Clarity

Dear Blog readers,

Thankyou for your interest. Please note that I am no longer in post as Vice-President (Activities) at Kent Union. However, I have left this Blog active for anyone that may find some of the resources here useful or interesting.

You may contact Kent Union at kentunion@kent.ac.uk or my successor Amy at union-activities@kent.ac.uk.

Thanks!

Kenny  

Awarding Your Hard Work

"Cheers" from the Sabb Team  

Greetings my lovelies! We are now coming to the end of what has been the season of awards ceremonies with the Kent Union awards; K.S.C.V. Medway and Canterbury, The first ever K.I.C. media awards as well as the Employability points awards night. Phew!  

Its a time of year that I thoroughly enjoy, being able to congratulate volunteers on the dedication and time that they have given as well as give special thanks to some of the high achievers this year. My society being a previous winner, I know how much these accolades can mean.  As well as the trophies, certificates and prizes that were given, there was food and drink laid on for all attendees.   

Jess has recieved so many awards this year it's lost its appeal 

The K.I.C. media awards were a massive success in this, their first year with many of the categories being judged by industry professionals adding real kudos to the prizes. I was so glad to have been involved in student media over the last two years which has gone from strength to strength. If you weren't already aware the space previously known as the Attic will sadly serve its last pint this exam term but joyfully burst from its summer break cocoon to emerge as a beautiful new media centre of which our volunteers are much deserving. I am so excited I nearly wee-d myself and I'm so glad this part of the  project has come to fruition in my time.      

Hand's Up if You Volunteer? KSCV Medway

Unfortunately, this was my last opportunity to give our volunteers a pat on the back as at the end of this month the current team will depart and you will have an nice new shiny team with less grey hair than me! Guaranteed! If you weren't able to make the Kent Union awards missed my self indulgent speech. Here it is in the frame below!     

Countdown

Not left long to go now! Just over five weeks left to go in the Activities post. My thoughts are turning to tying off projects where possible and getting elements into a stable place to 'handover' to my successor Amy Gilchrist. This is a process that will start formally a week before the end of my term.

Not characteristicly of my much adored Kent student members, everyone is having 'fantastic ideas' just before the end of the exam term which will most likely lead to having a couple of volunteering/ societies related motions going to the next Union council meeting on May 30th 6pm in ELT2 (all welcome). But I am sure that these changes will be beneficial for students in the longrun. Although I will be giving a formal final report at the upcoming meeting (no please don't feel compulsion to throw roses... or underwear) I have created a (not exhaustive) table of projects and their estimated completion dates below.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.
 

Objective	Deadline	Notes
Ensure a Schedule for Online student group banking is Set	April End	Extended Research Phase, Imperial Visit booked,
Update Societies Handbook	May End	Waiting for Liberation Officers
Elect a New Societies Federation Committee	June end	Awaiting Union Council Vote on potential election policy changes
Prepare Handover for New Officer	June End	Early Planning stage
Ensure implementation of increased provision for the new activities space	(Contact April) Completion June)	Still in early
Ensure societies are moved into the new storage space in Eliot college	April End	Awaiting securing of bookshelves to ensure safety
Ensure that plans remain on-track for the development of the new media centre	June End	Plans being finalised, awaiting quantity surveyor then out to tender.
Empower, equip (and possibly rename) VOLFED to deal with SLVG funding allocation	Union Council May	Awaiting Union Council approval of proposed policy alterations
Ensure End of Year Training For Societies and SLVGS	June	Dates Booked
Ensure Completion  and evaluation of the ALBOS Scheme	June	Evaluating Options
Confirm CSR Funding for 2013-14	June	Complete
Identify Alternative on-campus activities spaces	June End

VP: Activities Union Council Report (May 2013)

Due to the development of the library there will be an estimated loss of 200 study spaces from summer 2014 due to the building works. Eliot hall has been identified as one of the most likely spaces to be allocated as decant space. I am in conversations with the University in order to find alternative space in which to facilitate the society and other student activity which usually takes place in the hall or alternative space for the library decant. I am still pursuing the option of utilising Rutherford hall as it has been in the past after dinner service has ceased.

Kent Union, KSCV Canterbury and Medway, KIC Media Awards have all occurred in the last three weeks and been highly successful. This is the first year the KIC media awards have been presented and industry professionals judged the awards. KIC and KSCV awards Canterbury were held in the Gulbenkian for the first time. Congratulations once again to all the awardees.    

The media centre plans are progressing well and there is currently a competition to name the new facility running at kentunion.co.uk. The plans are being finalised having consulted with a wide range of students and relevant stakeholders. Kent Union and the University will be going out to tender to find a construction firm in order for completion in first term.    

Matt Harris and I will be helping with the recruitment of a new Sports and Socs Manager post and/or Co-ordinator post next month. This increase to provision is very welcome and will be a great step towards increasing support and development for sports and societies at Kent.  Kent Union are currently also recruiting a volunteer co-ordinator which is going to be highly valuable in the case of our volunteer support capacity.

I have been working with SOCFEDCOM and VOLCOM to discuss alterations to their elections and

The project to move our student group funding system to an online finance systems is underway with a project group set-up. This may be the single greatest improvement to Kent Union systems and I believe will impact directly on the effectiveness of groups to access their funding and keep on top of their finances. There are visits planned to see existing systems in Warwick and Imperial college in June.   

Conversations are progressing with the University regards the #buildingup campaign and provision of an activities centre for our groups and members to use. The rhetoric around the proposal has changed from ‘if’ to ‘when’ which although still vague means we are moving in the right direction. Preliminary sketch designs are being discussed although nothing firm has been committed to at this stage. Further down the line I anticipate further consultation with specific groups as well as the wider student body on design and functionality within the University provided budget. Unfortunately, there is nothing further to report at this stage regards Medway developments for similar facilities but this will continue to be a priority for Kent Union in the future.

I have been in the process of discussing Staff Support developments with RAG. There is a plan for RAG to receive increased support being moved into the volunteering ‘portfolio’ and being supported by a volunteer co-ordinator. This will represent a step forward which I hope will just be the tip of the iceburg.

I am currently preparing for handover with my successor Amy Gilchrist. I am very excited to see the great work that she will achieve and know she has an ambitious manifesto to deliver next year. I wish her the best of luck and know that you will support and challenge her in her new role.   

I anticipate that some of the future challenges  from personal experience and activities remit will include (though not be limited to); increasing the quality of the Medway student experience and refining Kent Union's role within this including the acquisition of activities space for groups, continuing to ensure that the university recognizes and plans strategically for developments to support student activities at the Canterbury campus including the maintenance and delivery of the #buildingup campaign, increasing engagement and service of our members who are not from a 'traditional' background including but not limited to; distance learners, part time, mature, students with dependents, international students (especially Chinese pgt) and postgraduates generally. Developing Union services for Kent Students not studying in Canterbury and Medway, i.e. 'outreach' and abroad. The implementation of a funding system that is effective and fair for societies as well as accessible and functional (online). Increasing staff support for societies, sports, RAG and volunteers beyond the measures already set in motion. Finding an appropriate way to develop and support Kent Technical services volunteers which is relevant to their members' life-goals. The only way these issues can be tackled is with the collective teamwork of our Union and support of the membership. 

I have enjoyed every challenging moment of the last two years, thank you for the experience and your hard work and support. "So Long and thanks for all the fish."

EVER FANCIED BEING IN THE APPRENTICE?

A Little Bit of Sugar (ALBOS) loosely modelled on the TV show “the apprentice” is an opportunity for small teams to work together to formulate and develop ideas that could generate ‘wealth’ in various ways. 

This is an activity that lasts for two months and will involve teams of medium sized groups. These teams will compete with each other to produce, within that period, the best wealth-generating project for the benefit of others. Projects could be an invention, the formation of a company, the generation of cultural wealth etc. The task will be yours, as a team, to create. Each group will be multidisciplinary and include students from different Academic Schools, with a range of skills and expertise, so you will get to work with others you wouldn't normally encounter on your course.  

In the Summer Term, the teams do a presentation of what they have achieved, and a winner will be chosen by a panel of judges.  In addition to giving you the opportunity to improve your overall employability there will be a prize to the value of £400 which will be awarded to the winning team in June 2013.  All participants will acquire employability points and be able to log their hours through the Employability toolkit qualifying for a K.S.C.V a certificate. Support will be available from Kent Union.

More information on ALBOS and how you can participate in the scheme is included in this short video:  

If you are interested in participating in ALBOS, please complete this form https://unionkent.wufoo.eu/forms/a-little-bit-of-sugar-application/ by Thursday the 4^th of April 2013

“Free business advice sessions are available to all students and participating teams by contacting Kent Enterprise Hub, the University of Kent's dedicated start-up unit for students, graduates and staff. Located next to the sports centre they offer free of charge business advice sessions and subsidised office/lab space. Appointments can be booked via receptionist  Georgie Sutton on 01227 823263 or g.sutton@kent.ac.uk”  

Please contact Suzanne Payne s.payne@kent.ac.uk Kent Union’s Graduate employability co-coordinator with any general enquiries. 

Societies Grant Funding Explained

Due to a formatting error the societies handbook does not give  clear depiction of the graph explaining how much grant funding societies can expect to receive for the academic year 2012-2013. Below is a table explaining the exact figure you have available.

Members	Cash
<10	£0	31	£77	53	£117
10	£25	32	£79	54	£118
11	£28	33	£81	55	£119
12	£30	34	£83	56	£120
13	£33	35	£85	57	£121
14	£35	36	£87	58	£122
15	£38	37	£89	59	£123
16	£40	38	£91	60	£124
17	£43	39	£93	61	£125
18	£45	40	£95	62	£126
19	£48	41	£97	63	£127
20	£50	42	£99	64	£128
21	£53	43	£101	65	£129
22	£55	44	£103	66	£130
23	£58	45	£105	67	£131
24	£60	46	£107	68	£132
25	£63	47	£109	69	£133
26	£65	48	£111	70	£134
27	£68	49	£113	71	£135
28	£70	50	£114	72	£136
29	£73	51	£115	73	£137
30	£75	52	£116	74	£138
75	£139	89	£153
76	£140	90	£154
77	£141	91	£155
78	£142	92	£156
79	£143	93	£157
80	£144	94	£158
81	£145	95	£159
82	£146	96	£160
83	£147	97	£161
84	£148	98	£162
85	£149	99	£163
86	£150	100+	£164
87	£151
88	£152

This works as an overdraft in your main account which means that this cash will only become available once you have spent all of your membership fee money. This does not apply to student led volunteer groups, sports clubs or Media groups.

Please contact me if you have any questions or read the societies handbook  here!

Refreshers Stalls

Here is a list of which Groups will be at the refreshers' fayre next week

Both:

Inquire, CSR, Kent Tech, KTV  

Thursday:

Atheist, Humanist & Secularist Society

University of Kent Volleyball Club

Belly Dance Society

Conservation

Women's Lacrosse

Football Fans Society

Women's Rugby

Hellenic Society

Hindu Society

International Development

Kent Critical Law Society

Kent Debating Society

Kent Islamic Society

(KUCA)

Kent Erasmus

Kent Marrow

Kent Law Campaign Student Group

Kent Student Law Society

Kent Television (KTV)

Kent Law Temple Society

Kent Enterprise Network

Kent Model United Nations

Kent University Swimming Club

Kent Model United Nations Society

University of Kent Liberal Democrates

Kent Palestine Solidarit Group

Parkour & Freerunning Society

Kent Palestine Solidarity Group

People and Planet

Kent Labour Students

Pilgrims Hospices Volunteering Group

Kent Uni Jitsu

SIFE

Kent University Canoe Club

Snooker & Pool Club

Kent University Caving Club

SSDP

Kent Video Game Society

UKC Against Human Trafficking

Kent Wake & Surf

Military History Society

SWSS

Palestine Solidarity Group

Tribe - UKC Anthropology Society

Polish Society

Turkish Society

UKC Hogwarts

UKC Art Society

UKC Handball

Unicef Oncampus

UKC Netball Club

UKC Pirate Society

UKC Psychedelics Society

UKC Taekwondo

UKC Yoga Society

Ultimate Frisbee

Magic Society

InQuire Media Group

Friday:

3S

Chinese

Athletics and Cross Country

Creative Writing Society

Badminton Club

Cross Channel Society

Bhangra Society

Cycling

Books to Aftica

Economic Society

Capoeira

Fencing

CPAS

Forensic Science Society

Commedia Dell'arte

TreKent Rambling

Francophone Society

Hispanic

History Society

Japan Society

Mental Heath Group

Kendo

Mountaineering

Kent Ballroom And Latin Dance Club

Musical Theatre

Kent Business Society

Photography Society

UKC Film Society

Psychology Society

UKC German Society

RaG

UKC Italian Society

Rock & Metal Society (Rocksoc)

UKC Kung Fu

Sailing and Windsurfing

SALEM KENT CAMPUS FELLOWSHIP

UKC Women's Basketball Society

(SFX)

Adventure Gaming Society

University of Kent Knights Inline Hockey

Shooting Society

University of Kent LGBT Society

Space Society

University of Kent Salsa Society

Stage Spiders

Vegetarian and Vegan Society

Tennis

Vietnam Society

Gym Ukc - Gymnastics

Kent Cheer

UKC Equestrian Club

UKC Tea Society

University of Kent Darts Club

UKC Live Music Society

Women's Football

Visions of Europe

Womens Hockey

KentSnow

Aikido

Art Society

Batto-Do

Caving Club

Circus Society

Transport or Bus-t

By and Large the last 18 months have been successful as far as making-good on my manifesto pledges is concerned. However, one particular challenge which has irritated me over the last couple of years has been the limited access that student groups, especially non-sports groups have to affordable transport for their activities.                                                                                     Kent Union currently hires a 12-seater minibus and 9 seater car for use by our groups. Club use of these vehicles is high and it is necessary to complete a driving course supplied by the Union in order to drive the larger vehicle. For 9-seaters in the UK a full clean UK licence is needed and drivers need to be 21 and driving for two years in order to be insured with us. Only fuel costs are charged to groups. The demand for the training courses is very high and we are always over-subscribed.

An additional challenge is that if the competitive clubs cannot get to their fixtures then they cannot play which has lead to the minibuses being paid for out of the Kent Union Sports budget. This means that clubs get priority access combined with a first-come first served and fair usage allocation. 

What this means is that a culture has developed where non-sports groups don't even consider the vehicles as accessible to them and don't factor them in as an option due to their low availability. This leads to thousands of pounds being paid out from the development fund, society grant budgets and members' pockets which are all a little cash-scant. I don't think this is a very efficient allocation of monies.

In February Kent Union will start its budget proposal round for next year's budget for approval by the board of trustees. We will be submitting a proposal for increase in the societies budget in order to get a 9-seater specifically for non-sports club with Wednesdays (fixtures day) being negotiable. The current vehicles will still be available to all groups as they are currently. Not only will this hopefully cut costs but will also lead to a culture change where groups that have perhaps never thought of attending an event outside of the immediate local area, will start to think further afield for national events! How exciting!