Students at the University of Bath who have played a key role in the Students’ Union as well as the local community over the past year have had their achievements honoured.
Students at the University of Bath who have played a key role in the Students’ Union as well as the local community over the past year have had their achievements honoured.
A reception given by the University of Bath Students’ Union (BUSU) gave representatives from the University, the city’s business community, local councillors, and other key stakeholders the chance to hear about an extremely successful year.
Prizes were presented to two special students at the reception who were recognised for their volunteer work over 2007/08. The first prize was the Off Campus Prize funded by First Bus, for a student who has undertaken substantial voluntary work in the local community and has improved the lives of others. This award went to Matthew Bewers who has been volunteering for the Students’ Union for one and a half years, this includes visiting elders who live in Small Combe House, where many elders live alone and do not often have visitors.
The person who nominated Matthew said “Matthew is a sincere, honest and caring student who has respect for everyone, discriminating against no-one. He epitomises the spirit of volunteering, really demonstrating how University students are a part of, and not a burden of, the community”
The second prize was the Eric Snook Prize, funded and presented by Eric Snook. Nominations for this prize were fo
r a student, who has made a valuable contribution to improving links between the University and the City by undertaking voluntary community service off-campus but within the City of Bath. This was awarded to Katie Mabery who has coordinated a variety of large scale community based events such as the Fireworks and has shown continuous commitment through volunteering throughout the year.
The reception also highlighted key achievements of BUSU through commitment from the six sabbatical officers and the SU staff over the year.
In 2007/08 BUSU has had an extensive review of the services they provide and how to engage students on big issues. For the past two years they have been working on Students' Union Evaluation Initiative which is an assessment model that assists in improving the services and activities by indicating areas of continuous improvement. The initiative will allow BUSU to benchmark against other unions and allows opportunities to share best practice.
BUSU has also undertaken an extensive governance review which has been driven by the need to reach out to as many students as possible to ensure that they are representing the needs of all students. This has been boosted by the creation of specific staff posts for postgraduate students and international students.
David Austin SU President said:
“The work we have done in these two areas will lay the foundations for a future students' union that is relevant to an increasingly diverse membership and be able to represent students to the best of its ability”
BUSU has also been campaigning for greater levels of social space on campus, as part of the master planning consultation process undertaken by the University, as they recognise that the student experience at University is more than just about the quality of teaching that is received.
2007/08 also saw BUSU receive the Investing in Volunteers quality standard (IIV). The Standard enables organisations to comprehensively review their volunteer management, and also publicly demonstrates their commitment to volunteering. In January BUSU were delighted to receive the quality mark where they gained excellent feedback on our practices.
David Austin SU President said:
“We are one of only handful of students' unions to have this. This again shows we are leading the sector in this vital area of Students' Union activity and is just one of our many achievements over the last year”.
The reception was a great way to mark a year of success and recognise those who have made these achievements happen.