Category: Uncategorized

Destination Bristol

Posted on by emily-may.roberts

Destination Bristol 

Head down to Royal Fort Gardens on 19 to 21 September for Destination Bristol. All student support services will be there to provide assistance and answer your questions.

Disability

Find out what disability support is available, how to access tutoring and mentoring support and join a raffle for a chance to win a prize.

Careers

What volunteering opportunities are available for you on your career journey? Get some advice from other first-year students and have a go at hook-a-duck.

Library

Find your ‘home library’ and your subject librarian. Don’t forget to pick up your library top trump card!

The Law Library

Study Skills

How can your skills be developed while at University? Take the quiz and find out how you study.

Security

Security, Personal Safety and Crime Prevention advice.

Wellbeing

Learn about NHS Talking Therapies [Vita Minds], Stand Against Racism and Equality and how to report assault with The Bridge. Get some advice from sexual health service Terrence Higgins Trust and Brook. Pick up some freebies while you’re there!

Global Lounge

Global lounge offers dedicated support to our international students. Meet our Global Lounge ambassadors and talk to banks HSBC and Lloyds about your finances.

Language Café

Sport, Exercise and Health

Discover your options for healthy lifestyles while at Uni, sign up for a gym memberships and play table tennis!

Sustainability

Find out how you can travel sustainably, learn about our cycle maintenance sessions and talk to Bristol Waste about recycling and how to deal with bins.

Student Inclusion

Find out about peer support, mature students support, and support for minoritized groups.

Student Union

See what’s on in Welcome Week and buy your tickets for their welcome events. Hit up the Student Union shop for all your University merch needs.

Student Union Bar

Papyrus

Papyrus promotes positive mental health and emotional wellbeing in young people. See what 24/7 support is available to you, fill out the survey and pick up some freebies.

PGR Hub

Research students can find out about the Bristol Doctoral College and PGR Hub.

Student Comms

Come and meet the Student Comms Team and get a say in how you receive your information. Get on camera and answer some questions for a chance to be on the current students Instagram page and maybe win a prize!

Tips on reducing your plastic waste

Posted on by yl22363

Swap disposable plastic bottles/coffee cups for re-usable

Café Nero, Costa, and Starbucks all have offers when you get your coffee in a re-usable cup, so instead of adding to the 2.5 billion disposable coffee cups that are thrown away each year (estimated by Costa), save money by taking your own!

Save yourself that £1.50 for a plastic bottle of water, and invest in a steel water bottle. It keeps your water cool throughout the day, and you can fill up at home, in your local coffee shop, or at one of the University’s water fountains around campus, for free! Find your nearest campus water fountain here.

 

Take your own bags to the shops

Did you know that bags for life use up to three times more plastic than single use carrier bags? They’re also sturdier, making them much more detrimental when getting into natural environments. Make sure you’re getting the most of your bags for life, remember to take them to the shops with you and avoid buying more than you need. Or, take your backpack with you to shop, or any other bags that you use in your day to day life to avoid the plastic option completely!

 

Say no to plastic cutlery when you order in

Plastic straws, forks spoons, are included in many fast food options, and many can’t be recycled. However, most places on Deliveroo or UberEats let you choose whether or not they include plastic cutlery. Whenever you’re able, make sure you’re saying no to these single-use plastic items.

 

Cling film can’t be recycled, but tinfoil can!

Clingfilm is made from polyvinylidene chloride (PVC) and does not degrade. Manufacturing PVC releases dioxins that is toxic to humans. Swap out cling film for tinfoil, which (once clean) can be recycled! Even better, use reusable lunch boxes or beeswax wraps. Either way, make sure you’re avoiding clingfilm wherever you can.

 

Ditch the glitter

Glitter is made from aluminium or plastic coated in paint or metal and it’s everywhere. You can find glitter in body lotions, bath bombs, eyeshadows, and generally all over the beauty industry. Glitter is made of microplastics and microplastics never dissipate. It wreaks havoc on biodiversity and marine life.

 

Did you know there’s no limit on how long it takes a product to break down when it’s labelled ‘biodegradable’? Or that some biodegradable material require specialist treatment in order to do so? That means even when products like glitter are labelled such, it doesn’t guarantee that the product is eco-friendly. By the time some biodegradable plastics have broken down, they’ve already caused harm to the environment.

Some eco-friendly glitter alternatives are coloured sand, salt, coloured rice, certain face paints, sugar, and crushed glass. Of course not all of these can be used cosmetically, but options like glass can work great for craft projects.

 

Controlling waste at the University

Did you know that less than 5% of the University’s overall waste ends up in landfill? This is because the University is committed to maximising reuse, recycling as much as possible, and reducing the amount of waste produced.

 See more on the University’s sustainability efforts here.

 

Spring is upon us

Posted on by Dan Cragg

By Amy Salmon, Philosophy and Politics student.

Spring is finally here! I think it’s fair to say that we are all looking forward to the lighter nights. Leaving lectures at 5 pm to find that it is already pitch-black for the walk home is certainly a bleak part of the winter term. And the lighter mornings will be welcomed too, making those 9 am classes a little more bearable. The days have been getting longer since December but after March 20th we will have more hours of daylight than of darkness every day. Now that’s something to look forward to.

The spring equinox marks the official start of spring in the northern hemisphere and 20 March marks that point this year. So, what is the equinox? Well, roughly translated, it means equal nights so on this particular night all countries around the world will have nearly equal hours of day and night. It is also one of only two times in the year that the sun will rise due east and set due west for everyone in the world. So, it is one of very few times in the year when we can feel connected to the other side of the world. And, of course, it kicks off the season of spring.

So, what is so great about spring?

As a March baby I pride myself on being born in the spring. It seems, to me, the most perfect time of year. None of the pressure for scorching temperatures that the summer months have but a tenfold improvement from the icy cold and dark days of the winter. The increased daylight encourages more birds to sing and, of course, spring brings us special occasions including Easter and Passover. In Scotland, where I am from, we have an Easter tradition that is perhaps a little different to the usual Easter egg hunt. We decorate boiled eggs in the most elaborate way that an egg can even be decorated and then go egg rolling. This is a game which simply involves rolling your egg down the hill and hoping that it will get to the bottom first. Though trivial it has brought mountains of fun for my brother and I.

Moving away from modern-day traditions, there is an ancient tradition that exists in Chichen Itza in Mexico whereby the spring equinox is known as the return of the sun serpent. The Mayans built a huge pyramid in 10000 AD that signalled the start of the seasons by the way the light landed on it. On the spring equinox, when the light touches the pyramid, it looks like a snake slithering down the steps. This phenomenon is as old as they come and it is certainly a spectacle.

So, all in all, spring is definitely something to be excited about and the spring equinox perfectly brings in the light nights and brighter days.

 

International Mentoring Day

Posted on by tom.cooper

Tuesday 17 January is International Mentoring Day. To celebrate, we wanted to remind you of the great Peer Mentoring programme available to students at UoB.

What is a Peer Mentor?

Peer Mentors are students with a bit of experience of the University and of Bristol. They are usually in their second or third years and can give guidance to our new students, who might still be learning their way around the city and University. Where possible, we aim to match new students to mentors studying a similar subject to them. However, you may choose to be matched based on a protected characteristic; this could be:

  • LGBTQ+ identity
  • Faith, ethnic or cultural background
  • Care leaver or estranged student status
  • Mature student status.

How can a Peer Mentor help me?

Mature students chatting over coffee

Peer Mentors can help point you to services and support if and when you need it. They can also help with practical advice, such as:

• What to bring to university
• Local amenities and attractions
• Help finding societies and events
• Meeting for a chat
• Giving you a campus tour.

What can being a Peer Mentor do for me?

Being a Peer Mentor can help with:

• Training & skills development
• Influential reference for future employment
• Work experience which can count towards the Bristol PLUS award
• Increased confidence and self esteem.

Feedback from 2021/22 showed that students who had been peer mentored felt more settled at university. 78.3% felt the programme had Improved their student experience and 73.9% felt more confident at university!

Thoughts from current Peer Mentors

‘University is a scary, exciting and new time. Having someone kind to guide you through it can make a huge difference.’ – Leanne Price, Senior Peer Mentor

‘Peer Mentors offer amazing support to new students. Mentors understand that starting university can be a daunting experience, and thus, ensure that they pass on their knowledge and experience, making it much easier to settle in. They are also always available to listen to any issues, and will provide suitable advice, either directly, or by signposting to other support services.’ – Current Senior Peer Mentor

Do check out the programme if you’re interested in finding out more.

Bringing ‘home’ to Bristol…

Posted on by Roz Okatan

It’s nearly the end of term – and we hope you have had a good one!

Many of you will soon be leaving Bristol to see family and friends, but when you return will it feel like you are coming home? And if you are staying in Bristol, does that mean Bristol is already home to you, or will you be wishing you were somewhere else… maybe somewhere warmer?

We asked our student champions Josh and Lottie about what they’ve done to make Bristol feel like home. For Lottie creating a playlist was the key to comfort, and for Josh it was about making his room a place to relax in.

Josh:

To make my uni room feel more homely, I like to bring plenty of stuff from home to decorate with (and sometimes I go a bit overboard). I have photos plastered all over my walls (using blue tack alternatives to not stain the walls of course), and my shelves are chocked full of books, plants, and Lego.

 

 

Lottie:

Music really helped me transition to university at the beginning of first year. Before moving into my accommodation in September, I spent some time putting some playlists together so that I could carry a bit of home with me wherever I went.

My dad always plays music when we have a family meal together on a Saturday night and he has a very specific taste! I created a playlist with all of his favourite songs, mostly consisting of music from the 70s and 80s, and whenever I listen to it, it brings me comfort because I’m reminded of my family and all of our great memories together.

I really recommend doing this because you can listen to the playlist whenever you want: in the library, on the way to lectures or at night before bed!

 

Let us know what “home” means to you by sending in your pictures and stories to student-comms@bristol.ac.uk.

In the meantime, we hope you have a happy and healthy winter break. If you’re staying in Bristol for the holidays, remember that the Residential Life team is running daily events, open to ALL students. And while the University is officially closed between Friday 23 December and Wednesday 4 January, you can still access some services if you need them. You can also request wellbeing support during this time if you need to do so.

With the very best festive wishes from the Student Comms team. We look forward to hearing from you in 2023!

 

A bit of winter baking anyone?

Posted on by Tyesha

Mince pies are a festive favourite for many and are super simple to make.

Ingredients:

200g plain flour

100g butter or dairy free alternative

1 medium egg

1 jar of mincemeat

Icing sugar for dusting

Recipe

  1. Preheat the oven to 200C/190C Fan/Gas 6.

  2. Rub the butter into the flour until the mixture is a bit crumbly.

  3. Mix in a beaten egg yolk and until it forms soft dough. Wrap in cling film or put it into a plastic bag and chill for 20–30 minutes.

  4. Roll out the pastry to a thickness of 2–3mm and cut out about small rounds with a pastry cutter.

  5. Place in lightly greased bun tins and spoon the mincemeat evenly into the pies.

  6. Re-roll the leftover pastry and cut out round lids, stars, stripes or other festive shapes to fit on top of the mincemeat.

  7. Lightly brush the pastry tops with the beaten egg and bake in the oven for 12–15 minutes until golden.

  8. Leave to cool and then enjoy!

You said, we listened…

Posted on by Tyesha

Back in July we asked students minority ethnic students what content they would like to see in their newsletter. Here is what they told us.

Over 85% of you said that you like seeing a list of events

So we are including more events, both on campus and in the wider city that would be of interest to students from minority ethnic groups. Because of the cost of living we are going to only be sharing free events or those with a maximum of £10.

73% of you enjoy finding out about research that is happening at the University

So we are reaching out to academics from different faculties to see if they have any research they would like to share or signpost to.

All of you said that you wanted to be made aware of paid opportunities

man with dark hair using a computer

With the continuing cost of living crisis we are going to be speaking with the Careers Service to find out what support, roles and training are available.

You had great suggestions for content contributions

There were many great suggestions for additions to the newsletter from more information about financial support, particularly for Widening Participation students, to videos of events.

We want to highlight student creativity and passion. Are you a blogger? Photographer? Aspiring filmmaker? Baker? If so, the student comms mailbox is always open, please get in touch so we can share and celebrate your talents.

Bristol Students’ Union is home to over 350 societies, clubs and networks and we’d like to use the newsletter to learn more about them. So, starting in the New Year we are going to feature a society spotlight with each newsletter focusing on a different society and what they do.

We are also going to make a conscious effort to share student and staff successes, as we all need to celebrate the wins when we get them.

We asked you if you liked the name BAME Newsletter

It was a resounding no. Now after two rounds of surveys we finally have a winning name. Going forward the BAME Newsletter will be called Horizons Newsletter.

Banner for Horizons newsletter

Thank you to all of you who took the time to fill out the surveys, it is greatly appreciated.

Meet Rebecca Scott, founder of the UoB BAME Staff Network

Posted on by tom.cooper
Rebecca Scott MBE

We spoke with Rebecca Scott MBE – cofounder of the BAME Staff Network and Employability and Opportunity Manager at the University, to talk about the Network and Black History Month

 

 

 

Can you tell us a bit about the founding of the BAME Staff Network?

We didn’t have a network to represent the racially and minoritized groups within the University. So Nishan Canagarajah and Tracy Brunnock popped out a call in the Staff Bulletin, asking for people to come and discuss the opportunities of having a network.

Nishan was the chair of a Race Task Force that had come into place in 2017 after some awful incidents. In one, two of our students were walking and some of our other students walking behind them decided to make monkey noises. This was reported to the police. It made the national news, and the race task force was set up.

Michelle Alexis, who has now moved on, and I were asked if we would like to be the Co-chairs of this new group and have the pleasure of getting it off the ground.

The Network now has 144 current members.

What are some of the initiatives the Network has been involved in?

We aimed to collect information around how people felt as an employee working at the University, look at recruitment and staff progression, representation, or lack of it. That led to the work around diversifying our workforce and looking at positive action initiatives that target racially minoritized groups, particularly those from Black African or Caribbean backgrounds who are underrepresented across the University.

Has the University made enough progress with diversification?

I have some great colleagues and some days and I think we’re making progress, on other days, and I wander around our campus and get scowled at by people that perhaps think I shouldn’t be there. Then you think, no, we haven’t made any progress.

Until our workforce reflects our City we still have lots of work to do.

I have experienced living in a very discriminative society. It’s important to consider how you bring in structures and systems in the workplace to reduce and prevent against discrimination that in turn increases areas of disparity.

What are some of the challenges the Network has faced?

Being Black, or an ethnic minority at the University is quite challenging. But it’s not just being Black at the University that is a challenge, it’s existing as a Black person in our society.

Black History Month is an example of that. Black people are often asked to do work for free, to educate others about traumatic periods of time, such as our enslavement, that are a very small part of our history, even if it was a large part of White British History.

It would be great to focus on a more diverse Black History Month that informs, promotes and shares our positive legacy and history?

The University recently posthumously recognised Roy Hackett with an honorary doctorate. Does the University have plans to honour any of the other people that took part in the Bristol bus boycott?

I’m not actually directly involved with the nomination process. I have had the pleasure of working with Lawrence Hoo, who is getting honorary doctorate in November. Whilst a lot of people know him as a poet and a Black history educator and founder of CARGO Classroom, he was the driving force that got the law changed to prevent having accommodation housing sex offenders within a certain distance of places that provide childcare. This was a result of a paedophile hostel right next to the door to the nursery on Brigstock Road in Saint Pauls.

At present, nominations have to come from a University member of staff. It would be great if we can encourage the public to work with the University staff to make a nomination? I think it would be a great way for staff to get to know different communities.

How do you feel about the University’s plans to change the names of some of its buildings?

Wills Memorial Building

I’ve been speaking to younger members of the City about this, but I’ve approached it in terms of “You’re a board member and this is the decision you’ve got to make. Here are some people’s views, you’ve got to decide where it’s best to spend your money.”

We are often not considered as an employer or place to study so many said they’d rather that any available funding is used towards the scholarship fund and give out more scholarships or for employment related support. They don’t care what the building’s going to be called if they haven’t or can’t go in it.

Some of us are quite traditionally academic and enjoy an academic debate or other discussion, but is this the best use of limited money and resources? Our future customers and workforce have different interests and priorities and I feel it is important that their voices are key in making our decision.

Huge thanks to Rebecca for sharing these insights into the BAME Staff Network. Please contact student-comms@bristol.ac.uk if you have a story you would like to share on this blog for Black History Month, and beyond…!

Note: The BAME Network will be renamed over the coming year to adopt a more neutral term that will reference all the ethnic minority groups.

Meet Jordan, undergraduate Advocate for the Be More Empowered (BME) for Success programme

Posted on by Roz Okatan

This week we catch up with Jordan, an Advocate for the Be More Empowered (BME) for Success programme for undergraduates. Jordan is currently studying Engineering Mathematics, but has many more interests besides his degree. Read on to hear more…

 

 

 

Highlight of being an advocate so far:

The best part of being an advocate has to be seeing the impact we make on students, especially with the return of in-person events last year! Seeing so many people turn up to and take value from our ADHD workshop and the open Iftar, for example, were great reminders that the work we do is valued and necessary to help make students feel like they belong on campus. I’m hoping to really double down on that this year and provide more chances for students to get involved with in-person activities!

Goal for end of 2022-23:

By the end of this academic year, I would love for the BME Success Programme to have a well-defined set of digital material, from high-quality social media posts to (hopefully?) a video which highlights the work we’ve done over the years as advocates! Personally, I’d also like to have learned a few songs on my guitar. I’ve owned a guitar for a good 5 years now but have always shied away from picking it up and actually learning how to play anything, so here’s to adding “amateur guitarist” to my repertoire of “somewhat” useful skills.

 

What leadership means to you:

Leadership to me is more of an action than a status or title. I’m a huge football fan, so seeing my favourite players influencing the game, both on and off the pitch, taught me a lot about how I can be a leader in my own community and about what skills and qualities would help me achieve that! Firstly, it helped me acknowledge the differences between a leader (e.g. the captain) and a manager. A leader cares about their team and how they can extract the best out of everyone, vs a manager whose job is to make sure everyone fulfils their role and works towards a goal. Secondly, being true to your values in everything you do is important when maintaining integrity. Someone who demonstrates good leadership skills should act with integrity as that gives others the chance to understand their motives and intentions, thus enabling them to get behind or not.

 

Person who has most inspired you:
I look up to many people in the entrepreneurship and tech spaces, but Marques Brownlee, the mastermind behind MKBHD, is someone whose path I particularly admire. For someone to make videos for fun while graduating from university and becoming a pro athlete, before effectively becoming the face of tech on YouTube, is quite exceptional – especially as a black man living in America!

Favourite meal:

Nothing beats a good curry goat with rice and peas!

 

Book/film recommendation:

I really enjoyed the movie Rocks, but I can’t recommend the book How to Win Friends and Influence people by Dale Carnegie enough!

 

Favourite place in Bristol:

Pitch 17 on the downs has a special place in my heart (UTFB), but I’m a big fan of Ashton Court Estate, especially in the summer, where you can catch some deer, great views and a local car boot sale on Sundays!

Huge thanks to Justin for sharing these insights into his experience of the programme, and some of his preferences. Please contact student-comms@bristol.ac.uk if you have a story you would like to share on this blog for Black History Month, and beyond…!

Meet Nathan, Postgraduate Research Advocate for the Be More Empowered (BME) for Success programme

Posted on by Roz Okatan

This week we get to know a bit more about Nathan who is one of the first five PGR Advocates for the Be More Empowered (BME) for Success programme. This initiative is run by the Bristol Doctoral College and aims to support an increased sense of belonging and connection among Black, Asian and ethnic minority student PGRs in the University. A similar scheme is run for undergraduates by the Student Inclusion Team.

Highlight of being an advocate so far:

My highlight has been working with a group of incredible people! I am grateful for their consistent support over the past year and the opportunity this position has provided in making connections across the university.

Goal (in reference to the programme) for end of 2022-23:

My goal as an advocate this year is to create a consistent and established support network for BAME PGRs. I hope to achieve this by creating safe social spaces and providing supportive workshops which encourage empowerment in academia for this community of postgraduate researchers.

Top leadership skill gained/developed:

I’ve enjoyed being a person who can listen and I have developed a skill for making people comfortable with openly expressing their feelings and thoughts. I believe that being heard has been a powerful method of peer support for BAME PGRs and has empowered those who have attended our events.

 

Favourite meal:

Anything from Trinidad, but a favourite would have to be saltfish and fried bakes!

Favourite place in Bristol:

My favourite place in Bristol is Stokes Croft. I think that Gloucester Road has some of the best food places in Bristol and it also reminds me a bit of home (London).

 

 

Book/film recommendation:

My favourite book at the moment is Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson. I really enjoyed the story, which explores themes such as belonging, vulnerability and mental health, and how the writing immerses you in the character’s thoughts.

 

Person who has most inspired you:

Both of my parents have, and continue to inspire me most in my life. I try to have the same courage and determination in everything I do and hope to make them proud!

 

Huge thanks to Nathan for sharing these insights into his experience of the programme, and some of his preferences! Please contact student-comms@bristol.ac.uk if you have a story you would like to share on this blog for Black History Month, and beyond…!