Election Committee Report to Guild Council GC.2.12.

5a

Author / contact: Executive Summary:

Hugo Sumner VPDR This report summaries forthcoming activity for the current Guild Officer Elections 2012

Elections Committee Elections Committee has not meet since its last report due to their being no on-going elections for it to adjudicate on. Nominations did however open on Monday in the Guild Officer Elections 2012 on Monday January 16 th. We hope that all Guild Councillors will take the opportunity to get involved in the largest elections in the Guild of Students year, either by standing to become candidates or encouraging your constituents to do so. Nominations close at 12pm on Monday February 6th. You can find out more information, including downloading a nominations pack at www.guildofstudents.com/elections or the Guild Officer Elections Newsfeed on Facebook.

Student Groups Committee Report to Guild Council

GC.2.12.5b Author / contact: Fliss Cross - VPAD

Executive Summary: This report looks at approvals for new Student Groups, Groups given extensions and those that have been derecognised since the last report

Summary of meetings held on 5th December and 19th January The following new groups were approved: Handball (Outdoor Activities & Recreational Pursuits), handball@guild.bham.ac.uk The Linguist (Departmental languages-focused magazine), linguist@guild.bham.ac.uk Beats & Bass (Music & Dance), beatsnbass@guild.bham.ac.uk The Committee met with representatives from a proposed Other Sounds group but did not approve the idea because of overlaps with other existing music groups. The meeting on 19th January was entirely devoted to looking at requests from groups that wanted to be exempt from the new synchronised timetabling of student group elections to February and March. The majority of groups already have elections in this period anyway, but by making it more systematic, training for committee members can be made more specific to miniforums/types of groups, as at present it needs to be generic because of the need to run sessions throughout the year. Most other student unions already use this system, and have good feedback from their committee members. In addition, itll be easier for intergroup cooperation as theyll be in post for the same time, and it encourages better handovers between committees, so that information and skills arent lost. Fourteen groups requested exemption from the new timetable, and half of those requested to meet with the Student Groups Committee in person to explain their cases. In some cases the Committee made immediate decisions in some cases they deferred until the next meeting. Those given exemptions from the February-March timescale are: : Vale Festival (so they can hold it after the festival so committee members are aware of the commitment/work involved) : Kids Adventure (because of their focus on Easter and summer holiday activities and issues around child protection) : Postgraduate & Mature Students Association (because spring elections would mean a large proportion of their membership base (i.e. 1 year masters students) wouldnt be able to be on the committee. The Committee will have met at least once in between the reports deadline and the date of Guild Council. The agenda for that meeting includes making decisions on more AGM synchronisation exemption requests, rolling grant funding applications, one proposed new group asking for ratification and re-visiting the status of groups that were given extensions in the student group audit at the end of last term to see if had met the requested criteria. If you would like to know more information about the SGC, please email vpad@guild.bham.ac.uk or studentgroups@guild.bham.ac.uk

ResExec Committee Report to Guild Council

GC.2.12.5c

Author / contact: Executive Summary:

Zuki Majuqwana VPHC This report summarises the Res Exec meeting held on 22nd November 2011 & 24th January 2012

Summary of meetings held between 22nd November 2011 and 24th January 2012 22nd November 2011 Reminder to promote RA Elections Information on Housing Campaign given out Information on RA Results Night Given out RAs reported on what events they were organising Reminder about procedure for Winter Ball tickets was given Various meetings reported back RAs were invited to an Employability training session 9th December 2011 Info on Officer Elections was given Feedback from Winter balls was given (where they had taken place) Feedback from a Freshers Fest survey was given Housing Fairs were promoted RAs were reminded to handover to new committees RAs reported on their highlight of the year and gave a top tip to the newly elected RAs Various issues to do with sorting emails, pigeons holes and query folders was given. Reports from meetings was given VPHC gave a leaving speech 24th January 2011 Feedback from the training weekend was given Information on officer elections was given RAs were reminded to book a handover with a staff member so they could be signed in RAs were updated about freshers hoodies Dates were given for upcoming activities including Get Involved Fairs and Volunteering week RAs spoke about getting involved in International Womens Week RAs feedback on one activity that they were thinking of running Various processes from training were reiterated such as needing a budget form for every piece of expenditure Information on what meetings RAs can take part in was given (AMG, SpresExec, etc). RAs were given some information on Guild Council and how it works RAs with vacant positions asked to be included in all meetings so they could make sure someone attended in the meantime RAs spoke about ideas for volunteering/community based activities VPEA spoke to the RAs about involvement in a possible Hall fees campaign

Steering Committee Report to Guild Council

GC.2.12.5d Steering Report for meeting held 19th January 2012 Present: Vice President (Democracy & Resources) (Chair), President, Vice President (Education), Vice President (Housing & Community), Vice President (Sport), Chair of Council, Deputy Chair of Council. Apologies: Vice President (Activities and Development) In attendance: Director of Membership, Representation and Democracy Manager

Item 1

Paper Amend Bye-Law 11 & Add new Bye-law

Comments To amend Bye-law 11 and add a new Bye-law so as to empower students (through Guild Council) in holding Officers and Trustees to account To amend appointments panel make up and quoracy. Guild Support for students campaigning against the closure of the Biological Recording programmes to lobby for a full transfer of the administrative and academic aspects of the course to another HE institution in the context of the ongoing consultation. All major changes in the way run elections to have to pass through Guild Council. To look at the possibility of providing and increasing the availability of Kosher, Halal and vegetarian/vegan options in the Guild to cater for minority groups and their dietary requirements. Mandate VPAD and VPHC to create a mechanism whereby Society and RA committee members can be removed by their members in the case of their substandard behaviour.

Decision of Steering Accept

Appointment Panel Biological Recording

Accept

Accept

Change to Election Running

Accept

Diverse Food

Accept

Give em the ole heave-ho soldier!

Accept

Steering Committee Report to Guild Council

Guild Council and the Trustee Board

Edit Section of the By-Laws that outlines the powers of guild council: 1.2.6 From time to time be able to make a request to or provide a steer to the trustee board on an issue. The trustee board is under no obligation to fulfill or respond to any request or abide by any steer. If deemed necessary the trustee board may respond to a steer or request via the trustee board report. On the 25th of November the University of Birmingham took out an injunction. This injunction is poorly worded and needs to be withdrawn. It has been widely criticised including by human rights groups namely Amnesty International and Liberty. The Guild has requested it is withdrawn the university has declined. The Guild should now organise a demonstration to defend the right to protest. Policy was altered last year to allow non-sabbs to sit on student group committees. This amendment removes the right for Non-Sabbs to be members of committees. This motion holds that the Guild of Students opposes all parking schemes that operate to detriment of students in areas where there is a high volume of student residences. This motion mandates the VicePresident (Housing & Community) to actively oppose all parking schemes of this type A motion to improve and add clarity to the Presidents role, as described in the Bye-Laws.

Accept

Injunction Our Response

Accept

Non-Sabbs and Other Roles

Accept

10

Parking Schemes

Accept

11

Tweaking the Presidents Role

Accept

12

Questions and Comments on motions

To refine the Guild Council guidance document. Suggested changes: Added into the guidance documents that people are

Accept

Steering Committee Report to Guild Council

actually allowed to ask questions on motions (it is not currently allowed). To avoid frustration and to increase debate, people are allowed to make comment on whats been said, that is not necessarily a question. Various parties can then respond to this. 13 RAG Conference To make the Vice President (Activities and Development) attend RAG conference each year to gain valuable knowledge, skills and contacts that will help student groups and the Guild as a whole This is an amendment to the Guild beliefs and commitments in recognition that the beauty and architectural quality of our campus is one of the main attractions to prospective and current students and as such, should be maintained at all costs Whatever our politics or difference we should united to defend Simon Furse. Simon is being disciplined for his participation in a lawful and peaceful protest. This protest further caused no disruption to any other student. All across the country many thousands of students took part in 21 occupations. Simon is the only one to be facing a disciplinary This motion is intended to add a new sub-committee to the Residences Executive (Bye Law 6, Section 8) which will outline the Terms of Reference for the Residences Executive (Sport), or SpresExec. To refine the Guild Council guidance document with regards the Steering Committee. The suggested changes would mean that the guidelines for steering would be tightened up and clarified, allowing for less confusion of the powers of steering. The changes would allow steering to be Accept

14

Save the Library

Accept

15

Solid Solidarity

Accept

16

SpresExec

Accept

17

Steering Reform

Accept

Steering Committee Report to Guild Council

more independent, more accountable and transparent. While still recognising the important role steering plays in the Guild Council Process. 18 Support Campaign for a General Meeting This motion mandates officers to help the campaign for a student democracy in certain concrete ways. The Guild Officer Group should support the Reclaim the Guild campaign for student democracy. Guild council mandates that all officers actively work towards achieving the goal of 10% of the membership signing the Petition for a General Meeting. This motion is designed to set clear policy for the likely events in the coming months in terms of higher education campaigning. This motion calls for the Guild of Students to actively boycott Virgin Media until such time that they provide the service that they promise in densely populated student areas in Birmingham. This motion mandates the VicePresident (Housing & Community) to raise awareness of the problems Virgin Media has caused students to further inform their decisions about which broadband provider they should use. This motion is intended at add a new sub-committee to the Residences Executive (Bye Law 6, Section 8) which will outline the Terms of Reference for the Residences Executive (Volunteering), or VolExec. To mandate the President (Mark Harrop) and VPHC (Zuki Majuqwana) to work with and support RAs or any other students in campaigning for the provision of WIFI in all student accommodation Accept

19

The Term Ahead, White Paper, UCU & NUS

Accept

20

Virgin Media

Accept

21

VolExec

Accept

22

Provision of WIFI in Accommodation

Accept

Steering Committee Report to Guild Council

23

Gender Neutral Toilets

The Guild believes that all students have the right to live without fear of discrimination or judgment, and as such shall ensure the Guild is an inclusive, safe space by ensuring gender-neutral toilets are available in the Guild building, on every floor. Adding the four Liberation Officers to the Board of Trustees

Accept

24

Liberation Officers as Trustees

Accept

25

Return of liberation Rooms

Providing all Liberation Associations with respective rooms, a Women's room until they express permission to remove them and belief in a wider existence of 'safe space' in the Guild and on campus more generally.

Accept

SOG Report to Guild Council

GC.2.12.5e

Author/contact: Purpose: Executive Summary:

President For Information Please find below a summary of decisions and actions from the Sabbatical Officer Group meetings since the last Guild Council. Any student can attend these meetings. They are held at midday each Monday in the Mandela Room. Have a read and let us know if there is anything you wish to know more about.

Recommendation:

Since the last Guild Council the Sabbatical Officer Group (SOG) have met 9 times. Please be aware that this report was done two weeks before Guild Council and therefore will not be fully up to date due to time lags. However all summary minutes are placed online following approval. In these meetings the Sabbatical Officers touch base about what they have coming up that week, any matters arising from the last meeting and can submit motions for approval. The Chief Executive Officer is in attendance to this meeting but does not have voting rights. The Executive Assistant is also present for minute taking only. Standing items include: Matters arising Minutes from last meeting Diaries Facebook/blog/Vlogs/Twitter Door Knocking Non Sabb Buddies Officer Training and Development AOB Information of what takes place in these standing items can be found on SOG Summary Minutes on the website, under the Have your say Tab and under Meeting Minutes. Motions and decisions made at the last set of SOG meetings are as follows: 360 Officers discussed the logistics of the 360 appraisals coming up and who to ask to help them develop in their roles better

Injunction The Officers stated that they were not willing to post the University link on information to the injunction on the Guild Website.

SOG Report to Guild Council

CQUAC Changes Officers noted changes to the roles of these college level education meetings, but agreed that the changes were not to the detriment to students. Bye-Laws A student who attended SOG suggested a refresher course for officers on the Bye-Laws of the Guild. It was agreed that the President would look into this and is ongoing. Redbrick/VC Pay VPAD mentioned a report from Redbrick on the VC pay It was agreed that the Guild would need to know that anything in this report would need to be factual so that the team could offer an appropriate response. Injunction It was agreed by SOG that the injunction should be dropped and the President to communicate this in his 1-2-1. Course Closure Was agreed that the University needed to reacquaint themselves with the consulting students on major changes policy as it failed to be discussed at University Education Committee, but the policy was in place. V(I)PAD The VPAD requested that the previous VPAD be invited to Guild Awards every year Approved. No more No comment Was noted by SOG that following the recent disciplinary of the VPE, the Guild should make public information regarding the process and why it took so long in the interests of openness and transparency. Approved. Campaign Proposal Diversity Supplement The Campaign proposal was to raise awareness of diversity on campus, to advertise the Guilds zero tolerance policy and to increase the profile of liberation and appropriate representation associations with a 4 page pull out in Redbrick. The options were for a mono or colour pull out. Protocol Following the Physics Occupation in the previous teams year, a draft protocol was started and not finished The President and CEO would lobby the University to get this finished, and then taken to Guild Council at the earliest availability Ongoing. Campaign proposals : Vote Match Approved Sleep out & My Generation Deferred to GOG

GOG Report to Guild Council

GC.2.12.5f

Author / contact: Executive Summary:

Hugo Sumner VPDR This report summarises the GOG Meeting held on 18th January 2012

Guild Officer Group The Guild Officer Group met on Wednesday 18th January, with fourteen officers present. The highlights of the meeting were as follows: International Womens Week Campaign Proposal The Guild Officer Group in principle backed the proposal made by the Womens Officer for there to be a Guild of Students International Womens Week on the week commencing 20 th February with activities organised by the student groups as well as the Womens Officer herself. Committee Membership The Postgraduate and Mature Students Officer was added onto the Students Union Evaluation Initiative Working Group while the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer Students Officer was elected onto Elections Committee. There was also a discussion about how Guild Officer Group representatives on ad hoc formal meeting such as Appointments Panel should be chosen. The Guild Officer Group endorsed the Presidents proposal that such appointments should be made by random selection, with the proviso that for Appointments Panel one of the Officers should (if possible) be a Liberation Officer. Officer Elections The Vice President (Democracy & Resources) encouraged all Guild Officers to publicise the forthcoming elections to their constituents and to consider standing themselves. Promoters The Vice President (Democracy & Resources) and Home Students Officer reported back the findings of their investigation into the issue of whether non-sabbatical officers should also be promoters. Guild Officer Group agreed with them that non-sabbatical officers shouldnt be promoters but that this would not be able to be implemented until 2013/2014 due to nominations already having opened. The VPDR and HSO will be bringing a paper to the March Guild Council for approval. Joint Statement on Vice President (Education) Disciplinary Guild Officer Group discussed the form that a joint statement on the issues surrounding the recent disciplinary case involving the Vice President (Education) should take. It was agreed that a statement should be issued as soon as possible on behalf of the Sabbatical Officer Group.

GC.2.12.g Presidents Report to Guild Council

GC.2.12.g

Officers Reports to Guild Council

Name: Mark Harrop Position: President Date of writing report: 23/01/12 What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?
We have started the review of the Joes Plus Card after an amazing term 1, selling nearly 7000 cards and saving students over 17,000. We are looking into turning the card digital next year so we can react quicker to what students wants and trends are. We are also exploring making the card workable in other areas of the organisation such as Zest, Print Shop etc. Following the installation of the Plug sockets in the library, I am now pursuing this in other areas such as the Law and OLRC libraries. Myself the VPDR have also been working with the library to advertise Guild Comms better in the Library. Similarly I am now trying to secure funding to make the library 24hr during peak times such as essay and exam time, reacting to what students told us would be helpful. Guild Comms is ongoing, however we are trying to get a better presence on campus and have plans to roll out some digital signage in the library and University Centre. We are also looking to review our hotdesking trial from term 1, learning from how we can do this better and therefore can be more accountable to students and not up in our offices too much.

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role?
RA Training Weekend This was very successful with a really enthusiastic cohort of RAs who I am sure will do a good job. ERASMUS Inducting incoming ERASMUS Students into the Guild and how they can benefit from getting involved with the Guild. Meeting on Employability over at the University, reviewing term 1 findings and how to best take these forward in future. Trustee Board See Trustee Board report. SPRC Strategic Planning and Resource Committee a sub-committee of University Council of which I represent the Guild on. Chancellor Appointment Committee Following opening consultation, helping to draw a short list. Email servers University looking to change email servers and O was consulted on these changes. These were brought to the better Guild and Welfare Forums.

GC.2.12.g Presidents Report to Guild Council

Recruitment Meeting Sat on this committee looking at recruitment of students and how this is going. University seeing a fall in the number of applicants following introduction of fees, but also with the increase in grade boundaries. Steering See what you have in front of you today attended. Personal Tutor Award Working the logistics on how we run the Guilds Prize for Best PT of the year. Sports Fair Helped the VPS promote this on campus a very well run event by the VPS! BioRecording Went with the PGMSO and VPE, as well as staff and students from this course to meet with the University on this matter. Looking like the University will seek and obtain an alternative provider for the course. Ongoing and has the Guilds full backing.

What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council?

Further updates to the notes above namely 24 hr Library at peak times Joes Plus reviews Library and University Digital Signage update Further information on BioRecording course change

VPAD Report to Guild Council

Name: Fliss Cross Position: Vice President (Activities and Development) Date of writing report: 23/01/12 What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges? 1) To create an online platform for groups to interact and get online resources
On the 27th January I will be going to Manchester to look at the next phase of NUS digital. This includes looking at a demo of the clubs and societies aspect of the new website as well as the ticketing process. I will then be able to feedback to them as to requirements. In this feedback I will include the comments made about the functionality of the current website and its layout from student groups at the forums and any feedback given to me in person. Hopefully you will have noticed the tweak made to the current website where now we have societies and volunteering explicitly mentioned on the homepage as opposed to Get Involved, hopefully making it easier to find things on the website. My next phase of update on our current website is to try and get an easily accessible form bank under the societies and volunteering tab as well as more photos and videos of student groups. If you have any you would like to use please make sure they effectively demonstrate your activity and are of high quality. Alternatively, if you have any more suggestions for societies and volunteering on the website then please contact me via vpad@guild.bham.ac.uk

2) To enhance development between student activities and the job market

I have a meeting on the 26th January to look at changing the points system for the undergraduate pathway of the Personal Skills Award. This is because many students are putting in hundreds and hundreds of hours as part of committees and then getting the same amount of points as someone who completes the minimum 50 hours. Therefore I want to try and persuade the PSA to use a sliding scale depending on commitment to student groups and other activities. Work on the PG PSA is also going well and I will hopefully be seeing a template for the trial very shortly to be implemented next year. A big thank you to Emily Halford, PMSO, and the PGMSA for their work on this matter. For my next phase of working with the Careers Centre I would like to be able to lobby them on targeting work experience at different types of student groups, rather than just through departments. To do this I want to collect case studies of alumni who have gone into careers directly related to or aided by involvement in the Guild. If you can think of anyone who may be a good example that might be willing to provide a case study to go on the website then please contact me at the usual address.

3) To improve marketing of student groups on campus, in halls and around the Guild.
This term I will be working with the marketing department to get poster boards in the membership area and by subway. This will allow societies to display their artwork on the ground floor of the Guild and has been much needed in the Guild since the redevelopment of the membership area. I hope to get this change made in time for the next phase of the wayfinding which will be happening at Easter and will include more signage on the 2 nd floor of the Guild. I will also be working with Zuki, Tim and hopefully the med school to look at how Guild activities and events can be better marketed in halls and out on the wider campus. Finally, I am hoping to get in touch with Artsoc and Photosoc about displaying more student group artwork around the Guild and in some of the new meeting rooms.

VPAD Report to Guild Council

4) To reform Student Group Training
We are now entering the first stage of synchronisation of AGMs so we can provide better training for student groups and the exemption forms are currently being considered by Student Groups Committee. The add on sessions for Student Groups is something that I will be writing training templates for over the summer and we will hopefully be organising some peer led miniforum sessions after exams in Term 3 which will hopefully make our committees more sustainable.

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role? Room Review
This review has been conducted following consultation with affected groups, largely through the Association Review, but also through a steer that was passed by the Student Groups Committee, who are elected to act in the best interest of all student groups. The review is as follows: This has meant that the following groups have kept their room: TV, Radio, Newspaper, Photosoc Dark Room and the Artsoc Room The following have been removed: Debating Society Office, LGBTQ room and Womens Association Room. The criteria was looked at on a functional level if it was only possible to carry out activities in one room in the Guild then societies kept their room. If not, then they would have to book rooms like all our other societies. The main concern has followed from the Liberation Rooms because of Safe Space. To aid with this, we are currently working to further promote our Zero Tolerance policy and discipline students who break this policy anywhere in the Guild. This is following on from our Association Review which passed through Council last year. We have also moved any literature from the LGBTQ and Womens room into our main membership area to make this more accessible for all students because it was locked in their rooms, of which one was not disabled access. This also makes it fair for our other two Liberation Associations who dont possess rooms: the Black and Ethnic Minority Society and Disabled Students and Mental Health Association. To ensure that these groups are guaranteed a room which best suits their needs and provides their safe space within the Guild they are given first priority on all our termly room bookings. Currently both the associations with their own rooms have had to book other spaces because their room is either too small or doesnt possess disabled access. Dance Studio Work on the Dance Studio has temporarily been halted until we can remove asbestos from the ceiling. However, many of the dance groups have been consulted about the placement of mirrors in the room and shown into the Venues storeroom to see how it is all going to fit together.

VPAD Report to Guild Council

Redbrick I have also been working with Redbrick to create some firm guidelines as to what Sabbatical Officers can and cannot do in terms of proofing and we continue to work together sp we can implement a successful handover between the successors of the Officer Team and the Redbrick committee. Other Projects Finally, a lot of work is ongoing for the Get Involved Fair on the 31st January and Guild Awards on the 20th March. Nominations are open until the 10th February and we have a new award this year for Outstanding Guild Councillor that you might want to think about nominating yourself for. More information can be found on the Guild Website but feel free to contact me if you have any further questions. http://www.guildofstudents.com/news/index.php?page=article&news_id=300583

VPDR Report to Guild Council

Name: Hugo Sumner

VPDR Report Position: Vice President to Guild Council

(Democracy & Resources)

Date: 22nd January 2012 What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?

Better Value in Joes Bar Those of you who have read my blog will know that in term one the Joes+ loyalty card has saved students over 17,000 over the course of term one, a really great success. In line with feedback received from students, prices on spotlight offers on club nights have been reduced further for the first couple of weeks back, as a reward and thank you for those who have purchased the card. Plans are being made to expand the loyalty card further and develop it into more of a smart card for the next academic year. This will have the benefit of being able to capture data that will help the Guild tailor more offers to specific times of the year, in line with student demand. Brand New Website The Guild website has now been tweaked in order to improve navigation and embed video and social media streams on the home page, something which previously has not been possible on the old format. This will be a temporary half-way house until the Guild moves over to a brand new web platform hosted by NUS Digital, in time for September 2012. On Friday 27th January, along with the VPAD I will be attending a workshop in Manchester aimed at reviewing the progress of the project, in particularly the modules to do with societies and events in order to feedback to the NUS what our thoughts are and suggest a way forward. As Guild Council is after this date, feel free to ask me what my thoughts were about the day and where the project is generally.

If you have any questions please feel free to email me at:

@Guild_Hugo BhamGuild VpDemocracy AndResources

vpdr@guild.bham.ac.uk

VPDR Report to Guild Council

VPDR Report to Guild Council What other duties have you been carrying out within your role?
Officer Elections 2012 This years final and biggest election cycle is now underway, with nominations for Officer Elections opening on 16th January, and closing on 6th February. This year campaigning will open on 27th February and close on the 9th March, with results being announced the day after. A couple of notable changes to this years elections will include voting opening on the first Friday, with students being able to vote over the weekend and not having to wait until Monday. Additionally the Guild will be working with VoteMatch to give students the option of comparing their views to those of candidates in order to gain a clearer picture of where candidates stand on the issues facing the student body. This will hopefully be the first step on the road to strengthening the debate about policy during Officer Elections and follows a very successful spell at Leeds University Union last year. Green Impact Award Work is underway with the Ethical & Environmental Officer to complete the requirements for this years Green Impact Award, run by the NUS. Last year the Guild won a Gold Award, hence I will be looking to carry on the good work done last year. A lot of the focus is around energy efficiency, which is always challenging in old buildings but I can assure you I will be doing my all in order to maintain our Gold standard.

Wayfinding The final stages of the ground floor wayfinding project are now complete, with a host of new signage up around the building. Since the building redevelopment in 2010, this is the first effort to signpost students around the Guild and hopefully youll agree that they all look great. This includes the Officer team making a number of appearances around the building, which will hopefully help increase awareness of who the Officer team are, as part of the Officer Engagement Plan started this year.

If you have any questions please feel free to email me at:

@Guild_Hugo BhamGuild VpDemocracy AndResources

vpdr@guild.bham.ac.uk

VPE Report to Guild Council

Name: Edd Bauer Date: 2/2/12

Position: VPE

What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?

Hey guild council glad to have me back? Having been the first sabbatical officer to ever be suspended from their elected position without a vote for a full term I am now picking up where I left off and Im trying to complete my manifesto in record time. In addition I am joining the reclaim the guild campaign, I think It is time we organised serious democratic reform of the guild. The best way to do this is a general meeting under company law which can pass constitutional reform.

Particularly on my agenda these last few weeks have been laying the ground work for the cooperative projects I promised to help build as a sabb.

The main principle behind all community run co-ops is that by pooling our buying power and ordering food in bulk direct from suppliers, a group of people can buy at a more affordable price. This is especially important as the price of living as a student becomes increasing unaffordable. In particular Im working on food and housing cooperative and I hope to have these schemes being launched soon.

Two particular academic issues that has been brought to my attention and that was raised during my absence is joint honor students clashes and the biological recording closure. The guild is producing a report on the issues facing JH students please come to the consultation this Friday 6pm in the guild council chambers. Additionally if Guild councilors could search for and sign the petition Biological Recording at BHAM needs you.

In terms of national student politics with the strike on march 1 st and the white paper potentially going to parliament I am pushing for co-ordinated action by the NUS.

VPHC Report to Guild Council

Name: Zuki Majuqwana Position: Vice-President (Housing & Community) Date of writing report: 23 January 2012 Significant achievements since the last Guild Council: Zuki Says RELAX!
Following on from the success of the Zuki Says Relax Housing Roadshows, where over 700 students were enlightened about the ferocity of the world of private sector housing, the Zuki Says Relax campaign has achieved even more this year. The Zuki Says RELAX Top 10 Tips for Happy House Hunting video on YouTube has received to date 977 views and should hopefully breach the 1,000 barrier by the time Guild Council comes around and the housing season slows down. As it stands it is by far the most viewed video on the Guild of Students YouTube channel and has made getting bitesize housing advice very convenient for students at Birmingham.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mr32ARYdgTo/
The Housing Fair that took place on Wednesday 11 January and saw in the region of 1,800 students through its doors. The fair was a place for various housing support schemes including the Community Wardens and LIVING, as well as MLAS (Midland Landlord Accreditation Scheme) Accredited landlords and letting agents to be all in one room so students can go about their house-hunting in a safe environment. The 2nd Phase of the Zuki Says Relax campaign will begin in the Summer Term.

Fab n Feel Good Litter Pick

Last term a litter pick was organised by myself and the Community Wardens in order to get Selly Oak looking pretty Fab and really Fresh for the end of term, with the incentive being a ticket to Fab n Friday which had sold out within just a few hours of tickets going online. 27 people initially signed up for the litter pick and although a few people did drop out at the last minute, and we successfully cleared several bin-bags of litter off the streets. After the success of this event and the positive feedback it received from a number of angles, I am determined to turn it into a termly event and am currently exploring more ways of incentivising it to make it appeal to students who dont want a Fab ticket.

VPHC Report to Guild Council

Crime:
Last term, as many of you may know, saw the number of recorded crimes in Selly Oak increase significantly with burglary reaching as high as 300% of what it was the year before. 20010-11 saw the lowest rate of crime in several years after an immense amount of police, council, University, and Guild resources were injected into the largest anti-crime campaign for a long time. This year these resources dried up, and yet despite this it has been revealed that there were only actually 2 more properties broken into than last year which really quite positive in the context of things. The reason that crime was statistically portrayed as higher is because the properties broken into were larger (7,8,9 bedrooms) so there were more recorded victims per break in. So despite what the figures may suggest, the assertive action being taken by myself and the Guild of Students is having a clear impact!

VPS Report to Guild Council

Name: Tim Smith Position: Vice President (Sport) Date of writing report: 23rd January 2012 What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?

2nd Sports Fair Since the last Guild Council, much of my attention has been focused on what I considered the most important manifesto pledge of mine, to bring to the University of Birmingham a second Sports Fair. I am pleased to say that after lots of hard work which started back in September, the inaugural Get Involved Sports and Recreation Fair happened and was a success on Friday 13th January. We had approximately 650 attendees to the Fair, surpassing expectations, and feedback on the day was that people enjoyed the more relaxed, less competitive nature of the day. The aim of the event was to draw people in to playing social and non-competitive sport lots of people can be phased by the bold and boasty nature of UBSport marketing and we wanted to make people realise that the Munrow is not just about international level hockey players; there are many ways that anyone can get involved. Through the autumn I challenged club captains and committee members (through the new mini-forum system see Novembers Guild Council report) to think about how they could adapt and change their club to open up participation pathways within them so that people from the fair could easily join their club. Some clubs already had these in place through national schemes, for example badminton with No Strings Badminton and lacrosse with Get Into Lacrosse. Other clubs did things off their own back like mountaineering with their free indoor climbing taster sessions. Thank you to all committee members who put hard work into the day, and before it, to make it a success.

Charity Tournaments & Big Events With the 2nd Sports Fair, these other two manifesto points have slipped off the radar a little, but there are plans brewing. As reported at the last Guild Council, I now have all the evidence required to try and change the way the Big Events system works at UBSport. In regards to charity tournaments (following on from Dodgeball success) there are a few ideas on the table by the time Guild Council comes along hopefully these have been narrowed down and we will be set on a tournament for this semester.

VPS Report to Guild Council

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role?

BUCS West Midlands Since the beginning of January there have been multiple BUCS documents released for consultation with its member institutions. These documents not only potentially change how the league structure work and the BUCS points that would go with them (BUCS points are the ranking system used to determine which university places where in the sport league table), but also set out criteria for adding/removing new and existing sports from the programme. In my role as West Midlands student chair, I have been liaising with the 10 institutions which form the West Midlands group to collate a response to go back to the National Advisory Board on Thursday 26th January in Loughborough. Sports Forum Back home, I chaired the second all-sports club captains Sports Forum in the first week of semester two. For Guild Council, note that these are separate to the Better Forums and are exclusive to sports club committee members (explained in my blog). Attendance was exemplary with only two sports not represented. The forum itself cleared up issues from the mini-forums, communicated vital information to the clubs and also presented attendees with some exciting opportunities. Sports Ball Preparation for the 2012 Sports Ball is well and truly underway, with Edgbaston Cricket Club booked up and ready to go for the 4th June. At the moment, the focus is on securing the budget and deciding what awards will be at the event, but soon the focus shifts onto the infamous video and how we are going to make 2012s ball truly something spectacular. Tickets will be going on sale in approximately a months time dont miss out! Welfare Wednesday The VPW and I collaborated for the Healthy Living Welfare Wednesday on 11 th January. Thanks to the support of UBSport, we provided free zumba classes and 1-2-1 fitness advice all afternoon in the Hub. Sporting Events on Campus There are a number of sporting events on the cards for this term, including a world record attempt, pre-Olympics event, Sport Relief and potentially an event celebrating the Paralympics as well. Keep your ears close to the ground for details. What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council? BUCS National Advisory Group meeting 26th Jan (Loughborough) West Mids Regional BUCS meeting 3rd Feb (Aston) Progress on charity sports tournaments and other sporting events this term. Progress on Sports Ball. Continue with usual weekly commitments.

Thanks for reading. Yours, Tim

VPW Report to Guild Council

Name: Luke Reynolds Position: Vice President (Welfare) Date of writing report: 23/01/12 What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges? 1) Welfare Wednesdays

On the first Wednesday back of term the VPS and I collaborated on a healthy living Welfare Wednesday where we had free zumba class on at the vale which 20 people attended and also free advice being given out but the UBS Thrive team.

2)

Mental Health

Working with the Universities Senior Tutor and Director of Student Services we have been doing a review of the Mental Health Advisory Service which is in its final draft stages, among the recommendations are the need for administrative support and an extra case worker. Planning for Mind Awareness Days (MAD) has been going on with laughter yoga confirmed and plans in line for a lecture, film showing and other things on during the week . Attended a NUS training day around Mental Health Campaigns in Manchester with the DSO .

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role?
Have attended many meetings including; Campus security and crime prevention, Steering, Trustee Board, Gradball meetings, R & HR, with campus security, with Director of student services, plagiarism meetings with students, E & D meeting and Degree congregations. I Have been working on putting together a diversity supplement to celebrate diversity on campus and raise awareness of issues certain groups face. Have been working on getting the Zero Tolerance accreditation from the NUS and will shortly be writing a report to get the accreditation which we will then be advertising to student to improve the safe feeling of the Guild and Campus. I am on the Gradball working with the VPDR and hoping to make the dinner part of the Gradball more successful than in previous years. I have also been involved in the recruitment process for a new ARC advisor as a position became vacant.

VPW Report to Guild Council

What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council?

Better Guild and Welfare forum Arts and Law College Board Meeting Interviews for ARC role University Fitness to practise panel Catch up on emails Collect articles for diversity supplement Continue planning for MAD Help with one world week planning

ARAF Officer Report to Guild Council

Name: Ben Eliad Date: 2/2/12

Position: AntiRacism AntiFascism Officer

What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?

I have brought in a Holocaust Memorial Day Speaker along with Abby Levy looking into other genocides as well as the Holocaust I have brought in OneVoice who brought in 1 Palestinian and 1 Israeli to speak about what next in the conflict fostering further debate I am working with Campusalaam to have a big tent on campus in March showing off different faiths on campus

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role?

The IPF idea is still a work in progress, and I will be looking to have a table set up during freshers fair 2012 I have a number of people interested in taking part and furthering this concept I will be furthering contact with Coexistence Trust and getting a more formal link between the guildofstudents and their campus ambassadors as well as campus faith hub I have also been in touch with Hope Not Hate Campaign and am currently finding out how our students can get involved in the up and coming local elections where Hope Not Hate really believe they can push BNP out of politics watch this space!

What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council?

Will have an AntiRacism AntiFascism workshop for everyone interested to get involved Will continue work with Campusalaam to form this big tent idea Will further Holocaust education with the potential of bringing in Helen Bamber Foundation Will continue to foster debate on Israel-Palestine Formalise the relationship between the guild and coexistence trust

CA Officer Report to Guild Council

Name: Leander Jones Position: CAO Date of writing report: 21/01/2012 What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges? I am organising two events which are happening very soon. The first is going to be a lecture given by Simon Hackett and Lee Harris of the homeless charity SIFA Fireside, Bethan Wright, a social work student at Birmingham University who is on placement at SIFA Fireside and Tony Kelly an ex-service user who was homeless. They are going to be talking about their experiences with regard to homelessness. They will be highlighting what they feel are its underlying causes and also giving their first hand accounts about the daily realities of homelessness. This will be followed by a Sleep-out near the end of February (probably 23rd) somewhere on campus (exact location TBC). This will involve a bunch of interested students getting themselves sponsored, each for a small amount of money, to sleep rough (in sleeping bags and cardboard boxes) somewhere on university premises. This is designed to teach these students about the daily lives of the homeless, and to raise money for the SIFA homeless shelter in Birmingham so that they can continue to provide sufficient food in these difficult financial times. There will be a bin-fire all night at the sleep-out so people wont get cold, and hot drinks, meat and veggie sandwiches, juice etc will be served for free. There will also be members of the charity to speak to all night about the issue. The details and updates for both events can be found on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/events/166756900093328/ Additionally, going to GOG meetings and Guild Council What other duties have you been carrying out within your role? N/A What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council? Have gotten permission from the University to hold the sleep-out on campus, and permission from SOG for the funding required from the Campaigns Pot.

DS Officer Report to Guild Council

Name: Jennifer Kirk Date: 23rd January 2012

Position: Disabled Students Officer

What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?

Working with the marketing department to ensure new signs are accessible around the building. Writing a Disability policy for the guild with support from staff. (focus on accessibility)

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role?

Attending a Mental Health training day run by the NUS Planning a Mind Awareness Campaign for March Liaising between students and the University on various issues General Guild Officer Group duties

What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council?

Hold the first meeting for the Accessibility working group; to start on an action plan for increasing accessibility within the guild and fine-tune the new disability policy. Continued planning for the Mind Awareness Campaign in March Promote my role to potential candidates and ensure that the elections are accessible Give ResExec a briefing on role, campaigns and how to be more inclusive to disabled students. Work with DAMSA committee on increasing profile this term (particularly the Get Involved Fair)

HS Officer Report to Guild Council

Name: Mikayla Jones Position: HSO Date of writing report: 21.1.12 What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?

Hello Guild Council welcome back and I hope you all have a happy New Year! Since last GC I have been working on my small campaign project Home Students SOS tying into my manifesto point of community. Hopefully you will be seeing a lot more about that campaign and it should benefit home students all across the Uni. In regards to commuting whenever possible I have made home students aware of some of the delays with trains, buses and metros joint with the HSA we are trying to get a network of commuters letting each other know too. I would ask those Guild Council to think about homies commuting from all corners of Birmingham and the wider West Midlands to University to then search for a parking space because most have been taken by someone much closer who could walk in instead.

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role? Other duties have included GOG, Sabb buddy meetings; ResExec shout outs and a very interesting International Cultural Awareness Workshop that gave me and everyone who took part another perspective to approach things at which is always great. There are a lot of exciting things to come out of the Non Sabb Office like MAD, OWW and WW. If you want in on the acronyms youve got to pay attention to us non Sabbs to learn more!

What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council? A chapter of my dissertation would be lovely and make more progress with SOS. And maybe some Guild Award nominations ;)

PMS Officer Report to Guild Council

Name: Emily Halford

Position: Postgraduate and Mature Students Officer (PMSO)

Date: 19/01/12

What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?
I am continuing to work closely with the Postgraduate and Mature Students Association which meets every Wednesday to discuss issues which concern postgraduate and mature students. We are having a banner made and will have a stall at the upcoming postgraduate open day which I think will be really good for building the foundations for the next academic year so that lots of postgraduate and mature students get involved. I will also be speaking at the open day and have given a little speech at each of the Caf PhD events to increase my visibility. I am still hoping to set up the multi-association drop in session but Ill have to wait a couple of weeks until my lab schedule settles down! The majority of the duties which I have been carrying out have evolved from my manifesto pledges and can be read about below.

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role?
The evening before the next University Council meeting the president and I will be giving a presentation to all the members. This is a really good opportunity to make these influential figures aware of the problems facing postgraduate and mature students and also talk to them about future challenges, for example the impact of raising tuition fees for postgraduate students. Recently I have been involved with the campaign to save the MSc in Biological Recording. The students have run a very well organised campaign and the university has agreed to try to transfer the course to another institution rather than close it altogether. I will continue to support these students this term by attending meetings on campus with them and by continuing to stay in email contact with them. Many PhD students are concerned about a potential rise in fees for students who are in the writing up phase of their PhD. In addition the council tax exemption period for students who have writing up status has been reduced from one year to three months which has caused a lot of worry for PhD students who are likely to struggle financially during this time. These are issues that Ben Aylott (the senate rep) and I raised at the second to last graduate school management board meeting. As a result a working group which was set up to consider writing up fees has been extended to also encompass the council tax issue. Ben Aylott and I will sit on this group and the date for the first meeting should be set shortly. At the last graduate school management board meeting I was able to discuss the problem that many PhD students do not know where to go if they have a problem with their supervisor as they are worried that if they tell someone in the department it may be detrimental to them and their future academic career or that it will not be taken seriously due to friendships between academics. Not all PGRs seem aware of the mentor system. It was agreed that this

PMS Officer Report to Guild Council

was an important point and that the University should take action to remind PGRs about the mentor system and that anything told to them is in confidence. I think that this is a positive outcome and will take action to ensure that this is followed up. We have also had the second meeting of the PGR rep working group, which is continuing to put measures into place to improve the system. Students can now find out who their representatives are via the my learning tab on my.bham.ac.uk, which is a useful development. I also helped to run the PGR rep training session/forum event. Again the issue of working space was raised. In addition, thanks to our VPAD, Fliss Cross, I am now on the working group for the development of a postgraduate version of the Personal Skill Award (PSA) and have attended my first meeting. I hope that as a postgraduate I will be able to contribute to the development of the award, ensuring that it takes into account the differences between undergraduate and postgraduate study and commitments.

What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council?

I would like to make valuable contributions to the upcoming PGR student rep working group and the PSA working group. I also aim to gather information and to put together some good slides for the presentation to University Council, getting input from the PGMSA to do so. Whilst writing this report I have noticed that a lot of what I am doing has a postgraduate research bias and I would like to think about how I can do more for taught postgraduates as well as mature students and take action accordingly.

Satellite Sites Officer Report to Guild Council

Name: Vici Royle Position: Satellite Sites Officer Date of writing report: 19/1/2012 What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges? Better Representation: Guild Officer Elections. Hugo (VPDR) set up an open meeting for the non-sabbs to discuss Hard to Reach students who may face barriers when running in the Guild Officer elections. I successfully proposed a version of Sabbs on the Sofa to be taken to both Selly Oak and the Shakespeare Institute, dates tbc. As well as this, I also did a lecture shout at the Selly Oak campus and sent an email to all drama students, who are the only students to study at Selly Oak, regarding the elections. The medical school and dental school were also considered. I also suggested that a tailored email should be sent to students on a year abroad so they dont feel isolated from the events happening during the elections. Welfare. I received an email regarding the possible closure of the social area in the OLRC. Attending a meeting with relevant representatives, it was evident that staff feel powerless and are not able to come to a suitable conclusion. I have requested a meeting with a PVC to raise this problem. This is ongoing. Improved Transport: Selly Oak Shuttle Bus Stop progress. Meeting with Pro Vice Chancellor (Estates) John Heath and Caroline Radnor. Supported by Hugo (VPDR), I took a proposal to the PVC Estates for a bus stop near the Barber Institute to serve the shuttle buses. Unfortunately this was not accepted by compromises were drawn. I wrote a detailed account of this on my blog. The discussions are not over! Bring the Guild to you: Sabbs visit Selly Oak Campus. Hugo (VPDR) and Mark (President) accepted my invitation to attend a production by the drama department at the Selly Oak campus. The whole Sabb team plus some non-sabbs also signed a card for the cast and crew to spread the Guild love further than main campus. GOG visits Selly Oak Campus. I have invited the whole GOG team to the third Drama production on the 11th February. Attendance looks promising. Sabbs visit the Shakespeare Institute.

Satellite Sites Officer Report to Guild Council

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role? Blogging! See: http://officerblogs.com/sso for more details. GOG training, part one. Intercultural Awareness Training, arranged by the ISO. GOG meeting. Answering a query regarding students on a year abroad. Keeping up with all angles of student life by paying attention to the online forums. Speaking to students who dont understand or use the Guild and researching the reasons for this, as well assessing how this can be addressed if at all it needs to be. What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council?

My time is limited currently due to a particularly busy term within my degree (non-sabbs continue study alongside their officer commitments). However, I will endeavour to keep promoting the Guild Officer elections by any means I can and encouraging satellite sites students to consider taking part either by running, supporting a candidate or simply voting (in due course, obviously) and encouraging their friends to do the same.

Vici Royle Satellite Sites Officer Email: v.royle@guild.bham.ac.uk Twitter: @GuildSSO Blog: http://officerblogs.com/sso

Womens Officer Report to Guild Council

Name: Kelly Rogers Date: 20/01/2012

Position: Women's Officer

What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?

1. I have been looking into the welfare services on campus, and am hoping to collect all relevant information and provide a bite-size guide to welfare, which is easily available and hand it out throughout International Women's Week (20 th-24th February).

2. I am organising an International Women's Week which will raise awareness about the many issues facing women here and globally and provide information about routes and organisations one can join to continue campaigning about gender inequality and women's issues this meets the promise I made to be a campaigning women's officer, and to bring Feminism back onto campus. What other duties have you been carrying out within your role?

I have set up a cross-liberation group, which had its first meeting early this term and decided on a number of motions to go to Guild Council. This group, which hopefully will continue expanding, had agreed to meet fairly regularly so that the Liberation groups can work together to bring Liberation back onto the campus agenda.

What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council?

Organise as much as possible for my International Women's Week ensure that I have lots of speakers coming for some awesome debates and lectures, have a list of female students who wish to perform at the Carnival on Wednesday 22nd, have a list of female students who wish to perform at our Opening Night Talent Show or show off their work in our art/creative work exhibition, have a list of societies / groups that wish to hold themed events around women's issues here and globally. Finally, I need to have sorted all the marketing side of it out, having designed posters, programmes, flyers and so on.

ISO Report to Guild Council

Name: B S Noorie Karimbocus Position: International Students Officer Date of writing report: 25/01/12

What duties have you been carrying out which tie into your manifesto pledges?
I am planning a One World Week to promote inclusion around campus. The week will comprise activities and events to showcase the diversity on campus and let students shine, and will be from 11-17 Feb; and will include workshops from the Careers & Employability Centre.

What other duties have you been carrying out within your role?
I have attended a Res Exec meeting on Tuesday 24/01/12, where I met with different RAs to introduce myself and start collaborating with them. I have attended a trip to Bicester organised by the International Students Advisory Service on 10th Dec 2011. I was accompanied by the Disabled Students Officer. This was part of the Officer engagement initiative.

What do you aim to get done before the Guild Council?

Plan out OWW in detail to make it work.