The Bournemouth & Poole College is the first further education college to receive a ‘good’ grading for its Students’ Union following a Quality Assessment Review carried out by the National Union of Students (NUS).
As part of a two-day assessment, a representative from NUS and an independent assessor visited The Bournemouth & Poole College Students’ Union (BPCSU) to review 12 elements including leadership, engagement, services and governance. The Quality Assessment team took time to meet with BPCSU staff, managers, and students before coming to the decision to award BPCSU with a ‘good’ Quality Students' Union status.
Following the visit a report was compiled which listed a number of BPCSU’s strengths, these included: ‘The diversity and the quality of the work undertaken can be compared very favourably with that of many far larger unions. BPCSU is clearly an integral part of student life and is highly valued by The College. There is also a very strong sense that ‘student voice’ is a fundamental aspect of continuous improvement and it was noted that yearly development was linked to student feedback, with students holding positions on The College Board of Governors.’
Assessors from NUS also stated that they could ‘see evidence where the SU had undertaken student surveys and held Student Voice Meetings to further contribute towards the development of the services that it provides’.
BPCSU also received national recognition when they attended the NUS Awards 2017 at the NEC Birmingham, and won two awards out of a total six categories. More than 144 applicants entered the Awards from all over the country and BPCSU was announced the winner of the Student Opportunities Award and the Education Award.
Lloyd Perry, student services manager at The Bournemouth & Poole College, said: ‘‘I am so proud of what BPCSU has achieved so far this year, with the support of the SU staff team. I am grateful for their continued hard work. Having been established for more than 40 years, the SU has built a reputation of providing a strong service to our students and is committed to ensuring thousands of students at The College are given a voice on important matters.
‘‘BPCSU’s recent award wins and NUS accreditation reaffirms that we have developed the SU into a high-quality service which continues to offer a broad spectrum of benefits to students. The SU is just one of the many reasons to choose to study at The College because as students enrol onto a course, they automatically have full access to all of the SU’s facilities.’’
If you would like to find out more information about BPCSU please visit www.studentfirst.org.uk or call 01202 205737.
