Mumbai-based YES BANK, India’s fifth largest private sector Bank, has pledged one million pounds to LSE to support the IG Patel Chair - named in honour of the former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India and former Director of LSE.

Rana Kapoor, Founder, Managing Director and CEO of YES BANK, signed an agreement with Deputy Director and Provost Professor Robin Mansell, pledging ten years of funding for the Chair which will be held initially by Professor Lord Nicholas Stern.

"I am delighted to be able to announce that the LSE Nursery has just been awarded a rating of Good by OFSTED inspectors. Well done to all in the nursery team.

"The nursery is a valuable facility on our doorstep and I would encourage LSE staff and student parents of young children to take full advantage of it."
Julia Black, Interim Director (from September 2016)

Places are available for all age groups, from three months to five years. Details are here. The LSE Nursery is in Grosvenor House, just a couple of minutes’ walk from campus. Details of the fees, and how to get help with paying them, are here.

LSE Catering is delighted to achieve a 'Two Star - Excellent Rating' from the Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) for the Fourth Floor Restaurant, LSE Garrick, Staff Dining Room and catered halls (Bankside, Carr-Saunders, Passfield and Rosebery).

The SRA celebrates everything that is good about the food service industry and the people in it. Its President is leading chef Raymond Blanc and it is a non-profit organisation that looks at restaurants food sourcing, society and the environment.

Dr Leonidas Cheliotis, Assistant Professor in Criminology at the Department of Social Policy, has won the prestigious Adam Podgòrecki Prize for 2016.

The prize is awarded biannually by the International Sociological Association (Sociology of Law Section) 'for outstanding achievements in socio-legal research within ten years following completion of a doctorate degree'.

Dr Cheliotis won the prize for his published work in the sociology of crime and punishment. He will be presented with the prize at an award ceremony during the International Sociological Association's third quadrennial Forum, which will take place in Vienna, Austria, between 10-14 July.

Shadowing is a fantastic way to get to know other parts of the School. You could meet colleagues who you have only interacted with by email or discover a team in the School it might be useful for you to work with more in the future. It’s also a great way to learn hands-on what other people in LSE do.

• Get in touch if you would welcome the opportunity to show a colleague from another part of the School what you and your team do.
• Get in touch if you would like to discover more about a team or area of the School through shadowing.

Email PSFORUMS@lse.ac.uk with your name, job role, department/division; and if you would like to shadow another colleague or team please specify if there is an area you are particularly interested in. Please check with your line manager before you submit your request. The deadline for expressions of interest is Thursday 28 July.

The expectation is that this is a one-off opportunity which would be 2-3 hours long and would take place before the start of Michaelmas Term if possible.

This initiative is one step in setting up a Professional Services Network, but is open to all staff at LSE to help us to learn about and understand LSE better.

Friday 5 August, 10-11.30am, Old Theatre, Old Building

On 5 August, Cubane Consulting will be running a launch event for the Uniforum Benchmarking programme. All Professional Services Staff are welcome to attend the event, but it will be of particular interest to those who have roles as Primary Contacts and Respondents.

Respondents are currently being identified by the Primary Contacts. If you are unsure if you have a role within the Programme, please check with your line manager. The Programme team is also available to answer related queries at uniforum@lse.ac.uk.

This event will introduce participants to what the UniForum collection process involves, the various roles within it and all the available support tools. The event will be facilitated by Cubane Consulting and will be in the form of a web-conference. It is estimated to last for 90 minutes, with an hour of presentations followed by a 30minute Q&A session.

For more detailed information on the UniForum programme, please visit the webpage. Thank you in advance for all your support and your role in this process.

Are you great with people and data? Then we want to hear from you!

The UniForum Benchmarking Programme has a secondment opportunity for a Data Analyst role. The secondment will be based in the Directorate for a period of six months, starting as soon as possible.

This is an exciting opportunity to get involved in a key School initiative working with colleagues across all departments and divisions.

Further information is available here, or if you would like to discuss the role informally please contact Cecilia Okereke (extn 7100) or Andy Wilson (extn 5214) in the Directorate. If you are interested in the role please speak to your line manager before expressing your interest through Uniforum@lse.ac.uk.

The UK’s status as a full member of the Horizon 2020 programme has not changed as a result of the referendum vote. Existing project grants and contracts will be honoured. The Prime Minister and senior officials in the European Commission have confirmed that UK participants can continue to apply to Horizon 2020 until any withdrawal from the EU is complete.

The extent of UK participation in future EU research programmes will depend on domestic decisions by the UK Government, and negotiations with the EU. The Government has stated that it is "determined to ensure that the UK continues to play a leading role in European and international research." Read the full statement by Jo Johnson, Minister of State for Universities and Science.

A web page containing detailed FAQs, external links and providing regular news and updates has been set up as part of The LSE Blog. It will be regularly modified and added to as developments occur.

Colleagues with ongoing projects or who are considering submitting new proposals to Horizon 2020 should contact Research Division for more information and up to date advice.

To sign up the Research Division's Research Briefing, contact Amanda Burgess.

On Sunday 7 August 8am to 8pm, IMT will carry out essential network maintenance, performing key systems upgrades and replacing equipment in preparation for the new academic year.

LSE IT services will experience intermittent outages throughout the day for up to one hour at a time. Please be aware that while services may be available for brief periods, they are at risk of losing connectivity to the LSE network for the duration of the maintenance period.

For full details, please see the LSE IT News blog.

Our new instant messaging service, Skype for Business (S4B) is currently being rolled out to all staff.

S4B is an effective unified communication platform which can help you keep in contact with colleagues via the audio, video, web conferencing, telephony and instant messaging services. Easy and intuitive to use, S4B can change the way you collaborate.

All staff will have access to Skype for Business at some point between 6-13 July, please see the roll out schedule for full details.

For more information about this new service, please see the LSE IT News Blog.

Learning Technology and Innovation (LTI) is pleased to announce the roll out of Turnitin originality check from within Moodle across the School from Tuesday 16 August.

Turnitin provides originality checks against webpages, library catalogues, journals and publications but also other student submitted work (within LSE and other institutions). By integrating Turnitin into Moodle, originality checking becomes more efficient, reliable and a robust solution in identifying matched text through the production of originality reports and scores (%); viewed directly within Moodle.

LTI has trialled the integration at eleven departments across the School; liaising with ARD, GLPD, IMT, SU and TLC throughout.

We will roll out the integration across departments and are developing supporting material for teachers and students ranging from documentation, videos, FAQs etc. Please visit our blog for more information.

If you would like LTI to demo how Turnitin in Moodle works, book a place to our briefing or get in touch with LTI for one-to-one or departmental sessions.

Green Impact is an environmental accreditation scheme where teams from departments across the School implement practical changes in their offices to reduce LSE’s environmental impacts, and compete for awards.

It is a flexible programme where teams can choose actions that are relevant to their own department, and complete projects in line with their own sustainability challenges or interests. Teams are fully supported through this process by the LSE Sustainability team and funding is available for projects.

For more information, click here or contact Naomi.

The Language Centre has an enhanced programme of short but sweet Arabic, French, German, Italian, Korean, Mandarin, Russian, Portuguese and Spanish courses available this Summer.

Courses run at various times throughout June - August and range from absolute beginner taster courses to more intensive options.

Continuing its tradition of asking staff and students to recommend books for the holidays, the Teaching Blog this year asked some of the Leadership Team to share their choices.

Read Julia Black on Amitav Ghoshs’s Ibis Trilogy, Paul Kelly on scholarly and beautiful books about Schubert, and Eric Neumayer on Marlon James and Katherine Boo.

If you're following ‪#‎Euro2016 why not check out these vintage footballing photos from our archive?

Taken from the 1930s to the 1980s, they tell the story of football at LSE.

On Thursday 23 June, the UK went to the polls to vote in the referendum on the UK's membership of the EU.

The LSE European Institute, in partnership with The UK in a Changing Europe, organised the LSE Referendum Night 2016, an evening of panel debates between LSE academics and external experts as well as expert commentaries as the first results were reported from across the nation.

The following podcasts from the evening are now available:

• Sir David Butler in conversation with Tony Travers, LSE
• 21.00 - 23.00: LSE Referendum Night 2016 part 1
• 23.00 - 02.00: LSE Referendum Night 2016 part 2

A team of LSE Blogs were live blogging throughout the night via the LSE Brexit Vote Blog's Storify. A selection of photos from the evening are available to view here.

Join the continuing conversation about the Referendum on Twitter using the hashtag: #LSEBrexitVote.

New Video: Where next for the UK and the EU after the referendum?
On: Tuesday 28 June, Hong Kong Theatre, Clement House
Speakers: Simon Hix, Harold Laski Professor of Political Science at the LSE and a UK in a Changing Europe ESRC Senior Fellow; Anand Menon, Professor of European Politics and Foreign Affairs at King’s College London and Director of The UK in a Changing Europe; Angus Armstrong, Director of Macroeconomics at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR); Patrick Dunleavy, Professor of Political Science and Public Policy, Government Department, LSE.

LSE European Institute/BrexitVote public discussion in association with The UK in a Changing Europe. Watch the video from the event here.

LSE GROUPS - the School’s end-of-year research project opportunity for undergraduates - ended with an impressive flourish last month. At the closing conference on 10 June, there were presentations on gentrification and defensive architecture in Tower Hamlets, community engagement in tackling fuel poverty, analysis of income and disability in London transport, and many other topics. Awards were given in various categories.

Watch a film, read the students’ research papers and access a short write-up of the conference at the LSE GROUPS web page.

The second edition of the 2010 book Copyright and E-learning: a guide for practitioners by Jane Secker, LTI’s Copyright and Digital Literacy Advisor, is now available.

The book covers a topic that has fascinated Jane for over a decade and been central to her job at LSE: copyright law and its relationship to online learning.

You can read more about the book in a recent blog post.

LSE BUG is the bicycle user group for LSE staff and students to come together and discuss how to improve cycling in and around the School.

Come to our launch meeting on Tuesday 12 July at 5pm in 32.L.B.07 to find out more. All are welcome.

Following the success of our previous Champagne Pop-Up, LSE Catering once again have the ice buckets and flutes at the ready to bring a touch of sophistication to the 8th floor of the New Academic Building.

Come along between 5-8pm on Friday 22 July and indulge in a glass or two of your favourite bubbly. The great roof terrace offers stunning views over London and a chance to enjoy your drinks al fresco.

The event is open to all, so bring along your friends and colleagues.

Are you on salary band 6 or higher and would you like to learn more about your pension scheme?

On 1 April 2016 there was a change to how your future benefits are worked out. Additionally, from 1 October 2016 there will be a new opportunity to save more with the help of your employer.

Register now for the ‘USS 2016’ presentation at LSE on Wednesday 14 September.

Thursday 14 July, 6.30-8pm, Hong Kong Theatre, Clement House
Speaker: Chrystia Freeland, Canada’s Minister of International Trade

In a world of growing protectionist trends, how can trade respond to the concerns of people who feel they were left behind, and how can we shape the 21st century inclusive trade agenda that everyone will benefit from.

Another forthcoming LSE event includes:

The Rise and Fall of Nations
Tuesday 12 July, 6.30pm, Old Theatre, Old Building
Speaker: Ruchir Sharma

Sunday 17 July, 7.30pm, Sheikh Zayed Theatre, New Academic Building

Once again, physics is facing foundational questions: What is the nature of time? What is the nature of space? What is the role of the mind in the description of reality? Questions of this sort, argues physicist and best-selling author Carlo Rovelli, cannot be addressed without philosophical awareness.

The lecture will be followed by a book signing so don’t forget your copy of Rovelli’s best-selling Seven Brief Lessons on Physics.

Monday 25 July, 6.30-8pm, Hong Kong Theatre, Clement House
Speaker: Sir Malcolm Rifkind

For almost forty years, Malcolm Rifkind served at the forefront of British politics. In this lecture, Sir Malcolm will give a lively account of his years in government and opposition, detailing his involvement in some of recent history’s most important events. This event marks the launch of Sir Malcolm's new book, Power and Pragmatism: The Memoirs of Malcolm Rifkind.

Fawcett at 150: new horizons or same old battles? What future for feminism?
Speaker: Sam Smethers
Recorded: Thursday 9 June, approx. 59 minutes

The European Union: a citizen's guide
Speaker: Dr Chris Bickerton
Recorded: Wednesday 15 June, approx. 88 minutes

Thinking in Public: philosophy, politics and the public
Speakers: Catherine Audard, Professor Geoffrey Bennington, and Professor François Noudelman
Recorded: Thursday 16 June, approx. 89 minutes

Great to see so many people exploring the campus in the sunshine!

For more images like this, visit the Photography Unit or check out the School's Instagram page.

The LSE High Performance Computing (HPC) team, in partnership with Amazon, is running a workshop on Cloud Computing on Friday 8 July between 2-5pm in 32L.LG.04.

Open to all academic staff, PGR and PGT students at LSE, the event will consist of a number of presentations from Amazon on the various cloud services they offer and how these are used by researchers before concluding with a networking session.

To request a place, please sign up via the Training and Development System.