Lilias Lamont submitted on
Thursday 13th April 2017
Complete
The University has a really good concert hall. Yet the large ensembles play most of their concerts elsewhere. Why? Because they have to be self funding and can't afford the TS fees for every concert.
Was this what was envisaged when it was built? These groups not only showcase the Uni talent but are training opportunity for those looking to a professional career. Playing in a good concert hall on campus should be part of that training
The current arrangements should be renegotiated with the University to enable this
Here, you can view the complete set of official responses from the sabbatical officers regarding this submission.
Students' Union replied on
Monday 12th Jun 2017 3:46pm
Hi Lillas,
I recently had a meeting with some members of staff at the University to discuss this. I explained that the situation for many societies is quite tough, however I learned that the situation for Turner Sims is quite tough aswell. Turner Sims have an array of competing demands, not just from student societies but also the Music department and external performers - and have to balance their books at the same time. Union societies already pay below a commercial rate for Turner Sims hire, and so it is unfortunately very unlikely that the rate will come down any further.
There is some good news though - it is likelt that in future, Turner Sims (and other venues) will start offering their expertise to societies in terms of ticketing, marketing etc in order for societies to make the best use of the time they get there. This means societies pick up loads of useful skills and could actually be more beneficial than cutting rates. This assistance could start as early as September!
Many thanks,
Cameron Meldrum
Vice-President Democracy and Creative Industries
Students' Union replied on
Tuesday 16th May 2017 12:34pm
Hi Lilias,
Thanks for getting in touch! I completely understand that Turner Sims venue hire costs are a regular irritation for our Performing Arts societies especially the fact that there is a world-class venue on their doorstep that they often struggle to use. The Union always tries to provide as much grant funding to societies as possible, but unfortunately there is never enough money to fund every application.
Myself and some members of the Performing Arts committee recently met with a member of staff at the University in charge of Arts stategy, and Turner Sims hire was one of the issues that was brought up. It seems clear that looking into a renegotiation of the agreement between Turner Sims and Union societies is a sensible move! I have passed on your submission to the member of University staff in question, and I will update you when I have a response from them.
Many thanks,
Cameron Meldrum
Vice-President Democracy and Creative Industries
File: /var/www/susu.org/docs/you-make-change/item.php
Line: 665
Exception: Call to a member function isStudent() on bool
Stack Trace:
#0 {main}
Environment: