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President: Wellbeing February 2025 Update

Monday 10-03-2025 - 13:47

President: Wellbeing February 2025 Update

By President: Wellbeing - Babatunde Jimoh

Hi everyone,

February was all about student advocacy, wellbeing, and pushing forward my campaigns. From finalising the ‘Sport Festival’ to addressing financial concerns and improving mental health initiatives, it’s been a month of action and progress.

President: Wellbeing Babatunde Jimoh

President: Wellbeing Babatunde Jimoh

Advancing My Campaigns

The month kicked off with a pre-meeting with the Vice-Chancellor, where I provided updates on my three major campaigns. First, the Sport Festival Campaign is now set in stone! March 20th at the Beacon of Light will see teams competing in a football Charity Cup, with 14 charity teams from Sunderland invited. I’ve been working closely with Team Sunderland and the EEHub to ensure proper planning and smooth logistics, including transportation for students via the minibus services, in addition to the 700 bus to the Beacon of Light.

Meanwhile, the Student Maintenance Loan Fee Campaign continues to gain traction, with a strong response from students. I have now launched it at the London campus through the SU team in London campus, where students are actively sharing their experiences with financial struggles. The ‘Someone to Talk To’ Campaign, focused on mental health and peer support, will officially launch during Wellbeing Week (17th-21st March), providing students with better access to wellbeing resources and their experiences with wellbeing services at University of Sunderland.

During my meeting with the Vice-Chancellor, I also raised concerns about the increase in car parking fees and its impact on students. However, data on how this affects student commuters is still being collected.

Addressing Student Wellbeing and Academic Concerns

I’ve also been speaking the SU Advice Service team to discuss current key student concerns. A recurring issue is that students facing course-related struggles or conflicts often hesitate to report them, fearing it might affect their academic progress. Another major concern is the impact of staff redundancies, which has left some students struggling to access dissertation support, leading to stress, delays, and mental health challenges.

To support mental health initiatives, we’ve jointly planned activities with the Student Journey team for University Mental Health Day. Activities, support and resources will be available on City and St Peter’s Campus on Wed 12th and Thurs 13th March.

Improving Student Transport

Another pressing issue this month was student transport, particularly the 700/701 bus services. Prince (President: Activities) and I have been gathering student feedback to document experiences, after reports of a few issues with irregular timetables. We’ve have had meaningful discussions with the university’s transport management team and bus operators (Nexus and GoNorth East), and collective work is being done to make improvements where possible.

Building Engagement Through Wellbeing Week

As part of Wellbeing Week (17th-21st March), we’ve also planned a fun Scavenger Hunt activity around campus. This initiative is all about creating fun, interactive experiences for students while encouraging engagement and promoting mental wellbeing. You can get involved by stopping by at Your SU @ Edinburgh Building throughout the week!

Looking Ahead

February was a month of active student engagement, advocacy, and problem-solving for me. With Wellbeing Week, the Sport Festival, and more student-led initiatives on the horizon, March is shaping up to be even more impactful. I’m grateful to everyone who has shared concerns, ideas, and feedback, and I look forward to making more meaningful changes together.

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