Friday 24-01-2020 - 17:26

The students’ union Executive Committee will consider a proposal to change the structure of the students’ union Full-Time Officer team when it meets on Tuesday.

Proposed by President George Nuttall, the change, if accepted, will mean the abolition of some existing roles, creation of new ones and changes to the remit of others.

George said: “I am bringing forward this proposal after being elected on a manifesto to change the format of the Full-Time Officer Team to be more effective at representing students.”

If changes are approved by Executive next week, the new structure will be introduced in time for this year’s Full-Time Officer elections in week 8 of this term.

Under current arrangements, the Full-Time Officer Team comprises:

• President
• Vice-President (Union Development)
• Vice-President (Education)
• Vice-President (Welfare & Community)
• Vice-President (Activities)
• Vice-President (Campaigns & Communications)

Under the proposed new structure, the team will be:

• President
• Vice-President (Union Development)
• Vice-President (Education)
• Vice-President (Welfare)*
• Vice-President (Societies)*
• Vice-President (Sport)*

*Title to be confirmed

The full proposal outlines the full rationale for the changes. Reasons include:

• Ensuring sport and society groups receive equal representation
• Increasing the union’s capacity for oversight of society affiliations by an elected student officer
• Updating officer portfolios to ensure volunteer groups, charitable societies and student media teams receive adequate representation
• Student media teams’ change to society status mean it makes sense to place them in a societies officer portfolio
• Developments in technology, including social media, that give all officers the ability to lead on campaigns

While developing the proposal, George conducted research into team structures used at other students’ unions. Structures vary significantly across the sector, but the briefing document for Executive Committee highlights unions that operate under similar structures to the one proposed.

Executive Committee, comprising Full-Time Officers, Part-Time Officers, Faculty Reps and JCR/PG Board representatives, has the authority to approve the proposal or refer it to a referendum or student jury.

Executive Committee meets at 5pm on Tuesday January 28. The meeting will be livestreamed at facebook.com/lancastersu

Read the proposal document in full