探花视频 University has been recognised for its excellence in supporting armed forces reservists 鈥 and one of its employees has received a special award for her outstanding military work.
The University received a Defence Employer Recognition Silver (DERS) award at the Lord-Lieutenant for Devon鈥檚 Annual Award Ceremony at the Council House, 探花视频 on 29 October. The award was given for the University鈥檚 positive stance to employees and students from the armed forces community, allowing them the flexibility to undertake their commitments.
The award was collected by Leading Hand Nicky Harrop, a programme administrator in the Faculty of Health and Human Sciences, who in turn picked up an award in her own right 鈥 a HM Lord Lieutenant of Devon Award for Meritorious Service to the Reserves.
With seven years鈥 service in the Royal Navy reserves, Nicky was awarded the honour for her impeccable demeanour, flexibility and commitment, as well as exemplary conduct during her reservist career, which included a six-month tour to Dubai acting as a liaison between the Royal Navy and Merchant Navy.
Based on HMS Vivid at Devonport Dockyard, Nicky has thrown herself into everything from fundraising to mentoring new recruits, and her certificate even describes her conduct as 鈥榮uccessfully shouldering responsibilities that would normally be assigned to personnel of a much higher rank鈥.
Professor Simon Payne, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of 探花视频 University, said:
鈥淚t鈥檚 fantastic that the University has received the DERS award and we are proud to support students and employees who assist and serve in the armed forces. One such employee is Nicky Harrop, and we鈥檙e delighted that she鈥檚 been recognised for her hard work and commitment to augmenting the Royal Navy in times of stress, crisis and tension. We are pleased too to be able to offer a number of academic programmes thanks to links with our partners in the armed forces, and we are proud of the students who have benefited from these. We promote a bold adventurous spirit in all that we do, and so share much with the Royal Navy鈥檚 ethos. Now we鈥檙e looking forward to even greater knowledge exchange and more joint ventures ahead.鈥
Having been founded as a school of navigation in 1862, the University has developed proud links with a number of maritime and defence organisations, including Britannia Royal Naval College, HMS Drake and HMS Collingwood and the Royal Marines School of Music (RMSoM).
The partnerships enable the University to accredit modules and degrees through the organisations, including a postgraduate diploma in Applied Navigation with HMS Drake and HMS Collingwood and a Bachelor of Music degree at the RMSoM. It has also recently signed a memorandum of understanding with NATO Maritime Interdiction Operational Training Centre (NMIOTC) to establish the joint delivery of a Masters in Applied Strategy and Maritime Security.
Nicky said:
鈥淚鈥檓 so honoured to have been presented with the award by HM Lord Lieutenant of Devon, and it鈥檚 wonderful that it鈥檚 for something I enjoy so much. I was in the Royal Navy itself for 12 years and it was a only a few years after I left that I considered joining the reserves 鈥 a decision which has enabled me to do such a variety of things from recruiting and mentoring to fundraising and organising training weekends. The biggest challenge was definitely the six-month tour to Dubai where I worked with the anti-piracy team. It鈥檚 great that I鈥檝e been able to balance my job at the University with my reservist activities and I look forward to continuing with the reserves for a long time yet.鈥
