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  • Home
  • Teesside University Student Newsletter 2020 to 2021
  • September 2020
 
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The latest news and events from Teesside University Students' Union

Click the links below to get straight to a specific story or scroll down for the whole newsletter

 
Re-opening of the SU Building and availability of our services
Virtual and physical events during Freshers
Day and evening events during Semester 1
Campaigns Corner
Great savings and offers online and in-store with the TOTUM card and app
Meet your School and Course Reps
Platinum standard commercial services
Student Safety Tips
 
Student Safety Tips

Welcome from the Student Officers

A very warm welcome to the Freshers edition of our newsletter. We will be in touch every month this academic year unless you ask us to stop by unsubscribing. We will have the latest news on the re-opening of the Students' Union building and the availability of our various services. We will also keep you up to date with upcoming events, campaigns, opportunities and more.

We know what a challenging year this has been for everyone and how difficult it continues to be. We also acknowledge that this will be a very different Freshers than many of you would have had in mind. However, no matter if you are here on campus or studying from home you can be sure TUSU will be here for you throughout this academic year. We are still aiming to run as many physical events as we safely can, and we will have a wide range of online events to support and inform you. Find out more about that further down the newsletter.

The SU Building is, subject to no changes in the advice we receive or the introduction of localised lockdowns, open from Fri, 18th September for visits. The safety of students and of course our staff is our highest priority, and we will be asking all visitors to help us to help you. We detail how you can do just that in the next article and on tees-su.org.uk/coronasupport.

We do hope you will not be discouraged from coming into our building, using the services that are open, attending events and using our social spaces. We look forward to speaking to you in person or online in the coming weeks, and we hope that you have the best possible semester one. Once again, no matter who you are and no matter how much time you can spend on campus, your SU is here for you.

Alan, George and Elisha – Student Officers 2020/21

tees-su.org.uk/officers

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Re-opening of the SU Building and availability of our services

You may have read or watched news of the latest changes to the guidelines from central government about dealing with the worrying resurgence of Coronavirus infections. We know these are further unsettling and worrying developments in what has already been a difficult year, but we wanted to reassure you that we will be doing all that we possibly can here at TUSU to maintain a safe and comprehensive service for all students. Here is how the latest changes will affect what we do in coming days and weeks here at Teesside University Students' Union (TUSU) and how we will continue to minimise the risk of you being infected or spreading infection if you do choose to use the SU Building:

  • Your Student Officers will remain available online through our various e-mail accounts and social media (see the linked web page for full details), and we will be running online events to gather your feedback and help/ support you during Semester One. Keep an eye on tees-su.org.uk/events or facebook.com/teessidesu for updates on these.
  • The Terrace (1st floor, SU Building), our multi-award winning bar and restaurant, will remain open as planned from 10.30 am on weekdays and 12.30 pm on Saturdays (the venue is closed on Sundays from now on). We will now call last orders at 9.15 pm, and customers must be out of the venue by 10 pm prompt every night in accordance with the new rules. We already ask customers to utilise tees-su.org.uk/order for ordering food and drink and offer table service only; this practice will continue indefinitely, so please remember to bring your mobile phone or another device to order on. Please also be aware that our food service times are subject to change subject to the level of demand and we will do our best to update you on our social media and tees-su.org.uk in advance if we do decide to stop serving early.
  • All advertised evening events in the venue will go ahead as planned but may be subject to an earlier start time and moved to a different venue than currently advertised so please do keep an eye on our social media and website for changes. We are also busy working on ideas for events that we can run earlier in the day during the week and at weekends as part of our commitment to continuing to provide safe events and spaces for students overcoming months; we will announce our plans soon.
  • The SU Shop (Ground floor, SU Building) remains open weekdays, and this will be from 8.30 am to 5.30 pm from Monday, 28th September. It is closed at weekends.
  • The SU Welcome Desk (1st floor, SU Building) will currently remain open weekdays from 10 am to 4 pm to direct and signpost you to SU services with staff behind protective screens, and visitors asked to maintain a safe distance from the desk wherever possible. Alternatively, you can contact; enquiries@tees-su.org.uk or 01642 342234 and our staff will do all they can to help you that way.
  • The Love it Lounge (1st floor, SU Building) is available whenever the building is open for small groups to meet or socialise and individual study.
  • The SU Activities service will be an online service only until further notice, but the team are ready and waiting to answer your questions about societies and sports clubs through activities@tees-su.org.uk or facebook.com/TUSUActivities.
  • SU Student Support (SUSS) remains an online service only until further notice, but the team are ready and waiting to help you on weekdays through suss@tees-su.org.uk or facebook.com/SUStudentSupport. In very exceptional circumstances, an adviser may be able to see a student face to face, but this will be discussed when you contact them online.
  • Your School and Course Reps will remain contactable through their various e-mail addresses and social media. They will continue to gather your feedback and speak up for you to senior staff in each school of the University.

We know it isn't easy, but we would urge you to keep following all of the safety guidelines in place when you visit the SU Building or other public places on or off-campus, it is the only way that we can collectively reduce the spike in cases and avoid a local or national lockdown.

You can do your bit by:

  • Not visiting the SU Building or any other public venues if you are showing even mild symptoms of coronavirus or are legally required to quarantine for 14 days having arrived from another country.
  • Reporting any symptoms you are showing to Teesside University, making sure you follow the Teesside Uni Campus Community Pledge and utilising the Safe Zone app to check-in and out of campus.
  • Utilising sign-in systems such as applications when using the SU Building so you can be track and traced if an outbreak occurs.
  • Wearing a mask whenever you are instructed to.
  • Following any one way systems that have been established in venues including the SU Building.
  • Maintaining a two-metre distance from others whenever physically possible.
  • Making frequent use of hand sanitising stations provided here in the SU Building or in other venues.
  • Not gathering in groups of more than six or moving from a table you have been designated.
  • Booking in advance for events were asked to so that the SU and other venues know how many people to expect.
  • Not approaching the bar in our venue or others and instead utilising phone or web apps provided to order and giving staff time to provide you with table service.
  • Not moving furniture in a venue, it will have been set up the way it is for good reasons.
  • Respecting the 10 pm closing times for licensed premises and leaving promptly when asked to do so.
  • Not having large private gatherings indoors or outdoors but instead sticking to the rule of six, however tempting it may be!
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Virtual and physical events during Freshers

Freshers 2020 at TUSU runs from Fri, 18th to Sat, 26th September and despite the difficult circumstances right now we will be doing all we possibly can to inform, represent, support and entertain students online and in person.

The week will be a mix of online events through the day, including:

>>> Online support throughout the week, >>> A chance to chat online with your Student Officers, >>> Virtual Societies and Virtual Sports Clubs events, >>> Special online editions of our weekly Wellbeing Wednesday event, >>> A trip to the historic and beautiful seaside town of Saltburn, >>> FREE hot drinks and cake plus the chance to meet new people in a socially distanced setting, >>> Info on the various faith support and groups that are available on campus and around Teesside. 

And physical events at night in our carefully managed venues where the safety of visitors and our staff will be our biggest priority, including:

>>> Welcome Night at the SU, >>> The Sunday Social featuring Parmogeddon, sample Teesside's favourite delicacy, >>> The Moving in Social for those who have joined us on campus and don't need to quarantine, >>> The eagerly awaited return of The Monday Night Quiz, >>> Live, socially distanced stand up comedy hosted by local legend Matt Reed (Bingo Revolution) and featuring three of the best comedians on the circuit right now, >>> Prizes to be won and fun to be had at the brilliant Bingo Revolution, and loads, loads more besides!

Check out everything we have planned and find out how you can get involved through tees-su.org.uk/freshers or facebook.com/tusufreshers
You can also get a wealth of extra info, support, event listings and handy contacts through the digital publications below:

  • The quick guide to Teesside University Students' Union.
  • The essential guide to student life and the SU
  • The Freshers Daytime and Evening Events Planner
  • The Student Housing Guide 2020/21 from SU Student Support (SUSS)
  • Handy Student Hacks from your Student Officers

 

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Day and evening events during Semester 1

It currently remains unclear what day and evening events we will be able to stage from October 2020 to the end of January 2021. However, we do hope to have campaign and wellbeing related events in the SU Building and to continue to run the ever-popular Monday Night Quiz; every week. We are also committed to having The Terrace and other social spaces open as much as we safely can. Please keep monitoring our social media and tees-su.org.uk/events for details of how you can get involved in person and online this semester.

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Campaigns Corner

We remain a Students' Union that is committed to "real world" campaigns which address the issues that really affect all students here at Teesside University. The Student Officers will continue to work tirelessly to ensure you are represented to the most senior figures at the university like the Board of Governors, The Vice-Chancellor and his executive. They will also, with the help of SU Student Support (SUSS), Teesside University and external partners like The NHS, Cleveland Police and Cleveland Fire, be running a range of online campaign days. These will cover money management, housing, teaching and learning issues, mental health, sexual health, physical health and much more. Keep an eye on tees-su.org.uk/officers for updates on campaigns and related events.

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Great savings and offers online and in-store with the TOTUM card and app

The TOTUM card and app are the modern equivalents of the National Union of Students (NUS) or NUS Extra card. It is still the only OFFICIAL student discount card and the only one that your SU endorses and benefits from. You can bag yourself incredible savings, discounts and special cardholder only offers on food, drink, cinema, music, fashion, travel, technology and more from just £14.99 for 12 months from the date you buy it. And you can do your bit for your SU as we get a cut of every card sale and payments based on how often you use the TOTUM app.

Click here to find out more, download the app and order yours.

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Meet Your School and Course Reps

Even though you will not be on campus as much this semester, your Course and School Representatives will still be working tirelessly to ensure that you have a positive academic experience at Teesside. It may not be possible to meet your reps as much face-to-face at the moment; however, there are still plenty of ways that you can contact your reps if you are experiencing an issue with your course or you have some feedback about your studies, good or bad! You can also keep updated with what has been happening in your school and what your reps have been doing via our social media channels.

If you would like to contact your reps, you can do so via email, on Facebook or Instagram. All details can be found on our website tees-su.org.uk/schoolreps.

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Platinum Standard Commercial Services

We are proud to have been the recipient of the coveted gold standard in the prestigious and nationally recognised Best Bar None accreditation scheme year in year out for almost a decade for our venue The Terrace. The scheme assesses licensed premises across the UK to consider the quality of staff training, the safety of a venue and how responsible the approach to serving alcohol is. We retained gold standard again in 2020 and we were also delighted to be elevated to the even more prestigious Platinum Club which BBN founded to celebrate the success of venues who achieved 100% in the assessment and 100% in their mystery customer score.  Only 15 other students' unions in the UK are members of the platinum club.

Alan Lofthouse, President Education and Chair of the Board of Trustees at TUSU, said: "It was already a fantastic achievement to have achieved gold standard but to now be elevated to this new platinum club is really exceptional. It is testament to the amazing work of all of the staff who work in this area of the students' union from managers and career staff right through to all the student staff, I am delighted that we can say to both students and parents/ guardians that we have one of the safest and most responsibly run venues in the UK."

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Student Safety Tips

Your SU works closely with the University and a range of external agencies such as Cleveland Police, Cleveland Fire and the NHS to try to keep all students safe and well. This is a particularly important time for taking sensible precautions and minimising risk to both yourself and other students.

Check out our tips for staying over the freshers period and throughout semester 1.

Coronavirus

  • Always stay home if you are feeling unwell or showing even mild symptoms of the virus and make sure you get medical advice/ tested as soon as possible.
  • Follow all of the latest national and local guidelines around reducing the risk of contracting or spreading coronavirus to the letter. No matter if you are visiting the SU Building or others around Teesside, please do all you can to socially distance, wear a mask where you are asked to and make regular use of any hand sanitiser that is provided.
  • Please continue to avoid large gatherings in your own or friend's homes.
  • If you are socialising in the SU or other venues, please use applications whenever available to order food and drink and leave your contact details should there be an outbreak.
  • If you are in a venue where you feel that the appropriate precautions are not being taken we would urge you to leave as soon as possible. You may also wish to make relevant authorities aware of any negligence.
 

Other Tips:

  • If you are living in student accommodation, make sure you always remember to securely lock windows and doors when you head out.
  • Try to keep anything particularly valuable out of sight when you leave your student house.
  • If you find that the property you are living in does not have fire, carbon monoxide and burglar alarms or an up to date gas certificate speak to your letting agent or landlord immediately. You can also get online help with accommodation; issues through our SU Student Support team by e-mailing:suss@tees-su.org.uk.
  • If you are new to Middlesbrough or Teesside, try to stay in well-lit areas and groups when you head out after dark. Fellow students can also probably give useful advice on areas of the town that you may wish to avoid.
  • Drink responsibly and avoid illegal drugs, especially if they are being supplied by someone you do not know. NEVER DRINK/ TAKE DRUGS AND THEN DRIVE!
  • Be aware of possible drink spiking, especially if you are in unfamiliar venues with new people.
  • Middlesbrough Council has strict rules on behaviour in public, especially in the town centre. Please be aware that if you are deemed to have behaved unacceptably in public spaces, you may face a fine of several hundred pounds.
  • Like any UK town Middlesbrough, sadly, has issues with begging in the town centre. Cleveland Police and Middlesbrough Council advise you not to give money to people who ask for it and avoid lengthy engagement with people who beg, especially if they are aggressive. A range of support is available from professional agencies for people who are in these situations, assisting them should be left to the experts.
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