Governance - Policies

External Publications and Publicity Policy

Approved by the Registrar and Secretary, January 2008

1 Introduction

As competition for students and funding intensifies, the presentation of the College externally, both in the UK and overseas - to prospective students and other stakeholders, to benefactors, government and funding agencies, to business and the local community and to the general public - is of ever-increasing importance. Externally, high standards of content and presentation reflect the College's academic standing and self-esteem.

In addition, promotional and recruitment materials (advertisements, prospectuses and departmental booklets) play a major part in the student decision-making process; potentially any of these could form the basis of a contract between student and the College, and there is an increasing need to develop and maintain quality control mechanisms.

This Policy aims to ensure that:

• The College presents and promotes itself to its external markets positively and effectively, making the best possible use of resources through strategic planning;
• All material distributed externally, for promotional purposes, represents and reflects the College's brand, activities, culture and ethos in a coherent, consistent and accurate way, including through the use of visual language and images;
• All student recruitment materials are accurate and representative, without being misleading; accessible and user-friendly; contain the appropriate amount of relevant information to a potential applicant's needs; and up-to-date in terms of design and content;
• The highest possible standards of design and production for such materials are achieved, within existing financial constraints;
• The standard and content of academic publications appearing under the Goldsmiths' imprint, is consistent with the College's high academic standards;
• Appropriate expertise and resources within the College are made available to individual academic and administrative departments in the preparation of promotional publications and publicity materials;
• Any external, including statutory, requirements laid upon the College in respect of publications and publicity are observed;
• All electronic publications and web-based materials are legally and morally acceptable and conform to the highest possible standards.

The Policy has been approved by the Registrar and Secretary. All departments are expected to work within the guidelines

2 Responsibilities

2.1 Research and Knowledge Transfer Committee

Under its terms of reference, Research and Knowledge Transfer Committee has responsibility for advising the Pro-Warden (Research and Enterprise ) on matters relating to College academic publications.

2.2 Communications and Publicity

Communications and Publicity has responsibility for:

• Overseeing, providing advice on, and implementing approved policy with regard to the content and production of departmental student recruitment and promotional publications. Such materials include prospectuses, advertisements, booklets, leaflets, posters, flyers, signage, exhibition materials, DVDs, CD-Roms and videos;
• Handling all corporate and departmental student recruitment advertising for Home/EU recruitment.
• Overseeing arrangements for the production of academic publications produced under the Goldsmiths' imprint, including submission of proof copies to the Pro-Warden (Research and Business Enterprise) for approval for the issue of Goldsmiths ISBN/ISSN numbers, issue of the ISBN/ISSN, oversight of production, and undertaking distribution to copyright agencies;
• Supplying information for external directories and guides, regarding the College and its programmes;
• Co-ordinating PR and media relations and acting as the College's official spokesperson, as appropriate;
• Overseeing, monitoring and implementing approved policy with regard to branding and corporate identity (including house style and use of the College's logo), in conjunction with the Reprographic Services Manager;
• Advising on the use of external printers, designers and other related suppliers, monitoring the services provided, and ensuring that work referred to such suppliers conforms with the College's policies.

2.3 Reprographic Unit

The Reprographic Unit has responsibility for:

• Providing advice on, monitoring and implementing approved policy with regard to the College's branding and corporate identity including monitoring the use of the College's logo, and supplying logos and user guidelines electronically to internal and external users, on request;
• Liaising with Communications and Publicity and other departments, to provide advice on and implementing approved policy with regard to student recruitment materials produced under the College's Recruitment and Promotional Materials Scheme;
• Advising on the use of external printers, designers and other related suppliers, monitoring the services provided by those suppliers, ensuring that work referred to such suppliers conforms with the College's policies;
• Implementing agreed arrangements for the design and printing of academic publications, produced under the College's imprint, in conjunction with Communications and Publicity.

2.4 Web Services

Web Services are responsible for:

• Managing and approving all web production, in accordance with policies approved by the Registrar and Secretary;
• Approving suitability of a project for the Goldsmiths web site;
• Providing advice on, and assistance with, the preparation of contributions for the College's web site;
• Ensuring that corporate and departmental pages on the web site conform in terms of the College's branding and corporate identity.

2.5 Estates and Facilities

Estates and Facilities has responsibility for:

• Producing external and internal signage for buildings, and for ensuring that such items conform to the College's corporate identity.

3 Procedures

All departments and individual members of staff are expected to work within this Policy and framework and to ensure that all material intended for external distribution is prepared in accordance with College policies and procedures.

4 Promoting new programmes

Under the terms of the Policy, new or proposed programmes cannot be advertised or promoted in any prospectus, departmental booklet, leaflet, web page or advertisement, without the prior agreement of the Pro-Warden (Academic). Once written approval is given, such programmes can be promoted through Communications and Publicity, but must be marked as subject to regulation unless they have completed the approval process.

5 Withdrawal of unsuitable materials

Under the terms of the Policy, the Head of Communications and Publicity, the Reprographic Services Manager or the Head of Web Services, as appropriate, are authorised to query items which appear to contravene approved style or which fail to meet an adequate standard of presentation for the intended purpose.

Under certain circumstances, the Head of Communications and Publicity, the Reprographic Services Manager, or the Head of Web Services (as appropriate), are also authorised to require that materials which do not meet the College's high standards are withdrawn from use. Examples may include potentially litigious or inaccurate content, statements made which cannot be supported by documentary evidence, badly designed or produced materials which fail to meet requirements laid down by the Policy, or materials which violate, or appear to violate, registered trademarks.

Online material is subject to the Web Publishing Policy, which imposes certain technical standards and approval procedures. Material which breaches the Web Publishing Policy may be removed by the Head of Web Services.

In such cases, the Head of Communications and Publicity, the Reprographic Services Manager, or the Head of Web Services (as appropriate) will write to the head of the relevant department.

[Procedures for the Implementation of the External Publicity and Publicity Policy]