the leadership race - a guide for staff

8/7/2019 The Leadership Race - A Guide for Staff

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2 | The Leadership Race 2011 The Leadership Race 2011 |3

union

LOVE

union

Leading 32,000 students isnt easy, but every year we spend nearly

100,000 paying six students to work full-time and do just that. Elected

by students at Leeds, the Exec are the face of the Union when we make

the headlines and the people who make things happen here every day

through campaigning, representing and decision-making.

When students voted to oppose proposals to raise tuition fees, the Exec

lead 700 people to the national demo in London, received a standing

ovation after delivering a speech to Leeds City Council and spoke out

again and again in both r egional and national media.

When students asked for longer library opening hours ahead of

exams, the Exec secured them. When students said they needed a cash

machine in the Worsley building, the Exec got one. And when the Exec

worked with the police to prevent burglaries in Hyde Park, they achieved

a reduction of 40%.

Any student at Leeds can stand for any of the six positions on the Exec,

each with its own remit theres the Education Officer, the

Communications & Internal Affairs Officer, the Welfare Officer, the

Equality & Diversity Officer, the Activities Officer and the Community Of-

ficer.

Theres no interview, no application forms and no qualifications

required. Instead theyll take part in a leadership race during which

theyll need to convince campus that theyre the right person for the job.

Introduction

This handbook is here to help staff support

students during the annual Leadership Race.

It tells you about each of the six Student

Executive roles and what each position

involves. It explains the rules of the leadership

race and provides some answers to questions

raised by staff about the elections. Weve set

ourselves a huge target thi s year. Were going

to get 6000 students to vote, and youre going

to play a role in achieving that.

Whats it got to do with me?

The Leadership Race elects the exec. The six

members of the student exec are trustees of

the students union. That means that they arein charge. If you are a member of staff (even if

youre the Chief Exec!) it means that they are

your leaders.

Leeds University Union makes sure that

students love their time at Leeds. Its the way

that staff and students work together that

makes Leeds one of the best students unions

in the country.


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Why do we have a

Leadership Race?

Quite simply, we give students the

opportunity to elect six of their peers to

lead us because were a democratic,

student-led organisation.

By allowing any member to come forward

and present their ideas, solutions and

practices for taking the Union forward, the

Leadership Race allows our members to

shape our future.

Its only by doing this that we can provide

effective representation andembrace the needs of all students as we

work towards our vision of making sure

every student loves their time at Leeds.

Where are they now?

Spending a year leading a 10m charity is

a great way to kick start your job

prospects after finishing university. Heres

what just a few of the previous Exec have

gone onto achieve:

John Schless

Activities Officer

2005 to 2006

John is the Senior Relationship Officer at

the National Autistic Society (NAS). Part of

the fundraising team, John is responsible

for developing relationships with highnet worth donors who have the ability to

transform the lives of people with autism

through their giving.

Tom Wong

Communications Officer

2003 to 2005

Tom is currently marketing director for

TBWA\London, one of the largest and

most awarded advertising agencies on

the planet.

Leyla Okhai

Welfare Officer

2003 to 2004

Leyla Okhai is a Senior Equality Advisor,

specialising in race, religion and belief

at the University of Oxford, where she

has been for five years. Her job involves

supporting staff and students on a daily

basis, developing policies, facilitating

key steering and working groups. She

also has responsibility for implementing

university-wide consultations and specific

projects, like Oxfords Black History Month

programme. Leyla, is also a trainer for the

University and has developed expertise in

the areas of implementing change and

cross-cultural communication.

Seb Elsworth

Finance and Commercial

services Officer

2004 to 2005

Seb is the director of strategy for ACEVO,

the national association for 2,000 charity

chief executives. He leads on work to

represent the charity sector to

government, particularly on issues around

funding and the sectors role in

delivering public services. He also

oversees their press and external

communications, events programme and

business development.

Leadership Race 2011

Key Dates

January 2011

Leadership Race nominations open

Monday 31st January, 12.00 noon

February 2011

Leadership Race nominations close

Friday 18th February, 12.00pm

Compulsory candidates briefing

Friday 18th February, LUU Conference Hall,

5.00pm

March 2011

Candidate Question Time

Wednesday 9th March, Riley Smith Hall,

12.00 noon

Polls Open

Monday 14th March, 10.00am

Polls Close

Thursday 17th March, 4.00pm

Leadership Race Results LIVE!

Friday 18th March, Terrace Bar, 5.00pm

I wouldnt be doing the job I have now if it wasnt for my time on the Exec at Leeds; it was

like having the first five years of your career fast-tracked. Influencing the leaders of the

University and the city, building relationships with your team, Union staff and NUS,

making hard choices about how to spend limited resources- all skills which I use everyday

in my job now. It was also two of the most enjoyable and rewarding years I have ever had

and my achievements at LUU are still amongst my proudest.

Seb Elsworth

Student Executive Officer, 2003 to 2005


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Welfare Officer

The Welfare Officer ensures there is appropriate provision for students

general, sexual and mental health issues. They are responsible for ensuring

that there is excellent support for students, be it in areas of student finance,

health issues, student safety or housing.

Responsibilities

To represent students on university

committees concerned with matters

affecting general student welfare

To co-ordinate and oversee all union

awareness campaigns

To work with the University, Unipol orthe Student Advice Centre on matters

affecting student accommodation

To oversee the Unions complaints

procedure

To work actively with local and

regional external bodies running

campaigns on matters affecting

student health

To lobby and campaign to ensure

sufficient provision is available for

students general sexual and mental

health

To act as student representative on

University Fundraising Committee

To ensure there are appropriate

provisions for students safety in Leeds.

Liaising with the police and campus

security.

Union Committees & Groups

Strategy Group, Executive, Better Leeds

Forum, Fundraising.

University Committees

University Senate, Student Support

committee, Student Mental Health group,Inspire our Student Group, Health and

Safety Committee, Residents Committee

Forum, Drugs policy awareness group.

Key Union Staff Contacts

Chief Executive, Membership Services

Manager, Student Advice Manager,

Student Advice Centre Information

Co-ordinator, Marketing Manager, and

Campaigns and Democracy Support

Manager.

Key University Staff Contacts

PVC for Student Education, Head of

Student Counselling Centre, Office for

Access and Community Engagement,

Student Support Network, Residential and

Commercial Services Director.

Key External Contacts

Unipol, NHS Leeds, Leeds Sexual Health,

Leeds City Council, NUS Welfare officer.

About the ExecThe Role

Student Executive Officers represent students at Leeds. They wont only

represent students within the Union and University; theyll also have

responsibility in the wider community both locally and nationally.

Each officer also becomes a Trustee of Leeds University Union. This means

joining the Board of Trustees that governs the Union and being responsible for

the financial and legal running of the Students Union. This is a big part of the

role and something for students to consider carefully before standing.

Each officer also has specific responsibilities, which relate to the predominantarea in which they work. These responsibilities are described in the following

profiles.

The Salary

As well as being a trustee of one of Leeds leading charities they will also

receive a remuneration of 16,000 salaried for 12 months with 26 days

annual leave plus university closed days. This enables them to represent

Leeds students full-time and pay those all important bills.


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Activities Officer

The Activities Officer is responsible for representing Leeds University Union

activities locally, nationally and to the University, ensuring there is adequate

support and facilities for students and student activity groups. They will

oversee activity campaigns and the activities agenda.

Responsibilities

To assist and oversee the running of

union activity groups

To establish and oversee the funding

procedures for activity groups

To work with student development

staff in the Union, University andnationally

To oversee the development of the

range of facilities available to union

activities

To oversee co-ordination of

events such as Varsity, Christie

Championships, Freshers Fairs and

Celebrate Week

To represent students to the University

on union student activities matters

To work with the Activity Reps to

ensure the views of union activity

groups are represented

To hold responsibility for any g eneral

educational and recreational activity

Union Committees

Better Union Forum, Activities Executive, all

Activities Assemblies.


Leeds for Life Board and F oundation,

The Edge and Sport and Physical ActivitySteering Groups, Senate, PVC for Student

and Staff updates.


Student Activities Manager and all

Student Activities staff, Membership

Services Manager, Campaigns and

Democracy Support staff, Volunteering

and Community, Marketing and the

Events department.


PVC for Students and Staff, Head of Sport,

Chaplaincy, Director of Access and

Community Engagement department.


NUS VP Union Development, Leeds Met

Student Union Officers, Local Council.

Communications and Internal Affairs Officer

The Communications and Internal Affairs Officer is responsible for ensuring

Union policy is enacted as well as for leading on long term strategic issues

affecting the organisation. They will be responsible for overseeing the Unions

democratic processes and act as the spokesperson of LUU, representing the

Union to stakeholders and media, locally and nationally.

Responsibilities

To disseminate information

regarding all aspects of union

activities to members of the Union

To liaise and represent the Unions

view with the National Union of

Students, other Students Unions andtrade unions, and other external

bodies

To oversee the Unions commercial

services and act as NUSSL Liaison

Officer

To chair the Board of Trustees

and appraise the Chief Executive

University Councillor (governor of the

University)

To represent the Union on University

committees concerned with matters

affecting the general student issues

To chair exec policy and

representation meeting and

co-ordinating group exec objectives

with the team

To act as the spokesperson for LUU on

all external matters

To oversee general organisationalissues such as staffing and finance

To design, implement and enforce

policies affecting communications

(e.g. poster policy, flyering policy)

To liaise with the Unions senior staff

member to ensure effective running

of the Union

Union Committees

Strategy Group, Executive, Better Union

Forum, Elections Working Group,


Council, Senate, Court, Portal steering

group, Library Advisory Board, VisualAmenities Group, University Research

Ethics Committee.


Chief Executive, Deputy Chief Executive,

Membership Services Manager,


Manager, Democracy Co-ordinator,

Communications Co-ordinator, Marketing

Manager.


Press Office, Access and Community

Engagement, PVC Student Experience,

VC, VCEG, Roger Gair (University

Secretary), Library staff, Portal staff.


Leeds City Council, NUS, NUSSLtd, SUEi,Local MPs.

People sometimes say being an officer must be like being a student for another year... its

really not! Being an officer is really hard work, but really rewarding and definitely worth it.

You have the chance to have a huge say on the issues that affect students, and actually

create change. You also pick up loads of new skills and meet some influential people.

Being at the top of an organisation like LUU is fascinating, and has really opened my eyes

to how university actually works.

Sara Gill, Community Officer

Community Officer, 2007 to 2008


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Equality and Diversity Officer

The Equality and Diversity Officer is responsible for ensuring the Union

represents and addresses the needs of its diverse membership. They will be

responsible for representing students on all equality and diversity issues

locally and nationally and working alongside the Universitys Equality and

Diversity committee.

Responsibilities

To monitor and update union policy

on equality and diversity matters

To ensure university services and

policies fully reflect the diversity of

student needs

To promote and campaign for equal

opportunities within the university,Union and the wider community

To promote equality of opportunity for

all students

To liaise and support union convenors

of liberation societies

To act as a student representative on

university fundraising committee

Union Committees

Better University Forum, Strategy Group,

Interfaith forum, societies relating to

equality, liberation and diversity.


Equality and Diversity Committee, Nursery

Management Committee.


Membership Services Manager,


Manager.


PVC Staff and Students, Head of Equality

Service.


NUS Womens Officer, Black Students

Officer, LGBT Officer, SWD (Student with

Disabilities) Officer.

Why should students

vote?

Because good leaders create a good Union of

32,000 students.

Were one of the best students unions in

the UK. This is because staff and students

work so closely together to make sure

students love their time at Leeds.

Because the exec do great things for students.

When students voted to oppose propos-

als to raise tuition fees, the Exec led 700

people to the national demo in London,received a standing ovation after de-

livering a speech to Leeds City Council,

took responsibility for organising a 3000

strong march by students and sixth formers

through the streets of Leeds and spoke

out again and again in both regional and

national media.

When students asked for longer library

opening hours ahead of exams, the Exec

secured them. When students said they

needed a cash machine in the Worsley

building, the Exec got one. When local

people and students said that bus prices

were too expensive, the Exec secured a

new price from Headingley to the Univer-

sity. When the Exec worked with the police

to prevent burglaries in Hyde Park, they

acheived a reduction of 40%.

Because theyll get something in return.

Were giving 50 Printer Credits to every

student who votes.

Because its easier than ever.

All voting takes place online at

www.leedsuniversityunion.org.uk. Weve

even launched a mobile website so that

students can vote straight from their

phone.

Because weve made it easy for students to

find the perfect candidate

Weve teamed up with Vote Match so that

students can find out which candidates

are most like them. Have a look atwww.leedsuniversityunion.org.uk.

I loved being an Exec Officer. Its the first time Ive ever felt such a level of

responsibility which was overwhelming at times but it also teaches you loads about

yourself and the things you can achieve. Sitting on the Trustee Board proved to be hugely

valuable in learning about how an organisation works, how to overcome struggles and run

a healthy, striving organisation. Overall its been a great year where Ive worked with

amazing students and hugely supportive staff. Its a year where you learn both about

yourself and the real world but, more than anything, about students and the issues that

face them.

Jessica Parker

Activities Officer, 2008 to 2009


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What are the rules?

Staff are often unclear about what the

rules are around election time. Here are a

few FAQs...

Where can candidates put their posters?

Anywhere that they like. This process is

fundamental to us as a students union.

Please do not take any posters down

between 7th March and 18th March. We

will be encouraging candidates to put

posters up on walls that were protecting

with industrial clingfilm - an idea that the

Venues Team picked up from the SXSW

Festival!

Is it true that the Terrace is a campaign

free space?

Yes, we provide one space in the Union

where candidates are told not to

approach students during the week of

voting. There is an election

information desk in the Terrace for

students to find out more, but they c an

escape the melee!

Wewill be providing space in the Terrace

and Old Bar for candidate posters.

Shouldnt we be encouraging candidates to

campaign online and away from the Unio n?

We are. Each candidate is getting a short

video made by the Union and we are

organising events in halls and other places

across campus. Facebook is likely to be

the key battle ground, however the Union

building is a natural centre of attention.

What if students tell me that they dont know

who to vote for?

Tell them about vote match, a tool that

was used in the General Election to allow

voters to find out which candidates are

most like them.

Can student staff vote?

Yes, and you should encourage all stu-dents to vote.

Are staff allowed to tell students which

candidate to vote for?

No. Student staff can obviously do this in a

personal capacity, but not as a member

of Union staff (e.g. while they are working

or using tools that only staff have access

to such as email distribution lists or certain

Facebook groups).

What else is going on?

Were focusing on a few key areas...

Making sure that students know that this is a

big deal

A joint email from the Union and the Vice

Chancellor to all staff and students

A huge billboard on Hyde Park corner with

photos of every student running in the

Leadership Race

Talking about the impact that we have,

led by students, as a new charity

Weve worked hard to raise the profile of

the exec since September 2010

Giving a little something to students

who vote

50 printer credits to say thank you to each

and every voter (gold dust with end of

term deadlines looming!)

Making it easy

Vote match allows voters to find the per-

fect candidate to support

Mobile voting straight from students

phones

iPads touring campus to get students tovote anywhere

Taking the election to the students, not

waiting for students to come to the

election

Keeping our award winning student media

groups up to date with all the news

What are we not doing

Were not wasting money on anything that

doesnt have a direct, actionable link with

a students decision or ability to vote

Were not wasting money on expensive

items such as bunting and TShirts

Not only do you learn skills to being a student political leader, you also learn to be a

trustee of a charity, a strong public speaker, a creative campaigner and a representative to

the University and wider community.

Not many people can say before theyve graduated that theyve been responsible for a 10

million charity, represented 32,000 students and headed up an organisation with 200

full-time staff. Being an Exec Officer is the best learning experience you could ask for.

Jack Cheyette

Welfare Officer, 2010 to 2011


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Its definitely a challenge - my role has stretched me, and often takes me out of my

comfort zone. But by doing so it has given me opportunities I might never have had until

much later in life. Ive gained a feel of what it really means to make decisions on behalf of

an organisation representing thousands of people, with real consequences.

Paul Gold

Community Officer, 2010 to 2011

How can staff get

involved?

Weve got a huge target, but were sure

that we can reach it. It will take all of

us to work together to reach 6000 votes.

Here are some ideas.

Get student staff to vote (its important

and its easy)

Brief your teams, or make sure that your

manager is briefing their teams, about the

Leadership Race

Keep an eye on the Unions Facebookpages and click share on stories related

to voting. This is especially important if

you have large Facebook Groups or staff

Facebook Groups.

Wear your staff uniform and grab a Who

have you voted for? sticker

Ask students who have you voted for?

and tell them about Vote Match (its a

nicer question than Have you voted

yet?)

Help candidates keep their posters up on

the walls

If you work in an area with tills, you should

be given a set of wobblers saying Who

are you voting for?

Youve already done quite a lot by

reading this guide!

So how will we know if

this has all worked?

6000 votes

Students are excited about who is going

to lead their Union

Happy candidates supported by happy

staff

A little bit of chaos (well, it wouldnt be

LUU without a bit of chaos during the

elections would it?!)

Plenty of coverage in the student media

Innovative campaigning by the

candidates

Lecturers and other University staff

supporting the leadership of Leeds

University Union

Being an Exec officer

Rachel Wenstone

Communications and Internal

Affairs Office, 2010 to 2011

Campaigning

There is no denying that getting yourself

elected is hard work, but itll probably be

the most rewarding week of your life. The

time I spent running across campus,

talking to different students, in

different courses, in different residences,

only helped me become a better officer.Obviously that time is vital for convincing

people to vote for you, but its a

fantastic opportunity to really understand

how students view their university life and

the problems they may be facing.

This contact time with students forces you

to make sure your campaign has

substance; you definitely cant win on

colourful posters, flyers, or a video alone.

Your campaign must resonate with the

students you speak to in order to convince

them youre worth the time itll take them

to vote. So your manifesto needs to be

relevant; you need to demonstrate that

you have strong ideas, and how these

ideas can be implemented.

Make your campaign fun and vibrant and

try and brand all your materials with the

same colours and designs so it is easily

recognisable as your campaign.

You need a lot of support from friends,

house and course mates for really

successful campaign. The relationships

you have with your friends are so strong

afterwards, because you absolutely rely

on them not only to campaign and

advocate on your behalf, but also to

make sure you look after yourself during

election week. The most important factor

in getting elected is to make sure youre

organised; you must keep track of

expense, let your friends know ahead of

time when you need their help, print flyers,

run to lecture shout-outs and have the

time to meet and talk to students.

What it is like being an exec officer

Being an exec officer in LUU is such an

incredible opportunity to work for an

organisation that you believe is doing

some vital and integral work, whilst being

given the chance and support to

develop as a leader.

Its amazing, and I am immensely proud,

to be part of a strong and active student

movement at a time when too many

people are hoping to silence us.

This year, its become more apparent than

ever how important student unions are,

and its a privilege to work for the best

students union in the country.


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How it worksThe Race

All LUU elections are run on the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system. This

is a system which elects candidates on preference rather than the first past

the post. It allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference. For every

position voters are given the chance to Re-open Nominations (RON). They

would vote for RON if they were unhappy with the candidates available but

still wanted to engage in the voting process.

How does the Leadership

Race work?

To try and help you understand how this

works, the details of a previous years

Education Officer results are below.

There were six candidates running for one

seat: Helena, Vicky, Danny, Mark, Adam,

RON.

2,216 votes were cast for the position

of Education Officer and all 2,216 were

counted. STV allows someone to be

elected on the number of first preference

votes, but only if they meet a quota of

50%. For this election the quota was 1,108

votes. As none of the c andidates metthat quota the candidate with the least

number of #1 votes was eliminated. Once

a candidate is eliminated, the #2 votes

on their ballot papers are counted and

distributed among the other candidates.

This continues until a winner is elected.

The quota is reduced at each stage of

the election by the number of eliminated

ballots, which have no second preference

vote.

After five stages and four candidates

being eliminated Danny was the first to

reach the quota and was elected.

You can find more information about STV

voting on the Electoral Reform Society

website at: www.electoral-reform.org.uk/

article.php?id=48.

Voting

Voting in the Leadership Race takes place

exclusively online, meaning every internet

connected computer is a ballot station.

We additionally provide touch screen

ballot boxes to encourage voting on

campus.

The Returning Officer

The Board of Trustees appoints a Return-

ing Officer for each election. It is the job

of the Returning Officer (an independent

person from NUS) to oversee the

election to ensure that it is fair and open.

The Returning Officer will hold a

candidates meeting after the close of

nominations. This is to clarify the rules ofthe election, which will be distributed

to candidates at the meeting. Its the

Returning Officer who will hear any

complaints made during the election and

them who will decide the course of action

to be taken in response.

If a candidate expresses that they are

unhappy, please direct them to Steven

Dowson.

Stages of votingCandidate name 1 2 3 4 5

Quota 1 10 8 1 09 1. 5 1 02 1.5 9 52. 5 84 0.5

Helena 580 583 599 629 766

Vicky 414 415 427465

eliminated-

Danny 719 721 741 811915

elected

Mark 236 238265

eliminated

- -

Adam 222226

eliminated - - -

RON45

eliminated - - - -Ive loved being Activities Officer. Its fun, exciting, every day is different and you learn so

much in a short space of time. Being on the Exec is definitely a challenge, but the training

is massively helpful and the Union staff are great at giving you the support you need to

make your plans a reality.

Ill leave LUU with more confidence, a much better understanding of how an organisation

is run, much better employment prospects and many happy memories.

Tim Mortimer

Activities Officer, 2010 to 2011


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The Leadership Race 2011

If you have any questions about the

Leadership Race please contact:

Stephen Dowson, Democracy Coordinator

[email protected]

0113 380 1460

Or pop into the Campaigns and

Democracy Support Office on the first floor

of the Union building.

Leeds University Union is a registered

charity no. 1136742 and a company limited

by guarantee registered in England and

Wales no. 7284768.

union

LOVE

union

www.leedsuniversityunion.org/elections

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