Council Dates and Info

Union Council Dates 2023-2024

We usually have 7 meetings a year to give you as many opportunities to make change, however these dates are subject to change. This year, there will be a total of 7 Union Council meetings which will all be held in a hybrid capacity. We encourage students to attend in person but you can also join via Microsoft Teams. The meetings will be held in the Lecture Theatres. Each meeting will be a calendar invite with an attached Microsoft Teams link. You will also revieve the meeting agenda in plenty of time. Union Council is always held on a Thursday at 5pm. The dates of this years meetings are: 

October 12th 2023- Lecture Theatre 3 

November 23rd 2023- Lecture Theatre 3

December 14th 2023- Lecture Theatre 3

February 22nd 2024- Lecture Theatre 3 

March 21st 2024- The LCR 

April 25th 2024- Lecture Theatre 3 

May 23rd 2024- Lecture Theatre 3 

TRAINING

All Union Councillors are required to attend training. This year training will be held on:

• Wednesday, October 4th at 5pm - Lecture Theatre 4 
• Thursday, October 5th at 12pm - Lecture Theatre 3
• Thursday, October 5th at 5pm - Lecture Theatre 3

All Councillors will recieve a meeting invitation to their UEA email address. You only need to attend one of these sessions.

Upcoming Elections in Union Council

At the first Union Council of the year, you will elect: 

CHAIR AND DEPUTY CHAIR OF UNION COUNCIL

The Council Chair is a vital role within uea(su) - ensuring that Union Council is an effective and representative body that speaks up for UEA students on the pressing matters of the day. The chair has the responsibility of running the meeting from the introduction, to overseeing the agenda throughout the meeting. 

Bye-laws regarding the Chair of Union Council are:

• 1.11.1 - the Chair, who shall only have a tie breaking vote, and whose sole duties and powers shall be to chair the Meetings of Council and General Meetings and prepare, in conjunction with the Chief of Staff, the agenda for such meetings;
• 2.2 - A speaker shall always address the Chair, who shall remain impartial. No-one may speak whilst the Chair is speaking.
• 2.3 - A Chair and Deputy Chair for the meeting shall be elected by the voting representatives in attendance at the first meeting of the academic year, subject to clauses 81 to 82 of the Articles of Association. In their absence the meeting can elect its own Chair, who must be an Ordinary member of the Union, subject to Clauses 81 and 82 of the Articles of Association.
• 2.4 - Subject only to a challenge, as provided in this Bye Law, the Chair's ruling on any question shall be final.
• 2.5 - The Chair shall ensure that the meeting is in order and that remarks are relevant to the question under debate.
• 2.6 - If any member causes a disturbance the Chair may record the offender's name in the minutes. If that member persists they shall be expelled from that meeting, and may not return until an apology satisfactory to the meeting has been given in writing.

Democratic Procedure Committee (8 places)

The Democratic Procedures Committee shall consist of the Campaigns and Democracy Officer, the Chair of Union Council and eight individual Members (at least three of which must self-define as women or non-binary) who shall be elected for a one-year term by Union Council. All current members of the Union will be able to stand at the close of nominations save for Full Time Officers and Trustees. Elections will take place at the first Union Council of the year. Expressions of interest should be sent to union.council@uea.ac.uk. 

The Democratic Procedures Committee shall: 

• meet before every Union Council
• be responsible for development of and promotion of the Union’s democratic procedures, with particular reference to elections and Union Council
• advise on and develop the union’s Articles of Association and Bye-Laws
• structure and run Union Council in such a way as to guarantee the accessibility of proceedings for members
• support the Chair and Deputy Chair of Union Council in a voluntary operational capacity during meetings
• hold open meetings whenever possible
• produce a report on its action to; comment on the organisation, rules and procedure of; and recommend improvements to the running of Council and other bodies as appropriate
• Support the Chair of Union Council, by advising on matters of process and constitutional interpretation and will be responsible for the receipt and ordering of procedural motions within Union Council
• annually report on endeavours designed to meet its duty to structure and run procedures in such a way as to guarantee the accessibility
• and elect from their own number a chairperson.

Other elections:

Members of Union Council can run for the following positions. The elections for the below positions will be live the Monday before the first Union Coucil with voting opening during the meeting, closing at the end. Results will be announced the next day.

Student Trustee (4 placeS)

Student Trustees play a key part in setting the SU's future strategy, holding management to account, scrutinising the effectiveness of the SU's operations and recieving newly passed SU policy. You will be making decisions at a Board level (the highest level of decision making in the organisation) that affect all students. This is a volunteer position but the rewards are fantastic. There are 6 Trustee Board meetings per year and you will be required to attend these. To express an interest, please email su.voice@uea.ac.uk for more information. 

Finance Committee (2 places)

The finance committee is a sub-committee of the trustee board. It is chaired by the Activities and Opportunities Officer, and is attended by all full-time officers, a Student or Part Time Officer Trustee, an External Trustee and two representatives elected by Union Council. UEASU senior management also attend meetings. The Committee considers our financial strategy and budgets. If the Trustee Board has a particular concern over any aspect of UEASU's finances, the Committee then meets regularly to scrutiny the monthly management accounts

Appointments and HR committee (2 places)

Appointments & HR Committee is a subcommittee of the Trustee Board. The Committee is made up of the Chair, who is one of the Full Time Officers, an External Trustee and a Student or Part Time Officer Trustee and two representatives elected by Union Council. uea(su) senior management attend meetings where appropriate. The Committee is responsible for getting people to apply for the External Trustee posts and for the recruitment process for the Chief of Staff, and also for making recommendations to the main Board on appointments to these posts. The Committee sets the structure for the appraisal of the Chief of Staff, and receives the annual review made by the Equal Opportunities Committee and makes recommendations based on the review to the main Board.

Risk and Oversight Committee (2 places)

The Risk and Oversight Committee manages and oversees the implientation of the risk register and investigates any new risks that arise. If you're interested in a career in HR, insurance, governance or management, this is a unique opportunity to gain professional experience in risk management.

Manifesto guidance can be found here.