The Students’ Union exists to benefit the students here at UOG and campaigning is a key part of making that happen!
Throughout the year our Full-Time Officers run campaigns to improve the lives of students from policy changes to awareness campaigns, keep up to date with what the officers are doing by looking through our Key Campaigns for the year!
1. Cost of Student Living - Paige Archer (she/her)
Activities & Opportunities Officer
Email: parcher2@glos.ac.uk
Instagram: www.instagram.com/uogsuactivitiesopps
The cost of living has increased dramatically in recent years and has led to deepened economic hardship, declining mental health, and a pervasive sense of uncertainty about the future in this country - students are not an exception to these impacts.
The cost of student living affects us all, but disproportionately affects people from a lower socio-economic background, and those with protected characteristics. I believe that this is an unignorable problem, which is why my campaign aims to provide more affordable University services for students, as well as alternative means of payment.
COST OF LIVING REPORT: COSL Feedback Fortnight Final Draft 5.pdf
What’s happened so far?
Community Cupboard
The community cupboard is for all students to use if they need it. Any student who is struggling financially can go to take a few food items for free. There is no specific process to take food, any student can take what they need, when they need it.
We are accepting donations from staff or students who are willing and able. Please stress that we are not expecting staff or students to purchase new foods to donate!! We want staff and students to be more sustainable by reducing food waste.
When donating items, please hand them to the SU Shop assistant on shift, so we can ensure all foods are in date and safe to eat. Please also ensure that all labels are visible in case of allergens and/or dietary requirements.
We're also proud to announce that our Community Cupboard scheme has been receiving attention from across the county! Recently, the BBC have been in touch to promote the scheme and learn more about our campaign. Find out more here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-64489899
Pay-in-2 with the SU
My campaign has successfully lobbied for a Pay-in-2 membership system for Sports memberships This means you no longer have to commit to paying the full price of the #TeamGlos membership (£120) at the beginning of the academic year. You can now split the payment into two instalments of £65; one in September and one in January.
1/3 of all Sports Club memberships have been paid for using the Pay-in-2 method (as of December 2022)
Additionally, 37.5% of students who purchased the Team Glso compete membership have used Pay-in-2
For more info, contact suactivities@glos.ac.uk
SU Activity Hardship Fund
The SU Activity Hardship Fund has been created to support students who wouldn't otherwise be able to participate in SU Activity due to the cost. Students can apply for up to £100 per academic year.
If successful in their application, the total funds will be discounted from the student's membership fees or equipment costs borne by the student.
Criteria
Applications must:
- Be from University of Gloucestershire students, submitted by the individual student, not on their behalf
- Apply for funding to enable their participation in a UoGSU student group e.g. membership fees or the purchase of equipment or kit specifically required for the activity or trips as part of a student group
- Show evidence of financial hardship and being unable to participate without the assistance of the Activity Hardship Fund
For more information - www.uogsu.com/sport/ourinclusivesportsculture/activityhardshipfund/
Printing and IT costs
We have been in talks with the university Library and IT department to reduce IT and printing costs for students, especially for those on courses that are heavily reliant on printing.
Stay tuned for more info!
Student ID Card/Pittville key card replacement costs
After speaking with IT and Libraries, we have successfully reduced the cost of a student ID card replacement from £2 to £1, by removing the admin fee.
At Pittville, there is a £20 fine for lost accommodation key card – we have spoken with Library and accommodation services to find a solution. If you lose your Pittville key card, go to a university campus library where you can replace it for £1. Then go to Pittville Student Village reception in the Laurie Leigh building, where the reception staff will be able to reprogramme your key card for you, for free. Saving you £19!
Activities with Archer
Get involved with Activities with Archer, where I play a sport or participate in an activitiy with a society or club! Find out more on how you can get involved by getting in touch! Last semester, I collaborated with the following societies/clubs:
- Women's football and futsal - Competed with the UoGWFC 2nd team in BUCS, a team I've personally been a part of throughout my time at UOG. I also competed in BUCS for UOG Women's Futsal 1st team as well!
- Education Society - Attended the bingo night fundraiser for Children in Need and helped bake cakes for their bake sale. Both events were a massive success!
- Social Issues Society with Refugee Society - I attended Social Issues Society with a student who got in touch, and had a great hearing different people's perspectives on topics such as the Qatar World Cup, the difference in global media representations of Ukraine and Syria, the issues with trafficking on the UK/France border, Priti Patel's anti-refugee bill and what we can do take action!
- Women's Hockey - I competed in a BUCS game for the 1st team away at the University of South Wales. It was a great experience playing with students from other sports teams!
This semester, I've already got some activities lined up in collaboration with Lacrosse and Equestrian BUCS competition. I still have 3 spaces left for this term, so do get in touch ASAP if you're interested in getting involved!
Feedback Fortnight & Pasta for a Penny
Feedback Fortnight is a 2-week period where we ask students to give us their feedback by filling in surveys and taking part in campaign activities for change.
During Feedback Fortnight, we held FREE food events called 'Pasta for a Penny', across all campus canteens. Students received a FREE pot of pasta in return for their feedback on the Cost of Student Living.
What was the penny for?
The 'penny' was a token that students used to answer the following question, “What financial struggles you are facing as a student?”
We gave out just under 300 pasta pots across 3 days! See the results of our finding in the link below.
2. #NeverOK - Beth Timmons (she/they)
Welfare & Diversity Officer
Email: btimmons2@glos.ac.uk
Instagram: www.instagram.com/uogsuwelfare
Our #NeverOK campaign builds on the work of our previous Welfare and Diversity Officer, whose campaign similarly strived to change the culture around harassment, assault, and abuse across all of our campuses and local night-time venues. Our aims for this year are to take the necessary steps in shifting the focus from victim-focused to survivor-focused narratives, and to educate students on helping create a safe environment across the University.
The way we intend to achieve these aims is outlined in our three Ps – Prep, Prevent, and Policy. By preparing student leaders with the requisite training, we hope that this will help foster a culture in which inappropriate behaviour is correctly called out and challenged.
By educating student leaders in things like bystander training and inappropriate behaviours within their respective sports clubs and societies, this would, in turn, trickle down to students in these communities. One of our biggest ambitions for this campaign would be to successfully secure funding from the Gloucester City Council to commission training packages focusing on violence against women & girls.
We also aim to review certain University policies, as well as those of night-time venues; in doing so, we hope to create stringent boundaries on what constitutes acceptable behaviour in these venues.
What's happened so far:
- #NeverOK straws in Park Campus bar!
- Survey on sexual harassment & misconduct distributed to all license holders in Cheltenham and Gloucester
- Free sanitary products in SU spaces!
3. Access All Areas (International Student Support) - Ellie Hill (she/her)
Access All Areas
Education & Community Officer
Email: ehill8@glos.ac.uk
Instagram: www.instagram.com/uogsuedcomm
The International Student Experience is adversely affected by several intertwined factors, perhaps underpinned by a lack of intercultural understanding. As a result, these students face considerable challenges in accessing multiple parts of their University life. I believe that three key areas need to change to improve the Student Experience for International Students: more internationally informed policy that is written in a student-friendly way, better informed members of senior leadership, and a fostered network dedicated to making international students feel welcome and well-connected to the University.
What's happened so far:
Feedback Sessions
Throughout last term, I made a concerted effort to speak to international students across a range of courses. I conducted various surveys and feedback sessions into matters such as transport & nighttime Safety, international students' course experience, flexible payment plans, accommodation, and various other topics.
I dropped into MBA Global and International Business cohorts and hosted feedback sessions to gain a better understanding of the challenges that international students are faced with.
International Events
To celebrate the diverse cultures we have here at UoG, we've worked hard to host various cultural events in SU spaces. Last term, we hosted both a Nigerian food event, and a Sri Lankan food event in collaboration with the Coconut Tree. In December, we hosted our very own Festivities Festival for students staying at home for Christmas, allowing students to bring food from their respective cultures and share it with other students. The event ending up being a huge success! For January Welcome, we're hosting another FREE international food event in collaboration with Coconut Tree, so come along, bring your friends and enjoy!
Ellie's Education Hour
As part of my campaign, I'll be running 'Ellie's Education Hour', which aims to provide hour-long workshops for students based on a range of education-related topics. Similar to the feedback sessions convened last term, I will be dropping into select cohorts and work through various academic issues they may be facing. We hope these sessions will provide an open, non-judgemental space for students to air their grievances. We also aim to collect data from these sessions, which would then help us identify trends, and allow us to suggest positive changes to the University. These workshops will be hosted in collaboration with our Student Subject Coordinators (SSCs), but please do get in touch if you think your cohort would benefit from these!
- Nigerian and Sri Lankan food events in early October
- Access All Areas leaflets available in Park Campus!
- Feedback sessions for MBA Global and International Business Students carried out
Our Officers are not the only ones that can advocate for change through campaigning – if you are interested in running a campaign, follow the steps below to kick-start the process.
- Form a plan - start by filling out the problem tree to give initial structure to your idea.
- Campaign Form - fill out the campaign form below giving a plan to your campaign, it also notifies the Student Voice Team.
- Discuss with Us - after reviewing your form, we will organise a meeting with you to discuss ways to action and escalate your campaign.