Committee handbook 2016/17

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FRESHERS’

GIVE IT A GO 2016 VOLUNTEERING TUESDAY 20 SEPTEMBER

SOCIETIES & MEDIA WEDNESDAY 21 SEPTEMBER

SPORTS THURSDAY 22 SEPTEMBER 11AM – 4PM AT RUSU R U S U. C O. U K / F R E S H E R S

Contents 04 Who Is Who? 05 Your Year Ahead 06 Roles & Responsibilities

Your group is part of rusu!

But what is rusu?

07 Meetings 08 Sports Clubs Checklist 09 Societies Checklist Volunteering 10 AGM & Elections 11 Rewards & Recognition 11 Red Award 12 Membership 13 Consent 14 Diversity 16 Finance 20 Organising Event 21 Booking Rooms within RUSU 22 Booking Rooms within The University 23 Promotion 24 Health & Safety 24 Trips 24 Transport 24 Health & Safety 26 Fundraising 24 The Constitution, Behavioul Policy, Equl Opportunities Poicy

Reading University Students’ Union (RUSU) is run by students for students. We are a registered charity, so any money made gets put back into students and into activities. Each year we hold elections for the full-time officer roles, to run the Union.

You could run either at the end of your 3rd year, or take a sabbatical. Representing Student Activities is your Student Activities Officer. If you are part of a society you are welcome to attend the twice termly activity group meetings, where you can bring up any big ideas or changes that you think should be actioned. Past Activities Officers successfully campaigned for a new astroturf, and the University’s written policy about having no lectures after 1pm on a Wednesday, allowing students to participate in activities.

The main RUSU Reception is open Monday – Friday, 9am – 5:30pm (During vacation periods, the reception desk closes at 5pm).

For general RUSU enquiries please contact the main Reception desk - enquiries@rusu.co.uk - 0118 378 4100.

Who is who?

Full Time Officers!

I over see how things are done at RUSU - Talk to me about anything you would like to see changed! president@rusu.co.uk

I manage all student groups - if you

I will help keep you safe & well on

I oversee academic representation,

I am responsible for diversity and

have any ideas big or small of how

campus, talk to me or your welfare

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activitiesofficer@rusu.co.uk

welafreofficer@rusu.co.uk

educationofficer@rusu.co.uk

diversityofficer@rusu.co.uk

part Time Officers!

Talk to me if you

Talk to me to raise

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Talk to me if you

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Talk to me if you

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Student activities staff members

Activities Manager Sports Coordinator Volunteering & JCR Societies & Media Diversity & Intergration Coordinator Coordinator Coordinator Adam Bailey Sam Nowell Hannah Trott Vicky Purcell Jamie Robertson adam.bailey@ s.nowell@ h.trott v.purcell@ j.robertson@ reading.ac.uk reading.ac.uk @reading.ac.uk reading.ac.uk reading.ac.uk 0118 378 4119 0118 378 4111 0118 378 4156 0118 378 4150 0118 378 4118

Support Worker

Activities Finance Administrator Inma Canovas Trish Tassell (Provides support to t.tassell@ Diversity & Intergrareading.ac.uk tion Coordinator) 0118 378 4105

Get in touch if any of your members are experiencing issues with their Postgraduate studies. postgrad

Contact student.activities@rusu.co.uk for general enquiries.

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@rusu.co.uk

Welcome New & Returning Commi ttee Members!

Congratulations on being elected by your members. We are very excited to see what your committee will plan for the year ahead!

First Things First - Re-Affiliation In order for a pre-existing Student Group to be affiliated with RUSU, your group must have done the following: • Held a democratic election • Held an AGM • Signed the Societies Constitution, Equal Opportunities Policy, and Behavioural Policy • Supplied RUSU with the committees full contact details (name, email, tel, student number) • The president and treasurer must have signed our signature list (for claiming money back).

• Have ALL official student members registered as a member on your RUSU page.

Every group must sign the constitution and a behaviour policy. The constitution is a set of written rules agreeing the aims of your group and how it will run. The behaviour policy is an agreement by your group to adhere to a certain code of conduct. There is a copy of both of these in the back of this handbook.

All constitutional changes must be approved by Student Activities staff and your student members, prior to being implemented.

After your group has re-affiliated with RUSU you must then complete a general Risk Assessment of the activity that you will be doing over the year. You must also complete the Equipment Inventory form. These will need to be handed back to Student Activities before your activity starts in the new academic year.

Once you have finished with all the paper work it’s time to start thinking about what your group would like to achieve in the year ahead. Before summer, your committee should have agreed what the membership fee will be, and the times and locations of your weekly or monthly sessions.

Your Year Ahead!

September

January

Freshers’ Fair

Give It A Go Week

You will be invited to apply for a Freshers’ Fair stall during the summer vacation and will be notified by email as to whether or not you have been successful. There is not enough space in the Freshers’ tent for all societies/sports clubs and therefore you should give thought to how you would recruit members if you are not allocated a stall.

To be entitled to a Freshers’ stall you must have re-affiliated with RUSU by the deadline.

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Give it a GO Week is always held in January, at the start of the new academic year. This gives students the opportunity to get involved in a new activity, for the New Year. We hold a Give It A Go Fair where you can promote your Give it a GO activity and encourage people to sign up to your sessions. Look out for details of the programme. You will be emailed when the dates have been confirmed.

You can apply for funding to finance these and RUSU will actively promote your event.

For more information go to: www.rusu.co.uk/activities/giag

March/April

Activities Awards The Awards take place at the end of the Spring term each year. You will be invited to nominate both your group and individual committee members for awards, which will be presented on the night. You will be notified when nominations open.

See last year’s winners: http://rusu.co.uk/activities/studentactivitiesawards

May

AGM & Elections Before you know it it will be May, and time for your group to run Elections and the AGM for the end of the year.

New committee members will then attend Committee Training.

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Roles & Responsibilities President • The main contact for RUSU • Attend meetings organised by RUSU • Ensuring that good practice, codes of conduct, risk assessments are followed etc • Call regular meetings, including AGMs • Maintain effective liaison with all relevant staff • Ensure all accidents/incidents are reported

Secretary • Arrange and publicise all meetings.

• Take minutes at all committee meetings and circulate copies among committee members • Maintain an accurate membership list – Make sure all members are registered on the RUSU website.

• Deal with all incoming communications and pass them on to the committee and/or members

It is your responsibility to ensure your Student Group is run well for your members. While you might be doing some of this for the first time, the Student Activities Team are here to support you – don’t be afraid to ask for help.

Don’t forget you are a committee and not just one person doing all the work. Below are some of the collective responsibilities that committee members should undertake: • Organising trips and events • Conduct of members • Safety of members

Welfare

Treasurer • Keep a Ledger!

• Ensure all income and expenditure is accurately recorded and keep copies of all your receipts and invoices • Ensure all members have paid their membership fees • Ensure that everything goes through your society/ sports club account • A signatory on claim forms, paying in forms etc

• Attend Welfare Training • Talk to students about their welfare concerns •Sign post to relevant services • Order and display infomation about welfare support • Plan welfare campaigns • Help committee to plan socials that consider all members

• Adhering to all policies and procedures • Maintaining good communication with the Student Activities Team • Holding an AGM and electing a new committee each year • Ensuring all members have paid (if you charge) and are registered on the RUSU website • Ordering kit / hoodies It is compulsory for student groups to elect 4 committee members a President, Treasurer, Secretary and Welfare Rep. If you wish to elect a committee greater than 6, please speak to the relevant member of the Student Activities Team.

RESOURCES

Post

c/o Reading University Students’ Union Whiteknights Reading RG6 6UR

All groups can have post sent to the Students’ Union for example if you have a delivery of hoodies or tickets that need signing for.

Please ensure that any post is clearly marked for the attention of your Group e.g.:

Photocopying

Any post sent c/o RUSU, copies of invoices and information from the Students’ Union will be put in the Student Activities Centre for you to collect – please ensure you collect it regularly.

Example address: Reading University Boat Club c/o Reading University Students’ Union PO Box 230 Whiteknights Reading RG6 6AZ If delivered by courier: Reading University Drama Society

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All groups have an allocated photocopying code, and any photocopying will be debited at the end of the month from your reserve account. You can collect your code at reception, or Student Activities.

Black & white: 4p a sheet Colour: 10p a sheet If you are printing lots of materials e.g. posters or a leaflet, our preferred supplier is Mailboxes (located in the Students’ Union). They offer a discount to groups.

Mailboxes will also able to print tickets for events etc.

Please contact them for more details: Tel: 0118 986 1860 Website: www.mberusu.co.uk Email: info@mberusu.co.uk

Your Committee

Meetings!

Decisions should be agreed and voted on by the committee.

The president has the final say when the committee vote is a tie.

Phases of a meeting Before: Plan an agenda • Decide what items to include • Give a deadline for agenda items • Send the agenda a few days before the meeting • What reports have to be prepared beforehand and by whom?

During: • Make introductions • Hand out agenda for a clear running order and any necessary papers After: • Minutes written up and circulated by the secretary • Actions are followed up • Another meeting is prepared

Chairing a meeting (President) The Chair’ will keep order so that the meeting proceeds in a fair manner; giving everyone the opportunity to contribute.

Voting The Chair also has a vital role in clarifying matters when a decision is to be made. A vote is normally taken by a show of hands or a secret ballot if you prefer, and the proposal is either carried or defeated.

Once a decision is made, it is important that it is recorded properly.

Overcoming common problems • Too much procedural wrangling: The Chair should prevent this happening in the first place, but committee members also need to be aware that they are there to get the business done and get decisions made • Lack of clarity: The Chair should clarify or sum up all issues, for the purpose of the attendees and the Secretary • Decisions are put off: Putting off a decision will not make it go away. Only do this if you genuinely need more information or wider consultation • Too little involvement: It is up to the Chair to monitor the performance of the meeting, including who is participating. For an important item, go around and ask each person their view • Meetings go on too long: Agree a rough target to aim to finish by. Agree this at the beginning of the meeting. Encourage concise contributions and don’t let people ramble on • Too many meetings: Do not overload people with too many meetings and make sure people have time to actually carry out the things that a meeting has agreed. At the same time, recognise that crucial decisions have to be taken and ensure that your structure and frequency of meetings allow for this • People not turning up: Provide enough warning and stick to the agreed venue and time. Ask those who cannot attend to send apologies • No real follow up: Make sure decisions are properly recorded and the people to carry them out are clearly identified

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Example Agenda: 1. Apologies for absence: Within the minutes, record people who have said they cannot make the meeting. Make a note of who is present, or circulate an attendance list.

2. Minutes of last meeting: Go through to see if they are a correct record and adjust errors 3. Matters arising: These are issues that were discussed at the last meeting that do not appear elsewhere on the agenda. Review developments on these issues and chase progress. Remember do not spend most of your meeting discussing what happened at the last one!

4. Committee members report: What have the committee members been doing?

5. Financial report: The Treasurer should produce this for each meeting (preferably circulated in advance) to report what has been spent, what money has been received, any money owed and the balance.

6. Issues: Go through the agenda items in order. For each point, make sure there is an action point given with a deadline.

7. Standing items (items discussed as & when necessary): • Society/Sports Club development • Recruitment of members • Events - Future planning or reviewing past events • Contribution - Are you happy with the level of commitment and performance? How can you improve?

- Do you need to congratulate any members?

• Sponsorship - Do you need to raise more money?

• Training - Is your equipment sufficient? Are you happy with your coach? Are your facilities suitable?

• Publicity - Are you writing match reports/profiles for the paper?

8. Any other business.

9. Date of next meeting.

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sports clubs Checklist As the President or Club Captain, it is extremely important to start the year with everything organised. You will need to consider the following: Coaches/instructors • Have you organised all your coaches/instructors for the year?

• Will they cater for all your members’ abilities and the size of the club?

• Do you know the costs?

• How are you going to pay them?

• Have you discussed the aims of your club with your coaches/instructors?

• Can your members complete coach/instructor qualifications?

Training • Have you booked your training slot?

• Is there enough space for all your members to train? If not, can you split the sessions?

• How are you going to pay for the facility hire?

• Do you know the costs?

Pre-season • Have you organised any taster sessions?

• Have you organised any fitness sessions before the season starts?

• Have you reminded all your returning members of any pre-season dates?

Equipment/Kit • Do you have enough equipment/kit to cater for all your members?

• What condition is it in?

• Have you budgeted for new equipment/kit?

• Do you need to start budgeting for new equipment/kit in the next few years?

Facility bookings All RUSU facilities that you use for training will be booked on approval of your budget request.

If your Sports Club would like to book a facility outside of your normal sessions, please contact the Sports Coordinator with the following details: • Date of desired booking • Time and length of the session • Venue

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• What sport it is • The number of people involved The Sports Coordinator will then check the availability with SportsPark.

Please note that SportsPark will not deal with your booking directly and will need confirmation from the Sports Coordinator.

Coaching A coaching contract must be read and signed by any nonStudent Coach or instructor before they work with your Club. They must submit a new signed form each academic year. In addition, a Coaching invoice must be completed at least once a term, to allow payments to be made. You must email a copy of these forms to the Sports Co-ordinator and keep your own Sports Club records. The contract will not be valid unless countersigned by an appropriate member of Students’ Union staff.

If your club would like a new coach, please contact the Sports Coordinator and they will be able to advertise and help you look for someone suitably qualified.

Varsity Varsity is one of Reading’s Sporting highlights. It is an annual sports day which sees Reading University compete against Oxford Brookes in many sporting disciplines to win the Varsity Cup. The competition has only been running a couple of years but has already gathered huge momentum, with over 40 different fixtures in 20 different sporting activities played in just one day. The Varsity Cup is presented at the end of the final match, to the University who has won the most fixtures.

Further information and details of this event can be found on the activities page on the RUSU website.

Sports Fed Insurance All members of RUSU’s Sports Clubs MUST have Sports Federation Insurance.

Spot checks will be carried out throughout the year to ensure that anyone participating in a Sports Club has this insurance. Anyone found without this will be asked to pay immediately, in order to be able to continue participating.

There will be no exceptions to this so please ensure your members have paid.

Your Committee

Societies Checklist Decide when your commitee meetings will take place.

Will you charge a membership fee? And what will members get Decide when your members meetings/ events will take place throughout the term ahead.

Make any room bookings needed, well in advance. (It’s required to book a week in advance).

Make sure that your RUSU page is up to date, and says when and where you meet.

volunteering Get Your Group Involved!

We have 2 great projects that need sports and societies involvement to make them bigger and more successful this year. Getting involved with these projects can count towards the RED Award, Societies Rewards & Recognition and Sport AQM.

School’s Out

This initiative is all about providing after-school clubs or one-off events to local primary schools. These clubs can run during term-time and be weekly, fortnightly or one-off events. This year we have had circus skills, baking, tap and modern and cheerleading in different schools. Think your group could run an after-school club then email volunteer@reading.ac.uk

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University of Monsters

The University of Monsters is an outreach project encouraging primary school children to learn more about University, raise aspirations and provide a fun university experience. Schools are part of the University of Monsters for a year and there are a variety of campus and classroom visits. As part of the project there are study and student life days. This is where YOU can get involved… we need student groups to either run a mini lecture or an activity taster showcasing what you study or what your sport or society does.

Throughout the year we also run a blog with the school and are always looking for groups to post on behalf of the Monsters. Want to get involved then email h.trott@reading.ac.uk

Got an Idea?

Want to do something really different that we do not already offer? Email volunteer@reading.ac.uk with your ideas and suggestions.

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group agm & elections AGM stands for Annual General Meeting. Most public organisations have these once a year, to communicate with their members, give a roundup of the year’s events, plan future ones, and take any comments or suggestions. Club or Society AGMs are also used to elect your Committee for the next academic year and to ratify or change your constitution.

At this meeting you will review the activities of the outgoing year. Your AGM must be attended by at least 25% of your total membership.

An Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) may be called at any time in the year at the request of the committee or 25% of the group membership.

The meeting should be chaired by the outgoing President and minutes of the meeting need to be taken by the outgoing secretary.

How to organise my student group AGM and Elections

Step 1

Your Committee will decide if you are going to hold your AGM and Elections at the same event, or if you wish to hold online elections separate to your AGM. Please Note: There will be a deadline for you to hold your AGM and Elections by.

This gets set by The Student Activities Team.

Step 2

Arrange the date and time of your AGM. It should be within a fully accessible venue. You could book a RUSU venue, or a room within the University.

Step 3

You must publicise the date and time of your AGM to ALL YOUR MEMBERS at least 14 days in advance of the meeting.

Step 4

You must then circulate the Agenda to all your members at least 7 days in advance of the meeting.

Club/Society members can appeal AGM election results to the Student activities Officer if they feel that club/society elections are unfair or undemocratic.

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Step 5

Hold your AGM and take minutes and record the number of votes. Qorom (the number it takes for the meeting decisions to be valid) is 25% of your membership. If your meeting is not quorate, then you must set a new date for your AGM. The meeting should be chaired by the outgoing President/Club Captain.

Step 6

Minutes should be taken at the AGM by the outgoing secretary, and then submitted to RUSU by e-mailing them to student.activities@rusu.co.uk . You will also be asked to submit the details of your newly elected committee members and a copy of your changed constitution (if you changed it) via the society re-affiliation form. (The Student Activities Team will set a deadline for you to submit your re-affiliation from).

You must allow all your Student members the opportunity to stand for a position and to vote. Failure to do so, will result in disciplinary action.

You must allow all your student members the opportunity to stand for a position and to vote. Failure to do so, will result in disciplinary action.

Step 7

The new Committee needs to book onto the RUSU Committee training, and a Behavioral Policy Signing session. Attendance at both these sessions is required for the President, Secretary, and Treasurer. Without all three people in attendance your group affiliation may not be valid for the next year.

Step 8

Only current full Club/Society members (paid and registered with RUSU) are allowed to vote at AGM/EGM.

In the event of a tie, the Chair/President has the casting vote.

Online Elections You can submit the online elections form on the website, please allow a minimum of 1 week for these to be set up.

In order to set up online elections please send the following information, to the relevant person at Student Activities: • Time and Date of your nominations period • Time and Date of your Elections period • Your full list of committee members (and how many people can win each position) • Brief description of each committee position Once your elections have been set up, and your nominations are open – your members will be able to nominate themselves. They will also be able to add a photo and manifesto if they so wish.

Typical AGM Agenda

• Welcome • Apologies • Minutes of previous meeting • Matters arising • Presentation of Annual Report (President) – This should give an overview of the main achievements of the year • Presentation of Accounts (Treasurer) – Highlight the important figures and give a general overview of the financial position of the group • Voting (If not done online) • Announcement of election results (If not done online)

After the AGM and Elections After your AGM, the new Committee will need to attend Committee training and a compulsory activity group meeting where they will be given various documents to sign, including the RUSU constitution and behaviour policy. These must be signed and returned before the end of term. This will act as confirmation to RUSU that your group will continue to run next year.

Your incoming President and Treasurer need to come in to the Student Activities Centre to sign the Student Activities signature list. This is compulsory if you wish to claim money or place orders.

Handover

This is one of the most important things you will do as a Committee member. Delivering a good handover can help ensure the continuity and long term development of your group and make sure that

Your Committee

all the work and achievements of your year on the committee are not lost. If you handover properly, it will prepare and empower the new Committee to take on the responsibility for the group. Your handover is the time to warn the new Committee of likely pitfalls and dangers and ensure they have all the knowledge, skills, training and contacts they need.

The new committee will need to review the groups risk assessment and equipment inventory.

rewards and recognition (Societies only) All Societies can be part of Rewards & Recognition – a scheme designed to encourage Society Committees to engage with RUSU and celebrate all the hard work undertaken by Society Committees. Your Society can receive points for all sorts of activities; from increasing its membership and attending meetings organised by RUSU, to taking part in Give it a Go Week and running events in collaboration with other societies. Activities are awarded different points, depending on the amount of work involved.

To begin to accrue points please find the submission form at www.rusu.co.uk/activities/rewards The scheme starts at the beginning of the Summer term, and closes the week before the annual Societies Awards. The points you have achieved at this time will be used to calculate a star rating for your society – the best societies receiving the accolade of being named 5 star Societies. You will receive a certificate with your star rating to display at Freshers’ Fayre and on your website, Facebook page and so on.

5th Prize £100 4th Prize £100 3rd Prize £100 2nd Prize £100 1st Prize £500

RED Award

The Reading Experience & Development (RED) Award is a scheme run by the University to help students, who take part in other activities in addition to their academic studies, gain the recognition they deserve. The RED Award is open to all University students whether Undergraduate or Postgraduate, Full-time or Part-time, Taught or Research students. You can register to take part in the RED Award via the RISIS Web Portal.

For more information go to: www.reading.ac.uk/internal/readingexperienceanddevelopmentaward/redahome.aspx

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Membership All of your members must be signed up on your RUSU page. This automatically creates your membership mailing list.

Students are able to join groups in the following ways: • Online - via the RUSU website. (Please note that membership fees are 15 pence higher when purchased online, due to web provider costs).

• Pay by cash/card at the RUSU reception desk Please let us know if you would like to change your membership fee before Fresher’s Week! We won’t have time to do it on the day of the Freshers Fayre – so please let us know in advance!

Membership fees

You do not have to charge membership fees, but if you do, you should be aware that there are various strands of membership:

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• Student membership - Available to anyone who is a Student at the University; whether Full-time, Part time, Undergraduate or Postgraduate.

• Associate membership - This is for anyone who is NOT a student at the University (this can include members of University and RUSU staff ). You should charge more to non-student members.

Only 30% of the membership can be made up of associate members. Associate members have no speaking or voting rights at committee meetings or AGM’s. They may NOT stand for election on your committee.

You can vary your membership fee throughout the year – reducing the price as the year goes on.

Minimum membership

The minimum Student membership for all Societies and Sports Clubs is 15 students. As per the Activities’ Constitution, if you do not reach 15 student

members by the end of the autumn term, your Club or Society may be disaffiliated by a vote at the relevant Activity Group meeting.

Volunteering Groups Membership

Membership to a RUSU Volunteering Group is usually free of charge as the main objectives of these groups are to become involved in and benefit other members of the University and local community.

There is no minimal number of student’s required for the membership of Volunteering Groups. However a lack of significant numbers may result in the project not being able to continue and becoming unsustainable. In this instance the Student Actvities Officer will work closely with the group concerned and the relevant RUSU staff before deciding if a project can no longer run.

Your members

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Your members

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fINANCE Understanding your groups’ finances and budgeting for the year’s activities is an important part of running an effective and financially viable group. This section will give you an introduction on how your finances work at RUSU.

Reserve Accounts

All groups have a reserve account held within RUSU. The name of your account is simply the full name of your group e.g.

Drama Society / Swimming club / Wantage JCR. Please don’t use abbreviations or acronyms e.g. RUDS, RUMS etc, as this delays processing your deposit or payment. This is the account into which you pay in the money that you have raised yourselves: sponsorship fees and money for members’ hoodies. Your membership fees will also be paid into this account.

How much money do you have?

You can regularly check the balance of this at the Student Activities Finance desk or by emailing one of the Student Activities Team. Your accounts can be slightly difficult to understand at first, so please ask if you are unsure of anything.

The diagrams in this section help explain how your accounts work.

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RUSU allocated Budgets

In the summer term each year groups are invited to apply for a budget for the upcoming academic year from RUSU at the activity group meetings. There are criteria that need to be met in order to apply and these will be highlighted in the invitations.

Budgets are allocated for a specific use, such as equipment, maintenance, entry fees, coaching costs, guest speakers etc.

Budgets cannot be used for personal items or things that will be given away.

In order to apply you must charge a membership fee. If you are successful in applying for a budget please speak to a member of the Student Activities Team to see how much of it is left throughout the year.

How can we spend our money?

Now we’re talking. Why charge a membership fee or request a budget if you aren’t going to spend it? The most important thing to remember is that payments are not instant and have to follow a set procedure.

Plan ahead at least 2 weeks before any payment is needed otherwise we cannot guarantee your payment will be made on time!

Buying stuff

Whether it’s a large equipment order, a huge amount of stash/hoodies for your members or bulk tickets to a show or conference; we can help to get this paid for you. Please plan ahead and don’t ask us to pay something for you on the same day it is needed! We’ll assume you’ve done your research and got the best price possible so if you have been sent an invoice or are being asked for a Purchase Order/Order Number – come and see us.

As long as you have the funds in your account or budget, we can sort things for you.

Purchase Orders/Order Numbers can be sent to the supplier for you and they will then usually deal direct with us for payment.

Invoices are paid every 2 weeks in a set payment run. The deadline dates for invoices to be submitted are advertised in the Student Activities Centre. Get to know these and submit your invoices on time!

Paying people

Coaches/Guest Speakers If you are paying a coach or guest speaker then use the same procedure for invoices as in the ‘Buying stuff ’ section. Get

FINANCE

the invoice in nice and early to guarantee payments are made on time.

Coaching contracts and invoice forms are available to download on the Committee Corner page on the Student Activities section of the RUSU website. Use these if your coach/guest speaker does not have their own invoice form.

Please note that we cannot pay for coaching services in advance. Invoices for these should be submitted monthly or termly.

Reimbursing members

Sometimes your members will need to be reimbursed for expenditure they have made on behalf of your group.

There are two ways of doing this. If it is under £100 then it can be done in petty cash and collected 2 working days after the claim has been submitted. If it is over £100 then it will have to be made via BACS transfer to the claimants account. As with invoices, these are made in the same set payment runs every 2 weeks.

There are separate forms for the above methods of reimbursement which are both available to collect in the Student Activities office.

Petty cash forms are white and BACS forms are green.

They are straightforward and easy to complete (see diagrams) but MUST have the receipts/proof of purchase stapled to the back of them in order for them to be approved. The only exception is when mileage for travel is being claimed, in which case the back of the form must be completed.

They must also be signed by your treasurer or president in order to be approved. Copies of president and treasurers signatures are kept in the Student Activities office so these can be checked against claim forms.

Completed forms should all be submitted in to the Student Activities office.

Paying money in

You may find that on occasion you have money collected from members (for hoodies, tickets etc) that you need to pay in. Please do this as soon as you can and don’t let lots of money mount up in your room under the bed! As soon as it is paid in to your account it is safe and insured, if you were to lose it before that it wouldn’t be.

Paying in is easy and anyone from your group can do it.

Collect a pink paying in form from the Student Activities office, fill it in and hand it to the Finance Administrator or another member of the Activities team along with the money. Make sure you fill in the narrative details as this is what appears on your account.

Raising money for your group

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As well as membership fees we would recommend that you consider external avenues to raise funds. These can be anything from keeping your groups alumni involved in what you do to seeking sponsorship from local or national organisations.

When seeking sponsorship please ensure you are aware of the Sponsorship criteria and use the Sponsorship form available online on the Committee Corner page of the Student Activities section of the website.

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Your student sound Email getinvolved@junction11radio.co.uk

@junction11radio /junction11 junction11radio junction11radio

www.junction11radio.co.uk

GOT AN IDEA? WANT TO CHANGE SOMETHING?

GO TO RUSU.CO.UK/CHANGEIT AND TELL US!

organising events

As with a lot of the info in this handbook, our best advice is to Plan as early as you can! Regardless of how big or small your event is, the more time you give yourself, the easier everything will be.

You will also have realised by now that a lot of the things you need to do as a committee involve some sort of process, procedure or paperwork and organising an event is no different. The university require a minimum of 28 days’ notice for an event on campus so we’d advise using the same procedure for any event where ever it will be held.

STEP 1 Nominate someone from your committee to take the lead in organising the event that can be relied upon to complete the following required steps in time.

Consider a budget for the event (are you charging/selling tickets?

Can you afford it?)

STEP 2

Online Ticket Sales

All student groups are able to use the online ticket sales option on their RUSU page. This is however something that will need to be set-up by a member of RUSU staff. Once your tickets have been set up on your event page, you will be able to track sales in the ‘sales report’ tab, on the admin panel of your group page.

Setting Up Online Ticket Sales 1. Set up an event page from your society page (from the admin panel on the RUSU website).

2. Email the following information to student.activities@reading.ac.uk: • The link to the event you have created on your RUSU page • The name of the event (including the club or society name to help finance assign the money to the right account) • Ticket Price • Sales limit (how many tickets are available for sale) • What text to be sent out on the Receipt • Start date and time of ticket sales • Last date (and time) the tickets should be on sale for Please allow at least 5 working days before we can put the ticket for sale.

You can check your ticket sales in the admin panel of the RUSU website by going to Sales Reports > Select a date from before the tickets went on sale> click purchasers report.

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Well in advance of the 28 day notice period that person should get in touch with the relevant member of Student Activities to discuss the event. It would be a good idea to have an event plan ready containing as much detail as you can. We will be able to advise on any areas that may not have been considered such as insurance, first aid, security etc. Not all events need these but in some circumstances they are required. We will also go through your budget to make sure all the event is financially viable.

STEP 3 Student Activities can help book suppliers and we will let you know if we can get you a better deal than you may find on your own. However you may prefer to get the quotes for yourself and we will pass on our contacts to help you with this.

STEP 4 The 28 day Notice deadline! Ideally before but at least 28 days before your event, the official Event Notification needs to be submitted. It’s not as scary as it sounds and if you have done all the above in good time it’s just filling in a

form. All the event details (date, time, numbers attending and suppliers) need to be input as well as a risk assessment completed.

The notification can be completed and submitted online or via email. This is them sent around to the powers that be for comment and approval.

STEP 5 Bookings should be made and confirmed as early as possible.

This may sound odd before the event has been approved, but it is not uncommon for approval to only be given 1 week before an event. If that happens you’ll find it very hard to make any bookings.

If you’ve worked with us on completing the Event Notification, we will be confident of its approval. If you haven’t then we may also be reluctant to make any bookings if we don’t know all the details.

STEP 6 The Wait…………….. Providing all the details have been provided and the risk assessment is sufficient the event will receive approval and can go ahead. If you work with the Student Activities team on completing everything this is more likely to happen as we can help to ensure everything is ok before submitting the forms.

STEP 7 Relax, give yourself a pat on the back and sort out any last minute bits and pieces. Allow yourself to enjoy your event, you’ve earned it! Remember to look back at what you’ve achieved and don’t forget to add this to your skills and experience when applying for jobs.

Events & Promotion

Booking rooms within rusu Visit Student Activities and ask to see available dates for the room you wish to book.

If the room you want is available, fill in and submit a room booking form at RUSU reception.

If the room you want is not available you will be advised of alternative dates, times and rooms.

You will be contacted by RUSU’s Events and Catering Manager with any prices for the booking. Prices for security, tech, staff, and equipment hire all depend on the information provided in the booking form.

If the alternative dates, times or rooms work for your group, fill in and submit a room booking form at RUSU reception.

Confirm your booking with RUSU’s Events & Catering Manager and speak to Student Activities about setting up online tickets for your event if you need them. Get on with planning your event and have a great time!

Book a Stall within RUSU

Head to RUSU reception to find our availability and make your booking.

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Hints & Tips

Plan early to avoid disappointment.

Budget carefully and consider how much people will be willing to pay to attend your event if you intend to charge for it.

Do you need rehearsal time, external suppliers such as DJ’s etc? Make sure to include these on your booking form. The more information at the start makes it much easier to get your event confirmed earlier.

External electrical equipment that is not hired for you by RUSU will need to be tested for safety before being allowed to be plugged in. Factor this in to your set up time and make sure RUSU know about it from the begining so we can ensure someone is available to test it for you.

booking rooms within the university (not RUSU) Is the booking for a Formal, Ball, Social?

No

Yes

Email info@venuereading.com from your university account. Provide the name of your group; room preference, date & time you require and number attending. Also provide information on what the event/ meeting will be for e.g. Society Formal, Guest speaker.

Is the booking for your members only?

Yes

No

Affiliated RUSU groups are entitled to free room hire provided the booking is for members only, there are no entry fees and it is not a social/ball etc. email rooms@reading.ac.uk from your university account. Provide the name of your group; room preference, date & time you require and number attending. Also provide information on what the event/meeting will be for e.g. Weekly committee meeting, Guest speaker.

VenueReading will also contact Student Activities to see if you can afford this booking and if not, to ask if we are happy for the event to go ahead.

If so you will receive a quote for the booking from VenueReading.

If you have the funds and/or Student Activities are confident that you will have them, accept the quote and the booking will be made.

VenueReading will invoice RUSU directly and these will be paid from your groups reserve account.

You will receive a confirmation email or response from the university room bookings team. In some circumstances you will have to agree to Terms of Use for certain rooms.

All rooms are subject to Terms & Conditions, please read these and make sure you are aware of them.

Please leave rooms as you found them as many will have been set up for lectures the following morning. Please also take all your rubbish away with you.

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Bookings at SportsPark should all be made via RUSU’s Sports Coordinator giving the date, times and facility you wish to book.

You will be informed of prices and availability by RUSU who will make the booking for you on confirmation from you. Invoices will be sent directly to RUSU and charged to your groups reserve account.

Events & Promotion

Promotion Publicising your group/event can be crucial! Think carefully about who you are targeting – are they current members, potential members or maybe members of the public?

Before you start:

There is a dedicated student activities noticeboard in the student activities centre.

It is illegal to fly post. Do not cover other posters that aren’t out of date. Make sure you promptly take posters down after an event.

· Think about publicity from your audience’s perspective – don’t assume prior knowledge · Set the details early and don’t change them – prices, times and acts · Do you need help designing promotional material? Contact the Student Activities Team to be pointed towards some of our student designers.

Social media

Word of Mouth

You can email a PowerPoint slide advertising your event to one of the Student Activities Team. This will be displayed on the screen in our office.

Make an event via your Facebook group and you can then automatically invite everybody in your group. · Invite everyone you can, but keep it targeted to the people you know are in Reading.

Display Screens in the Student Activities Centre

Notify RUSU

The Student Activities Team can help promote your event. Let us know what you are planning and we will endeavour to help you promote as best we can.

Remember that RUSU cannot promote events being held in venues which compete with our core activities e.g. a night out in town.

RUSU Website

Every group has a page on the RUSU website and it is your responsibility to keep it up to date with your contact details, when and where you meet, forthcoming events, trips, news, match reports, photos etc.

Posters

· Be sure to include time, location, date, prices, contact details, name of your group and where to find more information. · Think about your use of colour in the design and the cost of reproducing your poster. Would it have the same impact in black and white? · Always ask permission and make sure you only pin posters to notice boards.

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If you are planning a trip away that involves an overnight stay away you must complete a trip registration form and risk assessment.

Download both forms from the Committee Corner page on the RUSU website or pick them up from Student Activities.

RUSU can help you in organising your trip, booking transport, accommodation and so on, so please get in touch.

Tours

· Pay special attention to your subject line – make sure it’s relevant and easy to read at a glance. Keep the actual email short and include a link to more information on your Facebook group.

If you are planning to use a tour company, RUSU would recommend ‘I Love Tour’ which we have vetted for all safety and insurance practice. I Love Tour offer tailor made holidays and sports tours, for Students to a number of European destinations. We recommend that you use this operator for peace of mind and ease of payments.

I Love Tour also offer a range of Society and group trips. www.ilovetour.co.uk

Press Coverage

Insurance

Talk face-to-face with your fellow students – word of mouth is the most powerful form of marketing you have at your disposal.

Emails Give out flyers so people remember the infomation.

trIPS

To get your event promoted in the media, you need to establish the target audience – is it of interest to students only, University staff or the wider Reading community? If you have an article for local press or the University ‘CommUnity’ Magazine, contact the Student Activities Team.

RUSU have their own student-run newspaper (The Spark), radio station (Junction11) and TV Channel (RU:ON TV).

Contact them to advertise your society/ sports club in general or a specific event or trip you are running.

The Spark Newspaper regularly run a society in the spotlight article. Contact the Editor if your society/sports club is interested in being showcased. www.junction11radio.co.uk manager@junction11radio.co.uk www.sparknewspaper.co.uk editor.spark@reading.ac.uk www.youtube.com/RUONTelevison manager@ruon.tv

Ensure that you know what insurance your group has, what it covers and if this is sufficient for your trip and activities. Inform your members so they can decide if they wish to take out additional insurance. You may need to organise specific insurance for your trip, for example travel insurance. You may be able to get a group policy so do ask around.

Completing the trip registration form The following deadlines are applicable to all trips: Trips within the UK: • Trip registration pack - Must be checked by the Student Activities Team, 5 working days prior to departure • Participants list - Supplied at least 1 working day before departure Trips abroad: • Trip registration pack - Must be checked by the Student Activities Team, 10 working days prior to departure • Participants list - Supplied at least 3 working days before departure

Health and Safety Health and Safety is crucial when participating in events and activities both on and off campus.

As a group leader for any activity or situation, you have accepted responsibility for leading others. Your role is to ensure they are not exposed to any foreseeable risks. This includes safe passage of travel, maintenance of equipment and notice of any pre-existing medical conditions.

If you are ever in doubt please just get in touch with Student Activities and we will be happy to help.

cause harm to people, so that you can assess whether you have taken enough precautions or should do more to prevent harm in advance.

You need to have a Risk Assessment for all your activities – consider the potential risks of everything your group does; whether it be a one of event, regular training sessions or large group activities. You need to consider risks for everyone who may be exposed at any time.

You can find a template Risk Assessment on the RUSU page under Committee Corner.

Risk Assessments

Find the template risk assessment on the rusu website, under committee corner!

A Risk Assessment is simply a careful examination of what, in your event or activity, could have the potential to

The 5 Steps to Assessing Risk for your events or activities:

Dealing with accidents & incidents In the event of any serious accident or incident which potentially involves the emergency services or which could attract media attention, please follow this procedure: 1. Firstly, ensure the safety of yourself and then the group.

2. Contact the emergency services if necessary and ensure that before you call you are in a situation where you can pinpoint your exact location. You will then need to provide them with your name, the number you are calling them from and a brief summary of what the situation is i.e. the number of injured and the nature of those injuries. Where possible treat any casualties if it is safe to do so.

3. Contact the Student Activities Manager (0118 378 4119) and if on campus, Campus Security (0118 378 7799) and provide the following information: - Your name and the location of where you are calling from - The name of the society/sports club involved - A brief description of the incident - The names and numbers of the students involved - The name of the hospital any casualties have been taken to 4. Do not make any statement to the media, except from a ‘no comment response’. Do not discuss any aspects of the incident with any groups or individuals that are not connected to the emergency services 5. It is the responsibility of the vehicle driver or group leader to ensure that every member of the group is briefed on what to do, should such a situation arise

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Events & Promotion

transport No alcohol is allowed to be consumed on any form of transport (including public transport), when on a trip with your group.

You are representing the University and your behaviour has implications for its reputation. If it comes to our attention that you have breached this policy, you will face disciplinary action.

When organising transport, you will need to take into consideration a number of factors; such as how many people are going, how much equipment you have, how much it will cost, etc.

Modes of Transport

Public transport: Reading has great transport links which can come at affordable prices if you plan in advance using your student railcard or group discount. The following websites may be of use: Reading Buses - www.reading-buses. co.uk National Rail- http://www.nationalrail. co.uk/stations/rdg/details.html Your own car: Make sure your tax, MOT, insurance and servicing is all up to date.

Check our tyre tread limit and that all your lights and indicators are working.

Hiring a minibus, people carrier, car or van: Usually this is the best option for larger trips or when transporting a lot of kit/equipment. However these vehicles do not come with a driver and must be driven by someone from your group. Due to this there are a number of rules and regulations you need to adhere to.

All vehicle types can be booked at RUSU’s reception. A booking form must be completed before any booking is confirmed.

RUSU have 2 x 15 seater minibuses and 1 x 9 seater people carrier. All other vehicles are hired in from a local company (MVF) and must be collected from and returned to them directly. Details of hire costs and cancellation fees can be found on the booking forms and at RUSU reception.

Hiring a minibus with up to 16 passenger seats: You can drive a minibus hired from RUSU with between 9 and 16 passen-

25

ger seats that has a maximum GVW (Gross Vehicle Weight) of 3.5 tonnes providing all the following points apply to the driver/s: • They are over 21 • They hold a valid UK driving licence and have done so for more than 2 years • They have no driving convictions • They have had no insurance claim in the last 5 years • They pass a RUSU driving assessment (details of assessments and booking them can be found at RUSU reception) Hiring a people carrier, car or van: You can drive any of the above hired from RUSU with up to 8 passenger seats providing all the following points apply to the driver/s: • They are over 18 • They hold a valid UK driving licence and have done so for more than 1 year • They have no driving convictions • They have had no insurance claim in the last 5 years • They pass a RUSU driving assessment (details of assessments and booking them can be found at RUSU reception)

Breakdowns & road traffic accidents

All RUSU and MVF minibuses are covered for accidents and breakdown under RUSU’s insurance cover. RUSU vehicles carry copies of this information in the folder provided when keys are collected.

MVF vehicles are all covered under one policy number M0000278MBPZ. There is only one phone number to report both accidents and breakdown – 0800 389 1708. You will be asked for the policy number and vehicle registration.

If you are involved in an accident, please follow the below procedure: • STOP and then check that all your passengers are safe.

• Assess any damage to your and where necessary any third party’s vehicles.

• Where third parties are involved, exchange details by providing them with RUSU’s insurance policy information and

phone number (0118 378 4100) and your own name and contact info. Make sure to collect their Vehicle info as well their insurance policy information and contact details.

• If a third party was involved but has failed to stop, call the police on the relevant local authority number or the nonemergency number 101 • Call RUSU and inform us of what happened • If the vehicle cannot be driven, call out the breakdown service on the number above.

Hiring a coach or minibus with a driver: There may the occasion where you simply have too many people to transport and can’t all fit on a minibus or you just can’t find a driver. Don’t give up hope as it may be worth considering hiring a coach or minibus with a driver provided.

Make no mistake; this is by far the most expensive option as you will be paying for the driver’s time as well as the vehicle.

A typical example of cost for a day trip to Bath for a 53 seat coach would be in the region of £500 - £600 but when divided up between everyone, still offers good value for money.

Booking forms can be found in the Student Activities office. Please fill in all the required information as it is vital to obtain you quotes. The Activities team will contact the local coach companies and inform you of the prices and availability. If you choose to go ahead with the booking, we will first ensure you have the funds available or the structure in place to collect them before we go ahead and make the booking for you.

RAG is the student fundraising group on campus. We fundraise for a selected group of charities each year. We plan big events throughout the year like Lost, Jailbreak, RAG Week and our naked calendar. Last year we had students racing home from Warwick, travelling for free to Abu Dubai and Morocco, and sold hundreds of donuts when we turned Union green.

Paying in Your Money!

When you fundraise for a charity the money must be paid into the RAG Charities account, which is where all fundraised money is sent to.

On the Paying Form you need to write the following: Sport/Society/Hall paying into: RAG Charities Narrative: ‘Sport/Society/Hall’ fundraising for ‘Charity Name’ This will then be paid to the charity on your behalf and added the Sports/Societies/Hall total. Any thank you notes we receive from the charity will then be given to you. RAG keep a record of all donations made and your fundraising activity will automatically be considered for fundraiser of the year in awards season.

Fundraising Tips - Keep it simple!

People are more likely to donate if they know where the money is going. Tell them what you are trying to achieve. “Every £2 raised means X can do Y…” Get Creative. Try something new or do a classic fundraising event with a twist.

Know your charity. Make sure you can provide information about the people you are fundraising for. Ask them for support as they may be able to provide resources, a fundraising pack, or artwork that you can use.

Go Viral. Spread the word; use social media as well as promoting on campus. Create an online fundraising

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Adopt a Charity1 Each year RAG selects charities to fundraise for from applications received over the year. Your group can adopt one of these charities or look for a charity yourself. There are so many charities to choose from so do some research or speak to RAG about possible options.

You could choose a charity that relates to your group; people may be more likely to engage if you do. Once you have chosen a charity, get in touch with them and let them know your plans. Larger charities can sometimes help you by providing promotional materials if you want to get involved in one of their specific events.

If you have a suggestion of a charity RAG could fundraise for let them know.

page, you can fundraise for RAG reading or other charities through BT MyDonate. Create videos, blogs, and upload photos about your event or your fundraising targets. If you give RAG notice (at least a few days) we can share your event on our social media too!

Aim Big. Try to get your entire group involved. The bigger the event, the better! What would people in your group enjoy and raise lots of money for?

Make the Most of RAG! We’re here to support and guide students through their fundraising, as well as run events and volunteering opportunities! RAG is for everyone; bring your society along to our events, run your own with our help and try to win RAG’s Fundraiser of the Year award.

Events & Promotion Sports, Societies, Halls!

We are here to help sports teams, societies, and halls to fundraise as much as possible. We’ll help you in the process of thinking up ideas, and we can help with publicity so it’s not overwhelming for you. We understand it can be a lot to undertake so we want to ensure you have fun whilst you’re doing it! This year we want to get as many people involved, so we really are here to help with all we can!

Every year there are some really fun collaboration between groups to raise loads of money for charity, so if you fancy hanging up your football boots to do some baking we can help you make these connections!

Lots of our committee has been part of other sport and societies, and we have a dedicated committee member to help you, so you’re in good hands.

RAG Ambassador!

Contact us on:

Email: rag@reading.ac.uk facebook.com/ragreading Find us on Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat as: @readingrag Or scan the Snapcode President: Rebecca Woolley r.woolley@student.reading.ac.uk For Sports, Societies, and Halls enquiries: Charlotte O’Leary

As well as fundraising there will be some one-off opportunities to do volunteering, for example last year RAG decorated the Christmas trees at a local residential home. This September you’ll also have the opportunity to become a RAG Ambassador if you want to get more involved with the society through actively helping to run events. Remember to get as many people as possible from your society involved- the bigger the better! Don’t forget that getting involved with RAG will count towards volunteering hours for the RED Award too!

c.m.oleary@student.reading.ac.uk

Holding a Bake Sale

Events!

RAG puts on great events all year that you can participate in as individuals or as a group. Keep an eye out on social media for everything we’re up to. This year we plan the return of our sports naked calendar and Jailbreak, where you have 36 hours to get as far away from Reading as possible without using your own money.

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Make sure you get your competitive side out as this year we’re having team events that you don’t want to miss out on...

- Book a stall at RUSU reception or email l.cashley@reading.ac.uk- Email rag@reading.ac.uk to let us know about your bake sale- Bake your cakes, biscuits etc.- You will need to write a list of the ingredients that you have used- Do not use fresh cream or nuts- Make sure you have a sign clearly saying what charity the money is going to- Pay the money into Student Activities-

Your Student group will operate in accordance with the Constitution of Reading University Students’ Union. You will set 3 aims and objectives for the year, which will develop your student group. You will declare to RUSU any affiliation to another organisation that you may have. Please be aware that at another organisation there may be guidelines/codes of practice/procedures that you will need to follow.

Membership Full Membership Full membership is only available to current University of Reading Students.

Rights & Privileges: • Shall enjoy all rights & privileges relating to membership of all groups and the use of the RUSU buildings and its facilities.

• As provided in the RUSU constitution, shall be eligible to hold any office within the group and to vote in group elections.

Associate Membership Associate membership is available to all non-University of Reading students, University of Reading alumni, members of University staff, RUSU staff and RUSU Officer.

Rights & Privileges: • Shall enjoy all rights & privileges relating to membership of all groups of RUSU, except that they shall not be permitted to participate in matches or events representing the University of Reading.

• Shall also enjoy the use of RUSU buildings and its facilities.

• Associate Members will have no speaking or voting rights at group committee meetings or AGM’s.

• Associate Members may not stand for election as a RUSU Officer Trustee or membership of any RUSU committee or sub-committee.

• A maximum of 30% of the total membership of the group can be made up of Associate Members.

Conditions of Membership The group may not restrict membership or activities from any RUSU student member except when complying with UK law.

All members shall have read the group Constitution and this should be made readily available to them by the club/ society committee.

All members agree to adhere to the RUSU Behavioural policy.

Membership may be revoked by majority resolution of the group committee in consultation with the relevant RUSU Officer Trustee. An appeal may be lodged within one week of notification of the decision, by writing to the Chair of the Appeals Committee (the President of RUSU) The group may raise money in order to pay for the club/ society activities.

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Membership shall be in accordance with the RUSU Constitution.

Membership Fees All groups have the right to charge membership fees.

All members including Committee members must pay full membership fees, if charged.

Where membership fees are charged, individuals will not be considered group members until they have paid their full membership fees and are registered on the group membership list held by RUSU. Where membership fees are not charged, persons will not be considered group members until they are registered on the group membership list held by RUSU.

Meetings The group must have regular scheduled committee meetings. You must set a time for a recurring meeting.

Committee Committee Positions Each group Committee shall consist of a minimum of: • Chair/President • Secretary • Treasurer

• Welfare Rep Committee Responsibilities The Committee shall be responsible for ensuring the compliance of the group with its Aims and Objectives as outlined above.

The Committee is responsible for overseeing the management and finance of the group.

Committee members must not gain financially from their elected positions.

The Committee will be responsible for ensuring that all club/society events and activities adhere to RUSU’s Behavioural Policy and Equal Opportunities Policy.

At least 1 committee member must attend compulsory RUSU meetings.

All contact details for the Committee must be made available to RUSU Committee Member Voting Committee members shall be elected for one year at the group AGM. Committee members shall have one vote each during Committee meetings.

In the event of a tie, the Chair/President has the casting vote.

Loss of a Committee Member during period of Office In the event of death or resignation of a committee member the vacancy shall be filled by a member appointed by the Committee.

Constitution Removal of a club/society Committee Member Members may seek a vote of no confidence in a group Committee member.

This must be done through a request to the group President (or equivalent) and, if in the case of the President having a vote of no confidence against them, a request must be sent to the Vice-President (or equivalent).

An Extraordinary General Meeting should be called where 25% of group members must be present and a two-thirds majority must be reached.

An election will then be called to fill the vacant position.

A Committee member who loses a no confidence vote may not stand again for any Committee positions within the group.

Annual/Extraordinary General Meetings Timing of Meetings The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the group shall be held at a time designated by the current Committee each year.

An Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) may be called at any time at the request of the committee or 25% of the group membership.

The Secretary shall send a note of the date, time and venue of each AGM and any EGM with a list of items to be discussed to all members at least two weeks before the scheduled date of the meeting.

Voting at AGM/EGM Quoracy for an AGM or EGM shall be at least 25% of the total membership. If fewer attend, a new date must be set.

The voting system for AGM Committee elections will be decided by the current group committee.

The Committee should inform RUSU Student Activities when the AGM is occurring and the voting system is being used, to ensure that elections are democratic and fairly run.

Only current full group members (paid and registered with RUSU) are allowed to vote at AGM/EGM. Club/Society members can appeal AGM election results to RUSU Officer Trustees if they feel that group elections are unfair or undemocratic.

Finance Funding The Club/Society will/can be self-funded through membership fees (where appropriate) and other fundraising.

Additional funds/funding from RUSU can be applied for via the RUSU funding structure.

Sponsorship Sponsorship by external groups is permitted providing they meet the RUSU Sponsorship Process Criteria and a

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Sponsorship Form is completed and signed off by RUSU before any monies are accepted.

Financial Transparency Accounts should be presented by the Treasurer to the group Committee at the Committee meetings as outlined above.

The Treasurer must keep up to date accounts of all financial transactions made by the group.

The group may hold no other bank account other than their official RUSU account. (This is to ensure financial transparency to its membership) All payments for group activities shall be made by RUSU unless agreed in advance by RUSU. The group accounts shall be presented to the membership at the group AGM. The funds of the group shall only be used for the purpose of the club/society and no payment shall be made to any members except as reimbursement of expenses incurred on behalf of the group.

Group Debts The group shall not incur debts or liabilities. The members of the Committee will be accountable for any such debts or liabilities.

Dissolution The Club/Society shall be dissolved if: • The membership agrees by democratic vote • The RUSU Trustee Board deems that dissolution is in the best interest of RUSU student membership.

• The Club/Society has less than fifteen student members by the end of the Autumn term.

• The Club/Society fails to arrange an AGM. • The Club/Society fails to attend compulsory RUSU meetings during the academic year.

Any funds or equipment remaining after all debts and liabilities have been met shall remain the property of RUSU. Constitutional Changes This Constitution may be altered only in circumstances whereby the alteration is approved by the appropriate RUSU Student Officer. Alteration to this Constitution must not remove any of the fundamental principles outlined above Committee Agreement The incoming Committee must agree and sign the Constitution at the beginning of their year of office. They must also sign the RUSU behaviour policy alongside this Constitution.

Constitution Behavioural policy

BREACH OF POLICY

RUSU seeks to ensure that Student involvement in activities is safe and secure, as well as enjoyable. Students should understand the behaviour expected when representing their group at any event, of whatever kind and wherever held.

The Behavioural Policy is applicable to all members of a group. It is the responsibility of the committee to endorse the policy and ensure its content is made known to their members.

The underlying principles are that the behaviour of the group or their members should: • Not bring the reputation of Reading University Students’ Union or The University of Reading into disrepute.

• Not be unlawful • Not cause offence, or be disrespectful towards other club and society members • Not cause offence, or be disrespectful to fellow students, University Staff and members of the local community.

• Not involve any form of bullying or peer pressure on individuals or groups.

• Not carry out initiations. An initiation is an event or tradition in which members of the club are expected to perform any activity as a means of gaining credibility, status or entry within that club or society. Examples of such activities might include, the consumption of alcohol, eating concoctions of foodstuffs, nudity and behaviour that may be deemed humiliating.

• Not lead to financial gain for individuals or Committee members.

If any RUSU Officer has reasonable cause to believe that a student has committed a breach of this policy they may place that student, or group under an interim ban with immediate effect. Breaches of this policy will be investigated and the matter may then be taken to a formal RUSU Disciplinary.

While a student, or group is under an interim ban, they shall not, except with the prior consent of the RUSU Officer Trustee of RUSU or their representatives (i) enter onto RUSU premises or use RUSU facilities; or (ii) represent RUSU at any event of whatever kind, wherever held.

An interim ban shall remain in full effect until the later of the following: (a) the date on which the student is notified of the decision on their case (b) the date of which the student is notified of the outcome of any appeal If the incident occurs at the end of an academic year, any disciplinary sanctions imposed may be levied for the following year.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES POLICY Wherever possible, activities should be accessible to all Students who wish to participate. This is in accordance with RUSU’s Equal Opportunities Policy (as outlined below).

RUSU will not tolerate any form of discrimination, whether direct or indirect, or harassment or bullying based on any random or irrelevant distinction.

Examples include distinctions on grounds of age, disability, ethnic origin, caring or parental responsibilities, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status, civil partnership status, nationality, religion or belief, race, political belief, employment status, socio‐economic background, Full or Part time Student status, HIV status, irrelevant criminal convictions, physical appearance, medical condition, mental health status and trade Union membership or non-membership. This list is not exhaustive but demonstrates RUSU’s commitment to a respectful environment for all.

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Initiations In November 2006, a first-year University of Exeter student - Gavin Britton, died from alcohol poisoning as part of an initiation to join Exeter University’s Golf Club. The incident has led to many Universities and Unions banning such events on Campus and Reading University are no exception.

In past years, some of the activities associated with Sports Clubs have been unacceptable. There have been cases of new students being put under pressure to do stupid, often dangerous things (e.g. drinking unusual concoctions or to excess) or to have things, often humiliating, done to them.

This has led to the University receiving letters of complaint from parents and to some talented students deciding Sport at Reading was not for them.

The University and RUSU cannot allow unacceptable behaviour at initiation ceremonies to bring either into disrepute. More importantly, the University and RUSU have a duty of care for their students. It is therefore important to ensure that nothing that could be described as unacceptable behaviour occurs at any ‘initiation ceremony’ associated with your club. Your club should not have an organised ‘ceremony’, and while we appreciate it is difficult to control informal activity, we ask you to do all you can to prevent this.

Club Committee will be held personally responsible for any of these activities and will run the risk of being suspended or even expelled from University should any instances occur. If unacceptable behaviour does occur then sanctions will follow. This could involve a club having resources withheld.