Student-Led Projects: A set-up guide
Student Volunteer Centre Student Led Projects The University of Nottingham Students Union There is no better place than university to make a difference: the Students Union offer such amazing support, there is no excuse: if you want to see change, you can make it happen!. - Nicola Byrom, Founder of B-eat, a self-help group for people with eating disorders 2 www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/volunteering I m Catie... and I support Student-Led Projects. A Student-Led Project is something where a student (or students) come up with an idea that could improve the lives of other people. It could be a sports programme for deprived children, nostalgic film nights for older people or a healthy cooking club for local residents. Whether you want to just talk about your idea, find out which community groups you could work with, or you have a problem you can always come see me for a chat! This booklet has some great tips and honest accounts of what it s like to run a Student-Led Project. It also has a tick sheet at the back which will help you know what you need to do to get your project of the ground. www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/volunteering 3
Student Volunteer Centre Student Led Projects The University of Nottingham Students Union What is the Student Volunteer Centre? It s THE place to come if you want to get involved in the SU, societies, charities and much more. We re here to help you make the most out of your time at Uni. We all love sitting on the sofa, having a cup of tea and watching Hollyoaks but if you want to do something else too, then give us a shout! Why set up a Student Led Project? Why the heck not! Experience Anyone who sets up a Student-Led Project will be strides ahead of other students when it comes to applying for jobs. You ll gain experience in project management, managing people and seeing a project through from concept to implementation plus loads more! Passion If there s something you really care about then starting a Student-Led Project can mean that you can make a real difference to people s lives. Flexible You can choose when and how much time you want to spend on your project. Fun You ll meet loads of new people, not only the students who ll volunteer to help you but also people in the local community whether that s homeless people, children or refugees! Lasting Memories What will you remember from your time at uni? Hazy nights out? Making new best friends? How amazing would it be to also have memories of how you touched other people s lives? From giving recently bereaved children something to smile about at a kids party to cracking a joke over a games evening with an older person. How the SVC can help you: As a Student-Led Project you will have permission to book rooms for your meetings We can advertise in the Volunteer Newsletter to help you get volunteers (this goes out to over 5,000 students!) Free advertisement in the Volunteer Handbook, SU website and on the SU plasma screens Permission from the SU to have stalls in the Portland building and support in using the University grounds and buildings for events You don t need to charge your students a membership fee You can access training (on topics such as Motivating Volunteers, How To Manage Meetings, etc) Start-Up grant (up to a maximum of 150) Help finding other funding Reasonable transport expenses paid 10% discount at the SU Print Shop A bank account with the SU Treasury CRB (Criminal Record) checks for your volunteers Help to find contacts in the local community Office facilities (Computers, internet, phones etc) Headed paper / staff contact to show external organisations that your project is part of the Students Union You can get an optional STARS rating to grade your project Storage facilities 4 www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/volunteering www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/volunteering 5
Student Volunteer Centre Student Led Projects Getting your idea off the ground... So you ve got an idea that sounds great, but how do you know if it will actually be successful? Tips from other projects... The University of Nottingham Students Union Careful research, planning and an understanding of how you will evaluate your project will save you loads of time in the long run and give you the confidence to get started! Below is a simple diagram of B-eat s Project Plan: Evaluation Evaluation method = Group facilitators keep a record of numbers attending self help group Evaluation reveals = Rising numbers show that activities are successful See p10 for more info on this. Research Proof of need = National charity, B-eat, confirmed lack of support for people with eating disorders in Nottingham. Contacts = B-eat Planning Aims = Help students with eating disorders Objectives = Provide a safe place for people to share their feelings. Raise awareness of eating disorders Key activities = Fortnightly self help groups, an awareness event, a newsletter After living in halls with a girl who had an eating disorder Nicola realised there was little support available to students in Nottingham so set up a self help group. What was your best and worst experience? It s great to have left Nottingham knowing that a tiny spark of an idea I had during the boredom of first year exams, is now a very strong project in the hands of many capable volunteers. When you have ideas in mind about how to change the world, you can be quite idealistic about how things should be, you also might have a slightly warped perception of how important your project is... so every moment when someone else rejects your project or does not see it as that important is very painful. While establishing a SLP, this is likely to happen quite often. When things didn t go too well what kept you going? Determination: you know this all started because you wanted to make a difference. I knew there would be hurdles, you just have to keep pushing on! Keep yourself as widely connected as possible, so that if one support outlet can t help you or drops your ideas, you are not left stranded. i.e. I was working with the Students Union Welfare Officer, the Training Officer, the Student Volunteer Centre, Self Help Nottingham, Nightline, B-eat, the national self harm support network, the New Theatre and the University Mental Health support worker, to name just a few. The more contacts you make, the easier it is to keep going when something does not work. How much time did you spend on the project? I put in about 2-3 hours a week to keep the project going, but during bursts I could be spending days at a time working on this project. It was enormously time consuming but worth it. What have you learnt about managing volunteers? Get to know your volunteers well; I arranged for us to have supper etc. Perhaps go for coffee or drinks after your meetings: they are less likely to walk out of your project if they feel they are part of something. It is also really important that your volunteers feel like they own something; people are far more dedicated to something that is their own. It is not so easy to stay motivated when you are always just helping someone else achieve their ideas. 6 www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/volunteering www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/volunteering 7
Student Volunteer Centre Student Led Projects The University of Nottingham Students Union How many hours did you spend on the project each week? We started the project in 2004 back then I spent maybe 5 hours a week on it. By 2006 it had become 10-12 hours a week and from 2007, after I graduated, I made it a full time job to expand the project throughout the UK. Judith s passion for the environment motivated her to approach a local primary school to convince them to become more sustainable. Within a year Judith had helped the school achieve an Eco-School Bronze and Silver Award. What tips would you give someone starting up a Student- Led Project? Research the area you want to work in carefully: find out if there are national or local organisations that work in a similar line and get in contact. What was your best experience? My favourite part was working with the children and seeing them get excited about the project and seeing how proud they were to achieve the Bronze and Silver awards. What have you learnt about managing volunteers? I found that the best way to get volunteers to help with the project was to advertise activities in the Student Volunteer Centre Newsletter. Not everybody that showed an initial interest did finally get involved with the project though, so my advice would be to ask for a few more volunteers than you actually need. The more the merrier! I ve had some great volunteers help with the project and now that I ve graduated one of them has taken over supporting Trent Vale School. How has running a Student-Led Project benefited you personally? This project was relevant to my degree subject and so having run the project I can write about it on my CV and talk about it at job interviews. I really enjoyed getting involved with the project and I made some new friends as a result. Did you achieve what you set out to do? I think I definitely achieved what I set out to do, if not more. I didn t think that my school would have completed both the Bronze and Silver awards in a year! I m really pleased that the project is continuing next year even though I m leaving, and I hope the project can gradually be introduced to more schools. Any last advice? Don t be afraid to ask for help, the Student Volunteer Centre staff were great especially at the beginning of the year when the project was in its initial stages. They have lots of contacts and useful information that you might be able to use. Rob helped start a Student-Led Project at the University of Nottingham to recycle students text books by sending them to schools in Tanzania. Three years later the project won an award for Best New Charity 2007. What has been your best and worst experience? My best experiences have been going out to Tanzania to distribute the books, launching Read International as an official charity in the House of Commons, expanding the project beyond Nottingham Uni throughout the UK with 1,000 volunteers, turning it into a full time career and employing others! One of my worst experiences was getting air evacuated from Tanzania with a burst appendix. When things didn t go too well what kept you going? At points sheer determination and stubbornness kept me going because I was so determined to make what was a Student Led Project a national success story. But all the support of University volunteering staff, friends and family were a massive help. It s amazing how many resources there are out there which can help you. What have you learnt about managing volunteers? On the whole I think you learn that on a lot of occasions people won t do exactly what they say they ll do. You have to be realistic about where you set your standards and expectations so you re not always missing targets and being disappointed. The best way to manage volunteers, I find, is to set realistic but challenging targets, recognise and praise when these targets are hit, and offer support where the targets are not hit. How has running a Student-Led Project benefited you personally? A whole spectrum of experiences and skills have been gained. Confidence, management, public speaking, delegation, team work, planning, the list goes on! Did you achieve what you set out to do? We have far exceeded our expectations. The key is to learn from any mistakes you do make along the way. Everyone makes mistakes, and from these your project can grow and improve. What tips would you give to someone starting up a Student- Led Project? Do it. Don t be daunted, just take some risks and do it. It s too easy to find reasons, excuses, and justifications for why not to do it. When you do get it going always ask for help and support. There are so many groups / agencies out there that will help. 8 www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/volunteering www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/volunteering 9
Student-Led Project Form Name of Project: Name of Project Leaders: Email Address: Phone Number: Purpose of Project: Main Activities of Project:
The University of Nottingham Students Union For office use only. Please do not fill in. Date: Additional Information: Mission Statement To provide a diverse range of volunteering opportunities to enable students to learn new skills and enhance their personal development. SVC volunteers are informed, supported and active within the Students Union and wider community. To apply to become a Student-Led Project, please return this form to a member of staff in the Student Volunteer Centre. Thanks! www.su.nottingham.ac.uk/volunteering 15
Student Volunteer Centre, Students Union Portland Building, The University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD T: 0115 8468750 E: volunteering@nottingham.ac.uk Printed on recycled paper. This handbook is available in alternative formats on request.