Union Council (30th April 2015)

The following members were in attendance:

• Tom Emerson
• Charlotte Pollins
• Lauren Baugh
• Darren Richardson
• Jade Head (Student Trustee)
• Eion Groat
• Kerry Sclater (VP DCI-elect)
• Ben Franklin (Union President-elect)
• Alex Hovden

The Chair (Ben Morton) opened the meeting and explained that this meeting was inquorate. 

• Minutes of the previous meeting

• Sophia wanted it noted that the 48 hour Surge Broadcast was disrupted by the presence of the American Fresh Minibus, but as, at the time of the meeting, the event had not started, it would not be possible to reflect this in the minutes.  
• Rebecca Lake had sent apologies to the last meeting, however they are not listed in the minutes. Staff will check and amend the minutes accordingly.  

 The minutes of the last meeting were approved on a clear show of voting cards. 

• Frazer did not want this to come across as a criticism but wanted to clarify something that was said at the last meeting. In AOB section of last meeting, a student said that policy proposals have been coming to the same Union Council meeting where they have been discussed during the ideas session and implied that this should not be happening. Frazer explained that in the minutes for 24^th October 2011, and in Rule 2, section 5.5, it states that this is allowed, and just wanted members to be aware of this. Sophia commented that this is not a case of something not happening; it should be that student consultation feeds into the policy making stage and, without the time in between the ideas discussion and policy proposal, this may not happen. However, she agreed with Frazer that policies can be considered immediately in the same meeting.  

• Medical Society amendments: A rule amendment to make the President of the Medical Society a Student Leader (in the place of the Medicine Faculty Officer) had been approved (Yes:19, No:2) by an electronic meeting of Council, conducted via email between 16th April and 21st April 2015 (see paper).

There were no other matters arising.

a. Resignation of a member of Council

The meeting was informed that Emily Shepherd had resigned from her position as Nightline Officer. Luke Hashman, who is the Nightline Officer-elect, has been co-opted into this role for the remainder of the academic year.

b. Elections of members of Union Council to Zone Committees 

The following members of Union Council were elected to Zone committees:

• Democracy Zone: Ed Baird
• Education Zone: Frazer Delves

 

There were no financial matters arising. 

• Engaging students with the AGM: There was discussion about online engagement which Megan will look into further. There was positive feedback on the new branding for the AGM ('Change one thing'). (Megan Downing)
• Publicity and advertisement space in the Union and at the University:  Look into more space to do things and ensure that there is a clear procedure put in place. (David Mendoza-Wolfson) 
• Improving our technical offerings and support to societies: Good feedback. Will look into linking society webpages to main SUSU webpage and also syncing event calendars together. Will be referred to Chris McGeehan to see demand from student groups. (Ellie Cawthera)
• Engagement with Winchester Students: Discussion was mainly about how course costs discourage participation at Highfield campus (cost of travelling to and from) and how we can improve this. There were a number of suggestions including a bunfght at WSA, a Buddy scheme where WSA students are paired up with a Southampton based stduents and also having nights out in Winchester. This was referred to the Student Communities zone. (Anjit Aulakh)
• Postgraduate Community: PG stduents automatically becoming members of a Union group for PGs. Current course societies are aimed at undergrads and do not cater towards PGs. This idea was referred to Ed Baird. (Ellie Cawthera)

• Anonymous questions: No update. (Sophia D'Angelico)
• Action Log: Coming as a policy to today's meeting. (Megan Downing)
• Transparency and accountability: This is part of a wider Volunteering Project that is currently a work in progress. (Megan Downing)
• Submitting ideas to Council: This is being looked into. (Ellie Cawthera)
• He for She: Came as policy to that meeting (Beckie Thomas)
• Supporting the Democractic Teachers Network in Mexico: Wessex Scene have not been contacted by Marxist Society.
• Blacklist the Blacklisters: Not appropriate for it to be taken further by us. (Sophia D'Angelico)
• Period Tax: No update. (David Mendoza-Wolfson)
• Support for Student Leaders: Megan is currently working on ideas from this discussion (e.g. student forums) and hopefully they will come back to a future Union Council. (Megan Downing)
• Safety Bus: Beckie is currently working on a policy which will come to the last Union Council of the year.

a. Action Log (1415P8)

Proposed: Ed Baird (Postgraduate Taught Officer); seconded: Sam Bailey (Equality & Diversity Officer)

Sam Bailey explained that this policy is about improving efficiency, transparency and accountaiblity in the Union and making sure that things actually get done instead of lost in paperwork. This policy will allow projects to be tracked during each stage. It mandates the Democracy Zone to come up with a process for this action log.

There was a correction to 'Union believes 5'; it should read 'That some actions are suitable to be included in the action log and reported to Union Council and some should be reported elsewhere'.

• David Mendoza-Wolfson moved Procedural Motion E (to move to an informal discussion). Speaking for, he explained that he had a question for Ed about details regarding the policy which he then withdrew from asking. Speaking against, Chris McGeehan said that David has withdrawn the question and so there is no need for an informal discussion. On a show of cards, the Procedural Motion was not passed.  

There were no further speeches.

• The proposal was passed on a clear show of cards.

b. Complaints procedure (1415R1)

Proposed: Democracy Zone Committee

Megan Downing explained that most people will have heard about the complaints procedure already and this Rule change is a culmination of the work on this topic.

• Amendment A: Jade Head explained that some Student Leaders may wish to speak to their Sabbatical Officer instead of member of staff. This amendment passed on a show of cards.
• Amendment B: Jade Head explained that this amendment allows for the individual to be accompanied by a friend or representative at all meetings. This amendment passed on a show of cards.
• Amendment C: Frazer Delves explained that this amendment will aid Union transparency. This amendment passed on a show of cards.

There were no further speeches. 

• The proposal, as amended, was passed on a clear show of cards.

c. RON vs Union Councillors & Voluntary Officers (1415R2)

Proposed: Democracy Zone Committee

Megan Downing said that she hoped that Council had read the paper before the meeting. 

• Amendment D: Megan Downing explained that this amendment was agreed on back in February by the Democracy Zone Committee but it was accidently omitted from the main motion. This amendment passed on a show of cards.

• Darren Richardson moved Procedural Motion E (to move to an informal discussion). Speaking for, he explained that he had a question about how this rule change would interact with the gender balancing policy currently in place. There were no speeches against. On a show of cards, the Procedural Motion was passed.

Darren Richardson asked how this change would interact with the gender requirements we have for Union Councillors. Megan Downing answered that they would still run against RON. Shruti Verma asked for clarification on whether all voluntary officer would run against RON. The Chair explained that the wording implies that RON is optional for voluntary officer elections. David Mendoza-Wolfson asked who will decide whether RON will run against a position. The general understanding of the group was that the current practice would continue. Shruti commented that the system should be consistent throughout as it gives the voter more choice in an election. 

The Chair ended the informal discussion and asked for any speeches against the motion.

Shruti, speaking against, explained that she agreed with the paper however, she thought RON should be mandatory for all elections.

• The proposal, as amended, was passed on a clear show of cards.

Ben Morton stood down as Chair and Katie Lightowler took the Chair for the following motion.

d. Repeal the Wetness or Water (1415P9)

David Mendoza-Wolfson explained that this policy does not contribute towards the Union's mission statement and furthermore, it is not an accessible policy.

• Amendment E: Frazer Delves explained that Believes 1 and 2 explain well why this policy should be repealed but Believes 3 does not add anything and implies that we have a lot of joke policies which is not true. This amendment passed on a show of cards.

• Sophia D'Angelico moved Procedural Motion E (to move to an informal discussion). Speaking for, she said that this is an important Sabb bonding experience and appeals to freshers. On a show of cards, the Procedural Motion was passed.

Shruti Verma said she believed that this was a retaliation against Steven Osborns question asking why current Sabbatical Officers had not followed the policy this year. She added that, if done correctly, the event can appeal to the masses as well as get freshers involved and interested in their Union. It also shows the 'human side' of Sabbs. Megan Downing disagreed, saying that there are many other ways for Sabbs to show that they are human; time spent doing this could be put to better use by getting all the Sabbs working together and coming up with fun events that would work towards our charitable causes. Ben Morton argued that this policy is just a bit of fun and shows that Sabbs have a sense of humour. David replied saying that mandating someone to do something does not imply a sense of humour. Giles Howard added that this was also not an effective use of water. 

• Anjit Aulakh moved Procedural Motion D (to move to the vote). Speaking for, he said that Council have discussed this for long enough and now people should vote. Speaking against this procedural motion, Chris McGeehan said that this is the only proposal we have had debate on this meeting. On a show of cards, the Procedural Motion was passed.

• The proposal, as amended, was passed on a clear show of cards.

Ben Morton resumed the Chair.

The Zone reports were not yet available and will be distributed when they become available. 

There were no reports to be reports to be considered.

a. Attendance of Union Council Members and Student Trustees 

Megan Downing commented that individuals who are in the red will be contacted by their Sabbatical Officer. Edmund Baird asked what will be done about them. Megan replied that it is too late in the year to recall them and she will be looking into the process which will make it easier to remove people who consistently do not attend meetings. 

b. Officer Reports

Ellie Cawthera ran through her report briefly, mentioning major projects such as Launchpad, Shift Your Stuff, the Big Give and the EVAs. She added that in her report, there is an explanation of how the EVAs are awarded. Finally, in the report, there is a breakdown of all the costs for the Unions General Election Budget which had been asked for at the last meeting.

Beckie Thomas ran through her calendar of events coming up. On May 6th, it is the launch of the Elephant in the room mental health campaign. On May 8th, it is the Sustainability Fayre where Soton Speaks Up and Shift your Stuff will be launched. On May 9th, there will be housemate finding sessions with the JCRs and finally, on May 11th, there will be LinkedIn courses available for students. 

Anjit Aulakh listed a number of projects and events that would happening at WSA in the near future including the Stress Less Fest, quiz and curry night, Swap Shop, hand massage sessions and Zumba classes. He explained that improving engagement at Winchester is a gradual process and so changes will not happen over night but it is something he is working on a lot.

Sophia D'Angelico took this opportunity to thank Anjit for all the work he has done at WSA saying that engagement is noticeably better there than last year. On her own work, she explained that she is working on a postgraduate committee and meeting with key stakeholders regarding this work. The ETA shortlist is up and she announced that the Course Rep awards are being sponsored by JP Morgan, who will be helping to fund freebies as well as helping judge the competition. She encouraged people to buy tickets and come to the event.

Megan Downing has recently been to several conferences. SPANC was held here in Southampton and she has also attended the Student Radio Conference and got lots of valuable advice and information from that. We sent 19 people to NASTA. There have also been several awards event as well; last night was the Media Awards which was good, there were 250 nominations. Surge awards have also taken place with guests from the industry attending. The Summer Elections are currently taking place and nominations close on May 6th. She reminded Council that the AGM will take place on 13th May. 

Katie Lightowler has launched a new campaign with Beckie called Soton Speaks out which tackles sexual harrassment in sports clubs and societies and there has been some excellent feedback from students regarding this. She will also be launching a project into mental health in sports, alongside Beckie's Elephant in the Room campaign. The Mayflower Halls gym has now opened and she recommended people go and see it for themselves. 

David Mendoza-Wolfson has recently attended the NUS national conference with Ben Franklin and Scott McCarthy. The Union are looking into buying property in Portswood and turning it into an outlet and space for societies to use. 

c. Questions to Officers

Q1: Megan answered that she is currently working on a wider volunteering project that will cover guidance for situations like these, and outline action that can be taken against those who are not following policy.

Q2: Megan answered that the issue had been fixed. The Election system is new this year and so we expected some teething problems and it's great to get feedback from students who have problems using the system. Problems that were emailed in were almost immediately fixed by our Technology team. In terms of getting results during the count, the new system is amazing and very quick. Although there was not enough time this year to fully audit and test the system by prefessionals, we will endeavour to carry out any necessary testing before next year's elections. Sophia mentioned that there were many problems with Course Rep nominations; Megan explained that this was mainly because of having to work with difficult data sent to us by the University. Ben added that the way data is imported has changed now and shouldnt be a problem in future. POI from Giles Howard who said that ECS society have skills that would be useful in testing the system.  

Q3: Megan answered yes, they should all be online by the end of term, we are just waiting for all AGMs to have happened so updated by laws can be uploaded. 

Q4: Megan responded that she has asked for it to be put online. 

Q5: Megan explained that she felt there were more important tasks for the Democracy Zone to prioritise e.g. the AGM, elections, day to day running of the Zone but she is hoping to publish them soon. 

Q6: Ellie said that this question has been answered in her report and advised people to read it for clarification.

Q7: Ellie explained that she is looking into how to change the awards for next year, for example, having Union Awards which are more inclusive. 

Q8: Ellie said that this has been to all Zone Committees and student volunteers have been given the opportunity to feedback their views and opinions on this topic. Jade asked if this opportunity will be given to all volunteers. Sophia explained that this will happen but currently, they are devising the best way to get it to the wider audience. 

Q9: Ellie explained that we will be looking into getting external accreditation after we have recieved feedback from our volunteers. 

Q10: David explained that the pump failed on several occasions and by the time it would work, it was too late. He apologised for this. 

Q11: David explained that this is not a refurbishment, but an over zealous re-upholstory and it was in-line with the financial range of the Commercial Director. He confirmed that this will not negatively impact popular Stag events such as Karaoke on Thursdays. 

Q12: David answered that this has been discussed at the Departmental Managers meeting and it will be ready by the end of the year. Students will get a full consutlation on this, but they want to make sure that what they show them is a full, ready and robust plan. Ultimately, it will be approved by Trustee Board, but will come to Council as well. 

Late Questions

Q1: Ellie informed the meeting that Ed Baird, Jenny Bortoluzzi and Shruti Verma have had their accounts enabled to write blogs. They were chosen as they made themselves known to her after the last meeting. She asked anyone else who was interested to contact her. 

Q2: Sophia explained that there are always glitches with the elections system, especially with a new system. They were also working with incorrect and inaccurate data from the University which only exacerbated the situation. She apologised for this. There were also some problems that could not be fixed and she asked if anyone had any suggestions on how to improve this system to get in touch with her. She added that there was no database overhaul which Shruti disputed. Sophia explained that changes were made to accommodate certain courses and students (e.g. those repeating years) but it was not the intention to over haul the system and perhaps they had underestimated the impact that making these minor changes had made. It has resulted in a more accurate database.

Q3: Sophia explained that she has been on annual leave for the majority of time since the last meeting. The work she has included in her report is all ongoing projects so she has been wokring on these in the background. 

Q4: David responded that he has not had a chance to speak to Joanna from SUSUtv yet, but the next Union Council (Open Union Council, 13th May), will be recorded by SUSUtv and he hopes to take this further with future meetings being recorded. 

Q5: Sophia explained that, in preparation for the QAA, she has had to hold presentations for staff at the University, explaining the Academic Representation System and they had had to read the student written submission so she believes that their knowledge of the ARS has increased. She added that an ARS handbook is not the most effective way to get the ifnromation across to them and so she is looking into better ways to communicating this information. 

Q6: Sophia said that a report has been taken to senior staff at the University. She is hoping to set up a Wessex Scene style magazine that is specific for the Malaysian campus. She would like to do more but is restricted by language and technology barriers. 

There were two Union Council Stars awarded at this meeting, and two belated Stars were given out from past meetings.

• Edmund Baird for his passion for representing postgraduate students and his contribution to the LGBT History month.
• Giles Howard for his dedication to his role and his work to improve the educational experience of students.

Joanna Sheldon and Tom Smith were also awarded their certificates and badges. 

 

The Chair reminded everyone that the AGM was being on held on 13th May.

Jade Head commended Surge for their 48 hour broadcast last month and also praised those involved in the Soton Speaks Out campaign.  

Steven Osborn praised those involved in the Safety Bus campaign at the Library and around campus. 

The date of the next meeting is Monday 8th June, in The Cube, time to be confirmed. The meeting closed at 9:15pm.