First week back

My last blog followed up to my 2 weeks holiday which were very enjoyable, especially with my birthday being at the end of the time off. It also coincided with a loss of email function for the Guild so I have spent much of my free time this past week following up emails, I'm only just catching myself up now after the volume of emails I received over Easter. So, apologies to anybody who has emailed recently and is still awaiting a reply.

Last week was a strangely quiet week, starting with a housekeeping day which uncovered some of the original plans for the student accommodation redevelopment here at Birmingham and the minutes of the planning group meetings 9 years ago. This was a really interesting read for a sad person like me to see what was originally planned for the Vale and what has still not happened including the priorities of different parties around the table. I also met with Lesley Stewart, Student Accommodation Manager, at the start of the week who I am hoping will be able to set up a meeting for the Victoria Hall RA and Mentor team with John Ripley, CEO of Victoria Halls, to discuss the recent issues on that site. Plans for Welcome Week in the Guild are now underway and the VPHC sits on the main co-ordination group for this operation, which I am now doing as these meetings have begun. And at the the weekend I had a wander round accommodation viewing day which seemed to go well for prospective students. I talked to numerous parents who were concerned about the cost of accommodation here at Birmingham and seemed attracted to some of the more affordable accommodation.

At the beginning of this week I kicked off the Guild's European Elections Register to Vote Drive - organised by Hollie - VPW. The sabbs will be around campus and in the Guild with forms and envelopes, encouraging people to register. We also finalised plans for the heats for the Birmingham University Challenge team, which I have been tasked with organising. If anybody is interested just turn up to the Guild Council Chambers on Thursday at 5pm.

Finally we just got word this morning that the Registrar and Secretary has agreed to extend the funding of the Community Warden Scheme. This is great news for students at the University of Birmingham and for a fantastic scheme that deserves to continue the phenomenal work it has started on behalf of students in the community. In the process of writing the bid to continue the funding we have found that the Warden scheme has had a significant impact on improving relations between the local community and students, bringing a more positive attitude towards students from certain figures who are traditionally hostile to the student community. The wardens deserve this funding and more recognition for doing a very unglamourous but fantastic job.

Easter

My last blog was before the last Guild Council so this is my rundown to Easter blog. The SHAC is continuing to progress nicely, after Easter I will be arranging meetings with Student Advice to talk through their thoughts on the SHAC. We are nearing a code of standards agreement with the help of Unipol who we have been consulting with throughout the setup with the Council now also wanting to be involved.

The community showcase has developed somewhat - we are not sure that a showcase of the nature I imagined would achieve the goal of raising awareness of students' activities in the community. People may attend, have a go on the bouncy castle and then leave without the message we want them to leave with. We are now currently looking at a more long term communication strategy for the close community. In the meantime, one of the goals of the showcase was to receive more national recognition for what the Guild and students at Birmingham do in the community, this will hopefully be reached somewhat by a Unipol conference which we will be privileged to host here at the Guild this year. Many students union officials from across the country attend the conference which centers around students in the community - there will be time to showcase the Wardens, our community volunteering and the fact that we are one of a handful of unions to have a community Sabb to unions from all over the country.

I attended the Guild Awards, which was a fantastic night thanks to the efforts of Rich and many others. Congratulations to all winners especially Jarratt Hall for their commendation and FOCSOC for winning best RA both committees as well as all RAs deserve this recognition for all the fantastic things that they do. I have also taken on University Challenge and with the help of Representation and Democracy I will be putting together a team for Birmingham, if you are interested in competing just email me at j.ogden@guild.bham.ac.uk

We have been having problems with our emails so if I have not emailed you back in the last few days it is not because I am ignoring you it is because I have not received your email yet. I am now off on annual leave so I will blog on my return on the 20th April, one day after my birthday!

Have a great Easter!