At the latest Better Staffs Forum, various things were discussed - from disabled access door buttons to more volunteering opportunities for students within the local area.
At the latest Better Staffs Forum, various things were discussed - from disabled access door buttons to more volunteering opportunities for students within the local area.
This article is here to help you get to grips with what exactly was discussed, and what the outcomes were - giving you a chance to know what to expect in the next couple of months here at Staffordshire University.
The panel approved three ideas 100%:
For the Students' Union to ask the University for more disabled access door buttons. // Tash is going to follow up on this issue with the University and report back on progress at the next meeting.
For the Students' Union to include more nutritional information surrounding the food they serve from their venues. // Darren will follow this up with Union venues and report back on progress at the next meeting.
For The Better Staffs Forum to decide if the Students' Union should absorb (or cover the costs of) tax incurred on Female Sanitary Products, so that our students have access to cheaper tampons and pads for their personal hygiene. // Darren will follow this up with the Union and report back on progress at the next meeting.
Other ideas included:
(75% panel approval) For the Students' Union to promote volunteering opportunities within the restoration of Hanley Park. // The Student Engagement team will promote opportunities to student groups.
Various other ideas were brought forward, but some of these were discarded with actions promised for the future:
For the Students' Union to revisit the 'Keep Wednesday Afternoons Free' agreement with the University. // The panel discarded as they believed it was not something for the Union to act on. Instead, Tash will provide feedback to BUCS about their scheduling of away games.
For the Students' Union to negotiate a reduced price for student parking, and negotiate a reduced price for those students who commute or have placements. // The panel discarded and instead mandated action for Darren. Darren will run a student forum solely around car parking and other estates related issues within November, and will take a list of complaints to the University.
For certain activities run by the Students' Union to not be held in evenings (5pm onwards) as it prevents students with childcare responsibilities from engaging. // The panel discarded, as no matter what time of day you put activities or events on, you will not be able to please every person. Instead, the SU will work on putting things on at different times of the day to try and engage different students. Next Better Staffs Forum will be on a Wednesday afternoon.
For the Students' Union to negotiate with the Council towards an agreement to not carry out roadworks during the term time. // The panel discarded, as Officers explained that they already work with the Council/Local Government very closely to explain how their decisions will affect students. The Students' Union will attempt to better communicate the work they are already doing with the local council.
Some other issues that were raised were sanitary bins in student houses, questions about the organisation of Stoketoberfest, a question for Tash surrounding for Trans inclusion in sport and certain issues raised with different areas of campus.
All other issues will be discussed at the next forum on Wednesday 29th November. We're looking for students to sit on the panel, so if you're interested, get in touch at studentengagement@staffs.ac.uk.