Handbook


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Empower - Educate - Change

INTRODUCTION

Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

Dear Reps of 2016-17, From introducing a 24-hour library to introducing exam feedback, Student Reps have the power to transform the academic experience at Kent; your turn is just beginning so congratulations on being elected, or perhaps welcome back, and welcome to being the agents of change for the year ahead! You form the biggest part in making the student voice heard, and through devoting time to helping build this new Student Rep community you will find much reward; we’ve planned a whole year of networking events, speakers, showcases, training and so much more, and the University will champion your views if you make them heard!

As your elected Vice-President (Education) at Kent Union, my role is to provide representation for Kent students, alongside our Faculty Reps, at the highest Dave Cocozza decision bodies within the University, and campaign with Kent Union on issues Vice-President (Education) 2016-2017 that will make you get the most out of your time at Kent. If you wish to get in [email protected] touch with me about anything, then feel free to get in contact at any time. The staff members in Representation and Democracy are here to support you in your role, so please do not feel afraid to get in touch! This year I will be working on supporting you as much as possible, and campaigning to improve the digital learning at Kent (especially lecture capture). I can’t do this alone, and with your input through Digital Rep, we can make a lot of change happen in a very small amount of time. I hope you enjoy the training as part of Conference, and please do say hello when you get the chance. Good luck! Dave Cocozza Staff Support As a Kent Union volunteer you are entitled to staff support from the Representation and Democracy team. The team are responsible for making sure that Student Reps are elected, trained and supported throughout their role. If you are having any issues or need help please drop us an email at [email protected], or pop into the Student Activities Centre above Essentials. Congratulations you are now an official Kent Union volunteer. Volunteering is at the core of Kent Union and as part of this we have produced this handbook to provide you with support to complete your role to the highest standard. We also make it our duty to empower students, it’s one of our core beliefs and it’s part of our strategy! For more information on our strategy have a look on our website; www.kentunion.co.uk/about Volunteering Agreement: Volunteers are at the heart of Kent Union as an organisation. The Volunteer Agreement sets out what you can expect from us, and what we hope from you. This needs to be completed online at the following link: www.kentunion.co.uk/volunteer-resources 2

Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

12TH OCTOBER 2016...

the start of the journey! One of the ways in which you will be supported by Kent Union is through staff support. Your main contacts alongside Dave will be Lucy Curry (Representation Coordinator) and Chris Mattinson (Academic Representation and Policy Manager). As staff they will be able to help with a multitude of questions which you might have…No question is too small!

Lucy Curry Representation Coordinator [email protected]

Chris Mattinson Academic Representation and Policy Manager [email protected]

“This year is a really exciting year for Student Reps. There have been a lot of changes and we are thrilled at the chance to work with everyone on this system. We know that everyone is going to put lots of work into making the Student Reps some of our most valued volunteers here at Kent Union. We cannot wait to start this journey with you!”

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HOW IT WORKS:

Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

The diagram below illustrates how the system of Student Reps works. The ‘power’ in the system comes from the majority. Student unions are led by students for students and the system of Student Reps in indicative of this. We believe everything we do should have students at the centre. Without students there would not be a Union, in everything we do we endeavour to remember this. As a Student Rep you will be empowered to make change, represent students and educate students through becoming involved in university processes which others might not have the chance to do. This conference is the start of this exciting opportunity and Kent Union will be alongside you the whole way to support you.

STUDENT REPS SCHOOL REPS FACULTY REPS VP EDUCATION

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FACULTY REPS

Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

“I want to work closely with Kent Union to make sure the Science Faculty is recognised and changes that need to be made, are made. I will lobby the departments to hold regular open forums where students of a certain department can meet and discuss with their lectures, deans and other staff of the school about what they find good about the course they are doing and what might need improving. This will empower students to create change!”

“Having experienced the representative system by being a course rep last year, I am committed to strengthening the communication and collaboration between reps and to bringing the disciplines within the humanities closer together. During the next academic year I also want to focus on reducing hidden course costs such as mandatory printing and I want to make sure all modules display the costs as early in advance as possible, so that every student can plan ahead and be able to take part in activities which will enrich their university experience. Lastly, I want bring employability to the forefront by collaborating with individual schools and societies in order to organise more employability events geared towards humanities students”

s for students and the system of Student Reps in indicative of this. We believe everything we do should have students at the centre. Without students there would not be a Union, in everything we do we

SOCIAL SCIENCE REP Social Sciences

Sciences

Faculties of Humanities

PG REP -COMING SOON

PG REP - COMING SOON

PG REP - COMING SOON

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Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

ROLE DESCRIPTION FOR STUDENT REPS For a role description you can go online to kentunion.co.uk/representation/reps/resources,but for now, enjoy this fun version…

EL

REPS T N E D U ALL ST

LEV E S R OU

@C

KEY STU DATE ED DENT S: U TER CATIO REP C O TER M 1: 0 N FO NFER R 7 NE M 2: 1 /11/ MUM ENCE WY : 12 : 3/0 16 & EN /10 05 D O EAR S 2/17 /16 & 2 /12/1 HO VP FT 0/0 ED ERM WC 6 UC CEL ASE: 3/16 ATI 01 EB ON AW RATI /02/1 O 7 AR DS N: W : TE E RM EK 1 1O 3 FT ERM E TH O - TB O T T C E E G C N N HA CHA C L E A H E T E R ING AK V D M AS HA Y. N C A I CS ELL POL N SSL S W ND ITY, A UNIO E T AT VERS ENT K I ME UN NGE E A ON T NEW CH FAC YOUR FRIE ND UT CO S LY REP URSE AND WO S, W . ATT R E OR KIN ND M K ALO E GT N OG ETING GSID ETH E S ER WITH OTHE TO R INF SCHO STU D LU EN OL RE ENTS CE G TH PS AN REPS N I E UN D OM IVE EC A RIS S, B S. TY. NT ITHIN REP E D T W U N T S E S R D E TU OR EMB S F D TE CA AM M INDE E VO M AD ND T LIKE CA N A F M A BE DERS ITY O YO PAIG UA N N A E U L ND ON M M IS TH CO E S SUES TU DE WHIC NT S Y H MA OU T REP TER T ERE O SEN T.

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Empower - Educate - Change 66

Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

ISSUE FLOWCHART

Many reps have lots of issues presented to them and a lot of the time you are not expected to deal with these, but simply signpost the issue to the relevant person or department. The flowchart below is a simple way to figure out how to best approach issues.

programme

u

programme?

u

COMMUNICATION CYCLE

Feedback the outcome to students

(Or how to be the perfect Student Rep in four easy steps)

Here are some steps you could take when you attend a meeting or undertake any task in your role as Student

Raise the issue at the appropriate meeting with the appropriate member of staff

Find out what issues students want to raise

Do some research on the issue

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Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

As a Student Rep you will be invited to attend meetings within your School such as Learning and Teaching committee and SSLCs, as well as meetings within Kent Union such as Education Forum, in all of which you will be representing your course and school. It’s important that you attend these meetings as it’s one of the few chances to directly inform the key staff in your school what students think as well as being able to ask for changes to your course.

A QUICK GUIDE TO GOOD MANNERS IN MEETINGS… You can prepare yourself by… • Identifying areas of concern within your school by talking to students



If there is anything you wish to place on the agenda, contacting the meeting chair/secretary as soon as possible

• Reading the agenda & checking minutes from previous meetings to understand matters arising

• Meeting with the chair before the meeting to help them understand any issues you have

• The agenda sets out the structure and topics of discussion at each of the meetings you’ll attend and usually contains the following:

• Apologies - record of apologies from those who have said they cannot attend. • Minutes - approval of the written records of the previous meeting • Matters arising - discussion of actions taken or required regarding issues



• Items -

discussed at the last meeting

each item of the agenda will be discussed in turn and this is when to put forward views and opinions

• Any Other Business - an opportunity to raise any urgent items that have not

appeared on the agenda. Remember that this is not an excuse not to submit things to the agenda!

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Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

REWARD AND RECOGNITION:

Kent Union values our volunteers and recognises the contribution you make in numerous ways, including;

KSCV scheme As a volunteer you can get recognition for your volunteering through the KSCV scheme (Kent Student Certificate in Volunteering) which has a number of tiers from bronze to gold+ at 200 volunteering hours. To log your volunteering hours you will need to register on the toolkit at kentunion.co.uk/toolkit. Have a look at our brand new KSCV video: https://youtu.be/3pNRsKR_i2M Kent Union Awards The Kent Union awards are held at the end of every year to celebrate the great work our volunteers do. There are two awards for Student Reps and if you want to nominate someone nominations will be open in the second term so keep your eye out! In addition, all Student Reps are invited to attend the Teaching Awards where we celebrate great teaching! More information on this later in the handbook. To find out more about what we do to recognise our volunteers visit our volunteer resources page at kentunion.co.uk/volunteer-resources. Volunteer of the month Our volunteer of the month award recognises those volunteers who you feel have gone the extra mile. As a volunteer you may be nominated and you can nominate others. Each month’s winner will received a certificate and a £20 prize. For more information go to www.kentunion.co.uk/volunteer-resources.

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Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

SOME THINGS TO LOOK FORWARD TO…

Over the coming year there is going to be lots going on for Student Reps to get involved with and it won’t just SSLCs be meetings! These are a key part of your role as a Student Rep. These meetings are your chance to discuss with staff the issues which matter to the students you represent. You can use these meetings as an accessible arena to implement changes to teaching, learning and student support. Don’t worry if this seems scary or unfamiliar, there will be plenty of support along the way!

The Christmas Event Towards the end of term, Student Reps, School Reps and Faculty Reps will come back together to celebrate what they have achieved during the first term of the 2016/17 academic year. It will be a chance to reconnect and celebrate an exciting start to the year and look forward to the following terms…

The New Year Showcase Wednesday 1st February Student Reps, School Reps and Faculty Reps will come back together to celebrate what they have achieved during the first term of the 2016/17 academic year. It will be a chance to reconnect and celebrate an exciting start to the year and look forward to the following terms…

Education Forums Throughout the year(07.11.16, 05.12.16, 13.02.17 and 20.03.17) there will be Education Forums, these are a chance to look at the campaigning side of the role of Student Reps. You will have the chance to meet other Reps with a shared passion for campaigning and work together to make real change across the university…and beyond.

End of Year Celebration 30th March, 5pm-9pm Student Reps will come together to recognise what has been achieved throughout the year and look forward to the next. Hopefully there will be lots of celebrate and, as community, you can all enjoy the successes you have had together.

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Student Rep Volunteer Handbook 2016/17

DIGITAL REP

‘This year we are introducing an exciting new system of feedback. It will centre around ‘what works well?’ and ‘what doesn’t work well?’ Reps will be able to access this feedback, and in doing so gain vital data which will help them whilst sitting on university meetings. Our hope is that this effective method of feedback will enable the Reps to be more proactive and to combat problems even before they occur once trends have been noted. The system will also enable continuity from year to year. This is an exciting addition to the Rep system and we cannot wait for you to all use it!!’

EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSIVITY As a Kent Union volunteer you are expected to uphold our policy of striving to create an environment free from discrimination and exploitation. We try to ensure that all of our services are accessible and inclusive and expect you to be part of that. Therefore if you witness anything that you think could be discriminatory for any reason, either against yourself or another student, please get in touch as soon as possible and we will endeavour to act. Remember to listen to students who come to you with concerns which you might not fully understand. We can all learn from each other and learning from our peers is often the best way to do this. Training and support on EDI will be provided to you and we hope that in being a Student Rep you will advance your knowledge beyond what you already know. Always be prepared to be challenged. But remember in being challenged we will learn…and that is a good thing! This year will be an exciting one and we hope that you will learn a lot from it!

KEY CONTACTS: My School Administrator: Kent Union Advice Centre. If a student comes to

you with any concerns about their course or are unsure if they can apply for a concession or request an extension of time then suggest they pop into the Advice Centre in the Mandela Building where Kent Union Student Advisers can provide independent advice to any student studying at Kent.  Advisers can help with information and advice on a range of issues including, academic regulations, appeals, complaints or other concerns a student may have. Students can call into the Advice Centre or can email [email protected] or call an advice line on 01227 827724.

Faculty Administrator: SSLC Chair: School Director of Learning and Teaching: School Director of Graduate Studies:

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KENTUNION.CO.UK/REPRESENTATION