The Current State Assessment (CSA) highlighted a number of issues relating to timetabling:

• The inefficient use of staff time and effort in timetable creation (both in Schools and the Timetabling Unit);
• The inefficient publication of teaching and exam timetables (lack of a single and reliable source); and
• An inability to easily notify students of any changes to timetables.

In order to address these issues, the Outline Business Case (OBC4) proposed the solution should:

• Make full use of the Timetabling Unit, delivering a more efficient service;
• Provide students with a comprehensive, individual timetable that includes all their activities, including exams, in one place; and
• Deliver timetables into a standard electronic diary application such as Office 365 and include notifications functionality.

In addition to this, a separate timetabling project, SAS006 Comprehensive Timetable Analysis, that has been running concurrently, defined the makeup of a fully comprehensive student timetable and suggested the following recommendations:

• Evaluate priority and activity types for phased inclusion;
• Define the data requirements and method needed for the delivery of different activity types in a calendar; and
• Establish process standardisation and collaborative culture needed for delivery

Project Vision

The project will develop an intuitive, user-friendly service that optimises all University resources to provide a comprehensive and personalised timetable for students on Office 365.  This vision is supported by the endorsement from the SA&S Board to continue developing one centrally based service (the Timetabling Unit), which works in business partnership with Schools.

This would have the Timetabling Unit take on a total resource planning function with additional responsibilities and overall accountability (with oversight from the Senatus Curriculum and Student Progression Committee (CSPC)) for University timetable production/representation.

The standardisation of the timetabling processes will:

• Deliver a transparent structure with clearly defined and specialist roles both locally and centrally;
• Dedicated business processes and commitment to the Central Timetabling System, managed by the specialist team;
• Improve the quality of timetables produced for students and allow for a consistent central point for reliable and updatable information;
• Allow students to apply for changes through the specialist team, who have oversight of the university timetable and will represent change requests in the Central Timetabling System; and
• Support continued growth of University timetable activity type inclusion as identified in SAS006 Comprehensive Timetable Analysis.

Plan

Project will be divided into below Workstreams (WS) to track the progress; identify, assign & complete various project actions; and for reporting purposes.

• WS1 HR  & People Transition to TTU team and roles in schools
• WS2 Change
• WS3 Communication
• WS4 Ways of Working - standard ways across 3 colleges by means of reviewing business requirements (gaps/exceptions), agree process to be for Room Booking & Timetabling activities, standard operating procedures, training
• WS5 Logistics (estates/room/equipment)
• WS6 Governance & Policy - Project & SA&S Board, policy change approved by CSPC
• WS7 Medical School Room Booking System https://www.projects.ed.ac.uk/project/sas014 - System analysis/implementation to meet local Medical School's requirements to transfer activities to Core Timetabling Room Booking service  -The proposed in year project (SAS014) will address the medical school room booking requirements, mainly NHS access to Central Room Booking system and system compatibility
• WS8 MVM teaching timetabling data preparation and data migration. CSE timetabling data creation.

• Plan attached below
• Proposed project governance  attached below

Attachment	Size
timetabling_plan_june_2018.pptx	92.27 KB
sas_timetabling_project_governance_v0.1_1.pptx	119.35 KB