Interview by Elena Conroy Garcia
Welfare is a broad brief. What specific issue (mental health, housing, financial hardship, accessibility, etc) would you prioritise, and why?
“I really care about all the things you’ve said, and I have plans for all of them, but my focus would be mental health. I think that we need to better the [counselling] system. I know from when I was in it a few years ago that there is a massive waiting list and that it’s hard to get through. The maximum number of sessions has also gone down since the last time I’ve been there. An increase in need has resulted in a decrease of resources for people which I think is ridiculous. How can we expect students to try do their degree to the best of their ability when they’re not able to go about their day to day lives when they don’t have the help they need.”
How will you ensure marginalised students (including disabled students, LGBTQ+ students, and students from minority backgrounds) are not just consulted, but actually represented?
“I will like them to come to me because obviously I cannot identify with all of those. I am disabled; I have depression I have ADHD and I am queer. I’m not an ethnic minority so there is nothing I can do from my personal experience. I want to know how they feel I want people to come to me and tell me what they are experiencing I want to bring that to the meetings.
“I want to bring awareness to it; I want to find resources from them that will help their specific experiences. I personally don’t experience what they would, but I want to find people that can help them. I think there are so many issues that can be brought up to the SU and the college. There is such awareness that can be brought up that just isn’t being highlighted. You can listen to people talk all you want but you must find do stuff, you must find things for them and that’s what I think the officer should be doing. They should be actively going out and looking for the help that they can’t give themselves.”
What would you do if the university fails to act on welfare concerns raised by students?
“I have been described multiple times as very determined and persistent. I stand my ground on things, I dig my heels in, I don’t back down. If they fail to come through, I will come back fighting again and I will not stop fighting until what’s needed is done. I am a very hard person to get to back down especially when I care about something. When I believe in something i stand my ground. If they fail us, I will go back at them again until they do right, until they stop failing us, until they do what they should be doing in the first place.”
How will you measure whether welfare initiatives are actually working, rather than just looking good on paper?
“I don’t really care how they look on paper I care that they are working. I will put my feet on the ground I want to be there to see how they’re working, I want to get feedback from the people that they are targeted towards. If there is something aimed for an ethnic minority or someone in the LGBTQ community or someone that’s disabled, I want to know that these initiatives are working. I want feedback, I want their ideas from the get-go, I want them on the ground floor too. If it’s something that I don’t relate to personally I want other people’s opinions. I want to know how to make these initiatives for the people in a way that benefits them.”
What is one policy change you believe would have the biggest immediate impact on student wellbeing?
“The counselling. We need to fix the counselling. I think it’s ridiculous to have people go through life without the help that they need. Students can’t afford to go to external counselling or therapy. I know I can’t, I’m an independent student I must work for everything that I have, I must pay my own rent, my own bills. I know I can’t afford to go to external therapy or counselling. I struggled in college because of my mental health and I think it’s ridiculous to have people go about their day with the little money they have when they can’t get the help they deserve.”
