Student Action
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Student Action is part of the Students’ Union and was set up in the 1960s by hairy students in flares in the hope of adding something more to the university experience by involving students in voluntary projects in the local community. They run a variety of different projects, and have the contact information to refer you to many more. As well as on-going projects, they also organise larger, one-off events which everybody can get involved in.
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[edit] Projects
These are the projects that are actually run by Student Action - there are many more voluntary projects around York that we can direct you to.
All Student Action volunteers need to have a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check. This isn't as scary as it sounds, it just searches for any convictions that would affect your abaility to work with children or vulnerable adults. Student Action does not discriminate on the basis of unrelated criminal convictions.
[edit] Kids' Camp
This is Student Action's biggest and longest-running project. Student volunteers take up to twenty five children from the local area on holiday for a week to Staithes, near Whitby. All these children are aged between eight and eleven, and are classed by social workers as "desperately in need of a break". This may be because they have suffered abuse, because they are young carers, or because they come from extremely underpriveliged backgrounds. On camp they get the opportunity to have fun and act like kids in a safe environment, whilst enjoying loads of different activities, such as ice skating, bowling, going to the beach, and Flamingo Land. Run during the Easter and summer holidays, Kids' Camp is an invaluable experience for both kids and volunteers. And the best bit is, it's all free!
For more information, contact Joey on studentdevelopment@yusu.org
[edit] Kids' Club
This is a smaller scale version of Kids' Camp that runs every Saturday of term. The kids fit the same criteria as those who go on camp, and often a kid who has enjoyed camp will carry on and take part in Kids' Club. We take a group of around six volunteers and six kids off in the minibus to enjoy various different activities - anything from bowling to trips to the beach.
- Project co-ordinators: Susie Plummer and Suzanne Bell
- Contact: kidsclub@yusu.org
[edit] Tea and Coffee Club
This is a great way to work with York's elderly community. Volunteers sit and chat for an hour with senior citizens, most of whom have either lost their partner or simply don't leave the house very much. This is a very easy project to get involved with - all you have to do is turn up, drink some tea, play a bit of bingo, and, most importantly, have a good old chat. Tea and Coffee Club takes place on Tuesdays in Derwent JCR, with the morning session at 11.15 and the afternoon one at 2.30.
- Project co-ordinator: Suzie Heap
- Contact: teaandcoffee@yusu.org
[edit] Lamel Beeches
This is a local residential home for elderly people who are unable to live by themselves. Volunteers work in pairs, and each pair is assigned to a resident, who they visit every week and play cards, scrabble, or even surf the net!
- Project co-ordinators: Kasha Sikora-Sikorski and Pranjal Shroti
- Contact: lamel@yusu.org
[edit] MEG
Music Education Group (MEG) is a part of the university music department, although you don't need any real musical skill to take part. We run all kinds of different music workshops for children, including the Grade One-athon, where both students and kids are sponsored to learn an instrument to Grade One standard, in order to raise money for Jessie's Fund.
[edit] KEEN
A weekly-run sports session for children with disabilities. Volunteers pair up with a child and help out with activities, such as trampolining and dancing.
- Project co-ordinators: Ben Wilcock and Verity Calder
- Contact: bpw501@york.ac.uk
[edit] Ebor Tape
A new project in the form of a talking newspaper distributing a couple of times a term to the blind and visually impaired. This project used to run in the 80s and was really popular, including a soap opera, music, news reviews, interviews, and assessing accessibility of major towns for the listeners. It went out to over 600 people all over Europe as well as a few further a field in Canada!
- Project co-ordinator: Kendal Moran
- Contact: km517@york.ac.uk
[edit] College Challenges
Each college JCRC has one or more Student Action reps. It is their job to organise College Challenges once a term. These can range from painting a church hall in Fulford to stewarding a large scale event like York Proms. The main aim of College Challenges is to include as many people from the college as possible - they're perfect if you want to get involved but don't want to commit to a regular project.
Your college reps for 2006/07 are:
- Alcuin: Clare Jones and Rachel Blythman saalcuin@yusu.org
- Derwent: Raeesa Chowdhury and Kirsty Stenhouse saderwent@yusu.org
- Goodricke: Hannah Headden, Anna Bevan, Rachel Thompson and Kirsty Costello sagooodricke@yusu.org
- Halifax: Kasha Sikora-Sikorski and Pranjal Shroti sahalifax@yusu.org
- James: Gizem Ozkaynak sajames@yusu.org
- Langwith: Dishant Mahendru salangwith@yusu.org
- Vanbrugh: Hannah Jones savanbrugh@yusu.org
[edit] Food Collection
At the end of each term, your friendly college reps go round all the kitchens on campus and collect any spare tins and packets that you have left, and take them to the Arclight homeless shelter in town. We also take unwanted clothes and bric-a-brac - perfect if you're moving out! If you don't live on campus, you can bring anything you want to donate and leave it in the SU.
[edit] Student Action Week
Student Action Week takes place once a year to raise awareness of all the projects that we run. Last year, different courses were run during the day, including First Aid, sign language and child protection training. There was also a volunteering fair which gave people the opportunity to sign up for loads of voluntary projects. On Monday night, we took over Goodricke bar quiz, and on Wednesday, we hit Ziggys en masse after a Superheroes and Do-gooders-themed bar crawl. The week ended with a massive MEG event - "One Night on Broadway". Volunteers went into local schools and taught groups of children dance routines to songs from various musicals, which all came together, with a little help from some music students, to make a great show.
Student Action Week 2007 is taking place in Week 5 of the autumn term.
[edit] The Committee
The committee are responsible for co-ordinating everything that Student Action does. Elections take place in the summer term if you want to get involved.
The committee for 2007/08 are:
- Chair: Adam Wiles studentaction@yusu.org
- Vice-Chair: Susie Plummer savice@yusu.org
- Treasurer: Natalia Alexander satreasurer@yusu.org
- Secretary: Liz Woollard sasecretary@yusu.org
- Press and Publicity: Anna Would and Jenny Birkinshaw
- One-off projects co-ordinators: Kendal Moran and Kirsty Costello saoneoff@yusu.org
- Student Action Week co-ordinators: Ioanna Garbola and Liz Wollard saweek@yusu.org
- Ents: Derfogail Delcassian saents@yusu.org
- Kids' Camp co-ordinator: Susie Plummer
- Internation Volunteering co-ordinators: Jo Fischl and Carla Randell sainternational@yusu.org
- Merchandise Officer: Jenny Preston
- Ordinary members: Hannah Bellenger saordinary@yusu.org
- Student Development and Charities Officer: Joey Ellis studentdevelopment@yusu.org
