The Big Meeting- or Annual General Meeting (AGM)- is an event run annually by the Student’s Union to allow students’ voices to be heard. Student’s can submit ideas, debate them, and vote to either add them to the SU’s constitution or reject them. The Big Meeting is the only opportunity per year to amend the constitution, and any vote which passes becomes SU policy for three years. The Big Meeting is an essential part of the Union’s democratic process and an important forum for students to discuss issues that matter to them. This year’s Big Meeting was held on the 20th of February from 6pm to 8pm in the SU Main Room, was attended by over one hundred students, and resulted in these important policy decisions:
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The Student’s Union should make the proposed changes to the constitution – Approved (For full list of changes: https://www.abersu.co.uk/pageassets/changeaber/thebigmeeting/Big-Meeting-Agenda-a nd-Ideas-for-website-update(1).pdf)
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Should AberSU appoint its Student Trustees (instead of electing them) and change the composition of Appointments Committee? – Rejected. Suggestion to bring back when work had been done on it. We hold our next Student Trustee elections during the Spring by-elections.
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Should the Union stop affiliating with NUS UK?– Rejected. We continue with the affiliation as before.
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Should the SU support the UCU in their current strike action?– Approved
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Should the Student’s Union trial a weekly Strength and Conditioning session run by an instructor for clubs to be able to make use of? – Approved
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Should the SU commit to the Green Impact Students’ Unions (GISU) programme and lobby the University to become more sustainable – Approved
Unfortunately, there was not enough time to discuss all of the proposals. The ideas which were not discussed will now become agenda at the next Senedd meeting, where it will be voted on by all of the SU Officers, both volunteer and full-time, two executive members of UMCA, and five representatives from both societies and sports clubs.
The following ideas will roll over to our next Senedd on April 24th:
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Should the Union hold an annual SHAG Week?
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Should the University and AberSU suspend their banking with fossil fuel investment banks and switch to a more ethical, green bank instead?
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Should AberSU reduce the number of Faculty Officers?