Officer update: Harm Reduction, societies grant and more

Thursday 14-12-2023 - 12:46

You've made it to the end of the semester! If you're anything like us you're probably already planning how to spend your well-deserved break.

You know who else deserves a break? Your Officers. For the last 6 months they've been working hard to improve the experience of every student at the University. Have a look at what they've been up to.

Ethan - President

I’m Ethan, your President at The Union, and this is an update about what the Officer Team and I have been up to during the first semester.

We have been very busy this first semester working with senior leaders at the University and putting student’s interests first. We have helped to change and shape policy, supported important campaigns, and provided activities for students to take a break from their studies.
Here is a few of the things I have personally been up to…

+ Worked with a group within the University to lobby for a change in policy regarding drugs, moving from a zero tolerance to a harm reduction approach. I am now in the process of adding extra provisions for students who may be struggling with substances, such as Amnesty Bins

+ Supported University of Manchester Students' Union's famous ‘Reclaim the Night’ campaign by hosting a warm safe space in All-Saints, and providing refreshments along the route of the march

+ I've been a part of the Greater Manchester Student Partnership, a collaborative effort between elected Student Officers from five universities in Greater Manchester to lobby for changes to the council. We meet up regularly to discuss issues affecting the whole student population. Through this I am working on the Good Landlord Charter, a way to highlight landlords who do more than the legal minimum required and expose those who aren’t.

+ I brought to the attention of senior staff at the university an issue regarding course-related cost bursaries to the Manchester Fashion Institute. I am happy to say the university took action that allowed for almost £50,000 of funding to go to students who expected to receive this money.

Moving into the new year, after some well-deserved rest, we will not be slowing down. We were elected by our student population at MMU, and as such will continue to act in their best interest.

Shazeaa - Societies and Development Officer

+ 1 to 1 meeting with all socs
I aimed to have a development plan meeting with all societies before Fresher’s Fair to get to know them and brief them on what they need to know for the year ahead. 30 minutes is too short of a time to cram a years’ worth of knowledge in but 30 mins with 70 societies was a challenge! Even now I meet with new societies to introduce them to what they can expect from me and the Union.

+ Fresher’s Fair
This was a hectic experience, but societies absolutely smashed it with their stalls and freebies given. I, with the Opportunities Manager and Student Group Co-ordinator, trained Committee Members virtually on some key do’s and don'ts of a stall as well as other valuable tips. It was amazing to see the variety of stalls we had this year.

+ Feel good Friday
I along with the other officers plan Feel Good Fridays where we are giving away freebies and holding activities in the main hall for students. The purpose of FGF is to provide activities for students to do for their mental and physical wellbeing. Students have limited time to focus on themselves due to studying and working jobs. According to NUS reports students are having to choose between travel costs and food, between studying and working. Therefore, the Officer team want to provide activities for students to do for their wellbeing, to give them time to destress and focus on themselves.

Expanding on the previous point, we are trying to provide cheap activities, mostly free activities for students. As we are aware of the COL actions the university have taken but we want to provide for the students from the student officer perspective as well.

+ Food Guidelines
I am working with the Head of Finance and Performance to change the regulations around what societies can/can’t bring in for bake sales and for their socials.

+ Greater Manchester Student Partnership
I am working with other student officers from Student Union’s across Manchester regarding key issues student face. We have met with the Mayor, Andy Burnham, prioritising talking to him about housing, transport and student safety. This was a positive meeting showcasing that Andy is more than willing to work with us and we are planning ahead for the next meeting in January.
I gave a talk with UoM student officers regarding what GMSP is and how other regions can start building up their own student lobbying group.

+ Grant
The Union has a grant pot of £15,000 which is for all societies to use. So far this academic year, the Council Exec have allocated roughly £8,500 to societies (not taking into account Dec grant outcomes) and we have 3 more application deadlines to look forward to.

+ Islamophobia Awareness Month
I collaborated with ISOC for this month. During the last week of November we hosted daily activities and events in The Union.

+ Promoting council execs
The Council Execs for this year have been chosen and I have been working with them closely regarding society issues and grant panels. We still have a few positions left for committee members to sit on. I am working on getting a page on the website designated solely for the Council Execs.

+ Radio Room
In collaboration with the Opportunities manager, the Radio Room has finally been fixed and is up for booking. This room can be used for broadcasting radio shows, doing VLOGS or creating video content which require a quitter background.

+ Student showcase
I hosted the first Student Showcase after Covid with the help of several societies. We had performances and stalls that engaged with the crowds. We raised over £150 within an hour.

+ Welcomed other SU’S to visit us
We have had a few Student Unions come to visit us. The student officers shared knowledge and expertise on what our universities and Student Union do well in.

Iqra - Wellbeing Officer

I have been working alongside the other Officer team for our Officer lead Feel Good Friday event which fosters wellbeing through a range of activities, as well as giving away toiletries to help with the cost of living.

I have also assisted in the University’s Inclusivity, Diversity and Culture strategy filming, focusing mainly on inclusivity and capturing the vibrant student lifestyle at Man Met.

Costs of living is still a major concern which impacts many students' mental health and wellbeing, even 3 years post covid. Hence, I am also working towards providing students that face major financial difficulty with emergency food packages to support them with the costs of living crisis. As well as providing workshops on how to budget effectively, this is to empower students towards better financial planning to improve an essential skill.

Savannah - Sports Officer

Here is a quick rundown of what I've been doing so far. Apart from the many conferences, panels, meetings and admin I work on:

The Girls All In campaign is looking at female/non-binary participation in sports. This is to support women in a comfortable, low-cost, friendly, beginner environment. Activities include puppy yoga and a supported gym session with a female PT.

Man-Up campaign- raised awareness on men and non-binary mental health within sports and how important it is. This campaign was run down at our Platt Lane campus, charities like Andy's Man Club and Movember attended, giving out information on support available for free.

Rainbow laces- I have recently completed Rainbow Laces Day supported by the charity Stonewall. This is so important for inclusion of LGBTQ+ within sports. This day is about creating a more compassionate, understanding, and supportive society. Our clubs wearing the laces have sent a powerful message of acceptance and help build a world where individuals are free to express their identities without fear of discrimination.

Student clubs experience, I have been working on various experience improvements including Sav Spotlight. This is an initiative where I take pictures of clubs playing, but this is looking at the club not based on a number. This initiative investigates any potential differences and improvements that could be made between the different teams. Other student experiences are I Love Wednesdays and looking at overall changes for student experience. Increasing student committee benefits and sports volunteering benefits. I have also been working on our new upcoming varsity project.

I have had many meetings on issues of cost of living and looked at barriers to sport. I have looked at new implementations of how to support our student-athletes more. I have also been supporting Andy Danty’s message on Wednesday afternoon sessions to be available for active participation in sport. I am currently looking to increase the sports offer. Watch this space as I have plenty more to come...

Sandesh - Education Officer

I have been working hard to make sure the student voice is heard at all levels of the University.

I have become aware that many international students do not realise that there is only one resit opportunity at Manchester Met. I have been having initial conversations with key people about how we can make students more aware and considering why resits are capped at 40%. Whether this could have an interesting impact on results, academic misconduct hearings and progression.

Along with the Academic Representation team I have been working with the University to pursue a redesigned Course Rep feedback system, Student Voice Meetings. The newly implemented student voice survey has so far received 30,000 comments. I’m really happy the Students’ Union has been at a partner in this work and I’ve really enjoyed it.

The Union has had the best ever year for Course Rep engagements, including recruitment, training and support levels with the faculty centred approach. We have over 1600 course reps, 600 more than last year.

Along with Iqra I have raised the issue of the challenging student housing market in Manchester and look to continue discussions about the impact this will have in the coming years.

Following an external review of the international student lifecycle the university have set up a project group to help reshape the international experience. I am excited to be a part of this project, which looks to make life even better for our international students. It’s early days but I’m really optimistic and looking forward to being a part of it.

If after reading all this you think being an Officer is a bit of you, don't forget we host elections every year to appoint our Officers. Run in the elections and it could be you shaping The Union next year.