Term One Report

I thought it would be useful and informative to write an end of term one report summarising the activities and campaigns I have been involved with since taking my post as elected Vice President Student Activities and Development. If you have any questions about any of the points in this report, please do not hesitate to contact me at vpsad@guild.bham.ac.uk. There will be an opportunity for student groups to raise any issues at the Student Group Megaforum in January.

Key Campaigns

Equal Pay Day
The 30th October 2009 was Equal Pay Day, and along with the Women’s Association, we ran a campaign to raise awareness of the 17.1% pay gap in the workplace between men and women, and gain signatures for a petition to amend the Equality Bill. Why does this matter to students? Well we are treated as equals at University; pay equal fees, work equally hard, are given the same amount of teaching, and the same about of opportunities to develop our skill set, so why then, when we graduate, are some students subjected to discrimination based on their gender? We have employers on campus continuously, looking to recruit the best graduates. The role of the University is to prepare us for the workplace, and my remit includes personal ‘Development’, so it is so important that students are aware of the discrimination that may face them, so that they can speak out if they think it is unfair, or be savvy about it when they are working their way up a career ladder. The petition gained over 600 signatures, and the Panel Discussion hosted by the Debating Society, which included NUS Women’s Officer Olivia Bailey, POLSIS lecturer Dr Peter Kerr, Equality and Diversity Advisor (Students) Jane Tope and Careers Services representative Sue Welland, had a great turn out with a very interesting discussion.

Faith and Culture @ Guild of Students
Faith and Culture @ Guild of Students was another campaign that I lead on with a number of interested students, the Anti-Fascism Anti-Racism Officer, and the Ethnic Minority Students’ Officer. This umbrella campaign promoted over 20 events hosted by a wide variety of societies. Events ranged from film showings, to three-course meals, to discussions. I arranged for a Faith and Culture stall outside Spar for over a week, which over 10 groups were present at to promote their society and increase awareness of their faith/culture.

Know Your Guild
This is a fantastic umbrella campaign for term two which was created during the training period in July. As Sabb lead I have been working really hard with each Guild department and the marketing department to bring this vision to life. The campaign aims to raise awareness and increase participation in all aspects of the Guild services and activities through bringing together events and campaigns which traditionally take place, and also encapsulate new activities. If a student interacts with one aspect of the Guild, we want it to be obvious that there are many other elements to the guild which are also relevant to them. This may be a student who uses the JobZone CV drop in, discovers they can join a society which will develop their skills whilst pursuing an interest. The KYG marketing communication campaign includes:
• Get Involved fair and taster sessions
• Sexual Health Awareness and Guidance week
• Healthy Living campaign
• Guild Officer elections
• Community Warden Selly Oak photo competition
• JobZone fair and workshops
• Student Volunteering Week
• Guild Awards
It was really important for me that this campaign is not just promoted to students within the Guild, but to outreach to students who are not currently engaged in the Guild. Not only is my remit to engaged students in student groups and activities, but also for the development of students. I believe this campaign achieves both of these elements of my remit, and as a Vice President of the Guild of Students, also supports the Guild in the various campaigns and services it provides. Below is an outline of the proposed marketing for KYG campaign:
• “Know Your Guild: Your essential guide to term two” booklet. This will be delivered to halls of residence by the Mentors, and will be available in other outreach strategies
• T-shirts
• Redbrick KYG pull-out
• Presentations to large lectures of all years delivered by the Sabbs
• Email footers for all Guild staff
• Website advertisements and online booklet
• Leaflets and posters
• Individual campaign/event promotion will have the KYG logo featured
• Facebook events for each campaign/event
• Kiosks on campus manned by the Sabbs and student staff. This will have information and booklets available to hand out
• Information on WebCT and MyBham portal
• Featured in the e-newsletter

Student Activities and Development

Student Group Committee
The VPSAD chairs the SGC. This committee is a sub-committee of Guild Council which recognises and derecognises student groups, and also approves constitutional changes and grant allocations. There have been six SGC meetings this term.

Groups Recognised:
SPECS (Sports, PE and Coaching Science)
Aussie Rules Football
RUBS (Rounders: University of Birmingham Squad)
No2ID: Students Against Surveillance
Urban and Gospel
Slovak and Czech Society
Wine Society
Japanese, Arabic and Mandarin (JAMsoc)
Philosophy
Hip Hop
Atheist, Agnostic and Humanist Society
UNICEF on Campus
War Studies

Groups Derecognised (incl. Voluntary):
BandSoc
Centre for West African Studies
Cypriot
Documentary
Ethical Trade
Fusion
Green Party
Trading Card Games
Tribe
ComAc
Daytrippers
Indie
Korean
Seeking a More Enriched and Enlightened Mind
Say it Louder
Social Policy
Social Sciences
Somali
Trading and Investment
Vegetarian Food

Student Group Issues
To be transparent and for members to understand what sort of issues the VPSAD deals with, I have listed some of the bigger issues I have met or communicated with individual student groups about.
• Charity allocation process
• Opening times of the Guild and access to rooms
• Welcome Week stall
• Fundraising and Sponsorship
• Stable invoicing group
• Fruit of the Loom
• Publicity and Use of University logo
• Forms
• External companies false advertising/unfair competition
• Annual convention room booking
• Event planning and budgeting
• Guild accounts and event planning
• Election at University Equality and Diversity group
• Press Release
• GOSip features
• Disputes within committee

Miniforums
VPSAD chairs the eleven miniforums which take place at the end of each term. These are great opportunities to talk to the VPSAD about any issues, successes or challenges your group may have. I will be collecting all the minutes and working on the action points.

Megaforum
As part of my manifesto, I talked about bringing groups together and aiming to create a community feeling amongst student groups with the opportunity to speak with each other. I feel this is really important as there are so many opportunities for groups to work together, and learn from each other. I introduced the Student Group Meeting, or Megaforum, on 7th October 2009. This brought together a representative from each group, and was not only an opportunity to introduce myself as VPSAD and communicate a number of useful student group related issues, but also a chance for groups to question me, keep me accountable, share challenges and also a chance to promote events or seek help from other groups. 72 groups attended. The agenda is below.
• Introduction to new Sabbatical team and VPSAD/VPS
• How to contact VPSAD and blog
• Welcome Week feedback
• Training opportunities (Events, Marketing and Sponsorship, CV Skills)
• Get Involved
• Website – publicity opportunities
• Student Development Comms
• Student Group Committee
• Upcoming campaigns
• Entrepreneurship and Innovation Centre support
• Personal Skills Award
• Communication with other groups
• Communication to VPSAD

There was some really interesting feedback and suggestions, which I have been working on throughout the term or have found information on. Some of them are listed below
• First Aid Training: Student Development has provided four sessions this term, and around 25 students have attended. These sessions were not at capacity so more students were able to sign up if they were interested.
• Webmail Email Server announcement: We upgraded from Exchange 2003 to Exchange 2007 at the start of term 1. On the whole this service is now working as intended after a few problems during the installation period and through term 1 involving webmail off campus. This upgrade was necessary and has had a positive impact on the Guild’s email services including less downtime and more functionality. We are working on including POP3 and IMAP services off campus for the start of term 2. Any further webmail problems, please report them to be resolved.
• University wireless (UOBWLAN) announcement: will be coming to the Guild over the run up to summer 2010 and will be accessible in most areas of the building. More information will be available once work begins.
• Request for Firefox and Open Office on computers: Firefox should be installed on all student group computers, but IT will check this. MS Office has been installed on all computers, if Open Office is really needed, then it may be that it can be installed on a few computers. Please get in contact if you have any comments.
• Advanced “Big Event” bookings at the Guild. Please get in touch with the VPSAD if this affects your group.
• Room Bookings: There is a feedback form for all room bookings. If you have any problems with your booking, please fill in this form and hand it in to Student Development. All forms submitted will be looked at by the Facilities Manager and the Room Bookings and Events Coordinator. The only way any problems with room bookings can be dealt with is if they are collected centrally and reviewed. The miniforum comments suggested a number of problems, which I have forwarded on to management. One comment was regarding booking a room with a Piano; I have had this requirement added to the form to ensure room bookings coordinator know if you have booked the room specifically for the piano. We are currently also looking into how other unions run their room bookings, and reviewing the current system used by the Guild.
• External Bank Accounts: It is a legal requirement for Student Unions to be financially responsible for all associated clubs and societies. As student groups collect members money, the Guild of Students are responsible for the safe-keeping of this money, and ensuring that it is spent on what the member intended. The only way of ensuring this, is through groups using Guild bank accounts. This also helps a smooth and problem free handover when groups hold an AGM each year.
• More help showcasing/publicising student groups: Welcome Week, Get Involved and other opportunities later in the year will hopefully help with showcasing events, however we have also increased the number of channels for promoting events (see publicity section)
• Online membership: This is something I, and Student Development, are very keen on and it is an issue being discussed. This may link in with the possibility of an online ticket website for commercial, RA and Student Group events.

Challenge Emma
This term I have encouraged student groups to ‘Challenge Emma’ in which I take part in their normal activities or a one-off event. Although this means we can all have a bit of fun, it actually has a great benefit in building my relationship with groups and individuals, and also helps in my day-to-day decision making regarding student groups. Along with Challenge Emma, I have tried to drop in on a few societies to see how they are doing and have informal chats about what their main successes and challenges are. Below is a rough guide to what I have been doing with student groups.
• PhotoSoc Challenge Emma: Light painting workshop
• Purple Mermaid Circus Society Challenge Emma: Fire spinning at Vale Fireworks
• ArtSoc Challenge Emma: Draw at a Life Drawing session
• Gilbert and Sullivan Challenge Emma: Introduce their first ever performance, HMS Pinafore
• Article 19 Peter Pan performance
• Article 19 Equus performance
• GMTG Sweeney Todd auditions and performance
• Agape Student Life Society prize draw
• Pakistan Culture Society Shaam Charity Dinner and Dance
• Carnival RAG Society meeting, stewarding Carnage and starting the Acorn Santa Fun Run
• InterVol presentation evening
• Krishna Consciousness meditation workshop
• Women’s Association meeting and Equal Pay Day campaign
• Roleplay Society drop in
• Three Bugs Fringe Theatre drop in
• BurnFM Challenge Emma: Radio Show
• Labour Society social
• Friends of Palestine event
If your group would like to Challenge me, please get in touch!

Website and Access to Information
Part of my manifesto was to develop the Guild of Students Website to include more details about each student group and FAQ’s and information section. Little did I know that the Student Development and Marketing Department staff were already working hard on these areas. Student groups are now grouped as miniforums on the website, and each has a brief description and contact details (email/Facebook). This is a fantastic step forward and will hopefully encourage students new to the Guild or societies to contact groups. At www.guildofstudents.com/groups and www.guildofstudents.com/resources, a number of resources can be found for groups to download, including Risk Assessments and Freedom of Speech forms. The Pick n Mix’s are also available for download, which give a wide variety of information and help with running your group.
A ‘What’s On’ section has been created on the website, as a tab and also at the bottom of the page. Again this is a huge step forward for publicising student group events. To have your event featured on the website, email s.streatfield@guild.bham.ac.uk.

Student Group activity promotion
I have been working with staff to create a stream-lined approach to publicising student group events. If groups email s.streatfield@guild.bham.ac.uk with their event this will:
• get emailed to Marketing Department for the ‘What’s On’ section of the website
• appear in the GOS in Print (if the event is still valid at time of print)
• get emailed to myself to appear on my blog (www.emmapackhamvpsad.blogspot.com)
• get sent to the media groups for their information, in case they would like to feature/cover any of the events

GOSip and GOS in Print
Earlier this term, Guild:TV launched their News and Entertainment programme, GOSip, featuring guild events, society features, and local news. This was sent out via the new Guild of Students e-newsletter and can be found at http://www.guildtv.co.uk/. The GOS in Print, developed by the Guild Marketing Department now appears twice a term as a pull out in Redbrick and also distributed at various locations. As well as updating students about ongoing campaigns or Guild services, there is also a ‘Society Spotlight’. The first two editions have featured Bhangra Society, and International Volunteers. I sent out an email to all student groups offering the opportunity to appear in the next GOS in Print. As not all the societies will be able to appear in the GOS in Print, I have arranged to try out a fortnightly society spotlight on the Guild of Students website, so we can help promote as many groups as possible. Please email me at vpsad@guild.bham.ac.uk if you would like this opportunity.

Training
Part of my manifesto was to increase the training opportunities to students groups. I feel this is really important to help groups run as effectively as possible and be a great success. In the Student Group Hanover Report, a number of training requests were identified. To fulfil this need, I have organised a number of training sessions.
• Event’s Drop In: This weekly session was aimed for groups wanting to talk through large events and have support from key staff. Room Bookings and Events Coordinator, Technical Services Coordinator, Deputy Venues Manager and I were all available on request to offer support to student group events. No groups have used this service this term, so if you have any feedback, then please let me know.
• Marketing and Sponsorship Training: This was a small, but very successful and useful training session for student groups. The training looked into how to successfully approach sponsorship, and how best to promote groups and events.
• CV Skills workshop for student groups: Although student group committees run for election because they are passionate about what that group represents, it is so important to acknowledge the fantastic transferable skills that students gain. In the workshop we tried to help students articulate the skills they have learnt, and gain awareness of where they need to improve. The careers service and JobZone helped deliver the training, and students gave very positive feedback.

Guild Awards
Initial planning has started for the 2010 Guild Awards, which will be held on 16th March.

Personal Skills Award
The University Careers Service has launched their new activities-based pathway to completing the
PSA award. The criteria includes

Group Handovers
I have attended a number of handover meetings with new student group committees.

Other Guild Activities

Welcome Week and Megaforum Feedback
Welcome Week was a huge success, and lots of groups reported a significant increase in membership. The Sabbaticals were very active during Welcome Week, introducing the Guild to first years at lecture shout-outs and being introduced to those on Fresher’s Fest at the Guild. We were rotated on the welcome stall in Mermaid Square, and also were day champions on various days. On both Thursday and Friday, I stayed close to the Societies Fair to help with any problems or queries.
Below are some rough figures about Welcome Week:

Of the 103 Societies who gave us feedback:
• 5488 Membership forms submitted on the day
• 3377 New members
• 10017 students interested in joining at a later stage
• 5,000 Fresher’s arrived in Birmingham
• 20,000 membership handbooks delivered to students
• 4,000 participants on Freshers Fest
• 2,200 NUS Extra Cards sold in the first week.
• 400 RAs, Mentors, Crew, Ambassadors and Guild Officers involved in Welcome Week
• 11,000 people through the Guild doors on the first Monday
• 8,000 students the officer team directly spoke to in the first week
• 2,000 students the officer team directly spoke to at the special Freshers Fest welcome talks

At the Megaforum student groups were able to give feedback on Welcome Week:
1. Should have been informed early about the limitations to stall.
2. Leafleter was evicted, otherwise good.
3. Beer was confiscated by security.

The restriction of two committee members per student group was communicated to all groups at the start of September. This was enforced throughout the day, which I think was important. This helped to comply with health and safety (people were being counted in and out) and ensured more students could enter the marquee as there were less committee members taking up the capacity. Students were able to walk up the aisles and look at all the stalls without being crowded. The footfall was fantastic, groups looked approachable and eager to talk to new students (sometimes large groups of committee members looks intimidating), and membership/interest in groups was fantastic as shown above. I apologise that this was not communicated earlier, I appreciate that some committee members had to leave, but I also hope that student groups can understand the benefit and impact this actually had. In regards to the beer; it’s a no.

1. Make it clearer that different societies were on different days.
2. General lack of information.
3. Needed to come to Societies fair on both days. Vale Day was a good idea.

This is good feedback to work on for next year regarding promotion. The Welcome Week Guide did not specify there were different groups on both days, and this is something I have passed on to the Marketing Department. Student Development and I made a Facebook group in order to help distinguish the days, which was sent out via the Guild of Students Facebook group. It specified which day groups were attending. I agree more emphasis is needed on the fact that groups will not necessarily be at both days.

1. Put societies fair on Wed/Thurs, Friday is always very quiet.
2. Friday Fair was too quiet.

Wednesday is the Sport’s Fair at the University, and in the interest of encouraging as many students to visit the societies fair as possible, the decision has previously been made to not overlap with this. Some of our sport’s societies also attend the Sports Fair. This is some feedback that I can pass on to the Marketing Department.

1. More notice about Vale Day.
2. More notice needed for Vale Day.

Vale Day was organised by Freshers Fest, and they are aware of the lack of notice they gave student groups. They also wanted to say a huge thank you for all the help and positive feedback they received about the day – more notice next time!!

1. Better grouping of societies on the two days.
2. Limit noise from stalls, group similar groups next to each other.
3. Clearer divide between societies.
4. We were placed next to loud music for the whole afternoon-I think this should be barred.
5. Simpler membership forms, more space at fairs. Went well, good fun!
6. Two stalls for larger societies.
7. Get a bigger Marquee.
8. Notice board broke, need new ones.

I believe the forms are as short as they can be whilst collecting all the information needed for monitoring and health and safety requirements. Will pass on the comments to Student Development. In terms of space it would be ideal to have a larger marquee, however the costs are so high it would mean less money to spend elsewhere (marketing etc). At the Welcome Week debrief I passed on this feedback. I know a lot of work went in to grouping the societies appropriately (usually within mini-forums), however there is only a certain amount of feasible groupings. If groups fail to turn up on the day, we allow groups on the waiting list to have a stall; however this sometimes means they are not with other similar groups. I received a number of comments on the day about music, so this is something to look into for next year. Although it’s great for the atmosphere and showcases what groups do, we do need some limits. In terms of noticeboards, this is an on-going debate and I had a poll recently on my blog…do we spend over £4000 on high quality, sturdy boards; buy more of the same quality boards and spend less money; or hire boards each time we need them (twice maximum a year)….it is pretty split decision, have your say!

1. Was awesome.
2. Went very smoothly, has been a good experience.
3. Seemed to run very well.
4. Well-organised, it looked awesome.
5. Very well organised, lovely atmosphere.
6. Well run.
7. Went really well!

University Open day
At the beginning of term the University held an open day. The Guild was very proactive this year, and all the Sabbaticals arrived to help on the stall and talk to prospective students. It was great interaction with potential members and their parents. The most popular piece of literature was the list of student groups, which is great promotion for groups.

Volunteer Recognition
All committee members are volunteers, not only those involved in Volunteering projects. Student Development and I are currently re-branding the certificates available to students with marketing, hopefully to be introduced in the New Year. I have held a small focus group to discuss current and possible forms of recognition.

“Tell David No” Flashmob
Organised in just 24 hours, the Sabbatical team mobilised over 400 students to attend a flashmob in protest of the proposed higher tuition fees. It emerged that our Vice Chancellor, David Eastwood, will sit on the panel which will make a recommendation to the Government about the proposed rise of £7000 tuition fees per year. The VC was extremely receptive to the protest and is keen to consult students about their opinions on the proposed rise in fees. This is just the beginning of the Guild campaign, which will primarily be led by the President and VP Education and Access.

Best Bar None Award
Venues staff, VPW, VPDR and I attended the Best Bar None Awards, where Joes won Best Suburban Bar.

Ticket Website
I have been involved in a number of meetings which are looking at the feasibility of having a ticketing website and/or a ticket box office, for the sale of commercial, RA and Student Group tickets. This is in the feasibility stage and is still under discussion. Should the ticketing website go ahead, this will hopefully include online membership for student groups.

Chaplaincy Committee
I sit on the Chaplaincy Committee with VPW Johnny, and attended the welcome introduction this term. Unfortunately I could not attend the first committee meeting due to being needed for a student appeal hearing.

Health and Safety Committee
VPSAD sits on this committee. I have attended one meeting this term.

Trustee Board
VPSAD is a Trustee of the Guild of Students. I have attended a Trustee Away Day, and two Trustee Board meetings. One meeting was cancelled and any urgent issues were decided by email resolution.

Entertainment Committee
VPSAD sits on this committee. There has been one meeting this term which I attended.

Guild Meetings
I have attended a number of weekly meetings, Sabbatical Officer Group, Team 10 and Sabb Catch up, and a variety of other Guild meetings, such as Staff Forum, Guild Officer Group, and Guild Council.

Appeal Hearings
As Sabbatical Officers, we are required to represent any student who wishes to have an Officer present at their appeal hearing. Students may be appealing a decision to be removed from their course, or to re-sit an exam. This term I have been required for three appeals.

RA Results Night
A great night, a fantastic election turnout with all positions filled. I was requested to read out the Volunteering Officer results for each halls of residence.

GradBall
Initial meetings have started to take place about the 2010 Grad Ball. Tom and I will be the Sabb leads on this.

Non-Sabb Mentoring and Training
In the past, Sabbatical Officers have mentored Non-Sabbatical Officers, to offer support, guidance and encouragement. I felt this was really important to engage the Non-Sabb officers, and therefore I initiated and organised the mentoring this year. Hopefully it has proved useful to the current team, however it is purely an optional scheme if the non-sabbs would like to take the opportunity to draw on the full-time sabbatical’s knowledge and support.
I also offered to help organise and deliver the non-sabb training.

Student Staff Interviews and Training
Sabbatical Officers are requested to help with interviews for student staff and the inductions new staff receive. I have helped at a round of group interviews and training this term.

Staff Recruitment
Sabbatical Officers are required to be part of the recruitment process for new staff when required. I shortlisted for the position of Volunteering Administrator and Volunteering Activities Coordinator this term, and lead interviews for both these positions.

World Aids Day
VPW Johnny Davis organised World Aids Day, which all the Sabbs helped out with on the day, handing out red ribbons and information raising the awareness of AIDs and Sexually Transmitted Diseases.

Community Open Day
The University of Birmingham have conducted research into the opinion the local community has of the University. The general feeling was that the community liked the University, but couldn’t explain why and does not have a good understanding of it. In response to this, the University are planning a community open day at the end of term three, which provisionally includes a fun fair, family entertainment, and ‘Tomorrow’s World’ style science interaction. I made contact with the Events Team and the Guild of Students have been asked to participate in the open day. This would be a fantastic opportunity to promote student group activities, especially ones which the community can participate in (performances, community action, volunteering), and raise the profile of not only the Guild of Students, but also of students and student groups. I have attended a few initial meetings with the University events team and other University departments who may be involved in the open day, and I have put together a proposal for Senior Management and the Sabbatical team to consider. These plans are provisional at the moment however student groups will be kept up to date and informed of any opportunities to showcase their activities to the community and University.

University Activities

Degree Congregations
The Sabbaticals are required to attend degree congregations each year as part of the procession. I attended the College of Social Science and also the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences congregation. I attended a degree congregation lunch with the Chancellor Dominic Cadbury and Vice Chancellor David Eastwood.

College Quality Assurance and Enhancement Committee
Each sabbatical is required to attend a college quality and enhancement committee. I have attended two meetings for the college of Social Science, which assess the quality of teaching across the college.

Psychology School Quality Review
As VPEA Brigid could not attend one of the School Quality Reviews, I offered to take her place. This involved reviewing the School Evaluation of Quality Process report, NSS and SSS results, external examiners report and conducting a full day visit to the school. I lead on the Student Admission, Progression, Support and Welfare section, and also conducted an informal focus group with Psychology students. The process was completed with a follow up visit offering recommendations to the school.

Development and Alumni Relations Office
I have worked hard to build the relationship between the Guild of Students and DARO, as I feel the department is a key strategic relationship. Alumni of the University have contributed donations to the Guild of Students in the past which have gone towards a number of projects including refurbishment of the media group’s area, development of the website and Mermaid fountain renovation. DARO put on events for current students, such as guest speakers (David Gill, CEO of Man utd, and George Davies of Next/Per Una) and careers advice. I believe by working closely with DARO, we can strengthen the relationship and increase communication with alumni and past members of the Guild of Students. I have coordinated and attended a number of meetings between the Guild and DARO, which have been extremely productive.

BUAFTA Shortlisting
I was required to be the sabbatical representative for the Birmingham University Awards For Tremendous Achievement shortlisting process. BUAFTAs are the University’s staff awards for excellence, and include categories such as Diversity, Best Customer Service, Project of the Year and Lifetime Achievement.

Miscellaneous

NUS Training
This term I have attended two NUS training sessions. Developing Your Members, and Union Development.

Acorn Fun Run
I organised for a number of Sabbaticals and Guild staff to take part in the annual Acorn Fun Run on campus, which raises money for life-limited children in Birmingham. We raised a good amount of money, and had great fun taking part in the run on campus.

Children in Need
Student Development and I organised for ‘When I grow up I want to be...’ staff fancy dress to raise money for Children in Need. We also placed some collection pots around the guild, and managed to raise nearly £100 for the cause.

Re-Use Campaign
VPHC Ed Sparkes encouraged the Sabbs to take part in the halls of residence ‘re-use’ scheme, in which students can leave behind items they would like to donate to new students arriving in the new academic year. Volunteers were required to sort the items left.

I would like to end this report by saying thank you to all the staff at the Guild of Students who have been so supportive of me and the other Sabbatical Officers. I would like to especially thank the Student Group Coordinator, Student Development and Marketing Team who have encouraged, offered advice and guidance, and supported all of my activities. The Sabbatical team have also been a tremendous support, and there are numerous individual students and student groups who have all helped me in my first term and have been very encouraging. Thank you.