 Voting for the Student Union 2017 elections takes place this week on the 21st to the 23rd of March. I sat down with three out of the four candidates hoping to take Cody Burns' position as VP of Welfare and Equality next year. Physical health does impact mental health. I thought it's a good way to relax and to be stressed while also getting fit. Another thing, obviously, as Welfare officers in Shad Week and Shift Week are huge, and you mentioned in your manifesto that you'd like to run more workshops towards the sexual health in a relationship. Would that be more advice-centered or health-centered or what's your idea to go with that? It's going to be both, because I've noticed there's been a severe lack, because a lot of people are in relationships. It's been a severe lack of relationship classes, so it'd help people know what to do in a relationship. It's going to be the best partner to their partner in a relationship. Also knowing signs of abuse and how to know that you're in a dangerous relationship. And also having health classes. I know a lot of people think that if they're in a long-term relationship, they can forego the condoms or the pill. It's just trying to teach them that these are the students who are in a relationship. And then do you want to tell me from your manifesto what's unique about your ideas with regards to mental health next year? I thought Cody's idea was pretty solid, so I kind of built on that. In terms of, I think I have a more casual venture, I don't have big things, so I have also the Feel Good Friday. It was there, so that's going to be a monthly event because it's relaxed a lot of film. I also have a monthly seminar, which I've not seen anyone do. I'll have an expert from the field say a doctor who was once a schizophrenia or PTSD to talk to a puke class and inform them about the disease biologically and how it affects people at the societal level. And also have them break down stigmas and stereotypes about that disease and raise awareness and tell people how to approach people with these diseases because people might have them and not want to approach people with it. So I thought to remove all that stigma and have someone who actually knows about the disease and talk to people about it. Another thing you mentioned as well was consent classes, which is something that a lot of people are not okay with. They think that, you know, we're university students, we don't need them. I gather that's not your opinion. No, consent classes is something I wasn't very sure, because I know a lot of people think we don't need them, especially more men who think we don't need them than women, but we all know that one in four women will have some kind of sexual abuse in their lifetime. So obviously, being a student, we do tend to go out more and be more at risk, which is of no fault on our own. So these are things that do need to be said. For sure. Okay, thanks for talking to us today. Thank you. Two big things in your manifesto was the fines. You talked about library fines and accommodation fines. So talk me through the problems you think you should address if you were offered off to serve them. No, I do understand during the downtime, library fines are key, especially for, like, when you have short-term loans, especially because the books are in such high demand and you can't take them out of the library. But off-peak, when people are using these books and they're going to find so much, I think it can be quite difficult, especially if you don't live on campus, to come in and drop the book back. And even, we'd say, if you do live on campus and you rent out on Friday, and you're late, there still is that dropbox, but then you're still being fined for the time that that's on your own. But if you ask the library, bring it up and say, look, I'm going to be a little bit late. I'm giving no reason. But then when you drop the book back, they can assess it, and maybe reduce the fines of all of it. Because as students, you don't have that much money. And like I said, exam time, that's fine. It's key. But off-peak, when the books are in such high demand, there shouldn't be such a need on such fine questions. OK. Another unique aspect of the Around the Festa was the idea of introducing a body system, much like a lot of the scientists do school. So briefly talk me through how you think that would work, especially taking in our age group that we are in, if you were to introduce that in. But the body system, I got inspiration from the UCB as well. They do think we're international students. Students from the UCB who went abroad and come back can sign up for a body system. So students who are international from the UCB, can get a lot of groups. And obviously, the people who are being harassed can tell you for this. And they get a lot of groups of six and they're in a group for the year, well, not for the year, but up at the start. They have integrated with each other. So that means students from around the world who are an intersectional into a new city can have these students who come abroad. But I'd also like to integrate with maybe like first years because I do understand that the student ambassadors do tours and that is so, however. But if you had students who signed up, it makes a little more personal. You're not an ambassador. This is what you have to do. You have to sign up for this. You want to integrate new students into the UCU. A big part of welfare obviously would be concentrating the people and also would be sexual health. I think consent is a huge issue in the UCU and it has to be addressed even more. I think what is amazing about the job list is that you work on that. Mental health is a huge person to me. I've done mental health myself before and I've met people who've done this before in mental health. So I'd like to kind of bring in, like I said, with the community goal week and first semester, with some of the South's officers. With some of the South's officers and obviously you give some of the sides a group. But I'd like to bring in a health aspect as well for the first week. So sleep, having courses, and additional health courses and looking after yourself and talks in order to benefit your physical health but again, your mental health. And then bring in talks and people in order to identify how to identify, sorry, talks in order for people to identify and then help you in their friends or themselves and kind of broaden the knowledge of products that you have and also deal with mental health in the UCU. Okay, good. Thanks for talking to us today. Thank you. One of the things you mentioned in your manifesto that was unique to yours was introducing a humans of DCU campaign. So talk a little bit about what that's all about. What I've based my manifesto on is what I've seen. I want to use this as a way to highlight the issues, first of all, that are most important to students but also it's a good way for me to know what they want to see being done. I'd love to see it if I were to get in. I'd love to see it being used throughout the year just so that people share their experiences with different social issues, particularly like mental health, different stories like that. I think that could really help other students see they're not alone. There's a lot of people in college that go through the same issues. One issue that's actually important to you because you study teaching is accessibility for events and everything for people on statements. Absolutely, absolutely. I can be such a stressful time. You can see me. I ran in here with my bag saying I'm so sorry. But I think it's really important that they're still put on in the evening time. So that the people that I'm placing, not just the teachers but the nurses and anyone else, they have to be able to access stuff. So definitely putting things on in the evening even if it's something like meditation, yoga, something like that. That's really good for a while you're on place and to take time out for yourself and just chill and relax. Yeah, yeah. Speaking of meditation and yoga, if you were elected like sexual health and mental health is important as well for our officers. And you also mentioned spiritual health. Yeah. What do you mean by that? We've done a lot of this in college actually with the children. So on that level it's a lot of mindfulness and the importance of having stillness in your day just for people to chill out and be able to set themselves free is the most important thing. And then what would you also do to deal with sexual health and mental health as part of your position? I would love to look at it as very controversial at the moment. I know there's a lot of controversy and it's being brought into other colleges. I'd love to bring in consent classes. I think it's really important. In all colleges I'm not singling out anyone, but obviously with a college that's so big there's obviously going to be issues somewhere. It's not everyone obviously, but it's good to be informed and even not for yourself if you see a friend in trouble to know what to do and to know how to approach friends even if you see a friend doing something that you're not entirely comfortable with to someone else to know how to deal with all those things. It's a lot of over like across the board about what you do in different situations. Okay, great. Thanks for talking to us. Yeah, no problem. Thanks very much.