Moving Beyond Steam 'Train-ing'

Just a quick one here to share the excitement I have about the new Societies and Volunteering group (SLVG) Training which will be delivered on Monday the 17th of September which is the Monday of welcome week.

Having attended this training day for several years whilst a society committee members and delivering it myself last year, I really felt it was in need of a spruce-up. The old system meant that students sat through a lecture-type session which would last the best part of an afternoon. The room was not always fit for purpose and it was all pretty dry administrative stuff. Last year the attendance was higher than anyone can remember... in forever.

However, a few weeks later I was invited to help out at the course-rep conference as one of the trainers and the format felt so much more engaging and inovative. There were short plenary sessions which were a bit like lectures but there were exciting guest speakers who came along to deliver these. The rest of the day was broken into skill-based group training sessions where the volunteers shared their own best practice and the differences in the different departments and shared knowledge of how best to get results. Students were free to select which sessions they attended and the sessions were much more interesting and big-picture. This was something that I really wanted to replicate and develop.

So here is what I have come up with... there will be a new societies handbook which is currently being drafted. It is designed to be comprehensive and answer as many questions as I could remember societies ever asking and from my own experience of bieng involved with societies for the last 5 years. It will cover all of the administrative stuff such as how to claim back cash, book transport, apply for additional funding, run a complex event, complete a risk assessment, become an admin on your page, access further training through the union and much more besides.

 

This means that the amount which needs to be covered in a 27 hour long lecture can be cut down (I hope) to about 90 minutes of introduction, health and safety and finance training. The afternoon is going to be made up from these break-out sessions where groups will work together sharing best practice with an experienced trainer and will be able to choose which sessions they attend. This also means that you can spread the load across your committee and wont reply just on your president to remember everything. I am hoping that this will enable societies to become more effective and efficient. The sessions will be much more strategic than operational thereby inspiring groups to think about the bigger picture and how they can improve the quality of their own experience.

With the new employability and volunteering toolkit getting ready to launch as well as a new handbook for societies, this could be one of the best-informed years at least! The morning plenary will be in RLT1 with afternoon 'break-out' sessions being in Keynes seminar rooms.        

Please bear in mind that the training on the day may differ from the sessions below. Please contact me at union-activities@kent.ac.uk if you have any questions or suggestions.  

Session	Trainer	Objectives
K.S.C.V and Community Volunteering	Steph Hughes and Natalie Tiu	Introduction to the K.S.C.V scheme including platinum and new Gold+ as well as introducing some of our other volunteering opportunities in the community
Planning Events Safely	Helen Close	A session which helps volunteers to plan their events strategically, safely and for ultimate success
Successful Fundraising	Nick and the RAG Team	This session will help groups to think about creative ways to fundraise for their activities and charity as well as understanding their relationship with RAG
Getting to Grips with Budgeting (SLVGS)	Steph Hughes	This session is aimed at helping volunteers to plan their expenditure and use their funding to best effect.
Getting to Grips with Budgeting (Societies)	Amy Van-Poppel	This session is aimed at helping volunteers to plan their expenditure and use their funding to best effect.
Effective Teamwork	Suzanne Payne	A session working on effective leadership as well as dealing with pressures when working in a team with volunteers.
Using Media Effectively	Mel Lewis	A session which helps volunteers to use social media as well as student media to its greatest potential.
Developing Your Group (SLVGS)	Steph Hughes and Natalie Tiu	A session aimed at moving each group onto ‘the next stage’ from new group to established group, then leading group. Helping groups define their own success
Developing Your Group (Societies)	Caroline Demetriou	A session aimed at moving each group onto ‘the next stage’ from new group to established group, then leading group. Helping groups define their own success