Objective 1: Building Communities
My 1st objective is to work with active societies and sports clubs to increase student engagement. As part of my objective 1, I supported the running of Fresher’s fair. Meeting new students, guided them to the student groups societies and sports clubs. Also addressed few induction classes and CSSA.
- Student Group Training. On October 18th, the sabbatical officer addressed our active societies and sports clubs during their student group training. We presented our manifestos and explained how we need their engagement to improve the student life here at Kingston.
- Addressing Induction classes. During the induction week, we, the union staff, visited you and delivered a presentation on ‘who are we, the students' union and what we do for you’, this was our way of connecting with you, showing that you all matter to us. As your VP, I had the opportunity to address the Psychology, Architecture and Biomedicalstudent intakes. Overall, there were approximately 400 students.
- Addressing the Chinese Student Scholars' Association. Another highlight last week was addressing our Chinese student community here at Kingston. The Chinese embassy team was also present. I’m glad I had the opportunity to present in front of all of them. The CSSA president, Raymond, made a significant effort to bring this event to fruition. It was good to see some leaders show genuine care towards their people and community. Thanks to CSSA for inviting me!
- Freshers Fair. The speciality of September is the Freshers' fair. Seeing our campus go from quiet to buzzing with life in just few weeks was incredible. During the fresher's week, the sabbs had our own table and took this moment to thank you all for taking the time to visit us. Now, most of you are aware of who we are and what we do for you.
This time reminded me of my first year at Kingston, attending the freshers' fair at Clay-hill fields right next to the accommodation. I remember how eager and excited I was to visit all the stalls, and I ended up going home with packed freebies, receiving tons of emails from various student groups encouraging us to join their teams. Seeing the same effect on all of you during freshers was heartwarming. Nearly 3,000 students attended this year's freshers' fair, and so far, every student I have spoken to has given positive feedback.
For the very first time, we took the university's senior leadership team, including the Vice Chancellor, on a tour around Freshers Fair. We introduced them to all the brilliant stalls, including sports clubs and societies. This was really important to show university leadership the great work students are doing to build communities, and enables us to better represent your interests. Additionally, I would like to thank all the union staff, student staff, and security personnel for their contributions to making this Freshers' Fair a success.
So, what's next? You should have all now started on your course. I really encourage you to get involved in student groups, attend as many events as you can, and come speak with me!
Objective 2: Secure regular hardship funding to reduce barriers to engage.
My 2nd Manifesto objective is to secure regular hardship funding to reduce barriers and promote student community engagement. This month I started the groundwork on this objective. I strongly believe that all Kingston students should be a ble to participate in all student group activities whilst you're here. But sometimes, membership fees, travel costs, or being busy with a part-time job might hinder your ability to get involved as much as you'd like. Having been Tamil Society President myself, I know first-hand how passionate student leaders are about community growth - but that there are often barriers to get involved. For instance, we know from our Annual Student Survey that 23.5% of students who have never been involved in student groups said they haven't because they can't afford the membership fee.
We've also started a research project into the impact that part-time work has on your time at university. This should give us really useful information to develop recommendations which will be designed to reduce the negative impact part-time work has on studies. Stay tuned for updates on this - we will be asking you to share your experiences over the next couple of months!
Did you see that the UK Government announced this week that they're looking to reintroduce Maintenance Grants? This is a really exciting development, as maintenance grants really do help reduce barriers to engagement, but were got rid of in 2016. However, we will be fighting the proposal that this will be funded by a new international students levy, which we disagree with.
Objective 3: Delivering cultural events
My 3rd Manifesto objective is to deliver a successful programme of cultural events. We are now in October, which is Black History Month. We are delivering an exciting series of events based on black histories. Make sure to take part and utilise these opportunities to increase your knowledge and experience the culture - you can find out more about these events here!
Yours truly,
Canon Kingstan Manuel (He/Him)
Vice President, Kingston Students' Union