Category: News

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Food Waste Separation Trial

May 17, 2022

We’ve launched a pilot project to reduce more waste on our campuses by separating food waste in our halls of residence.

The Facilities team has teamed up with Cornwall Waste Solutions for this trial, which is underway in Glasney View blocks L and M, at Penryn Campus.

It is estimated that about a third of our household waste is food and we are aiming to divert this from general waste to anaerobic digestion facilities, where it can be turned into electricity, fuel and fertiliser.

Casey Thomas, Falmouth Exeter Plus Head of Facilities Management, said: “This is a key priority for the waste management team and supports both Falmouth and Exeter universities in their declarations of climate emergency and the plans to make our campuses more sustainable.”

There are 12 flats with about 80 student residents involved, with food caddies in each kitchen and waste bins close to the blocks. These larger bins are collected by a specially equipped truck that lifts, empties and then sprays the bins clean.

If successful, this scheme will be rolled out to other student residences at Penryn Campus.

Our main campus catering outlets at Falmouth and Penryn already have food waste collection in place.

For tips about how to reduce your own food waste, see https://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/ .

Bins being emptied into waste disposal truck
Waste Collection Caddy

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.

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IT & Digital Services score Compliance Plus in Customer Service Excellence

May 13, 2022

On 24th March, IT & Digital Services had their Customer Service Excellence Standard 12-month review assessment. The team, which manages IT and digital services across our university campuses, not only retained its standard but scored several ‘pluses’.

Gemma Prisk, Falmouth Exeter Plus IT & Digital Service Excellence Manager, said: “IT & Digital Services are committed to providing the highest levels of service and support to all customers and so were extremely pleased to not only score ‘full compliance’ across all 57 elements of the assessment for the second year running, but also to achieve compliance plus scores in the areas of ‘Customer Insight’, ‘Culture of the Organisation’ and ‘Delivery’.”

The Customer Service Excellence Standard is a Government quality standard for customer focused teams and organisations and is based on a rigorous assessment of 57 elements grouped into five criteria. By meeting the standard at the review assessment, IT continue to hold their place in the Customer Service Excellence Standard Directory.

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.

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Rooftop Training Day

May 11, 2022

Our Estates and Grounds maintenance teams have recently completed their rooftop safety training. Required every three years, Rig Systems led this session with participants learning how to stay safe on roofs and near unprotected edges. The one-day course included:

  • Legislation when working at height.
  • Risk Assessment for rooftop working.
  • Rooftop hazards and control measures.
  • Safe use of ladders (fixed & portable).
  • Edge protection.
  • Work restraint systems.
  • Fall arrest systems.
  • Emergency recovery plans

Our Health and Safety (H&S) team organises a whole variety of training sessions relating to employees’ work activities. Directors and other senior leaders from FX Plus and Falmouth University will soon be having their own bespoke day’s sessions covering legal responsibilities and liabilities.

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.

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Face covering recycling

May 6, 2022

If you have single-use face masks lying around then please feel free to drop them into the recycling bin in the Exchange foyer, Penryn Campus, or the Fox Café, Falmouth Campus. From here they will be combined with other ‘hard to recycle’ plastic items and sent to ReFactory, a company which will turn them into ‘stormboards’ that are then used for shopfitting, children’s furniture and new recycling bins.

Table made from recycled material
Colour coded recycle bins

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.

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New EV Charge points

April 25, 2022

Twelve new electric vehicle (EV) charging points are going to be installed at Penryn Campus.

The points, which will be in Car Park A, are in response to a growing demand as more people choose to buy electric vehicles meaning the two chargers currently installed don’t provide sufficient charging capacity.

They will be run by supplier Pod Point, a company which offers an app to make use and payment easier.

David Lawrence, Falmouth Exeter Plus Energy Manager, said: “This project will help to make our campuses more sustainable while also offering greater choice to users. While we try to encourage walking, cycling, or using public transport, we recognise that this is not always practical in Cornwall. These EV points will therefore support owners of more sustainable vehicles.”

The charging points will be installed in April and should be ready for use by the end of that month.

Further information on how to use the new electric vehicles charging points and location will be provided ready for use after upon completion of the installation.

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.

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Happy IWD 2022!

March 8, 2022

Happy International Women’s Day 2022.

At Falmouth Exeter Plus our female employees go right to the top (Managing Director Paula Sanderson)!

As we celebrate this year’s #breakthebias theme, here are some profiles of the great women working for us in just one of our many teams ….

FX Plus Security Team

The women within the Security Team at FX Plus stand out as a group of employees that collaborate, communicate and cooperate.  They are a powerful story of how a small but dedicated team can achieve great things.

Nat Brown – Head of Security Services.

Nat has a natural ability to extract the best from those within the team whilst providing support, exceptional advice and encouragement. Nat is leading the team through a transformative change producing tangible results, improving services whilst achieving an outstanding contribution to the organisation.

Louise Munn – Security Operations Officer.

Louise is dynamic individual who is working on the restructuring of security projects, processes and policies. Her ability to see things differently, has made a significant impact of the wellbeing of others. Louise’s efforts have made a positive impact to the working environment and culture of the business and its people.

Lois Craze – Security Team Supervisor.

Lois has a long track record of excellence within FX Plus and is particularly effective in taking control of a situation and introducing new ways of working. Lois effectively manages challenges and overcomes barriers when faced with difficulties. Lois seeks out new opportunities and demonstrates a desire to succeed matched by her ambition to turn those ideas into a success.

Misbah Abrahamjee – Security Team Supervisor.

Misbah has shown clear guidance and great strength to her colleagues during this time of crisis and transformation, she consistently shows great enthusiasm and resourcefulness whilst positively responding to the needs of the student and university communities.  Misbah pulls everyone together to propel the business forward whilst embodying the essence of teamwork.

Jess Goulding – Customer Services Manager.

Jess is nominated because of her innovation and customer focus demonstrating consistent support for our students and the universities and FX Plus employees.  Jess can be relied upon to provide a service that can be diversified to meet the changing needs of our community. Her leadership skills motivate a highly competent and efficient team.

Zoe Jenkins – Deputy Night Services Manager.

Zoe is making great strides towards achieving exceptional leadership. She is contributing positively and supporting others through great change and transformation.

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.

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Self serve refill launch

February 15, 2022

The Penryn Campus Shop has launched a new Bring Your Own (BYO), self-service refill section. This will help to reduce unnecessary packaging and waste.

The new refill range includes cereals and breakfast food; pasta; rice and snacks.

Customers can bring along their own refill container, weigh it, fill it up with their desired item, reweigh and pay.

To mark this launch, the Shop team is giving away free, reusable #oureffect food containers to the first 50 customers.

The new refill range includes:

  • Muesli
  • Porridge Quaker Oats
  • Quinoa
  • Banana Chips
  • Chickpeas
  • Couscous
  • Pumpkin Seeds
  • Basmati Rice
  • Penne Pasta
  • Fusilli pasta
  • Popcorn Kernels
  • Oriental Rice Crackers

For more information about Penryn Campus Shop, including opening times, please see our website.

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.

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Community furniture donations

February 3, 2022

Communities and organisations have been benefiting from furniture donations from our campuses as part of our commitment to sustainability.

The working styles of many people at Falmouth and Penryn campuses changed during COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. Furniture was taken out of rooms to allow for more space and social distancing.  As restrictions lift and people return to the campuses to work, many prefer the less cluttered office style.

Rather than throw away unwanted but good quality furniture, our Caretaking team has been busy finding new homes for it with community organisations and schools.

Lynn Storey, Falmouth Exeter Plus Facilities Operations Manager, said: “With our commitment to avoid disposal of any furniture that still has life left in it, we have been reaching out to local communities to see if we can find new homes for our furniture.

“Over the last few months the Penryn caretaking team has donated items to Cornwall Business School at their new space on Kernick Industrial Estate and the Dracaena Centre and Princess Pavilion in Falmouth. The Falmouth Caretaking team has also been busy supporting local schools and community projects, recently delivering sofas, seating and tables to Constantine Primary School and Camborne Contemporary Crafts Hub.”

Oliver Milliner, Head of Sustainability, added: “We are committed to making our campuses more sustainable via a variety of initiatives and this is a perfect example of repurposing and reusing. With thought and care, our Caretaking team has found a great way of supporting local communities while reducing waste.”

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.

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Celebrating Silver

January 28, 2022

Penryn and Falmouth campuses have progressed from a bronze to a silver award from the British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS) Hedgehog Friendly Campus programme.

The Hedgehog Friendly Campus project is a UK-wide initiative which aims to turn university campuses into places where hedgehogs can thrive.

Oliver Milliner is Head of Sustainability for Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus), the organisation that looks after services shared between Falmouth University and the University of Exeter at Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

He said: “We’re really pleased to have achieved this silver award and will be aiming for gold next year. Big thanks to all the teams who work together to keep our beautiful grounds full of biodiversity and, of course, hedgehog friendly. I’d also like to thank our Sustainability Intern Amber Brett who put this silver bid together.

“Staff and students have an opportunity to play an active role in what we do in the future so if any of you want to help us get to gold please contact me at sustainability@fxplus.ac.uk”

To earn the silver award, the FX Plus Sustainability and Grounds teams worked together to complete a series of tasks that help to protect and support hedgehog life on campus. These included:

  • Involving the Students’ Union in hedgehog friendly activities.
  • Start working towards pesticide free grounds management.
  • Organising campus litter picks.
  • Increasing the number of hedgehog friendly plants and trees.
  • Creating log piles which are a good hibernation habitat for hedgehogs.

To achieve Gold, FX Plus will need to focus on actions that leave a long-lasting legacy for hedgehogs on campus, such as:

  • Meeting the pesticide reduction targets set at silver.
  • Installation of a hedgehog crossing sign.
  • Setting up hedgehog feeding stations.
  • Establishing a hedgehog society which can run surveys and workshops.
  • Running hedgehog surveys in the local community.

Some facts about hedgehogs:

Since 2020, hedgehogs are listed as ‘Vulnerable to Extinction’ on Britain’s Red List.

They have declined by 50% in rural areas & 30% in urban areas since the year 2000.

Hedgehogs are lactose intolerant and shouldn’t eat bread – meaty pet food and fresh water is best if you want to feed wild hedgehogs.

Baby hedgehogs are called hoglets.

Strimmers and mowers can harm hedgehogs.

Hedgehogs hibernate in winter, from around November to March/April.

If you are worried about a hedgehog, contact the British Hedgehog Preservation Society on 01584 890801.

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.

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Vegetarian/vegan move for cafe

January 21, 2022

As a result of student feedback, we are pleased to announce that the Sustainability Café is now 100% vegetarian/ vegan.

Newly opened in September 2021, the vibrant café, which boasts spectacular views and contemporary indoor and outdoor seating, has been built using sustainable materials including Forest Stewardship Council certified timber, and furniture fabric made from upcycled, discarded ocean plastics.

The Food and Drink team actively engages with suppliers to reduce the environmental impacts of its operations. Fairtrade and south-west suppliers are sourced for bread, milk, cakes, confectionary, fruit, and vegetables, whenever possible.

The menu has been recently updated to include more vegan and locally sourced produce. Students, staff and campus visitors can enjoy a slice of vegetarian Homity Pie, Mediterranean Pie or gently spiced Chickpea and Spinach Vegan Pie, baked by Devonshire bakers, Peck and Strong. 

Organic vegan/vegetarian soup is made by Rod and Ben’s in Exeter, who only use locally sourced ingredients. Freshly prepared local Prima rolls are available with flavoursome fillings and are plated with seasonal salad and crisps.

Quench your thirst the Cornish way with Jolly’s soft drinks, or enjoy quality Cornish Coffee and Cornish Tregothnan loose leaf teas. A tempting selection of cakes is available including vegan options made by The Exploding Bakery in Devon. Confectionary includes Buttermilk vegan chocolate, made locally in Bodmin with sustainable packaging, and Fairtrade Divine chocolate, and Fairtrade Green & Blacks organic chocolate.

No single-use plastic bottles or disposable cups are available in the café and reusable cups are for sale with a hot drink included on first purchase.

To minimise plastic wastage on campus, a new sustainable milk refill initiative is open to all customers. Buy a litre of Cornish Trewithen Dairy semi-skimmed milk in our branded glass bottles for £3, then bring back your empty bottle and purchase a fresh bottle for £1.10.

To celebrate Veganuary, the Food & Drink team is also offering a small hot box value vegan curry in the Stannary exclusively in January for £2.50 for those wanting to try a vegan offer. Every day our chefs also prepare a hot vegan special in both the Stannary and Fox Café.

If you are craving pizza, Koofi provides vegetarian and vegan pizza as well as a gluten free option.

Our Penryn Campus Shop also has a dedicated vegan section and will be sharing vegan recipes throughout the month – online and in-store. Keep your eyes peeled on the food and drink social media for details and offers.

About FX Plus

Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus) delivers shared services for Falmouth University and the University of Exeter in Cornwall to ensure a top quality experience for students, staff and all users of Falmouth and Penryn campuses.

Our vision is to provide ‘Exceptional environments that enable talented and creative minds to thrive’.