Students told us about their…
➢ Priorities for SUBU to work on
➢ Social lives and engagement
➢ Worries about their futures
Speak Week results
March 2024
688 participants
➢ Accessibility of campuses and exam support
SPEAK WEEK
26th Feb to 3rd Mar 2024
SUBU’s Full Time Officers designed the survey to explore three main themes:
▪ SUBU – My Students' Union
▪ My social life and engagement
▪ My future SUBU's Disabilities, Accessibility and NeuroDiverse Part Time Officer also asked questions on general accessibility and usability of SUBU and BU facilities, and students’ experiences of extensions and reasonable adjustments.
Speak Week since 2018-19: student participation
This year’s combined Speak Weeks engaged 1,653 students – the highest in recent years!
Speak Week Spring 2024
Faculty
Student
Speak Week Spring 2024 688 participants
Speak Week respondent profile compared to the BU student population
• BUBS underrepresentation & FMC overrepresentation
• UG underrepresentation & PGT overrepresentation
• Home/UK student underrepresentation & International student overrepresentation
Theme 1 SUBU: my Students’ Union
Theme 1: SUBU – MY STUDENTS’ UNION
What students want SUBU to work on to make a real difference to their student experience
(Top 5 shown)
participants
Each of the top 5 things SUBU should work on were selected by at least 40% of 688 students:
Theme 1: SUBU – MY STUDENTS’ UNION 688 participants
Why did students select these top 5 for SUBU to work on?
Most mentioned reasons from 478 students:
Employment/Employability: 18% of 478 comments
Connecting with People and Community: 13%
Cost of Living: 8%
Mental Health: 7%
Events and Activities: 6%
My work on students’ priorities for SUBU
New work
• SUBU staff and Officers held a strategic planning day in April 2024 to consider current student feedback, sector insights and challenges. From this we are continuing our priority support for employability development, costof-living, mental health, sense of student community, and running the right events to engage students, aligned with these top 4 focus areas:
Ending student loneliness
Activating experience for life and work
Chike Dike
President
My work on students’ priorities for SUBU
Chike Dike
SU President
Continuing work
• Full Time Officers continue to cook for SUBU’s Supper Club events – throughout 2023-24 we gave free meals to around 1,000 students!
• Further developing SUBU’s Cost-of-Living support webpage
• Supporting BU’s commitment to a Guarantor Scheme for International students, based on SUBU’s student feedback
• Lobbying BU to make the system used for International Student fee payments more transparent
Norah Valerie Deka VP Education
My work on students’ priorities for SUBU
New work
• Leading on SUBU’s student consultation for BU’s developing Access & Participation Plan for 2025 onwards
• Consulting with BU on the changes to the Student Agreement
Continuing work
• Working with BU Learning Analytics working group on how student engagement data will be used by BU
• Delivering exam season student support with Fatima, VP Welfare & Community
Fatima Farha
My work on students’ priorities for SUBU
New work
VP Welfare & Community
• Cooking Supper Clubs with SUBU Advice, giving out meals to around 1,000 students in total for 2023-24!
• Collaborating with BU Estates who are now funding free sustainable period products in locations across campuses
• Working on a ‘rate your landlord’ scheme charity project with Unipol to support student renters
• Lobbying BU to enhance support for student fee payments, including establishing a fees tab on my Hub, after a student policy on this was passed
Continuing work
• Agreeing actions with PVC Student Experience and Head of Student Support & Wellbeing to support student mental health
• Delivering student exam season support packages with Valerie VP Education
My work on students’ priorities for SUBU
New work
Holly Tyack
VP Opportunities
• Improved affordability and accessibility of transport for student groups by sourcing a coach booking platform, saving students on average 30% on bookings
• Delivering Supper Clubs with SUBU Advice, providing meals to around 1,000 students in 2023-24!
Continuing work
• Full Time Officer Pop-up Thursdays and SUBU department rotation at Bournemouth Gateway Building to support student engagement at Lansdowne campus
• Supporting SUBU Advice Breakfast Club
• Supporting Rep Coffee Mornings
• Free yoga sessions at Lansdowne campus
Theme 2
Social life and engagement
Theme 2: MY SOCIAL LIFE AND ENGAGEMENT
688 participants
How do students socialise and engage?
Students selected “definitely do this” most frequently for:
• Hanging out with mates at home - 60%
• Projects/ events through my course - 49%
• Large scale events and festivals on/off campus - 42%
• Group projects (e.g. clubs & societies projects) - 41%
• Online social spaces - 40%
Virtual reality communication and online gaming/chatting were the least used for socialising and engaging by the 664 students who responded
Theme 2: MY SOCIAL LIFE AND ENGAGEMENT
Theme 2: MY SOCIAL LIFE AND ENGAGEMENT
participants
Slight differences between faculties in top 3 ways to socialise and engage
Theme 2: MY SOCIAL LIFE AND ENGAGEMENT 688
participants
359 students say 5 key variables influence how they socialise and engage
People: who will be there, who will go with me? (16% of comments)
Location: is it in person, is it online, is the event large or small? (15% of comments)
Accessibility: how close is it, what is the cost, do I have time, will I be anxious? (14% of comments)
Feeling positive emotions: will it be enjoyable/ engaging, will I be comfortable, will I feel good from it? (13% of comments)
Their own personality: I am shy/ introverted, I am outgoing/ extroverted? (13% of comments)
My work on student social life and engagement
Fatima Farha VP Welfare & Community
New work
• Supported the delivery, with all other FTOs, of One World Day, to celebrate and support student communities and help students engage with these groups
• Working on more diverse food options on campus
Continuing work
• Wrapping up the International Buddy Scheme with other FTOs
Norah Valerie Deka VP Education My work on student social life and engagement
Continuing work
• Targeted working with SUBU and BU colleagues to further develop Academic Societies
• Developing options for more regular events for students at Yeovil and Portsmouth campus
• All FTOs attended the sold-out Student Rep trip to Cheddar Gorge to promote student community and fun
My work on student social life and engagement
New work
• All SUBU FTOs are collaborating with BU to develop a Student Engagement Framework and to plan a more personalised ‘long induction’ for students
• As part of SUBU’s plans to welcome and engage students for 2024/25, we are developing themes for events in the first few weeks of term, projects and initiatives and plan to collaborate with BU on these where appropriate.
Chike Dike
SU President
Theme 3 My future
Theme 3: MY FUTURE
The 3 biggest worries for 651 students were:
1. Money/finances
2. Future career/prospects insecurity
3. Academic achievement challenges
88% of students were at least somewhat worried about money/ finances. 61% were very or extremely worried.
87% of students were at least somewhat worried about their future career/ prospects.
85% of students were at least somewhat worried about their academic achievement challenges.
688 participants
Theme 3: MY FUTURE
Theme 3: MY FUTURE 688
participants
4 of the 5 biggest worries were shared by undergraduate and postgraduate students. However, undergraduates were more concerned about academic achievement challenges, rather than health.
60% of undergraduate and 62% of postgraduate students placed money/financial worries as their top biggest worry.
UG vs PG
Theme 3: MY FUTURE 688
participants
How the biggest worries about their future impacts on students and their experience
316 students said there are 5 key ways that their worries affect them and their student experience:
Mental health / wellbeing (138 comments - 44%)
My future after university (34 comments - 11%)
Affects my university experience (16 comments - 6%)
Affects general life (14 comments - 4%)
Impacts finances (9 comments - 3%)
Theme 3: MY FUTURE
277 students told us how SUBU/ BU could support them through their concerns about their future:
Advice and support (35% of students)
Employability (21%)
Cost of living (13%)
Improve student community (12%)
participants
My work to support students’ futures
New work
Holly Tyack
VP Opportunities
• Placement focus group results and workshop are contributing to the BU’s developing Access and Participation Plan (APP) for 2025 onwards
• Contributing as a member of BU’s APP Intervention Strategy group for Employability
• Delivered a talk at the Student Leaders’ Conference to support employability, community and fun, focussed on creating Leadership, Resilience and Wellbeing for SUBU’s student leaders (Student Reps, Committee Members, elected Officers, and SUBU Volunteers)
Continuing work
• Delivering with all FTOs SUBU’s second Student-Owned Business Fair in March to support employability
My work to support students’ futures
New work
• SUBU’s strategic planning day in April considered employability development due to its importance to students. Officers and departments are currently exploring how specific projects and initiatives targeting this can be delivered for 2024-25
• Along with Holly, I have shared SUBU’s Placement Experience Report with BU and we are committing to collaborative actions to support student employability
Chike Dike
SU President
Theme 4
Accessibility of campus facilities and assessment/ exam support
Theme 4: GENERAL USABILITY AND ACCESSIBILITY OF SUBU/BU FACILITIES
How accessible and usable in general SUBU and BU buildings and sites/ campuses are for students
688 participants
82% of 638 students found SUBU/BU buildings and campuses to be very or extremely accessible. Faculty and Study Campus were significantly associated with students’ feelings about how accessible and usable SUBU/BU buildings and campuses are.
Theme 4: GENERAL USABILITY AND ACCESSIBILITY OF SUBU/BU FACILITIES
By Faculty
BUBS and FST score the highest - 85% - for an extremely to very accessible/usable campus, followed by FMC at 84%. FHSS had the lowest, with 73% of students in this faculty finding campus extremely to very accessible and usable.
Theme 4: GENERAL USABILITY
AND ACCESSIBILITY OF SUBU/BU FACILITIES 688 participants
By study campus
86% of student responses based at Talbot campus selected extremely or very regarding how accessible/usable their campus is, compared to 76% of student responses based at Lansdowne
Talbot
Lansdowne
Lansdowne (n=188)
Talbot (n=411)
Theme 4: GENERAL USABILITY AND ACCESSIBILITY OF SUBU/BU FACILITIES
participants
234 students provided comments about usability and accessibility of SUBU and BU buildings and sites/ campuses
Top 5 positive themes
Easy to navigate: most buildings are in close proximity, most have lifts, boards with directions on (29)
Accessibility: many lifts, clear maps (27)
Space: good that more seating for groups and individuals has been added (13)
Opening times: 24hr libraries (12)
Good range of facilities (9)
Top 5 negative themes
• Accessibility: ID cards not working after hours, limited or no wheelchair access, heavy doors, limited seat choice in lexture theatres (35)
• Problems at other campuses - not Talbot: lack of power sockets; lack of SUBU and general facilities at Lansdowne (18)
• Transport (15 comments)
• Too busy (12 comments)
• Communication (6 comments)
Q9
Theme 4: ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICACY OF BU's ASSESSMENT/ EXAM SUPPORT
participants
In general, how accessible for you are BU’s reasonable adjustments and/ or extensions as assessment/ exam support?
35% of 426 students found reasonable adjustments to be very accessible.
41% of 452 students found extensions as assessment/exam support to be very accessible.
9.8% of student respondents found adjustments/extensions were ‘not accessible’.
Theme 4: ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICACY OF BU's ASSESSMENT/ EXAM SUPPORT
participants
Q10 Has your performance in BU assignments or exams ever been impacted by a disability (including mental health condition) or a long-term/ chronic illness?
27% of student respondents found their performance in BU assignments or exams had been impacted by a disability or a long term/chronic illness.
Theme 4: ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICACY OF BU's ASSESSMENT/ EXAM SUPPORT
participants
For170studentswhoseperformanceinBUassignmentsorexamshadbeen impactedbyadisabilityoralong-term/chronicillness:
Have you ever asked for either reasonable adjustments or extensions because of the impact of a disability (including mental health condition) or a long-term/ chronic illness?
Of the 170 students that had found their performance in BU assignments or exams had been impacted by a disability or a long-term/chronic illness, 66% asked for reasonable adjustments or extensions because of this.
Theme 4: ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICACY OF BU's ASSESSMENT/ EXAM SUPPORT
COMPARISONbetweenstudentswhoseperformanceinBUassignmentsorexamshadbeen impactedbyadisabilityoralong-term/chronicillness(n=170)andthosestudentswhose performancehadneverbeenimpacted(n=468)inthisway
If you have asked for reasonable adjustments and/or extensions, how often have they been granted?
Students whose performance in assignments and exams had been impacted by a disability or a long term/chronic illness were more likely to always have extensions/ reasonable adjustments granted.
Theme 4: ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICACY OF BU's ASSESSMENT/ EXAM SUPPORT
688 participants
For170studentswhoseperformanceinBUassignmentsorexamshadbeen impactedbyadisabilityoralong-term/chronicillness:
If you have been granted reasonable adjustments and/ or extensions, how effective were they in supporting you with assessments and exams?
60 out of 170 students provided comments describing how effective they found the adjustments/ extensions granted. 77% of these students were positive:
General Effectiveness (31 comments - 52%)
General Ineffectiveness (14 comments - 23%)
Improved Performance (10 comments - 17%)
Reduced Negative Wellbeing (5 comments - 8%)
Theme 4: ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICACY OF BU's ASSESSMENT/ EXAM SUPPORT
688 participants
For468studentswhoseperformanceinBUassignmentsorexamshadnever beenimpactedbyadisabilityoralong-term/chronicillness: If you have been granted reasonable adjustments and/ or extensions, how effective were they in supporting you with assessments and exams?
43 students provided comments describing how effective they found the adjustments/ extensions granted. Almost all students were positive:
General effectiveness (26 comments - 61%)
Improved performance (12 comments - 28%)
Reduced negative wellbeing (5 comments -12%)