Activities Officer Blog

Friends,  

As uncertainty about what the future looms above us, I strongly believe it’s much better for us to over-communicate than to under-communicate. We have all been frustrated about the lack of communication between us and other institutions, and hopefully the updates and directives that have been given and keep coming now are a starting point to make sure you know what the steps ahead are.  

We’re all a bit shaken about how quickly this situation has developed, and we can only imagine how daunting it must be to you as our students. We fully understand that the challenges that lie ahead come from so many different angles it’s almost impossible to keep track. The most important thing for us at the SU is to ensure that everyone in our community is safe and that your wellbeing is not compromised. Our decision to cancel all SU central and group-organised events comes off the back of this. Our decision to close down our bar also comes from this, and as of Tuesday, a lot of SU staff has been working from home. All of our services will still be operating but a lot of them will be moved online, so you must know that we will keep working with you throughout all of this. All the adjustments that we’ve made in face of COVID-19 can be found at this link. 

This is a massive change and I send my wholehearted support and love to each and every one of you. Our job is and remains to make sure that you get that top-level support that you deserve. There will be queries in terms of online learning and, given the fast turnaround of this, things will need to be tweaked and changed. Your feedback throughout all of this process will be massively important to shape the way the university will work after all of this is over. Your voice matters now more than ever.   

Indeed, all of us will be affected by this to some extent. My call to you is that we hear you. The uncertainty of it all and a swift move away from face-to-face teaching, as well as a deep uncertainty of what exactly is going to happen in the near future, will cause a certain degree of stress. The closure of events will cause a sense of loneliness. We hear you, and we are working day and night to make sure that we have those measures in place to maintain a close link among us in this incredible community. We have set up a community group on Facebook to keep our community alive remotely, share self-care tips, videos, and to be close to each other during this time of uncertainty. 

To those students who have left the UK to be reunited with your loved ones in this difficult time, we hear you. I personally understand how you feel and we are keeping up the pressure on the university to make sure that your learning will not be affected by your decision.  

To those students who cannot go home because our countries are in lockdown, we hear you. We encourage you to get in touch with us as we will be working as usual, just remotely.  

We cannot overstate how lonely this will be for some of us, and the little silver lining of these times of crisis is how a community comes together to help one another. I have already seen examples of this happening, particularly among student groups, and it only makes me prouder to be working with people such as yourselves.  

The list can go on and on, and ultimately it’s impossible to grasp the depth and breadth of all of the experiences that we are facing. We got your back: this is a unique situation indeed and adapting to it will come with its difficulties. But we’re going to make it through this, and in the end, a new normality will come once again on this campus. 

This is not the last update from me, nor from the Officer team. You will actually hear from us more than usual (a blessing or a curse, it’s up to you to decide). We’re stuck in this situation together – and we’ll walk out of it stronger. I cannot wait to be able to see everyone back around the SU, and around each other.  

Until then, stay strong, stay safe, take care of one another, stay awesome, and wash your hands (you detty pigs).  

With love and solidarity,  

Franci and the Officer Team.