STUDENTS’ UNION EVALUATION INITIATIVE
Anglia Ruskin Students' Union has embarked on the Students’ Union Evaluation Initiative (SUEI).
SUEI is an assessment model designed to apply a quality framework to the work of the Students’ Union in order to drive forward continuous improvement in services and activities. Its prime motivator is to make a positive difference to the experience of students whilst at University and the initiative is therefore student-focussed and student-led.
SUEI has the endorsement of the Department for Innovation, Universities & Skills, the Equality Challenge Unit, the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, the National Union of Students and the Association for Managers in Students’ Unions (AMSU).
The project will span the next two years, during which time we will be working towards achieving the standards required in the five themes and fifteen Key Lines of Enquiry (KLEs). This will be a challenging task, requiring commitment, time and dedication in gathering the supporting evidence and leading the Students’ Union forward.
We had our first workshop in London on 7 May 2008 and join seventeen other Students’ Unions in this fifth cohort of the project, which was launched in 2006. Since then, a great deal of work has gone into the project including Action Plan Meetings, establishment of a SUEI Steering Group (SSG), SSG Meetings, liaison with the University and Project Team Meetings.
We had our First Visit by the SUEI Assessors on 6 November and a report on the day is on the following sub-pages.
During the first project year (May 2008 – April 2009) we will be concentrating on three themes: A What’s so special about the Union?, C Is there quality stewardship? and E What underpins this quality? The following sub pages give a brief overview of each of these three themes. Work on the remaining two themes is scheduled to start in year 2.