Mid-Year Report 2014

UWA STUDENT GUILD MID-YEAR REPORT 2014

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CONTENTS Executive Reports President’s Report. . .......................................... Page 5 Managing Director ’s Report . . .......................... Page 6 Finance & Budget Reports.............................. Page 7

Committee Reports Catering & Tavern Committee.. ....................... Page 11 Corporate Services Committee...................... Page 12 Governance Committee................................... Page 14 Strategic Resources Committee . . ................... Page 15 Student Services Committee.......................... Page 16 Volunteering & Community Engagement . . .... Page 18 Welfare & Advocacy Committee.................... Page 19

Department Reports Education Council............................................ Page 22 Public Affairs Council...................................... Page 22 Societies Council.............................................. Page 24 ATSIS / WASAC . . ............................................... Page 24 Albany Students Department......................... Page 25 International Students’ Service...................... Page 25 Environment Department................................ Page 26 Postgraduate Students Association.............. Page 29 Queer Department.. .......................................... Page 29 Residential Students’ Department. . ............... Page 30 Welfare Department. . ....................................... Page 30 Women’s Department...................................... Page 33 Sports Representative..................................... Page 33

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PRESIDENTS REPORT

by Tom Henderson

If someone asked me to describe the role of Guild President,

$34,101. This result has been from the improved staff efficiency

I would say it’s a consistently exhilarating and amazing

and the lowering of operational costs to the increase in catering

experience. The first half of this year has been dedicated to two

and tenancy operations, while also seeking out more external

major goals - developing a strong professional organisation and

revenue opportunities. As we move further through 2014, we

maintaining a positive operating bottom line, all while keeping

hope to have more external revenue opportunities in

front line services and the student experience at the heart of this

the pipeline.

wonderful organization.

In addition to being the Chief Executive of the Guild on an strategic level, the Guild President acts as the voice of students to the University. This year I have been actively involved ensuring the student voice is heard at range of University decision making bodies, most notably the University Senate, Academic Council, the Teaching & Learning Committee, and the Facilities Development Committee, as well as any other committee that will take my unbridled enthusiasm.

Professional Guild The expectations of the Guild from both the student body and the University has dramatically increased from that of previous years. No longer was it appropriate for the Guild to be seen as an organization struggling to remain relevant while providing

AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR I MADE IT MY OBJECTIVE TO BRING THE GUILD BUDGET DOWN TO ONE THAT COULD SUPPORT ITSELF AND AS SUCH WE HAVE MANAGED TO SURPASS THE PROJECTED “CASH FROM OPERATIONS” BUDGET SURPLUS OF $101

a baseline level of services each year. Rather it must provide a cohesive professional body meeting and exceeding the

Front line services

expectations of those within and external to the University.

Apart from representation of students to the University, the The move to the South Wing and renovation of the Guild

Guild’s main role is to provide front line services such as catering

Volunteering and Student Centre has seen the improvement

and most importantly support and assistance services. We

in faculties for both staff and student and, along with the

have made a conscientious attempt to increase the quality and

addition of some fantastic new employees, we have an improved

effectiveness of each of these areas. After taking feedback

environment of high quality and efficient service delivery while

from both students and the University, we have improved the

maintaining a fun and personable Guild that has the ability to

appearance and range of items available at our catering outlets

change and move with the demands of students.

and student assistance case load has been increasing throughout the year with the highest number of students seeking assistance

Maintaining a positive bottom line

to date.

Along with the aim of increasing the professionalism of the

Student Experience

Guild, it was imperative that we become an organization that could support itself financially. While the Guild has received

At the beginning of the year we set out with the aim to create a

more income since the implementation of SSAF, the amount

on campus experience like no other. We’ve brought you Peking

of services provided has also increased substantially. At the

Duck and one of the biggest music concerts we have seen

beginning of the year I made it my objective to bring the budget

during Returners’ Week, supported and approved more diverse

down to one that could support itself. As such we have managed

and engaging club events, yoga on lawn every week, more

to not only surpass the projected “cash from operations” budget

themed weeks than ever before - the list goes on. I can’t wait

surplus of $101 (no coincidence there) but by the middle of the

to see what huge amount of things the 101st Guild council team

year have a full year projected “cash from operations” budget of

have planned for the second half of 2014.

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MANAGING DIRECTOR REPORT

by Wayne Howells

The Managing Director is employed directly by Guild Council

Driving the Catering Strategy on behalf of Guild Council

and works closely with the President, Guild Executive, Directors and the University. The role includes the staff team

This strategy was developed in the middle of 2013 after

leadership and supporting the Student leaders by making

conducting a catering review where we did a lot of listening,

recommendations, providing advice and implementing the

to students, the university and guild staff, an independent

Guild Council policies and projects.

consultant and independent analysis from the national campus service providers association.

This year the Guild has experienced the positive outcomes of several long term planning initiatives. Planning guidance

The Strategy embraces the delivery of short and long term

has been provided by the Staff Organisation Review, Guild

catering initiatives and improvements. The 2014 year to date

Village Facilities Masterplan, Catering Strategy, Guild Futures

trends emerging from the implementation of the strategy are

Directions paper and the addition of the Operations Priority

very encouraging. The increased operating cashflows have

Plan.

enabled immediate re-investment in the improvement of catering outlet facilities with refurbishments completed at Reid

It is apparent that students want to see regular new initiatives

and Guild Village cafĂŠ in the first half of 2014. This followed the

to improve services. The staff team recognise this and work

2013 launch of the new Dentistry kiosk and refurbishment in the

closely with student representatives to help implement these

Refectory and Tavern.

initiatives.

Other activities include: To complement this dynamic roll out of short term initiatives

Continuing the variety of mobile catering vendors

it is vital that the longer term planning also continues. Our

extending trading hours at selected cafes during exam periods

student leaders have embraced this approach and positive

improving the tavern food and “cash out� services

outcomes have or are emerging from all of the planning

Supporting sustainability policies such as Keep Cups and dine-in

documents mentioned above.

options

Overseeing the Guild Village Facilities Masterplan on behalf

Managing the Guild staff team on behalf of Guild Council

of Guild Council As per the staff Organisational Review the Guild staff team are The Masterplanning process has delivered its first major

now part of three divisions (Catering, Student Services and

project. The Guild Consolidation Project was completed, under

Corporate Services).

budget, in May 2014.The project focussed on improved student service delivery by consolidating the existing five physical

The enclosed reports from these divisions outline the positive

customer service delivery points of the Guild down to just two.

activities that have been achieved or are underway.

The Guild Village precinct is undergoing a progressive

The special mix of skills, experience and energy within the full

transformation under the planning guidance of the Masterplan

team of Student Representatives and professional staff makes

and Catering Strategy. Already we have seen a significant spike

the Guild a dynamic organisation, well positioned to deliver

in precinct activity levels in the last two years as we continue

services to students.

to develop facilities and improve operations in Guild Village.

We are well positioned to understand and deliver services to Importantly the completion of the Consolidation project has

our clients (the student body) as all of the elected Guild student

enabled the development of the concept for the next major

representative team are also within our client group. Not many

project, the Guild Student Central Hub. The concept has been

organisations carry the advantage of having a comprehensive

developed by a group of committed student representatives

direct client perspective embedded in each member of their

in the Project Design Group. Part A of this four part project

leadership team. Our challenge is to optimise the benefit from

includes the establishment of a student collaborative zone

this structure.

accessible by over 125 student clubs/societies and other student run affiliates. Guild Council have approved the

I would like to acknowledge all the ongoing positive efforts

concept and the budget estimate. The project is currently

made by staff and student representatives in the Guild

in detailed design phase and is targeted for construction in

workplace. The strong staff/student representative partnership

2015, contingent on proceeding through the remaining project

naturally enhances overall Guild performance.

approval checkpoints.

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FINANCES & BUDGET REPORT

by Vishal Shah & Daniel Jo

The Guild budget is prepared in consultation with all Managers,

NOT ALL OF OUR OPERATING INCOME COMES FROM

Directors, Student Representatives and the Guild Council. The

THE SSAF

Guild Council approves the budget based on recommendations from the Strategic Resources Committee.

The Guild receives roughly 27% of its income from the Catering Division, Tavern, Secondhand Bookshop and various commercial

The Guild budget balances the resources required to provide

tenancies.

student services, run the organization, provide sufficient capital funds for future improvements and maintain a prudent level of cash reserves.

2014 SOURCES OF NET OPERATING INCOME (2013 COMPARISON BELOW) Student Services &

The Guild does not carry any debt within its balance sheet; instead operating using a combination of Student Services & Amenities Fees (SSAF) income, commercial income and income from its investments. These cash reserves, held within the University’s investment pool, are valued at $4.7M

Amenities

Second Hand Bookshop - 0%

Funding (SSAF) and Associate

Tavern - 2%

Membership 73% Not all -of our operatiNg iNcome comes from the ssaf Property - 13%

The Guild receives roughly 30% of its income from the Catering

In 2014, the Guild budget estimates a cash surplus of $34,101 from its operations. Adding the conservative non-operating budgeted income from the investment pool, we estimate net

Division, the Tavern, its various Commercial tenants and the Secondhand Bookshop.

Catering Division - 12%

2013 SOURCES OF NET OPERATING INCOME

cash before Capital Expenditure to be at $275,000.* In comparison, the 2013 outlook had budgeted cash deficit

Student

from operations of ($193,000); and net cash before capital

Services &

expenditure to be $330,000.

Amenities

Tavern - 4%

Funding

Based on the successful 2013 projects, the net capital

Second Hand

(SSAF) - 70%

Bookshop - 1% Catering Division - 10%

expenditure for 2014 is budgeted at $344,000 and includes major projects such as Catering outlet refurbishments, Guild

Property - 15%

Student Central Hub projects, Guild Village, Tavern and other student services improvements. The core aim for each project is to introduce or improve services to students.

2014 SSAF DISTRIBUTION SSAF is a University applied fee; not all of it goes to the Guild.

The following charts outline the percentage break down of the

UWA Student

operating income and expenditure and the distribution of the

Services - 28%

to allocate to student

Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF).

projects) - 10% UWA Administration

*Based on Mid-year Budget Review

NOT ALL OF OUR OPERATING INCOME COMES FROM THE SSAF. THE GUILD RECEIVES ROUGHLY 27% OF ITS INCOME FROM THE CATERING DIVISION, TAVERN, SECONDHAND BOOKSHOP AND VARIOUS COMMERCIAL TENANCIES.

Capital Fund (UWA Senate

Fee - 3%

UWA Sports Association - 29%

Guild - 30%

2014 BUDGETED GUILD EXPENDITURE The Guild provides a variety of services and support to students.

Sub Councils

Student Assist - 9%

and Guild Departments- 9% Student Representation

Student Services - 22%

- 23% Volunteer Centre - 4% IT Services - 4% Financial Services - 13%

Administration Services - 16%

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SOURCES AND APPLICATION OF FUNDS AND CASHFLOW SUMMARY (2014 AND 2013 MID-YEAR BUDGET)

BUDGET REVIEW JUNE 14

BUDGET JAN 2014

BUDGET REVIEW JUNE 13

1,680,000

1,681,000

1,508,300

Property (net return)

310,000

315,700

296,453

Tenancy income in Guild Village

Catering Division (net return)

275,000

250,000

136,000

Includes all catering outlets and external contractors

4,452

3,395

0

45,000

70,000

70,000

2,314,452

2,320,095

2,010,753

Student Representation

(622,307)

(615,802)

(588,855)

Council, Presidential, Elections, Fac Soc Grants, Affiliations, Pelican Magazine

Sub Councils and Guild Departments

(238,976)

(233,155)

(232,760)

Ed, Pac, Soc Sub Councils and all Student Departments

Student Assist

(257,308)

(330,100)

(328,903)

Academic, welfare and financial support to UWA Students

Student Services

(598,765)

(616,626)

(543,799)

Events, Memberships $ Student Centre, Design & Creative

Volunteer Centre

(105,000)

(105,000)

(101,522)

Volunteeer Centre is run with support from Volunteering WA

Administration Services

(450,496)

(455,496)

(374,995)

Directors, Project Management, Human Resources

Financial Services

(364,400)

(299,400)

(346,168)

Financial Services to support clubs, societies, council and administration

(115,899)

(137,215)

(134,688)

IT Services to support clubs, societies, council and administration

Total Expenditure

(2,753,151)

(2,792,794)

(2,651,690)

SURPLUS / (DEFICIT) FROM OPERATING ITEMS

(438,699)

(472,699)

(640,937)

241,244

241,244

523,253

(197,455)

(231,455)

(117,684)

CATEGORIES Student Services & Amenities Funding (SSAF) and Associate Membership

Second Hand Bookshop (net return) Tavern (net return) Total Operating Income

Information Technology Services

Non-Operating Income - Mainly UWA Pool Investments REPORTED ACCOUNTING SURPLUS/(DEFICIT)

SSAF Income is negotiated with UWA

Bookshop results exclude Texchange Guild operated Tavern

Conservative income based on investment fluctuations

CASHFLOW SUMMARY Accounting Surplus (Deficit)

(197,455)

(231,455)

(117,684)

Add Back Depreciation (non-cash)

472,800

472,800

447,493

Deduct Non-Operating Income

(241,244)

(241,244)

(523,253)

34,101

101

(193,444)

241,244

241,244

523,253

275,345

241,345

329,809

(343,980)

(350,980)

(1,117,970)

(68,635)

(109,635)

(788,161)

Jun-14

Dec-12

Unaudited*

Audited

Current Assets

1,085,289

937,082

Non-Current Assets

4,728,710

4,590,657

Cash and Investments

5,813,999

5,527,739

Current & Non-Current Liabilities

(1,128,574)

(1,756,773)

Total Liabilities

(1,128,574)

(1,756,773)

Net available Cash & Investments

4,685,425

3,770,966

CASH SURPLUS / (DEFICIT) FROM OPERATING ITEMS Add back Non-Operating Income CASH SURPLUS/(DEFICIT) BEFORE CAPITAL EXPENDITURE Capital Expenditure NET CASH SURPLUS/(DEFICIT)

UWA STUDENT GUILD - STATEMENT OF AVAILABLE NET CASH & INVESTMENTS

*2013 Audited Financial Statements are not complete at the time of publishing

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Depreication is included in the expenditure segment; but needs to be added back to work out Net Cashflow UWA Pool Investments

UWA Pool Investments

Capital Projects are not part of day to day operations

Cash and Trade Receivables Investments

Trade and other payables; Leave Provisions

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2.0 COMMITTEE REPORTS

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CATERING & TAVERN COMMITTEE

by Daniel Jo (Chair of Catering and Tavern Committee) and Ken Saverimutto (Catering Director)

Unaudited trading results for 2013 - Catering

than 2012. It is well documented we lost the account

Description

2013

2012

of UWA-AIM Alliance and that alliance has since been

Net Surplus

$100,286

$111,882

dissolved.

Member Discounts $580,385

$561,480

$680,671

$673,322

Net Contribution/ Value

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improved financial returns and is providing an important component in the Guild Catering Strategy.

•

2013

2012

Net Surplus

$61,826

$33,646

Major events include the autumn and spring UWA graduation ceremonies, about 16 in total. These events,

Unaudited trading results for 2013 - Tavern Description

UFC has refined its focus on core operating areas,

the Senate Dinner, Convocation dinners and the Guild Ball continue to be some of UFC’s flagship events.

Key achievements in 2014 The partial refurbishment of Reid Library Café to improve

Catering – The 2014 Net Surplus budget (of $250K) is more

compliance, customer service and aesthetics was completed

than double the actuals for 2012 and 2013. At the mid-year

in April 2014, with virtually no disruption to trade and

point for 2014, the unaudited actual net surplus is trending

resulted in increased sales.

well ahead of budget. The operations have tracked well.

•

underpinned the half yearly trend.

A similar programme has been completed in July for the Guild Village Café

All the KPI boxes have been ticked. Additional sales have •

In the Refectory we introduced soft serve yoghurt, burritos and revamped the flagging Butty’s Burger with our own Full Monty Burger.

Tavern – The unaudited 2014 results are trending down. The 2014 special events like St Patrick’s Day, End of Semester

•

extended during mid year exam periods and attracted

Show and other events are confirming a societal or cultural

solid trading figures.

change in lower consumption of alcoholic beverages. As a meeting place, the Tavern has continued to draw students

The trading hours at Science and Reid Café were

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The coffee improvement campaign has included:

and the constantly updated food menu has seen improved

upgraded machines, a new supplier, a new selection of

sales.

Fair Trade Organic beans, new design branded coffee cups, increased discount for Keep Cups expanded

•

Changes in 2013 impacting on 2014

barista training/certification and enhanced coffee waste

After the 2013 Review and release of the Catering

recycling. These measures have supported a solid sales

Strategy the Catering team implemented structural

growth in 2014.

changes. The re-engineered business processes are

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all cafes.

and results.

•

Outlets and function sales are ahead of budget and

•

•

•

Continued mobile vending programme including new providers.

about 10% higher than year to date last year from continued product and delivery of service changes.

Improved food labelling and provision of special dietary foods such as Gluten Free, Dairy Free and Halal foods in

able to cope with the regenerated trade with success

•

Tavern – Cash out facilities were introduced limited to debit cards supporting responsible service of alcohol.

The 2012 approved tavern bar refurbishment commenced in late 2013 and was completed in time for

•

Monthly beer specials and jugs of Pimms.

Opening Day of 2014.

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Premium ciders on tap.

The enhanced food menus, specials and food/

•

Pro-actively changing beverage and food menus.

beverage combos in the tavern continue with increased popularity. In 2013 the pager system was introduced for the food service.

Guild Functions trading in 2013 •

University Functions Caterers (UFC) the banner under which we do our functions trade had a quieter year

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CORPORATE SERVICES COMMITTEE

by Cameron Fitzgerald and Tony Goodman Corporate Services Committee is responsible for the areas of

Guild Finance office performs all financial and payroll functions

Finance, Accounting, Information Communication Technology

for the Guild and University Child Care Club.

(ICT), Record Keeping, Archiving, Facilities Management and Administration. It has been a very active year to date with

Highlights:

several initiatives and projects well underway. The key goal for

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Launched a new website with a completely redeveloped

this year is to ensure proper processes are in place in every

front-end to fit in with our digital platform strategy and to

department and these are reviewed and updated periodically.

better align with microsites such as Committee Resources,

The committee has successfully liaised with other Guild

Events Dashboard, Texchange and Student Assist

committees to launch projects such as the WiFi blackspot

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log, updating and rebuilding the Guild’s digital platforms

Completely redesigned and developed the Guild’s e-newsletter – Guild Weekly - and online news site to

and undertaking an extensive review of ICT needs of the

increase accessibility and ease navigation

organisation.

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SEMESTER TWO SEES A PLANNED INTRODUCTION OF A NEW AND IMPROVED GUILD WEBSITE MEMBER’S SECTION.

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Increased follow ups and collection of Student Assist loans through Finance processes cloud storage

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Membership Developed a Guild Careers proposal

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Implemented new training module system and transition policies for more effective transition between councils

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Launched PayPal and online sales for Guild Associate

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Guild Finance team will be reviewing its processes in semester two in order to deliver a better level of control and transparency

Reviewing the Guild’s ICT strategy and resources ,such

New service desk operation to log and track ICT issues and maintenance

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Dedicated Archivist position for the maintenance of Guild

to departments, management and students. The finance team

records, in charge of archiving materials in line with the

is on schedule to deliver its annual audit to the University. The

WA State Records Act

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GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE

by Owen Myles

The role of Governance Committee is to support the efforts of the Guild Council, specifically in regard to the development and review of Guild policy, rules and regulations. With a brand new set of Guild Regulations (approved by the University Senate in December 2013) to work with, this year’s Governance Committee has had a very particular set of new challenges to work on to bring the Guild into line with these

THE NUMBER OF TIMES THAT THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE HAS INTERPRETED GUILD REGULATIONS: 4

new regulations.

One particular power of the Governance Committee is the power to interpret the Guild Regulations on behalf of the Guild. So far in 2014, the Governance Committee has enacted this power 4 times, fixing both minor issues (such

THE NUMBER OF DOCUMENTS CURRENTLY IN FORCE IN THE STATUTE BOOK: 17

as typographical errors) and major ones (such as the voting rights of members of Guild Council). These interpretations have been included in the Statute Book to allow future Guild Councils to act in a clear and consistent manner.

The Guild Statute Book contains a copy of every regulation, rule and by-law of the Guild, and, under the Guild Regulations, the physical statute book is the definitive version

THE NUMBER OF POLICIES, RULES AND REGULATIONS APPROVED BY THE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE: 6

of our rules. Unfortunately, in years past, the physical copy of the book has been relatively ignored due to the rise of the digital age. It is because of this that in 2013 the Centenary

into line with the new Guild Regulations while providing

Committee commissioned a new Statute Book, and in 2014

greater flexibility to the Societies Council committee.

the new Statute Book became fully compliant with the Guild

Additionally the Education Council proposed a change to

Regulations, a feat which has not been achieved in recent

their rules, which inserted a valuable protection, ensuring

memory.

that the Education Action Network Co-ordinator was directly answerable to the Education Council.

The largest task of this year’s Governance Committee has been a review of the Guild Election Regulations. The

With the introduction of the new Guild Regulations, the

review has taken into account recommendations from both

Welfare Department was established (previously we had

student representatives and the Western Australian Electoral

just had a Welfare Officer), and therefore rules for the

Commission. The 2013 Guild Election saw a brand new set of

Department needed to be established. The rules were

election regulations and therefore 2014 was an opportune

drafted by Welfare Officer and Governance Committee

time to review how the 2013 election went and what could

member Max Riley and have since been passed by the

be improved. The draft changes have now been finalised and

Guild Council.

are awaiting approval by the Guild Council and eventually, the University Senate.

The rest of 2014 will be big for the Governance Committee and will include conducting an annual review of the Guild’s

Other than the Guild Regulations, the Governance Committee

governance and accountability measures, the production

has been focused on updating the rules and policies of the

of Key Performance Indicators for our affiliation to the

Guild to better reflect the environment that we operate in.

National Union of Students and helping to bring in the

As part of this, the Governance Committee was involved in

first ever online election in Guild history for the 2014 UWA

a review of changes to the Rules of the Societies Council,

Student Guild Postgraduate Students Association election.

drafted by committee member Sam Shenton. This lead to combining a number of documents with the goal of clarifying and simplifying the rules and at the same time bringing them

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STRATEGIC RESOURCES COMMITTEE

by Tom Henderson & Wayne Howells The Strategic Resources Committee reports directly to Guild

THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CATERING REVIEW AND NEW CATERING STRATEGY HAVE DELIVERED A BUDGETED CASHFLOW IMPROVEMENT IN EXCESS OF $100,000 COMPARED TO PRIOR YEARS.

Council and is responsible for overseeing Guild budgets, property management and commercial operations.

Budget This year Guild Executive set an overall target to achieve a budget including at least a breakeven on Cashflow from Operations. To achieve this target the Strategic Resources Committee developed a challenging budget for self-generated income increases, and prudent but realistic expenditure control.

The original approved budget determined a positive Cashflow from Operations of $101. The mid-year budget review in June

architects) provides shared facilities for more than 125

2014 determined a revised and increased figure of $34,101 for

Guild affiliated clubs and a range of other Guild affiliates

Cashflow from Operations.

with student involvement. It is planned to be a national benchmark for student facilities. Whilst several steps and

The main driver of this impressive upward trend in net cashflow

approvals remain to activate this project, the essential

is the improved performance of the Guild Catering Division and

funding sources (currently estimated at $1.5M) have been

tight expenditure control across all sections of the Guild.

confirmed for Part A. Planning to progress the other parts (B, C and D) of the total project are underway, including a

The implementation of the Catering Review and new Catering Strategy have delivered a budgeted cashflow improvement in excess of $100,000 compared to prior years.

search for further funding support.

•

Strategy, refurbishments have been completed at Reid Café (April 2014) and Guild Village Café (July 2014).

Property Management A very active capital expenditure program supported by planning guidance in the Guild Village Facilities Masterplan and the Guild Catering Strategy delivered these key outcomes: •

Commercial Operations •

Boost outlets within Guild Village. In July 2014 the Guild

Village in May 2014. A project that consolidated the

received University planning endorsement for the concept

previous five customer service contact points for the Guild

and design of two outlets, and that they can be leased to

down to two. The project relocated the Volunteer Hub

Subway and Boost. The Guild has negotiated commercial

into a prominent ground floor location co-located with the

arrangements with both providers. On 27 August the Guild

refurbished Guild Student Centre. On the first floor of the

Council approved a business case to construct the two

South Wing a consolidated administration and services

new catering trading outlets in the Guild Village Student

precinct has been developed. The $1.42M cost of the project

Refectory. It is contingent on obtaining any remaining

was largely supported by the successful funding application

statutory planning approvals and the final lease documents.

from the Better Universities Renewal Fund (to the amount

This is a commercial venture with forecast positive

of $1M), with the balance funded by the Guild. The

cashflows and it will deliver a broader variety of catering

completion of this project has paved the way to implement Student Central Hub project.

•

services to students on campus.

•

Following the Catering Review in 2013, this will complete

stage for the Guild Student Central Hub Project (Part

reviews of the Guild’s retail commercial operations. The first

A). Part A of this 4 part project, aims to establish a Wing in Guild Village (above the Student Centre). This contemporary design developed by our student led Project Design Group (with the support of Hames Sharley

Tavern and Secondhand Bookshop Review. The Guild has commenced a review of these two commercial operations.

Design and Planning processes are at an advanced

student collaborative zone on the first floor of the Central

Subway and Boost outlets. As part of the Catering Strategy, the Guild has sought to establish Subway and

Completion of the Guild Consolidation Project in Guild

the next major project from the Masterplan - the Guild

Catering Outlet Refurbishments. In line with the Catering

priority review is for the Tavern.

•

Vending stations. In 2014 the Guild has established new vending stations in key points in Guild Village, which provide services to students and staff after outlets have closed.

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STUDENT SERVICES COMMITTEE

by Sam Shipley & Tony Goodman Student Service Committee is responsible for Events, Student

continued to have a high volume of caseload, continuing

Assist, Creative, Memberships, Research, Clubs and Societies.

the upward trend in the number of cases. More than 280

The committee has been proactive in its approach to delivering

students have been assisted in the first half of 2014, with

key events for students, developing an active social media

additional support provided through ordinary loans and meal

engagement strategy, and promotion of clubs and society culture

vouchers.

on campus. A key focus has been the promotion of welfare and

•

Student Assist has developed a professional vision on

support services through the Student Assist team who works

how the department should progress. Three new staff

closely with the Welfare and Advocacy Committee.

members have joined the team - all professionally qualified social workers - and this has allowed for an informed and

Marketing, Events, Sponsorship and Guild Student Centre

knowledge based approach to be adopted with each case.

•

Events: The Guild Events Department have facilitated 268

There has been a significant development in staff training,

events to date in 2014, with the planning for events in

with every team member being trained in the academic,

semester two already underway. Successful specific Guild

welfare and financial aspects of student assist.. This enables

events have included O-Day Festival, which featured over

staff members provide a holistic approach to the support

210 stalls and 7,000 attendees, Returners Week including

they provide students and to uphold further accountability of

the Returners’ Festival, and St Patrick’s Day. A key focus this

caseload.

year has been on increasing the number of inclusive events,

THE BEGINNING OF 2014 ALSO SAW THE LAUNCH OF A NEW BRAND FOR THE UWA STUDENT GUILD

introducing activities such as Snow globes into End of Semester Show One and Club Carnival.

•

Marketing, Sponsorship and Advertising: The beginning of 2014 also saw the launch of a new brand for the UWA Student Guild, unifying all areas under one logo and identity, with the tagline of “Experience Student Culture”. A new marketing strategy is being formulated and will be delivered

•

in semester two with an emphasis on the Student Lifecycle

Research:

and how the Guild supports and plays a part in every

•

The Research officer has undertaken key research actions

student’s life on and off campus.

and surveys. The Guild research program feeds into the

Guild Student Centre: As the central hub of the Guild Village,

marketing and organisational strategy. It also provides useful

the Student Centre has over 100 visitors a day requiring

information back to the University on student views.

information on the Guild, its affiliated clubs, the surrounding tenants and the University.

Guild Volunteering: •

This year Guild Volunteering has moved from strength

Communications:

to strength in creating a culture of volunteering for UWA

•

Facebook remains the Guild’s strongest social media

students. This is our first year operating in our new, vibrant

presence, with engagement on Instagram increasing. A team

ground floor location, student engagement has increased

of students and staff have been working on improving the

significantly with walk-ins increasing five-fold. Online

design and functionality of the Guild website, launched at the

engagement has also increased with the website receiving

end of semester one.

more opportunity views in the first half of 2014 than it did in all of 2013. We have also recognised over 8,000 hours of

Creative & Design:

volunteering on students’ supplementary transcripts and

•

Support is provided to student and staff departments, clubs

are working with UWA to promote service learning. A major

and faculty societies. This includes graphic design services,

initiative for Guild Volunteering has been the development

editorial assistance and coordinating the printing of all Guild

of opportunities for student leadership, which commenced

publications, including the Diary, Pelican Magazine and

early this year with our Intern Program. The first ‘In

handbooks. This year’s edition of the Guild Diary proved

Conversations’ event, where leaders in the non-profit sector

overwhelmingly popular with the multicoloured “Fruit Tingle”

give public talks on their experiences, was a success and

cover running out of stock before the semester one mid-

more have been planned for the second half of 2014. Guild

semester break.

Volunteering couldn’t exist without the continued support of the University, Volunteering WA, the Department of Sport

16

Student Assist:

and Recreation, Student Services, and of course, all our

•

wonderful volunteers!

During the first half of the year the Student Assist Office has

SEMESTER 1 STATISTICS SCIENCE AND REID CAFES TRADING HOURS WERE EXTENDED DURING MID-YEAR EXAM PERIODS

THE REF NOW SUPPLIES THE POPULAR ‘FULL MONTY BURGER’

DISCOUNTS FOR USING KEEP CUPS WERE INCREASED TO 30 CENTS

OUR FACEBOOK HAS OVER 12000 FANS, WITH INSTAGRAM GROWING TO OVER 700 FOLLOWERS

A NEW WEBSITE FOR THE GUILD WAS DEVELOPED, WITH A RECORD 12,000 VISITORS UPON LAUNCH

A BRAND NEW G-NEWS (NOW GUILD WEEKLY) WAS LAUNCHED IN SEMESTER 2

STUDENT ASSIST HAS SEEN 129 ACADEMIC CASES SINCE JAN 2014, 74 FINANCIAL CASES, 61 EMERGENCY LOANS AND 17 GRANTS.

WIFI SURVEY AND LOG HAS RECEIVED OVER 180 ENTRIES. A WIFI BLACK SPOT MAP HAS BEEN CREATED.

ALL PUBLICATIONS ARE AVAILABLE ONLINE VIA ISSUU, WITH AN ULTIMATE REACH OF 19,000 PEOPLE

COMPARING TO 2013, SEMESTER 1 SECONDHAND BOOKSHOP SALES IN 2014 HAVE INCREASED BY 13%

1087 VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES UNDERTAKEN (YTD)

828

OUR ORIENTATION SURVEY RECEIVED 828 RESPONDENTS

15,144 LISTED VOLUNTEERING OPPORTUNITIES VIEWED

BY STUDENTS ON CAREERHUB

FREE WEEKLY YOGA CLASSES HELD DURING SEMESTER 1

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VOLUNTEERING & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE

by Adnan Visram & Aden Date Guild Volunteering has entered a second significant phase with

University signing an Australia-first agreement to jointly promote

the last 12 months being defined by new partnerships, initiatives,

service learning and volunteering at UWA. Service learning

and a significant increase in the amount of student volunteerism

is the embedding of volunteering in to student’s coursework,

at UWA. 2014 has been particularly exciting, with more student

recognition of the reciprocal benefit of student volunteerism for

walk-ins and website hits in the first semester of 2014 than what

organisations and students alike.

we had in the entirety of 2013.

As of July 2014, there are currently 19 service learning units at We were excited to launch our student internship program this

the University, that is, units that involve a significant amount

year: a logical development on our one-day intensive “Program

of community engagement as a core activity in the unit.

Director” training run in 2013. The internship saw us give 7

Guild Volunteering is central to one flagship broadening unit,

students the skills they need to create volunteer-involving

launching in 2015, that will allow students to do an internship

programs in conjunction with non-profits. Two programs have

with a non-profit for course credit.

launched already in partnership with Therapy Focus, a charity for children with disabilities, and the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Council.

Finally, you may have noticed that Guild Volunteering has moved to a new prominent ground floor location in 2014, lovingly

WE WERE EXCITED TO LAUNCH OUR STUDENT INTERNSHIP PROGRAM THIS YEAR: A LOGICAL DEVELOPMENT ON OUR ONE-DAY INTENSIVE “PROGRAM DIRECTOR” TRAINING RUN IN 2013.

We entered into a partnership with the Department of Sport and Recreation, who independently funded us to promote student volunteering in sport. Under the leadership of our newest staff member, Sophie Greer, we have seen students placed in hundreds of hours to community sport programs.

We’ve developed new relationships with the University that have facilitated transcript recognition and service learning. Guild Volunteering now recognises the hours contributed by students from 21 different community organisations on a supplementary academic transcript that we anticipate will be available through student connect for anyone graduating at the end of 2014. This includes many on campus clubs and organisations such as Teach Learn Grow, Robogals, Engineers without Borders, University Hall, AIESEC’s “Go Volunteer” program, and Science Union’s partnership with the City of Melville Discovery Centre. In 2013 students had 4,000 hours logged on the system through Guild Volunteering, and we’re on track to double that this year.

Transcript recognition is just one of several new things to come out of building closer ties with the University. Promoting student volunteering was made a central, listed experiential learning goal in the University’s Education Futures Vision Plan. The partnership continued to grow, with VWA, the Guild, and the

18

called “the fishbowl,” for obvious reasons! The new office, in conjunction with our new joint venture, puts volunteering at both the physical and organisational nexus of student life at UWA. The high level of support we are receiving from the Guild and University has gone to great lengths to help us achieve our mission of building a culture of volunteering on campus.

WELFARE & ADVOCACY COMMITTEE

by Max Riley & Tony Goodman The Welfare committee has students’ interest and welfare

•

Exam Equipment Hire Project – working with various

at heart. It is focused on ensuring students’ needs are being

E&D student reps from Science, Blackstone and ECOMS

advocated, communicated and represented at all levels within

regarding exam equipment hire.

the University network. The committee works closely with all

•

Guild departments and in particular Guild Education Council.

Free Drinks for Drivers - proposal to have free soft drink for designated drivers at major Guild Tavern events.

•

Lighting Issues on Campus

Highlights

•

Review of the Demand Driven Funding System

•

Yoga - Free weekly classes on Oak Lawn

•

Committee mandated Ed Council President to compile

•

Tai Chi – four free sessions of Tai Chi with Taoist Tai Chi

•

report/response.

Australia

•

GFA 2014 Document Approved

De-Stress Event – collaborated with UWA PAW in

•

Review and approval of Guild Financial Assistance

collaboration to bring dogs, cats, goats, sheep, reptiles to

•

document for 2014 for Student Assist department.

campus, along with a discounted vegan/vegetarian BBQ

•

International Student Project

to provide students with a short break from the stress of

•

Health Department of WA – Provided stakeholder review,

assignments and exam preperations.

management and information for Health Department of

Welfare Week – hosted several events and activities

WA.

promoting welfare to the UWA student body including

•

International Student Health and Wellbeing Fact Sheets

health checks, ball pits, balloon animals, free food such

•

UWA HPU - With ISS Director provided recommendations

as pancakes and noodles, advice on budgeting and Falun

and review of development of Fact Sheets for

Gong lessons.

•

Free Health Checks in Guild Village – in collaboration with The City of Subiaco and the REACH Program, we provided Free Health Checks for students in the Guild Village.

Projects •

WiFi Guild project – Initiated and launched - Obtaining information from students on WiFi issues on campus.

International Students online and print.

•

Suicide Prevention Initiative

•

In collaboration with UWA School of Psychology and UWA HPU, developing stakeholder group. Coordination of relevant Guild clubs and FacSoc involvement.

•

UWA LDAG Committee

•

Participation – ongoing.

19

20

3.0 OFFICE BEARER REPORTS

21

EDUCATION COUNCIL

by Elizabeth O’Shea The Education (ED) Council, which is chaired by the Education

by current students, for outstanding contributions to teaching

Council President and includes representatives from Faculty

and learning at UWA. We hope that student based recognition of

Societies and Guild Departments, provides a forum to address

excellent teaching and educational support is critical, and hope

education issues campus-wide. With the portfolio covering the

that this will encourage UWA and other staff to prioritise student

responsibilities of the ED Council itself, the Education Council

preferences for teaching practices.

Committee, and the Education Action Network (EAN), Semester The EAN, as the campaigns group of Ed Council, has been

One has been incredibly busy!

increasingly busy after the announcement of the Federal Budget, This year, ED Council has reached out to groups that were

which included a number of funding cuts and legislation changes

underrepresented in the past. By helping to re-establish the ALVA

that disproportionately target students. We ran and supported a

Students’ Society and increasing engagement with Education

number of staff-student forums, which allowed regular students

students, ED Council has expanded its impact and representation.

to ask questions of the UWA Executive about the stance that

The President of the Residential Students’ Department is now

UWA would take on issues like higher education fee deregulation,

a voting member of ED Council, and the ED Council President

increased student fees, and increased student debt.

provided education advocacy training to college resident assistants, making sure college students don’t slip through the

Finally, the release of SURF results at the start of Semester One

cracks!

has been a huge success that was the direct result of student representatives lobbying the University since 2013, and we hope

The ED Council Committee produced a Fresher Handbook, to

to see more of a focus on student perceptions of teaching quality

give new students important information about studying at UWA

in the future.

and getting the most out of their time on campus. After the success of this handbook, we are excited to produce a “Know

After this incredibly busy semester the Ed Council, Committee

Your Rights Guide” in Semester Two – explaining UWA policy

and EAN are set for another advocacy-packed semester!

and students rights in an accessible way. The Committee also awarded ‘Students’ Choice Awards’ to UWA staff, as nominated

PUBLIC AFFAIRS COUNCIL

by Honny Palayukan The Public Affairs Council (PAC) is dedicated to providing

supported by Teach For Australia. We ended the week by giving

students with a university immersed in a rich cultural presence

back to the local community having donated revenue made from

and strong community out-reach.

ticket sales to local youth based charity organisations.

Our primary focus has been to encourage the 60 affiliated clubs

Faith Week was also reinvigorated this year with a collaboration

to focus on collaboration. The PAC Council has provided a strong

being chaired by Dana Abu-Geras (Treasurer). Clubs hosted

network of support for like-minded clubs to get together a

information stalls that generated opportunities for students

produce bigger, better and more engaging events

ask questions and engage in open and safe dialogue about

around campus.

religion in the modern world. By inviting key figures from Perth’s religious circles, we managed to host a stimulating panel

Semester one was inundated with activities. We’ve introduced a

discussion discussing the importance of faith in the twenty

string of new outdoor events collectively known as the Summer

first century.

Nights Festival that featured an anime film screening, SLAM Poetry night (in collaboration with Perth Poetry Society) and

These themed week events didn’t just stop at Oak Lawn. We

a music set on the green. This was an event that engaged with

provided off-campus students at QEII and ALVA an opportunity

different disciplines of the Arts and showcased great locally

to engage in PAC events by bringing stalls and club reps

produced talent.

to them.

This year, we saw the expansion of the Social Justice

We have plenty more PACked in for Semester two, so on behalf

Collaboration, which was chaired by Alex Hamilton (VP) and

of the Public Affairs Council, thank you for your engagement and

Sophie Stewart (OCM). Ticketed evening events complimented

we look forward to PACking in some more awesome

the vibrant stalls clubs hosted on Oak Lawn. Along with

on-campus experiences.

the efforts of all clubs involved, the Collaboration was also

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23

SOCIETIES COUNCIL

by Maddie Mulholland The Societies Council’s main focus in 2014 has been to

Checklists; provide clubs with more equipment for hire; and

support clubs better through streamlined and improved

introduce Social Media and Marketing support.

procedures, offering new opportunities to increase club visibility, and improving club facilities. We have also

The Societies Council have been driving the Club Facilities

encouraged clubs to focus on inclusive events.

Masterplan, a large project which will see the Guild central wing first floor become a “Club Hub” with access to meeting rooms,

Our key achievements in Semester One 2014 include

storage spaces, and other facilities to assist with the running of

increasing club funding to support a larger number of

clubs. Located directly adjacent to Oak Lawn, this should be a

affiliated clubs; working to finalise the new Club Committees

very valuable space to support our active club culture. We have

Resource Page (a one-stop-shop for all information clubs

sought feedback from club representatives in designing this

need in their functioning); bringing the Societies Council

space, and completion is due for mid-2015.

Rules into currency; introducing a Semester One Club Carnival and Semester One President’s Summit; providing

The Societies Council has also continued with traditional

more training opportunities for executive members, including

projects, including PROSH Olympics, tenancy facility

online resource training by Google UWA; improving finance

management, allocating mailboxes and storage spaces, running

procedures; seeking feedback through structured surveys

SOC meetings, providing clubs with advice and assistance

to improve our services and events; introducing a new

in their functioning, and maintaining good relationships with

O-Day T-shirt Prize Pack; and cleaning up Societies Council

university service providers.

affiliations by disaffiliating defunct and inactive clubs. We have worked with the Guild Events and Creative Teams

Thank you to the dedicated SOC Committee: VP – Kaila Stevens,

to streamline the Event Management Plans and create

Treasurer – Rowan Ashwin, Secretary – Samuel Shenton, and OCMS – Dennis Jatmatama, Kimberly Mehta and Jonathan Israel.

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ALBANY STUDENTS DEPARTMENT

by Heide Rowe The Albany department of the UWA Student Guild aims to represent the approximately 130 students studying at the Albany Centre, the Centre of Excellence in Natural Resource Management, and the Rural Clinical School of Western Australia.

So far in 2014, the Albany committee has run a number of events including a welcome BBQ in the park and pizza and games night.

Guild representatives as well as the Prosh team also visited Albany to help students sell the annual Prosh paper in town.

The committee was also able to refurbish the common room, giving it a fresh look and feel, as well as keeping it stocked with coffee and tea for all students to use. The student common room at the Albany centre, a traditional hang out area, features tables chairs, a mini kitchen, table tennis and a pool table.

To match the Crawley student offering of a free weekly yoga session, classes are now offered for Albany students, and the committee is looking to continue this program and examining the possibility to expand to include access to a local aquatic centre or similar.

INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS SERVICE

by Kenneth Woo The International Students’ Service is a Guild department that

•

UWA’s first DOTA 2 League

exists to be the peak representative body for all international

•

Recruitment Drive for Multicultural Week Committees

students in the University of Western Australia. It is our job to look after the interests and well being of all international

(MCW) •

Guild Carnival Recruitment Drive for MCW and ISS

students studying in UWA as well as represent the international student body in councils such as the Guild Council and the

ISS are currently working on:

Education Council of the UWA Student Guild. All international

•

Career Week (in conjunction with Student Services)

students are automatically members and represented by

•

Multicultural Week – a week of celebrating the diversity

the department and are encouraged to join up as general

within the UWA community, culminating in the much

committee members to get involved in international student

anticipated Spring Feast event held in the Oak Lawn and

issues. The department also acts as an umbrella organization for smaller international clubs and student associations,

Guild Village.

•

UWA’s second DOTA 2 League

providing support and advice when needed.

A main focus of the Department for this year was throwing The department is also committed to organizing high quality

lesser events but higher quality ones as well as focusing on

events both for international students to experience Australian

efficiently spending the budget so as to ensure the Guild

culture as well as providing an avenue to engage with domestic

money is being spent wisely. For example, the bi-annual

students.

Lighthouse Magazine has been shifted to an online only publication with a small card printed to guide students to the

Highlights: •

links, freeing up a significant portion of our total budget.

Subsidized trip to Rottnest Island (Partly sponsored by the UWA International Centre)

25

ENVIRONMENT DEPARTMENT

by Bryn Howells for more panels

This year the Environment Department continued, and improved on, the great work from 2013 in the following keys areas.

•

Waste Management:

Communication and Engagement

•

•

• • •

We raised the Keep Cup discount to 30 cents along with

26

We co-hosted the largest Envirofest ever with ~700 staff

saving a total of 14000 cups from landfill since 2013

and students and ran our most successful volunteering

Reid Library café became dine in by default saving

semester ever in conjunction with Guild Volunteering and

unwanted plastic from landfill

SERAG at Pelican Point

~1.5tonnes of coffee grinds from Guild cafes are being reused by grounds staff every semester.

Procurement

We are also lobbying to purchase two bottleless vending

•

2014 saw the creation of the Guild Urban Orchard and

machines to enable students to reduce their plastic waste

Veggie Garden project in both the Ref and Guild Village

along with lobbying to implement recycling in all Guild

Courtyards with the goal of increasing our presence and

cafes.

•

O-Day Festival was successfully carbon offset

A new recycling station was introduced to enable staff

using fresh local produce in cafes.

•

We, along with UWA People for Animal Welfare (PAW)

and students to recycle batteries, mobile phones, printer

lobbied for the use Free Range eggs in the Guild’s fresh

cartridges and light bulbs

produce.

Energy and Climate Change

As always we continued support for environmental and

•

We lobbied for the solar panel project to be moved from

sustainability focused clubs on campus to ensure a campus

the medical centre roof to the Bayliss building to allow

culture of sustainability lives on through the students.

27

SEMESTER 1 STATISTICS FROM OUR DEPARTMENTS

SURF RESULTS WERE MADE PUBLIC IN SEMESTER 1

PSA RAISED $2500 IN PRIZE DONATIONS FOR THE ALWAYS SUCCESSFUL ANNUAL QUIZ NIGHT.

$2500

14000 CUPS SAVED FROM LANDFILL SINCE THE INTRODUCTION OF THE KEEP CUP PROGRAM IN 2013

A CARBON OFFSET O-DAY SAVED APPROXIMATELY 20 TONNES OF CO2

A NEW O-DAY T-SHIRT PRIZE PACK WAS INTRODUCED

RSD BALL HELPED RAISE IN EXCESS OF $3000 FOR PROJECT INSPIRE.

LIGHTHOUSE MAGAZINE BECAME AN ONLINE PUBLICATION

28

INTRODUCED SOCIAL MEDIA AND MARKETING SUPPORT FOR CLUBS

17 STUDENTS FROM UWA ATTENDED NOWSA (NETWORK OF WOMEN’S STUDENTS AUSTRALIA CONFERENCE)

OVER 700 STAFF AND STUDENTS ATTEND THE BIGGEST ENVIROFEST EVER

FREE RANGE EGGS ARE NOW USED IN ALL GUILD CAFES

250

250 COLLEGIANS ATTENDED THE RSD BALL

FREE HEALTH CHECKS WERE PROVIDED THROUGH THE WELFARE DEPARTMENT IN SEMESTER 1

A WORKSHOP ON TRANS WOMEN IN FEMINISM WAS RUN COLLABORATIVELY BETWEEN THE QUEER DEPARTMENT AND THE WOMEN’S DEPARTMENT

POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS ASSOCIATION

by David Raithel The PSA is responsible for the education advocacy for the

and the proposed cuts to the Research Training Scheme

postgraduate students. This is achieved primarily through the

(RTS), the PSA quickly responded within the University to

work of the PSA president, research coursework vice presidents

ensure HDR students would not be hurt by these cuts. We

and the PSA faulty representatives. The PSA is also focused on

are now confident that if the RTS cuts go through, UWA HDR

providing the social and networking opportunities to UWA’s

students will not have to pay the governments proposed

postgraduate students.

tuition fees.

•

•

•

This year the PSA was able to increase the number of awards and grants we give out.

Highlights: Our faculty representatives have been attending faculty board meetings and meetings with Guild fac socs to ensure

The PSA hosted a family-friendly trip to the Perth Observatory

that postgraduate students interests are being represented

for a stargazing night early in the year. Despite the partial cloud

both within the individual faculties and within the Guild.

cover, the Observatories telescopes were still able to provide

Our Vice-President (Research) has been working on the

some excellent sights in the stars.We also raised $2500 in prize

PSA’s policy with regards to HDR student supervision. This is

donations for our always successful annual quiz night. Only one of

to ensure we can advocate for consistent, high-quality and

our questions had an incorrect answer (a new record)!

equitable supervision within the University.

•

•

The PSA had a strong presence at UWA’s Office for

To complement our monthly social networking event, Connect,

Operational Excellence Functional Review workshops, where

we are now putting on a monthly morning tea, Engage, for the

we were able to voice many of the over-arching concerns of

early-rising students. Further our Off Campus Officer Anita has

postgraduate students.

organised a networking event for the postgrad students studying

With the release of the Federal Governments first budget

at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital.

QUEER DEPARTMENT

by Laura Clappinson & Natalia Verne The UWA Student Guild Queer department has had a

event the Queer Department has had a part in for some time and

successful and exciting first semester. We have run a variety of

it went well. We have also been consulted by the UWA Careers

events and strengthened ties with Guild Departments, faculty

Centre, along with the Equity and Diversity Office, on a careers

societies and clubs.

week event aimed at LGBT students. Previously there has not been a lot of contact between these groups and so this is an

In the lead up to the start of semester one department officers

exciting and promising direction for closer ties.

represented UWA at the Cross Campus Queer Network stall at Pride Fair Day, one of our key events in engaging with our

The last 6 months has been full of firsts and we can’t wait to see

wider community. Our stall at the O-Day Festival gave us a

what the next brings.

great start to the year; the number of mailing list sign ups and people taking collecting our handbook far exceeded expectations. Planning ahead and advertising our regular social events such as movie and games nights gave us good numbers heading to the end of semester. In the last 6 months the department has also begun further developing and strengthening ties within the Guild and University to further support students. A workshop on transexual women in feminism was run collaboratively with the UWA Student Guild Women’s department. This event drew many UWA and nonUWA students and was very well received.

The Arts Union worked very hard to present Eurovision

IN THE LEAD UP TO THE START OF SEMESTER ONE DEPARTMENT OFFICERS REPRESENTED UWA AT THE CROSS CAMPUS QUEER NETWORK STALL AT PRIDE FAIR DAY

Karaoke, our collaborative fundraising event. This is the largest

29

RESIDENTIAL STUDENTS DEPARTMENT

by Jordan Piggott In the first half of 2014, the Residential Students’ Department experienced another very successful semester of fostering inter-college spirit.

Our events calendar kicked off with a festival on Matilda Bay for first year students of all five colleges. Freshers congregated on Matilda Bay for food, music, sports and the annual performance of each college’s “Fresher Dance”.

We were once again happy to support the Inter-College Sport Committee in running the IC Swimming Carnival and the Tav

BY FAR THE BIGGEST EVENT ON OUR SOCIAL CALENDAR IS THE ANNUAL RSD CHARITY BALL, WHICH TOOK PLACE ON THE 9TH OF MAY. THIS YEAR THE BALL HAD A “SECRET GARDEN” IN WINTHROP HALL.

Show that followed, aiming to promote the competitive spirit and thriving social scene that the College’s are rebound for.

of a College-based Cambodia mission called ‘Project Inspire’, started by St. Thomas Moore College. The ball was well-attended

Once again we hosted the famous Inter-College Lip-Dub

by over 250 Collegians who were treated to a 2 course meal,

competition, where each college creates a single-take music

open bar, charity auction and entertainment from UWA Dance

video to a selected criteria to be screened at the Wesfarmers

and a live DJ. Although figures are still being finalized, we

Lecture Theatre and judged by a panel that included the UWA

estimate to have raised in excess of $3000 for Project Inspire.

Student Guild and WASTV. Trinity took out it’s third Lip-Dub title, following their win last year.

We’re forever grateful for the support we receive at all of our events from the Red Frog Crew, College Committees and the

By far the biggest event on our social calendar is the annual

UWA Guild. It’s these groups that make it possible for events like

RSD Charity Ball, which took place on the 9th of May. This year

these to happen again every year.

the ball had a “Secret Garden” in Winthrop Hall, and was in aid

WELFARE DEPARTMENT

by Max Riley The Welfare Department has had a busy semester, starting a lot of

making it easier for Guild members to access emergency credit. We

exciting new programs and expanding on our tried and tested events

increased Mental Health Grants to Clubs and Faculty Societies, which

like Health Promotion Day, Exam De-Stress Day and Welfare Week.

allowed four organisations to run great Mental Health initiatives for students. We also provided financial and logistical support to help

To start the year, we launched Tai Chi on campus, which successfully

run Petting Zoos, Information Stalls, Medicare Local Sign-Ups and

ran for the first half of semester and engaged over a hundred

free health checks. As Welfare Officer, I’ve also been in touch with

students. We’re looking to continue this project in second semester.

UWA Security advocating for improved lighting and security on

Like all Welfare Events, It was of course provided at no cost to Guild

campus. Welfare has also worked collaboratively with the Sports

Members.

Council and a number of mental health related clubs to improve awareness about Mental Health Issues on campus.

We also continued our Yoga sessions with our star Yoga instructor, Emmaline Turley. Through a combination of marketing and a change

Structurally, the Welfare Department increased its sized by a factor

to a more student-friendly times, yoga, attendance tripled from 2013,

of five student representatives. This will have important long term

and it has become cemented as a fixture in the Welfare Departments

benefits for the Welfare Department, by allowing more work to be

calendar of events.

done, and for the Department to better reflect the diversity and experiences of Guild members. We also increased our presence

Welfare Week was run during Week 10 of semester. This was the

on Social Media which will allow us to market our future events to

capstone of Welfare’s semester. We ran four themed days - Food,

ensure as many students know about them as possible.

De-Stress,, Health and Money. Each day had multiple events running, the result of collaborations with other Guild Departments, the Health

Next semester, we will continue to run a wide variety of events

Promotions Unit, Guild Student Assist, and multiple government and

and programs targeted at making it easier to be a UWA Student

community health organisations. Importantly, this coincided with

on campus. Stay tuned for more information. If you have any

actions across the country, run by the National Union of Students in

suggestions, concerns, compliments or just need someone to vent

protest to the announced Federal Budget.

to, please feel free to contact me at welfare@guild.uwa.edu.au. In the meantime, stay safe, stay happy, and if you’re having difficulties,

Behind the scenes, the Welfare Department successfully advocated for the Interest-Free Loan approval process to be streamlined, 30

remember that we are here to help you.

31

32

WOMEN’S DEPARTMENT

by Rebecca Doyle The Women’s Department’s main focus in 2014 has been

campaign on Oak Lawn. The money raised went towards

to reestablish an active Women’s Collective on campus to

paying for the registration of students to this years Network of

organise and educate women students on campus about issue

Women’s Students Australia (NOWSA). Further, Linda Burns

that affect them. Having weekly meetings in the Women’s

from Australian Super came to talk to students on campus about

Room has been crucial to building the collective, providing

the importance of super contributions.

students with input into how they would like to run campaigns When students have reached out to the department, we

and what events they would like to organise.

have listened by running events for women studying in male In Semester 1, the Women’s Department ran two campaigns:

dominated courses, including Computer Science and Software

International Women’s Day and #Iamworthmore, the Graduate

Engineering and Mathematics BBQs.

Gender Pay Gap campaign. International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8, to mark the significance of women’s

We have also taken the opportunity to work with external

contributions and achievements worldwide. This year the

groups, including faculty societies, the Queer Department,

Department ran a bra tree, giving women the opportunity to

Muslim Youth WA and Women’s Council for Domestic and Family

donate old bra’s that are then donated to charity. The bras

Violence Services.

made quite the spectacle hung out across Oak Lawn. Further, we also had a Mini Lecture series with Winthrop Professor

Lastly, this year the NOWSA Conference took place in WA, at

Dr Grady Venville, Meredith Hammat from UnionsWA and Dr

ECU Joondalup, making it more accessible to UWA students

Anna Aly from Curtin University.

than ever before, 17 students from UWA will be attending.

For the Graduate Gender Pay Gap Campaign, the Department ran a reverse ‘Gender Pay Gap’ priced bake sale and poster

SPORTS REPRESENTATIVE

by Michael Morrissey

The Inter-Faculty teams have battled incredible heat and

Guild Welfare department will kindly step in again and offer their

torrential rain over the course of semester one, all with the goal

services to make this final event for the year go out with a bang

claim victory over each and every faculty.

and very happy participants and players.

In semester 2 the Inter-Faculty season will feature once again

Other projects to be monitored over the remainder of 2014 and

a range of sports for UWA students to play and participate in

of particular note for the 2015 Sports Representative include

for free of charge. We will open the semester with two weeks

an initiative to start Inter-Faculty an hour earlier featuring a

of Soccer being played on the 6th of August and the 13th of

‘Learn to play’ session run by the coinciding club for that weeks

August. Faculties will be required to submit a male team and

sport. For example if the week’s sport was Volleyball, the UWA

female team for each week. After soccer commences, we will

Volleyball Club would run an hour long ‘learn to play’ session

be moving indoors for the final 5 weeks of the Inter-Fac 2014

an hour before Inter-Faculty would be scheduled to start. This

season. The reasoning behind this is to ensure that no events

initiative is being spear-headed by the Inter-Faculty Committee

are cancelled due to rain or other poor weather. First up will

Secretary Lara Connolly Bromfield and will have to be supported

be Volleyball on the 20th of August, followed by Table Tennis

by both the UWA Sports Association and the UWA Sports

on the 27th of August. After this, we will be having a mixed

Student Council.

Dodge-ball round on the 3rd of September, which will be an inaugural event in 2014 for the UWA Inter-Fac league. Like The

Next semester we look forward to restarting Inter-Faculty v

novelty athletics round, and the paddling round, UWA Sports

Inter-College sport. At the moment there are 4 sports planned

and Michael Morrissey are hopeful that these new sports will be

for the trial and these will be: Futsal on the 5th of September,

popular enough to run again in future years and keep Inter-Fac

Indoor Rowing and 3x3 Basketball on the 12th of September,

sport fresh and relevant. The next sport after Dodge-ball will

and Mixed Netball on the 24th of October. With these upcoming

be Badminton on the 10th of September, and the final sport of

initiatives and the successes of first semester Inter-Fac sport,

the year will be Basketball on the 17th of September due to its

the future looks bright for Inter-Faculty Sport as it continues to

ability to draw crowds and players. Hopefully Max Riley and the

grow rapidly across all of UWA.

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