Coronavirus: Ulster University plans to reopen fully in 2021

Ulster University (UU) plans to have resumed all teaching on campus by the start of the 2021 academic year.

That is the final step in a five point "target operating plan" provided to staff and students.

It said that it would resume many on-campus activities and teaching earlier if public health advice allowed.

The vice chancellor previously said that lectures would be held online until Christmas but small group teaching could take place on campus.

In an email to staff on Wednesday, Prof Paul Bartholomew said that the university was "working meticulously towards full campus operations".

He said that while the health of staff and students was the priority, UU would have "flexibility" in how it operated.

The five-point plan runs from the initial lifting of lockdown from May 2020 to what it calls "business as usual or 'new normal'" for the academic year beginning in September 2021.

On 21 September 2020 - at the start of the 2020/21 academic year - lectures will be online, but some small group teaching in tutorials and seminars and practical work in laboratories will take place on campus.

Libraries, sports facilities and some food outlets will reopen while adhering to social distancing guidelines.

Student accommodation across the university's four campuses will be fully open.

During the 2020/21 academic year, the university aims to resume group teaching, including lectures on campus, while all other services will gradually reopen physically rather than being provided online.

By step five of the plan - in September 2021 - the university aims to have a full resumption of teaching, research and social activities on its four sites.

However, UU said the plan outlined the "current projected delivery for key services" and that it would be reviewed and updated regularly.