Updates from Vice President Welfare, Sammy!

National Representation: Lead & Change Conference

This summer I attended the National Union of Students Conference, which was held at the University of Birmingham - I was accompanied by my fellow sabbatical officers Irene and Joshua . We had the chance to engage and connect with sabbatical officers from all over the nation.

We discussed in major macro environment issues and decisions, such as the rising cost of living and its impact to students, and how to face them and build campaigns to support the students .

Mental health was another integral issue the officers believed to be affecting students - this was due to the various rising issues especially within the international community.

With the UK being a well-known hotspot for international students, concerns were raised around the latest immigration laws from the government, and questions were put to NUS on how they plan to tackle the proposal. After a consultation, the majority of the Sabbatical Officers in attendance agreed that the proposed laws were not in the best interest of the international community. From this, a committee was set up by NUS in which they plan to hold meetings, run campaigns and raise the voices of affiliated Sabbatical Officers challenging this proposed bill, known as the 'White Paper Immigration law'.

Let's Talk Roehampton - Podcast

I collaborated with Abbigail Parkin (Whitelands President), Pathan Nasreen Banu (former Whitelands President ) and Irene Reynolds (VP Education) on the Let's Talk Roehampton Podcast. We discussed our plans for the year to engage students with the university activities. We also discussed key welfare issues including our campaigns and initiatives that we plan to run.

Freshers Festival 2025

Roehampton Students’ Union have been actively working on the plans for our upcoming Freshers' Festival throughout the summer. We have a confirmed events which are now live on our native website; including both day and night-time events.

The Students' Union has collaborated with other SUs and external organisations for a number of our major night events this year - helping to build connections, extend relationships and provide students with a fun and social experience in the city of London. This includes events such as Lightbox in Vauxhall, Le Fez in Putney and Boat Party on the River Thames. 

Equity and Inclusion: Black History Month & Disability Wellbeing

This academic year I will be leading the plans for Black History Month with a focus on celebrating and amplifying black voices on campus. I aim to collaborate with societies, different working groups, colleges, and university departments (such as library team and the careers team) in order to mark and celebrate the month.

Simultaneously, I am on my final stages of developing wellbeing initiatives tailored for disabled and neurodivergent students. I am mapping out events which will create opportunities with the aim to boost employability prospects; such as providing training and certification upon completion, as well as various Do it Yourself workshops on campus.

I actively invite students to share ideas and collaborate with me – my DMs and emails are always open! (@vpwelfare_rsu)