Travel and purchasing

During your studies you may need to arrange travel or to purchase goods or services to support your research.

Travel

All travel and accommodation bookings should be made via Key Travel, however in the first instance please contact your Graduate School who will help guide you through the process. Further information regarding Key Travel can also be found on the University’s Finance pages and Purchasing pages.

If you are travelling outside of the UK on behalf of the University (for conferences, fieldwork, etc) you may be covered by the Worldwide Business Travel insurance policy purchased by the University. More information is available on the Insurance section of the University website and you can get in touch with the team to check if you will be covered.

If you are doing fieldwork or other research activities away from the University for one month or longer, you must complete a Change of Study Location form on GRAD. This is especially important to do if you are studying here on a Tier 4 or Student Visa.

If you are organising fieldwork, you must ensure an effective fieldwork assessment process in in place to minimise risk and ensure that as a University we fulfil our duty of care to protect staff, PGRs and other affected people. Wellbeing, Safety and Health Services set out what the University requires of staff and PGRs in respect of fieldwork health and safety considerations, along with guidance to help achieve this. For further information, please see the Wellbeing, Safety and Health webpage and consult your Graduate School on faculty/school fieldwork processes and guidance.

Purchasing

Purchasing processes vary across the university so if you need to buy anything for your project please speak to your supervisor first who can advise you on the local arrangements and how to use any relevant account codes.

For further information, including training on commonly used purchasing systems and partners like Science Warehouse, Key Travel and SIPR, please refer to the Purchasing website.