LCO Review Proposal to be Taken to Union Assembly
Tuesday 15-04-2025 - 11:52
Written by Ella Smith
Ella is the Wellbeing Officer at LUSU.
Working closely with our Liberation and Campaigns Officers and respective Forums this year has highlighted the much-needed review of the structures in place to support these groups better. Below is a summary of proposed changes that will be taken to Union Assembly in coming weeks for approval.
Introduction
The effective advocacy of marginalised voices is crucial in today's society, especially at a time when oppression persists and threatens to grow. The liberation movement works to change practices and patterns of society to be more inclusive and diverse, as well as champion equal opportunities for all.
It is important we foster safe and effective spaces for conversations of equality and liberation within our communities at Lancaster. The reality is our current Union structures don’t support these groups or provide adequate support to the volunteers in Liberation and Campaign Officer roles. After many conversations and much research, we have finally landed on a restructure, as presented below.
The proposed terms are tailored to the needs of each group to accommodate nuances between them. Rarely does change come with certainty, but as this review was led entirely by student members within the communities mentioned, I have hope that this restructuring will set up our equalities and liberation groups to be more autonomous and capable of great change.
Summary
A summary of the changes to the Liberation and Campaigns Officer (LCO) roles and their respective Forums is presented in the tables below. Most notably, there is a change in names of the Forums in order to better represent their purpose to the communities they represent.
Alongside this, is a change in election processes for each of the officers, shifting from a campus-wide election to, generally, internally held summer elections. These processes, however, are nuanced and dependent on each group. More details of the proposals can be seen here.
In recent weeks, the BAME Committee and PHD Forum have been in trial stages ahead of approval from Union Assembly. Read the BAME Committee introduction and listen to their podcast hosted by Bailrigg FM. The Women+ Network will also be hosting their launch event on May 8th from 5-7pm in the LEC Atrium.
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Liberation & Campaigns Officers |
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Current |
Proposed |
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International Students’ Officer Elected each Lent Term via an all-student vote. |
International Students’ Officer Elected each Summer Term at the International Students’ Forum Annual Meeting. |
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LGBTQ+ Students’ Officer Elected each Lent Term via an all-student vote. |
LGBTQ+ Officer Elected each Summer Term at the LGBTQ+ Community AGM. |
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Postgraduate & Mature Students’ Officer Elected each Lent Term via an all-student vote. |
It is proposed that this post is discontinued. |
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Racial & Ethnic Minority Students’ Officer Elected each Lent Term via an all-student vote. |
Chairperson of BAME Committee Elected each Summer Term at the BAME Committee Annual Meeting. |
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Students with Disabilities Officer Elected each Lent Term via an all-student vote. |
Political Lead of Accessibility Community Elected each Summer term at the Accessibility Community Annual Meeting. |
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Women’s+ Officer Elected each Lent Term via an all-student vote. |
Women’s+ Officer Elected each year by self-defining women+ students. |
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Liberation & Campaigns Forum |
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Current |
Proposed |
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International Students’ Forum Open to all self-defining international students, led by a small executive of appointed volunteers and International Students’ Officer. |
International Students’ Forum Open to all self-defining international students, led by the International Students’ Officer as a network of societies and student leaders. |
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LGBTQ+ Forum Open to all self-defining LGBTQ+ students, led by an executive committee and the LGBTQ+ Students’ Officer. |
LGBTQ+ Community Open to all self-defining LGBTQ+ students, led by an executive committee and the LGBTQ+ Officer. Made up of at least eight networks, led by their respective Coordinators. |
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Postgraduate & Mature Students’ Forum Open to all postgraduate and self-defining mature students, led by a small executive committee and the Postgraduate & Mature Students’ Officer*. |
Graduate College, PG Board & PGT Academic Reps Resources allocated to PGT representation and community building are made available to PG Board and PGT Academic Reps.
PhD Forum Resources allocated to PGR representation and community building are made available to PhD Forum**.
The Union will retain capacity to support a Mature Students’ Society should interest arise. |
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Racial & Ethnic Minority Students’ Forum Open to all self-defining racial and ethnic minority students, led by an executive committee and the Racial & Ethnic Minority Students’ Officer*. |
BAME Committee Open to all self-defining ethnic minority students, led by an executive committee**. |
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Students with Disabilities Forum Open to all self-defining disabled students, led by an executive committee and the Students with Disabilities Officer*. |
Accessibility Community Open to all self-defining disabled students, led by an executive committee including separate role of President and Political Lead. |
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Women’s+ Forum Open to all self-defining disabled students, led by an executive committee and the Women’s+ Officer. |
Women’s+ Network Open to all self-defining women+ students, led by the Women’s+ Officer as a network of societies and student leaders. |
* These definitions exist within the byelaws but do not reflect current practice. These forums are not currently functional.
** The BAME Committee and PhD Forum are currently being piloted ahead of proposal. Approval at Union Assembly will make them both an official part of the Union’s provision.
If you’d like to hear more about these changes, please join us at our next Union Assembly meeting on Thursday 24th of April at 10am. This meeting will be held on Teams, you can access the link to join here.
