925 - Weekly Thursday 22Nd January 1998 Students Union Neglects Minorities, Say Consultants

ed980122.qxd 25/11/98 22:16 Page 1 (1,1) Issue 925 - Weekly Thursday 22nd January 1998 Students Union neglects minorities, say consultants 1st year student A new report has found weaknesses Union in many areas and highlights those in need provided by the Students’ Union, there is com- in the way the Students’ Union caters of some urgent action. paratively little information about it’s perfor- dies during for minority groups. The report, mance”. It highlighted that “establishing the per- Christmas holiday which was published over the week- This project was undertaken to review all the centage of the whole students body who regular- end, is based on interviews with a activities of the SU, provide a development plan ly visit the building gives an indication of the for the next two years and suggest a method for take-up of the whole range of Students’ Union cross-section of Surrey students, as services”. The introduction of ‘swipe card’ 1st year psychology stu- well as statistics. The conclusions so continuous assessment. Controversy erupted at dent died after being hit by the Executive Committee last semester when entrance system using ID cards was suggested a far praise the Union in many areas, Aa train the weekend before these plans were first proposed, with many offi- method for establishing usage patterns and the last. but warn that a huge number of mem- cers unhappy with the initial cost of Modules 1 Consultants recommend that this is course of bers - especially some overseas, and 2. With the fees totalling £18,000 it was felt action is “pursued vigorously by the students’ 19 year-old Sarah Kirby, who lived postgraguate and part-time students, that maybe this was work that the Union could do union”. in Cathedral court, was struck and are not being properly catered for, itself. However, considering the company’s killed instantly by a Portsmouth to and are often unaware of what is experience working with other Students’ Unions The student’s overall impression of the Union Waterloo train at the southern end going on..... and the staff’s current workload, a compromise ranged from “many students on campus did not of platform 3, Guildford Station. was struck where only Modules 1 and 2 would be see any reason to go into the Union during the day” to “it was not generally seen as an inviting The incident is being investigated Mark Stuart ordered. A further decision on Modules 3 and 4 by Transport Police and the local would be made once we had received the results environment to spend time in”. The food and Coroners Office. of Modules 1 and 2. beer prices were, as expected, criticised for being EL Consultants, with vast experience of too expensive, yet when compared to other analysing Students’ Unions across the University Deputy Secretary After talking to Union Officers, staff and a small Unions across the country our income per head country, last week reported their findings James Strawson issued a statement C select sample of students CEL Consultants was well above the national average. This should on the Modules 1 and 2 commissioned by Union saying that “the Vice-Chancellor reported that “considering the range of services be compared with the price of drinks, “which are Officers last semester. The report criticises the has written to Sarah’s family to - Continued on Page 3, col. 1 express the deepest sympathy of all members of the University University presses on with flagship building community on her death. It is believed that Sarah’s tragic death he University is embarking was unconnected with her studies on its most expensive build- at the University. The University Ting project ever. appreciates that Sarah’s sudden The new building, over 65 metres death will be especially felt by her high and costing about £10 million friends in Cathedral Court and her is being constructed to house fellow first year students in the EIHMS nursing students from Department of Psychology.” The September 1999. Development statement goes on to list staff who Director Dr Steve Baker is confi- may be contacted by people who dent that the University has learned feel they need advice and support its lessons from building bodges in following the tragedy. the past, and says that the building will be finished on time. Designed Dr John Hobrough, Dean of by Nicholas Grimshaw & Partners, Students Ext 3148 responsible for the RAC headquar- ters in Bristol, the Eurostar terminal Mrs Helen Veasey and Mrs at Waterloo, station and Zurich Kunu Gordon, Counselling Airport, the building is to look “like Service Ext 2230 the prow of a ship” from Guildford town, and a space shuttle from The Chaplins Ext 2754 above. The project includes exten- sive landscaping, for outdoor The Student Union President events and concerts. and Student Affairs Officer Next Week: Bare Facts will be publishing sketches & plans of the building. Ext 9227 / 9228 Contractors at work on the site adjacent to the Students’ Union building. The new project it to be completed by April 1999. Photo - Matt Pannell News 1 n Features 3 n Letters 4 n Music 6 n Entertainments Guide 7 . Cinema and Arts 8 n Union News 9 n Notices & Personals 9 n Sport 12 . ed980122.qxd 25/11/98 22:16 Page 2 (1,1) 2 News Thursday 22nd January 1998 n Farmers thrash The news in brief Jack Cow-ningham! NUS calls for shutdown US have announced a and higher Education Bill, reached cally affected by the Government’s has cut of a lot of their trade. This, nation-wide ballot for a the report and committee stage in plans. Steven Alexander combined with the recent ban on Nday-long shutdown of fur- the house of Lords on Tuesday. beef on the bone has all but deci- ther and higher education establish- Dates have yet to be set for the next The Students’ Union is currently armers protested in London mated the British beef market. ments later this month. The shut- stages of the legislation. considering plans for participa- on Tuesday against “mount- Meanwhile, the strong pound has down, in protest against the intro- Just before Christmas the tion in the shut-down. Write and Fing indifference” and a lack caused an influx of imported meat duction of tuition fees, is the next in Government revealed university let us know what you think... of support from the Government. and agricultural goods, damaging a series of protests following on applications are down by 20,000 – a The protest was given by 3000 the whole of the industry. Their aim from the demonstrations in drop the size of approximately four Jeff Blackham farmers who attended a conference was, as one banner suggested, November. Universities. The NUS believe the at Central Methodists Great Hall, “‘Bullocks’ to Europe”. The Government’s plans to intro- application to and take up of Westminster and then went on to Farmer’s private property is also duce fees, as part of the Teaching University places will be dramati- Downing Street to unload sacks of under threat. The “Right to Roam” petitions. Sir David Naish, act is being rushed through the leg- President of the National Union of islature, which will give people the Oxford students are dunces Farmers said that these petitions right to traipse through farmer’s were a “welcome vote of support in lands and fields. With all these mea- hey are meant to be the spelling is ‘relative.’ Yet perhaps the worst example of the farming community”. The pro- sures being taken, the National brightest academic minds in In a list of 140 so-called ‘howlers’ all is the confusion between doesn’t testers also herded two cows out- Union of Farmers feel the the country, but students at made by first-year English and dosen’t. (The second one is side the Houses of Parliament Government is holding a vendetta T Oxford are dunces when it comes to Language and Literature students in wrong incidentally.) where the farming community were against them. “Most of those people basic spelling. 1995 examinations were errors such Mr Richards does attempt to set the lobbying MPs after the conference. in Westminster who make the deci- So is the claim made by a recent ex- as, ‘angery,’ skepticle’ and ‘redicu- article in context though, comment- One farmer told Bare Facts; “There sions haven’t even been to the teacher in an article in the lous.’ ing, seems that there’s no support for country, never mind worked a farm. University’s scholar’s journal, Candidates seemed unaware of the “If this is what’s going on at British products anymore. We rely For the past 60 years its been them Oxford Magazine. problems with, ‘padel’ (paddle), Oxford, God knows what everyone on the beef trade and it has been that have been messing things up, Bernard Richards, a fellow and for- ‘greatfully’ (gratefully) and else is doing.” taken away from us. We rely on our fiddling about and making our lives mer English tutor at Brasenose ‘exceleriting’ (accelerating). Some Perhaps he has a point. subsidies and they are going to be difficult.” College, Oxford lays blame for the apparently used ‘styles’ to climb taken away from us too. I’d like to The rally was a tremendous success declining standards partly with the over fences and would not be at all Andrew Goodacre get that Jack Cunningham and those for the union, at least in the short influence of ‘professional linguists’ surprised to see a ‘cannon’ taking a Eurocrats and give them a piece of term. They have demonstrated that who believe that correctness of service in a Cathedral.

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