October, we have a real fire at Connaught Hall almost every year; two in the last ten years have been serious. It is only because we take your safety so seriously that no one has been hurt in these incidents.

The minimum penalty for covering a smoke detector is a final written warning. The maximum
penalty is immediate expulsion plus a fine of £250. Everyone has now been warned about the seriousness with which I view interference with fire safety equipment.

No further warnings will be issued: from 1 March 2012, anyone found to have covered a smoke detector will be required to leave the Hall within 48 hours.

Help protect yourself from drink spiking

There have been several reports recently of students’ drinks being “spiked” by the addition of hypnotic drugs to the drink that can cause severe drowsiness and amnesia. Incidents have been alleged in local clubs and bars popular with students, venues in west London, and in one case inside one of the intercollegiate halls.

Fortunately, in those cases reported by residents in the intercollegiate halls, no one has been harmed and nothing bad has happened to them whilst they were under the influence of the hypnotic drug; but drink spiking is sometimes a technique used by criminals who may abduct, rob, or assault their victim whilst they are drowsy and leave the victim with no memory of what happened.

Drink spiking is still a rare occurrence. But you can protect yourself and your friends from becoming victims by being aware of the risks and following the advice below.

·       Keep your drink in your hand instead of on a surface.
·       Consider sticking to bottled drinks and holding your thumb over the opening between sips.
·       Keep an eye on your friends' drinks.
·       Never leave your drink unattended.
·       Never accept a drink from anyone you don't know or trust.
·       Never take a drink from a jug or bottle that is left out on the bar.
·       Don't share or exchange drinks, or drink leftover drinks.
·       When possible, drink from a bottle rather than a glass because it is more difficult to spike a drink in a bottle.
·       Stay away from situations that you do not feel comfortable with.
·       If you go on a date with someone you don't know, tell a friend or relative where you will be and what time you will be back.
·       Don't give away too much information to anyone you have just met, such as your address.
·       If you suspect your drink may have been spiked:
o Tell someone you trust – in Hall this should be the Duty Senior Member; outside, it might be the pub landlord, bar manager, or a close friend.
o If you feel unwell, someone you trust should take you to A&E at the nearest hospital and tell the medical staff that you think your drink has been spiked.
o Report it to the police as soon as you can. They will need to take blood and urine samples. Most drugs leave the body within 72 hours of being taken (the date-rape drug GHB leaves the body within 12 hours), so it's important to be tested as soon as possible.

Once again, please be reassured that in the cases reported by intercollegiate halls residents, no one has been harmed. But we do advise you to take the steps above to protect yourself from possible drink spinking.

Please share any information you have about drink spiking in local venues so we can build up an idea of where this is taking place and help protect other students: report any incidents to the police immediately and to me at the next opportunity.

The Senior Members and I are available in Hall as always to discuss
any concerns you might have about this or any other issues.

Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

Today, 6th February, is the 60th anniversary of HM The Queen's accession to the Throne. Her Majesty is only the second British monarch to reign for so long (Queen Victoria was the first).

The Queen has released a Diamond Jubilee message: http://www.royal.gov.uk/LatestNewsandDiary/Pressreleases/2012/TheQueensDiamondJubileemessage.aspx

I hope we will all join in celebrating 60 years of the Queen's reign and thanking Her Majesty for so many years of service to her people in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.

The focus of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations will be around the long weekend of 2-5 June, with parties and events taking place across the country. Look out for an announcement of how we will be celebrating at Connaught Hall!

Facebook policy

My policy on residents as Facebook friends:

I will always accept friend requests from residents if you want to add me, but I will never send an add request to a resident. 

That leaves the choice completely yours; nobody is made to feel uncomfortable, nobody feels obliged to accept, and nobody is discriminated against by not getting a request from me.

(If you're a future resident - i.e. I don't know you yet - you're still very welcome to add me, but please drop me a quick message with your add request, telling me that you're coming to Connaught, as I don't accept those completely random friend requests that we all get!)

I will also never "un-friend" current residents; nor will I be offended if you "un-friend" me. I may have to tidy up my contacts from time-to-time and clear friends who left the Hall more than 12 months ago.

My Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adrianclarkmbbs.

Consultation on banning subwoofers

Only one response (in favour) was received to our consultation about banning subwoofer speakers in Hall.

This was the consultation text:

Subwoofers are special speakers that specifically output sound in the 20-200 Hz range. These are very low bass sounds. Sounds in the 20-200 Hz range transmit through walls, floors, and ceilings much more than higher frequencies. The overall volume of music might be reasonably low, but the bass will still cause a vibration in rooms next door, above, and below. For this reason, subwoofers will be banned at Connaught Hall by a change in the Supplementary Regulations from 1st September 2012. Subwoofers will then be at risk of confiscation if they are found in a room subject to a noise complaint.

I should like to consult current residents on whether this ban should be introduced earlier - from 3rd January 2012. Or it may be that raising awareness (through this consultation) that subwoofers can cause problems for your neighbours will be enough for this year.

Changing the regulations part-way through the year often leads to some residents feeling unfairly treated, so with only one response to the consultation, I do not think there is enough weight of opinion in favour of this change for the ban to be introduced this academic year. The change in the regulations will therefore take effect in September 2012.

If you have - or plan to acquire - a subwoofer speaker, please remember it can be disturbing to your neighbours either side, above, and below. For your neighbour's benefit, please turn if off at 11pm and be prepared to turn it off at other times if your neighbours complain about it.

Milk theft

Unfortunately, theft of milk and sugar from the new coffee machine has proved to be a problem already.

In the last 48 hours, 34 drinks have been sold - many were hot chocolate or fruit teas which do not require milk.

In the same period, 60 milk portions have been taken.

The drink prices on the machine are set just to cover our costs on the optimistic assumption that nothing would be stolen. We cannot afford to subsidise this level of milk theft. We have to do something: the options are (a) the restrict the supply of milk; (b) to increase the cost of drinks to factor in the losses due to theft; or (c) acknowledge that the Club has to subsidise this cost and use our money on milk instead of parties, televisions, newspapers, sports, and games.

I have replaced milk with powder whitener in the hope that this is perhaps slightly less likely to be stolen, and because whitener sachets are less expensive than milk, so our losses will be smaller. If this does not work, then milk will be placed behind reception and one tube of milk given upon request after a drink has been purchased from the machine.

I am sorry this has been necessary.

Freshly filtered / brewed hot drinks in reception

Staying in Hall this holiday season?

Try our new speciality Flavia hot drinks machine in reception: fresh brewed tea, coffee, Galaxy hot chocolate, and herbal infusions.

Introductory price 30p for standard teas, coffees, chocolate (50p for cappuccino / latte / caramel swirl hot chocolate, which use 2 sachets). Introductory prices available until 6 January.

The machine is owned & operated by the Residents’ Club.

We have set our prices to just cover the actual cost of the machine and drinks; any small profit that might be made will be put directly back into social, sports, and entertainment events, or improving the common rooms in Hall.

Any losses due to theft or damage will also be borne by the Club and will reduce the money available for events, recreational facilities, and parties. We have installed this machine as a service and benefit for you. Please take care of it.

Please only take milk and cups to use for drinks purchased from the machine.
The drinks sachets are designed only to work with the high-pressure system inside the machine: they cannot be cut open and used to make drinks without the machine.

16 different drinks are available now, with more coming soon!

The selection so far:

"Light & smooth" smooth roast coffee

"Light & smooth" medium roast coffee

"Medium & balanced" Colombia coffee

"Medium & bright" Papua New Guinea coffee

"Dark & intense" Sumatra coffee

Smooth roast decaffeinated coffee

Galaxy hot chocolate

Any of the above can be combined with either a cappuccino/latte swirl or a Mars caramel swirl.

English breakfast tea

Strong English breakfast tea

Earl Grey tea

Lemon herbal infusion

Peppermint herbal infusion

Select green tea

Coming soon: Espresso roast coffee, hazelnut flavoured coffee, "medium & bright" Ethiopia coffee, raspberry herbal infusion, decaffeinated English breakfast tea, and gree tea with jasmine.

Christmas dinner speech

Good evening everybody! Are you enjoying yourselves?

Of course we couldn’t do this without a huge amount of work from the kitchen staff and all the
residents who gave up their time today. Let’s say a big thank you to them.

Well done: we’ve all survived our first term together!

I hope you have found Connaught Hall to be welcoming and friendly, and that you have now
fully settled in and are calling this place “home”. I hope you have found this Hall has a real sense of community. I know many of you have made friendships here already that will endure long beyond your time at University.

We have enjoyed lots of freshers’ events together, a great Hallowe’en party, a really fun and festive night of decorating the Christmas tree last week, and a sophisticated night out at Senate House on Foundation Day. We’ve hosted a Thanksgiving dinner and a German night, and the Residents’ Club have organised lots of sports activities, a pub quiz, pool and table football tournaments, and trips out for fireworks and a carol service.

I hope events like all these help you to meet people you otherwise would never get to know and reinforce your sense that this place is your home and our community is your family here in London.

Of course, it hasn’t all been plain sailing. So I would urge everyone once again to remember that this Hall community can only be what we collectively make it.

Nice sofas, quiet nights, clean toilets, and fridges where you can safely leave your food can only be products of us all working together towards those things. It’s up to all of us to think what kind of environment – both physical and social – we want to live in and make our own positive contributions towards making that happen.

This is a good time of year to reflect, repair, and renew.

We’re at the end of term 1 already. That’s the hardest bit of university out of the way. For let’s not underestimate the massive upheaval of moving home, making new friends, settling into a new way of studying, and finding your way around a new city. But you’ve done it.

It perhaps doesn’t seem impressive until you stop and look back – then you realise how much you’ve been through in the last 2.5 months. It’s definitely an achievement to be proud of.

Almost every civilisation in history has recognised the need to stop at this time of year and celebrate the fact that we are halfway out of the dark. As we approach midwinter and the shortest day of the year, we can be cheered by the knowledge that soon the days will start getting longer
again.

For centuries before Christianity came to the British Isles, we put evergreen plants and trees inside our homes as symbols of life and continual rebirth in the bleakness of midwinter. And of course, Christmas is about the birth of Jesus Christ – who Christians call the light of the world.

Whatever your beliefs, this season is all about hope, light, and life amid the cold and the dark.

None of us is immune from sadness, disappointment, stress, or loneliness. Yet all of these things are temporary – they really are. Just as we know winter will turn into spring, just as we know the days will get longer after the solstice and the darkness must give way to light: so should we be assured that hard times will always give way to new good times.

And here in this Hall community, I believe we can all draw strength, support, and encouragement from those around us – our London family. That’s something else that maybe doesn’t seem impressive until you look back and realise none of us knew each other 3 months ago. Yet now we are all bound up together in so many ways. After 14 years of living in this Hall, I still find that incredibly exciting.

Now, let’s get on with pudding. I’m sorry that our singers who were scheduled to perform in-between courses tonight have been unwell and are not able to perform for us. Let’s hope
they are feeling better soon.

After dinner, please help us to clear things away. Remember to come up to the tree to have your photograph taken and then stick around for carol singing. Afterwards, we can all put on our masks and go to the Christmas ball from 8 o clock. I hope you enjoy all of that.

Some of you are leaving the Hall tomorrow, others are here for another week; some, I know, are staying in London throughout Christmas. If you are travelling during the holidays, I wish you a safe journey and look forward to seeing you back relaxed and refreshed next year.

And I wish all of you a wonderful, joyful Christmas, and a happy, successful new year.

Vandalism of sofas in the basement

Last night four sofas in the bar and common rooms were vandalised: the seats have been ripped up in a way that can only have been deliberate. They are irretrievably damaged and will have to be thrown away. We cannot afford to replace them.

I am extremely disappointed by what has happened.

We will review CCTV footage from the basement to look for leads in finding out who did this. If you have any information that might help us identify the culprit(s), please speak with me any time, Harriet in the Bursar’s Office during normal office hours, or the Duty Senior Member in the evenings – or email wardens.team@connaught-hall.org.uk.

Make sure we have the right email address for you, check your spam settings, and add us to your contacts!

Several residents have not received recent important emails from the Hall.
If you have changed your email address since you applied for accommodation (or if you gave your parents' email address on your application form because you were away during the summer), please write to info@connaught-hall.org.uk with your current email.

Please also check your junk / spam folder for mail from info.halls@london.ac.uk & warden@connaught-hall.org.uk and make sure we are on your safe senders list.

GMAIL, HOTMAIL & YAHOO USERS are almost certainly not receiving some important emails from the Hall. Please add warden@connaught-hall.org.uk & info.halls@london.ac.uk to your contacts today.

If you don't receive email from us, you won't be able to claim rebates on your Hall fees over Christmas, will miss payment deadlines and risk debt collection action, and miss out on social events and other opportunities available to residents.

Away from Hall duties until 8th December

I have been unwell for the past week and am on sick leave (rest prescribed by my doctor) from both my hospital job and my Warden duties until 8th December.

For welfare or disciplinary matters (including noise complaints), please contact the Senior Member for your floor, who is able to contact me or the warden of another hall for help & advice if necessary:
Ground & lower ground – ilk.ghavami@connaught-hall.org.uk;
First floor – zack.ferguson@connaught-hall.org.uk;
Second floor – tom.smith@connaught-hall.org.uk;
Third floor – alyson.mercer@connaught-hall.org.uk;
Fourth floor – john.hodgetts@connaught-hall.org.uk.

For matters relating to the Residents’ Club Committee / entertainment / sports / events (including Christmas dinner), please email committee@connaught-hall.org.uk and the relevant officer of the Committee will help you.

For matters relating to the Facilities Committee, please email facilities.committee@connaught-hall.org.uk and Alyson Mercer will be able to help you.

For building, maintenance, safety, financial, or accommodation problems, please contact the Bursar’s Office at info@connaught-hall.org.uk.

If you have any suggestions or complaints about any Hall services, including catering,
write to suggestions@connaught-hall.org.uk.

If you want to know about Foundation Day, please check your post pigeonhole for a ticket – if you have not yet received a ticket, it is unlikely that the University will be able to allocate you one at this late stage. In October, I emailed all 30 residents who applied for tickets; if you didn’t receive my email, please check your junk/spam folder for this email and others from warden@connaught-hall.org.uk.

For all other matters, I will try to reply as soon as I can when I return to work.

Please accept my apologies if this causes any delays in dealing with issues.

Possible case of mumps in Hall

There has been a possible (unconfirmed) case of mumps in the Hall within the last few days.

Mumps is an infectious disease that most of us are vaccinated against in childhood. Symptoms begin with a headache & fever before swelling of the parotid glands in the cheeks.

Mumps is usually unpleasant but not serious, although rarely there can be complications including swelling of the ovaries or testicles, meningitis, or inflammation of the pancreas, nerves, joints, or heart. It is because of these possible complications that public health measures are taken when a case in confirmed.

Please read the suggestions below to help reduce your chances of catching mumps.

Mumps is spread through saliva and droplets from the nose. It is spread about as easily as the ‘flu. People with mumps remain infectious for about five days after the parotid gland swelling appears.

There is no specific treatment for mumps. Management of cases is mainly directed at preventing spread of the disease by asking patients to isolate themselves for five days and encourage strict hygiene measures. The local public health authorities must, by law, be notified of any cases.

Handwashing with liquid soap, and warm water is very important. We all should pay extra attention to washing our hands after using the toilet, before eating or handling food, and after visiting anyone who is unwell.

Coughing & sneezing easily spread infections so it is important to cover mouth and nose with a tissue, then wash your hands after disposing of the tissue.

Vaccination is important. Please check with your doctor that you have had two doses of mumps or mmr vaccine in your lifetime. If you have, your chances of catching mumps are cut by about 95%.

Thanksgiving speech

I am very sorry that, due to illness, I may not be able to deliver my speech for Thanksgiving tonight. The text of my speech is below.

This is the first time we have held a Thanksgiving event at Connaught Hall. It's one of a series of celebrations from all over the world that we want to mark here at Connaught this year. We have a German culture night next Saturday, lots of Christmas activities, and a Chinese New Year celebration in January, with more to follow later.

We chose Thanksgiving for November for two reasons: First, it's celebrated by Americans and Canadians - and although the dates are different, the concept is similar. So this event will be welcomed by a sizeable number of Hall residents. Thanksgiving is a time for family and friends and togetherness. Most of our North American residents don't have the option of being with their families this Thanksgiving, and that can feel lonely. So I hope our togetherness tonight can help alleviate the homesickness that they might feel at this time of year.

The other reason we wanted to celebrate Thanksgiving is this: if you take away the historical context of native Americans helping settlers in a bleak winter on a new continent, the concept of stopping for a moment to give thanks for the things that really matter to us is universal. We all depend on the support of others. Yet it's so easy for us to take our family, friends, homes, and safety for granted; and so I feel it's important that sometimes we stop and say thank you to the people who support and sustain us in life.

At times like this we should also think about our neighbours who might need more help or support from us. Whether they are fellow residents here in hall, students at college, others in our local community, or even farther afield, can we do more to make others happier and safer?

So, in closing, I hope you will join me in taking up this challenge: to think now about those who have helped us and cared for us, the things that sustain us, and to say thank you for them - where we can, say thank you TO them. And tonight, let’s consider what more we can do to make the lives of others in our community happier so that next Thanksgiving, maybe someone will be saying “thank you” to you.

Consultation on banning subwoofers

Subwoofers are special speakers that specifically output sound in the 20-200 Hz range. These are very low bass sounds.

Sounds in the 20-200 Hz range transmit through walls, floors, and ceilings much more than higher frequencies. The overall volume of music might be reasonably low, but the bass will still cause a vibration in rooms next door, above, and below.

For this reason, subwoofers will be banned at Connaught Hall by a change in the Supplementary Regulations from 1st September 2012. Subwoofers will then be at risk of confiscation if they are found in a room subject to a noise complaint.

I should like to consult current residents on whether this ban should be introduced earlier - from 3rd January 2012.

It may be that raising awareness (through this consultation) that subwoofers can cause problems for your neighbours will be enough for this year.

What do you think? Should we ban subwoofers from January?

Please respond either by a comment on this post or by email to warden@connaught-hall.org.uk.

Noise complaints, November 2011

I have received several complaints in the past few weeks about noise. Most of these complaints relate to loud conversations in the corridor, and sometimes inside bedrooms, rather than music.

For your own benefit and that of your neighbours, please take a few moments to read section on noise (pp 38-9) in the Residents’ Handbook. Being unable to sleep or work when you need to can make you annoyed and stressed, and can seriously impact on a person’s quality of life. I know you do not want to inflict those feelings on your neighbours.

Remember:

Noise travels further than you think, so talk quietly in corridors; don’t run or shout. It only takes one loud shriek down the corridor in the early hours of the morning to wake up all your neighbours. They don’t thank you for it. So please give extra consideration to how loud your
conversations might be between 11pm and 7am.

The walls between rooms are thin; and the floors and ceilings transmit sound very easily. Please make a conscious effort to think about your neighbours if you have visitors in your room at night.

The best place to meet friends at night is the common room, since there are no bedrooms nearby.

Our doors make a bang when they close. Please try to pull your door closed quietly at night so you don’t wake up your neighbours.

If you are being disturbed by noise, follow the advice given in the attachment for reporting the problem: tell someone straight away – so we can deal with the noise immediately – then send an email to make sure I get to hear about it.

I know that none of you is intentionally noisy, so I hope this gentle reminder will be enough to make you think again about your neighbours and make sure they are not disturbed.

Response to complaint about noise & diversity issues

I have received several replies by email and on Facebook to this post about a complaint made in a response to my "two quick questions" survey for November:

http://connaughthall.blogspot.com/2011/11/cultural-diversity-noise-complaint-in.html

The anonymous complainant said:

"I would recommend more strict enforement of after hour silence and
have a corridor monitor on most nights. The balance is too much towards
having mindless fun and this needs to be changed by the weak leadership. Also
residents of black and ethnic minority background needs to be more enfranchised
and protected, maybe you could have a diversity officer on the student
council."

I have considered this complaint in light of my own observations and the replies to my previous post. My response follows.

• There is no evidence that the overall balance in Hall is too far towards recreation at the expense of rest and/or study.
• There can be times when noise causes disturbance and disruption, but we have a well established, effective policy for dealing with this, set out at page 38 of the Residents' Handbook (http://handbook.connaught-hall.org.uk).
• Senior Members have responsibility for monitoring noise levels in their designated areas of the building. Moreover, sll residents are encouraged to discuss noise problems at an early stage with their neighbours, facilitied by the Warden or a Senior Member if they fell unconfortable doing this alone.
• I believe that the introduction of student "noise monitors" on every corridor would be divisive and insidious, bringing more harm than benefit to the Hall community.
• In the last three years, no complaints have been made about failures to protect the rights and interests of residents from black or ethnic minority backgrounds. Of course any such complaint would be dealt with as a most serious and urgent matter, and this responsibility would rest with me as the Warden. I am proud of our record on equality and diversity. We are the only intercollegiate hall to display an equality statement on public noticeboards: http://www.connaught-hall.org.uk/documents/Connaught-Hall-discrimination%20poster.pdf.
• The Constitution of the Residents' Club already requires the Clerk to the Club & Senior Treasurer "to ensure that the Club is operated in such a way that promotes equal opportunities and without discrimination on the basis of age, race, sex, creed, disability, political belief, social class, or sexual orientation". See http://constitution.connaught-hall.org.uk.
• I am not persuaded by the argument for a whole new post to monitor diversity issues but it may not be unreasonable to require the President or Secretary to take on a proactive diversity promotion role. I will consult with the Residents' Club Committee on this.

Cultural diversity & noise complaint in November "two quick questions" response

An early response to November's "two quick questions" says:

I would recommend more strict enforement of after hour silence and have a corridor monitor on most nights. The balance is too much towards having mindless fun and this needs to be changed by the weak leadership. Also residents of black and ethnic minority background needs to be more enfranchised and protected, maybe you could have a diversity officer on the student council.

There are some very concerning issues here. Unfortunately, the respondent has not left his/her email address, but if there are problems in the Hall with respecting cultural diversity and/or persistent, troublesome noise violations, it is very important these are properly reported so they can be acted upon.

Please email warden@connaught-hall.org.uk in confidence if you can add more details about these complaints.

If you haven't yet answered my two quick questions for November, you can do so here: http://www.connaught-hall.org.uk/pages/surveys.html.

German night: 3rd December 2011

On 3rd December at Connaught Hall we are hosting a celebration of Germany and German culture. This will be the second in a series of international cultural evenings, which start with American Thanksgiving on 24th November.

We need help! What should we organise?

I have asked the caterers to draw up a German-themed menu. Your suggestions for this will be very welcome. We have some German flags: I envisage having British, German, and EU flags
together on the stage. What other decorations could we have? Is there any particular music we should choose? Any traditional clothes, activities, or games? The bar will stock up on German beers but are there any other drinks we should have?

Post your ideas as a comment on my blog post email me, or tweet your suggestions including #connaughtgermannight in your tweet.

We will also need volunteers to help set up on the day, so if you have some free time on 3rd December, your help with decorating, etc., will be really appreciated.

Thanksgiving: 24 November 2011

This year, for the first time at Connaught Hall, we will celebrate Thanksgiving. Whilst the dates and traditions are slightly different for American and Canadian Thanksgiving, the underlying values are similar so it seems sensible to include both celebrations in ours.

We need help! What should we organise?

I have asked the caterers to have an American-themed (ideally traditional Thanksgiving) menu on Thursday 24th November. We have some patriotic North American decorations and flags – perhaps better suited to Independence Day, but we can use them nonetheless as a sign to other residents that this is an American celebration. I envisage having British, American, and Canadian flags together on the stage.

Is there any particular music we should choose? Any traditional activities, games, or readings? Should there be a speech? The bar will stock up on American beers and whisky but are there any other drinks we should have?

Please post a reply to this blog post with your ideas, tweet them using #connaughtthanksgiving, post your ideas on the Hall Facebook page, or email warden@connaught-hall.org.uk.