Our priorities for the year come from each elected officer’s manifesto, the trends we are seeing in student data, and what we know about where your experience at Surrey could improve.
Here is an update of our progress in the five areas we are focusing on this year:
Cost of Living
- Students’ cost of living and accommodation issues were raised with senior University leaders at Student Voice Forum
- We signposted to the Access Fund -helping students sign up for memberships and facilities with funding support
- 18 free events were organised to build student communities and present support services
- We continued to provide free sexual health resources and free period products
- We worked to reduce ticket and drink prices, and hosted low-cost or free events
- We launched the Community Hub!
Engagement and Participation
- Your voice was shared on accessibility issues and we are collaborating with the University on the Disability and Accessibility at Surrey group
- We held regular society standings, sports standings, and held a vote on our tour provider
- We ensured there was representation on groups like the Disability and Diversity Group and made efforts to improve communications regarding support options
- Community Engagement: Steve the Stag participated in local Christmas festivities and the Christmas switch-on event
Equality, Diversity & Inclusion
- The Female Takeover event was well attended
- Disability Week was run – with a view to review and improve the campaign next year
- EDI will be integrated into club/society committee training and recruitment
- Wellbeing Champions have been trained and we are addressing intersectionality in clubs and societies
- Union staff will receive updated training on EDI issues
- We are active in the University’s Athena Swan steering group, focusing on women’s development in higher education
- The Student Equality Network has met monthly to discuss students’ needs
Education
- We presented our findings from our February Starter Survey to the University to highlight the challenges faced by PGTs
- We have been involved in various academic committees, focusing on student engagement, experience, and the efficacy of university administration
- We’ve addressed issues of hidden course costs as well as disparities in educational experiences across different departments
- We have been involved in developing the University’s Education Strategy and its focus areas, like the National Student Survey (NSS)
- We contributing to the University’s upcoming Student Guide for Use of AI in Education
However, we’re not finished yet – and we’re looking forward to bringing you even more updates of our priorities in 2024!
Read more about the Sabb’s work, and the other issues discussed by the Union Officer team in the minutes from our recent Union Forum.
