Hot desking

Excitement mounts at the Committee of Vice Chancellors and Principals as it prepares to move into new headquarters, a few doors down from its rambling rooms in Bloomsbury's Tavistock Square. Some members, nervous at the prospect of open-plan offices, are busy honing their social skills. But more problematic will be relations with one prospective tenant and neighbour, the Universities and Colleges Employers Association.

Coffee-borrowing encounters may be strained, since UCEA is likely to be unpacking its bags just when vice chancellors are deciding whether it should clear the association's desks for good.