Tom Page (current Vice-President (Welfare)) and I at NUS conference earlier this year

I thought it would be interesting to start my Welfare blog before officially taking over (to give me something to look back at and laugh at no doubt!). As some of you may know, full-time officers at Kent have been mandated to blog regularly (at least once a month) from July. Initially I thought the plans to mandate blogging were unnecessary, but I do hope this mandate will ensure that all our good intentions to blog regularly are kept up throughout the year. I see this blog as an opportunity to give my views on issues facing Kent students, to clarify my thoughts by getting them down in writing and generally to give students an insight into the everyday work of the sabbatical team. (Obviously I aim to do this across the whole year, not all at once in this one!)

Last night I couldn’t sleep, I was so excited about coming into work today (and contemplating outfits for the office!). I was far too keen this morning and arrived on campus before the office was even open - I hope I can maintain this enthusiasm… but I am also hoping the nerves die down and my sleep pattern returns to normal!

My next two weeks are packed full of trainings and meetings to prepare the five of us for our new roles and particularly to help get our heads around being a trustee (being legally and financially responsible) for an organisation which turns over £8-£9 million a year – scary stuff!

Today I attended my first Board of Trustees meeting which has shown me how much I have to learn (and quickly!). In the world of part-time officers, union council and student volunteering I feel like I know what I am doing, I have the confidence to speak my mind and give advice to others. But now I am no longer one of the most experienced in the room; instead I am faced by more qualified, experienced and mature people who have been working professionally in Kent Union or other organisations for years - yet I am now leading the organisation they work for. This is both exciting and scary but an experience I am keen to get as much as possible out of as it is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Being a trustee and working alongside student and external trustees is something I am keen to revisit in a later blog as it is a part of being a full-time officer that is often overlooked or not fully understood by students or prospective election candidates.

I am really looking forward to getting stuck into fulfilling my manifesto aims and was pleased to discover one has already been achieved – the medical centre on campus have quietly reintroduced sexual health testing. (Perhaps I should have kept this one quiet until taking office, and then I could get the credit?!) It is brilliant news, but now we need to get it publicised and get students actually getting tested (For more details see http://bit.ly/cyh8e).

I am also very excited to be undertaking a role I hadn't initially considered when writing my manifesto - Medway sabb. All Kent Union officers represent Kent students at Medway but one sabb from each institution at the Universities of Medway (Christ Church, Greenwich and Kent) work specifically with the Universities at Medway Students Association, and for Kent that is me :) More on this soon - again I have a lot to learn before I can write about it!

Finally I would like to thank Tom Page for providing me with an in-depth handover to read and listening to my endless questions (the latter is a thank you in advance – I have a list ready for the morning!).

 

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