WHELF quarterly meeting news update.
WHELF met at Gregynog Hall for their October residential meeting.
Present: Sue Hodges (Acting Chair) Bangor; Emma Adamson, Cardiff Metropolitan; Andrew Dalgliesh, University of South Wales; Ann Davies, OU; Alison Harding, UWTSD: Carmarthen & Lampeter; Julie Hart, Aberystwyth; Anne Harvey, UWTSD, Swansea; Mark Hughes, Swansea; Avril Jones ,NLW (on behalf of Aled Gruffydd Jones) ; Mark Lester; University of Wales; Janet Peters, Cardiff; Nicola Watkinson, Glyndwr (on behalf of Paul Jeorett); Rachael Whitfield, WHELF Development Officer, Steve Williams, Swansea.
WHELF Action Plan –progress report
The Strategic Aim Leads and support utilised the first session of the meeting on Thursday to to discuss and update the WHELF Action Plan for 2014-15. WHELF agreed that the Strategic Aims set during 2013-14 remained our focus for the Action Plan for the forthcoming year. These Strategic Aims are:
- Aim 1: Student Experience
- Aim 2: Research and Enterprise
- Aim 3: International and globalised University
- Aim 4: Workforce Development
The WHELF Action Plan for 2014-15 is currently being finalised and will be circulated and made available via the WHELF website (www.whelf.ac.uk).
WHELF Shared LMS Project
Underpinning and linking into these Strategic Aims is the WHELF Shared Library Management System Project. The project is lead by the WHELF Shared LMS Project Manager with support from the WHELF Shared LMS Working Group and WHELF Shared LMS Steering Group. The WHELF Shared LMS project will procure and implement as part of a consortium of institutions including all higher education institutions in Wales, the National Library of Wales and the NHS libraries in Wales, a cloud hosted next generation bilingual library management system. The project will deliver financial benefits to all participating institutions through the cost savings of shared procurement and non-financial benefits through an improved user experience, collaboration and sharing of experience and resources. The project has made excellent progress this year thanks to the enthusiasm, commitment and hard work of the Project Manager and the Working Group.
Friday morning at Gregynog was allocated to the WHELF Shared LMS Steering Group meeting to review the drafted contract and terms and conditions. This was followed by a workshop session to roadmap and envisage the longer term possible opportunities for collaboration and sharing once all institutions are migrated to the new system.
WHELF is looking forward to being able to announce imminently the chosen supplier for its shared LMS and the implementation stage will then commence.
SWETS
WHELF regrets to hear of the loss of the SWETS service due to bankruptcy.
Digital Preservation Coalition
WHELF been contacted by the Digital Preservation Coalition to ask if they would like to join as associate members and WHELF discussed whether this would be a viable option for them. The National Library of Wales has full membership of the DPC and Aberystwyth University and the Open University are associate members. WHELF will invite a reprsentative of the DPC to attend their next meeting to find out more about the role and function of the DPC and how WHELF can collaborate with this group.
Updates from WHELF Sub-groups and External Groups
As a collaborative working group WHELF values the opportunity to meet together and enable the sharing of information and ideas via the various networks where WHELF members have representation. We received updates at the meeting via WHELF Reps from the SCONUL Executive Board, SCONUL User Experience Group and the SCONUL Strategy Groups. We also received reports from the CyMAL Libraries Inspire Advisory Group, Cilip Cymru/Wales and a round up of news and views from all WHELF institutions.
The WHELF sub-groups: Archives & Special Collections, Copyright, ALIS (Accessible Libraries and Information Services Wales) and WHISD (WHELF/HEWIT staff training and development) provided WHELF at the meeting with updates from their recent meetings and areas of current activity as directed by the WHELF Action Plan. The WHEEL sub-group continues to be highly productive, renewing deals and securing new opportunities to jointly procure electronic resources for WHELF institutions including Oxford University Press, Sage, and Cengage.
WHELF news
Thanks were expressed to Mark Lester for attending to represent the University of Wales at WHELF meetings over this year. Bronwen Blatchford will be returning in January 2015.
We welcomed the attendance at Gregynog of Steve Williams (Deputy Director ISS, Swansea University) and his input and support to the WHELF Action Plan for 2014-15.
For further information please contact:
Rachael Whitfield (WHELF Development Officer)
www.whelf.ac.uk @WHELFed
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