29/11/2019
Only a few more hours to vote! In case you’re still making your mind up, I’ve written my manifesto below for you to see what I’d like to bring to this welfare role!
Thank you to all those who have already voted 💜
“I have been an active member of Furness college for two years, and have been involved in Furness Netball, the sustainability challenge team and the charity challenge team. This has allowed me to meet many people across the college and form long-lasting friendships. I have absolutely loved my time in Furness, and the college really helped me settle in throughout first year. As a result, I’d love to continue giving something back and make my contribution to welfare and campaigns within the college.
I have always been interested in promoting wellbeing and mental health amongst peers. Success and enjoyment at university is strongly intertwined with a student’s state of wellbeing, and stress and workload (among other things) can heavily impact a student’s experience at Lancaster. My previous position as Sports Officer in Furness has opened my eyes to the functioning of the college and also exposed me to the activities organised by the Welfare team on both the JCR and SCR, and strongly believe I can bring new ideas and enthusiasm to the role. The Furness College Charity Challenge has given me awareness of how to run an effective campaign to college students.
One role that has given me a wealth of skills is being a Listening Volunteer at Samaritans. I hold the utmost respect for others, proving support and comfort to those in distressing and difficult situations. My work at Samaritans is motivated by compassion for others who need help getting through tough times, times that hit us all at some points. I am accepting of all callers who need help, and ensure I am approachable to those in need, using a gentle attitude and calming nature. I have a sincere interest in helping the callers I speak to at Samaritans, striving to provide some relief from their worries. At Samaritans, I display good empathetic skills, as I gather an understanding of the caller’s feelings, allowing me to explore their emotions, and how I may guide them to reaching their own solutions. No one is turned away from receiving support at Samaritans, and I enjoy being a part of an inclusive and welcoming organisation. My enthusiasm to help stems from my passion alleviate mental health problems in society and provide a holistic approach to supporting those suffering with their mental health. This experience I have gained at Samaritans inspires me to want to continue working in the JCR as part of the Welfare Team.
I understand that it can be difficult for some to speak about mental health and internal feelings, so it is important to be approachable and hold the ability to empathise and encourage others to come forward with problems they’d like to alleviate. It is also really important to emphasise to others as to why they should gain support, so they can find their route to feeling better at university, and not just to be guided by what others believe they should do.
My current ideas on what I could bring as a Welfare and Campaigns Officer in Furness College:
• Introduce a new ‘Signposting Hour’ in Furness, where students can come by and have an informal chat about services available for them to receive support. This would be held once a week. This will provide students with another point of contact in the college concerning welfare.
• Raise awareness for the amazing organisations external to the university that can help students during difficult times. For example, Samaritans and Mind UK. They are experienced and trained in helping others improve their mental health and offer a Listening service when people need someone to talk to anonymously. Furthermore, they often have shorter waiting times than the university services. Students could use these services while waiting for university help. I would campaign largely online to reach larger numbers of students
• Introduce a small feature in Trev Time’s with wellbeing tips and advice
• Offer greater support to Furness Sport’s Teams on how to deal with difficult situations involving individuals who are going through a tough time at university. The college teams could go even further and introduce a welfare position in their executive group, following the growing move to do this in BUCS sports teams
• Start wellbeing pot-luck sessions where students can gather, socialise and share food in an informal session to take their mind off daily worries and constant studying.
• Continue collaboration with the Sports Officers, especially when the weather improves to get people outside and moving, a great way to reduce stress levels and meet new people”
