After a busy first few weeks of term, we caught up with your Sabbatical Officer team to find out what they've been working on to make student life better at Royal Holloway.
After a busy first few weeks of term, we caught up with your Sabbatical Officer team to find out what they've been working on to make student life better at Royal Holloway.
Hannah - President
Manifesto update
Drug and Alcohol Awareness Week
Nisha and I recently ran a Drug and Alcohol Awareness Week. The week aimed to bring exciting events, educational activities and raise awareness about alcohol and drug usage. There was a range of activities including mocktail making, sober social and an awareness stall in the library.
Student Safety
I’ve also led a NeverOk campaign meeting with members of SU staff including staff from Trading, MarComms and the Advice Centre. I’m currently putting together an action plan for our late-night venues, policy and education as well as areas in which we can work together with the University. This will be going live very soon!
As part of my manifesto, I am working closely with teams from the SU to implement the SU Security recommendations. Our research on student safety when attending SU events in our venues showed that the most conflicting and discussed topics were bag and person checks. We’re currently running a trial of 100% bag and person searches. During the time of the trial, if you attend one of our venues where we trial a 100% bag and person search as well as events with standard bag and person searches, you may receive an email asking you to complete a survey. The feedback we receive will directly impact our decision making so make sure you have your say.
University Meetings
Additionally, the last couple of weeks have been packed with big meetings such as Joint Executive Committee, Finance Committee and Investment Subcommittee and Estates Planning Committee.
Sharanya - VP Education
Hello everyone! It’s been a busy few weeks back and here’s an update on what I’ve been working on! Our Voice team and I have been having partnership meetings with key contacts with the University to see how best we can support academic representation within each School.
I also held my Academic Skills Workshop in which we discussed all things from revision and organisation tips to what changes you’d like to see in your School. A big thanks to Het Unadkat for running a session on wellbeing support during exam season. There were sweet treats and an informative chat from Norlene from CeDAS who told us all how CeDAS can help with your academic journey. You can find out more about CeDAS.
I also had my Education Executive in which we discussed numerous topics but specifically focused on careers and employability. This was a big part of my manifesto and using the conversations from the Education Executive and some support from the Careers Service I’ll be holding a ‘Grad Week' Campaign. This will be to support students who are stressed or worried about future job prospects. The aim is to push a week of career-developing events as well as hold talks and panels with alumni so students can feel a bit more reassured about stepping out into the working world.
Aside from that, I’ve been working on LGBT+ History Month, particularly prepping for the LGBT+ Speed Dating event. The funds from this event will be donated to the RHUL Transition Fund, an initiative created by our LGBT+ Society and the LGBT+ Student Community Officer Sam Bolton. The transition fund will be donated to transgender students at Royal Holloway who are struggling with private healthcare costs. We’ve got a range of events prepared for this month to raise awareness of the experience of queer people within healthcare. Head over to our campaign page to find out more!
Nisha - VP Wellbeing & Diversity
It has been a busy first few weeks of term. Me and Hannah (SU President) organised an Alcohol & Drug Awareness Week, which ran from 8 – 12 January. The main aim of the campaign was to create a healthy, inclusive culture and give students strategies to help reduce the harmful impact of drugs and alcohol. We also wanted to raise awareness of the impact misusing these substances can have on a person's mental and physical health. The campaign was a success, and the week was filled with lots of fun/educational events from mocktail making, community coffee crawls and sober socials to awareness stands in the library. The campaign also included informational blogs and social media posts such as blogs sharing our top 10 ways to enjoy yourself sober, social media posts about sober shaming and interviews with the wellbeing team about the mental and physical effects of these substances.
I have also organised a Healthy Relationships campaign which has been running this week. This campaign aims to raise awareness of toxic and abusive relationships and promote healthy relationships. I plan to do this by offering a range of activities and events aimed at promoting healthy relationships such as art expression sessions and self-care workshops. I also plan to equip students with the knowledge and tools they will need to identify, address, and prevent toxic behaviour in their relationships through workshops and online resources. This campaign is all about raising awareness of what sort of behaviour is not appropriate or acceptable in the hopes of preventing unhealthy relationships.
Me and Olivia (Women Students Community Officer) have started to plan Women's History Month which will be running for the duration of March. The national theme this year is women who advocate for equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI). We have decided to have a different theme for each week of the month but to keep the themes relevant to the national theme. We will also be running a campaign week called Women’s Wellbeing Week from 11-15 March. This campaign aims to raise awareness of the inequalities in healthcare provision for women. Now that we have planned the basic structure of the month and the themes, we will be reaching out to the relevant societies soon to also get their input on the campaign plan.
Me and Alastair also attended the London Campus Welcome Day recently. The purpose of the day was to welcome the new postgraduate students to the London Campus and introduce them to the services available to them. We spent the day talking to new students to inform them of the services and support the SU provides them with.
I also had my second Wellbeing, Community and Diversity Executive, this is a meeting that I chair, and all the student Community Officers attend. This meeting allows for feedback and student voice to be incorporated into campaigns and projects that the SU is working on.
Alastair - VP Societies & Sport
Since getting back to work three weeks ago, it's been one of the busiest times so far for me!
It kicked off immediately with lots of Varsity work, leading both planning and filming content for this year's event. It was great to get so many club members down to the Sports Centre to film this year's Varsity trailer!
I also held a focus group to get direct feedback from those on sports club committees. The Students' Union works best when we listen to students, and it's key to create a platform for students to speak. The session was really productive, and I was able to gather a large range of points to take back to the SU and University.
Finally, I chaired the year's second Societies, Sport and Opportunities Executive, which is a group of elected students representing a range of different student groups. We were able to gather suggestions and discuss agenda topics such as supporting committee wellbeing, new content for committee training, and a progress update on a student group events calendar! More info coming soon.