Committee roles
We have 3 core roles in a society committee; President, Secretary and Treasurer. Our high-risk societies also have a compulsory Health and Safety Officer.
As our societies are student-led, there are some who choose to add additional roles to their committee to help carry out specialist responsibilities and support their society to facilitate different events and activities. Examples of these additional roles include; Social Media Officers, Social Secretaries; and Vice Presidents.
What is a committee member?
A committee member is, at its root, a volunteer. They are someone who is passionate about the society and wishes to volunteer their time to support the logistical running of the society.
A committee member is someone who dedicates their time to ensure their society follows proper processes for activity so the members can participate safely.
A committee member is not:
- In charge or holding a position of management over the rest of the committee or your membership. Committee members are elected to support the society, not rule over it.
- The ultimate authority within a society. Committee members cannot remove others from the committee or the wider society. This is solely the responsibility of the Students' Union.
- A committee is not a hierarchy. Each member plays a role in the wider functioning whole.
Shared committee responsibilities
All committee members have some shared responsibilities that support the wider running of the society and its activities. These include:
- Signing and following their society constitution
- Completing relevant training and paperwork
- Ensuring that all society activity adheres to health and safety guidelines
- Ensuring your society runs smoothly
- Listening to your members
- Ensuring the financial sustainability of the society
- Ensuring the future sustainability of the society by making members aware of elections and giving a good handover
- Agreeing and setting the membership fee at the start of the academic year or when a new society has been created
Important committee dates
Certain times of year are particularly important for committee members. Please make a note of these!
- Committee Training (September)
- Welcome (September)
- Welcome (February)
- Society Committee Elections (March-April)
- Handovers (June-July)
How to create new committee roles
- Decide as a committee what new role(s) the society needs and what responsibilities they will have
- Complete the Request a By-Election form and detail what the responsibilities of the new role will include. Please note, societies can only request a maximum of 2 by-elections during an academic year.
Role specific responsibilities
Each role has its own specialist responsibilities, and the people in these roles will either be working to their strengths or working to develop skills while on the committee. The specialist responsibilities for the core roles are the same across all societies. For a basic overview of our roles and the benefits of holding one, check out our committee roles and responsibilities overview.
Roles and responsibilities overview
Want more information about a specific role? Check out their profiles:
For the specialist responsibilities of an additional role in your society, please refer to the society constitution where these responsibilities are detailed.
How to be a President
How to be a Secretary
How to be a Treasurer
How to be a Equality and Diversity Officer
How to be a Health and Safety Officer
Annual core paperwork
Annual Constitution
Each society has a constitution detailing the aim of the society and how they intend to achieve their aims. These could include anything from a recruitment goal, to a raising and giving effort for a charity you care about. Please use the Annual Constitution template to complete and sign each year.
Annual Constitution template
Annual Risk Assessment
Each society has an annual risk assessment detailing what hazards and risks could pose a harm to society members attending their regular activity. Society activity cannot take place unless this has been completed and approved by the SU.
Annual Risk Assessment template
Example of completed Annual Risk Assessment
Annual External Speaker Form
An External Speaker is anyone external to your society (who isn't a current SHU Student or Staff member) that is given a platform to speak to students. If you have someone regularly attending your society activity who is an External speaker you only have to complete the External Speaker form once (indicating they will be regularly attending).
External Speakers Request Form
Coaches/Instructors: Coaches and Instructors no longer need to go through the External Speaker Process. They should still be registered with HSU via the form below.
Instructor/Coach Registration Form
Handovers
A handover is a useful piece of work created by the current committee and given to those taking over for the new academic year. The better quality the handover, the better start the new committee has in hitting the ground running in the new year. It is the responsibility of the outgoing committee to ensure they provide a detailed handover to the incoming committee.
What to include in a handover
The handover must include:
- Logins and passwords for the email account and social media accounts.
- Any information about key contacts and suppliers.
- A financial overview of the society's current position. Keeping the finance tracker up-to-date will be helpful here! Check out the society finance page for more information.
- Information about equipment (what do you have, where is it kept, does anything need replacing/ servicing?)
We've created a number of resources full of other considerations for you to work through that will get you thinking about the types of things the incoming committee may need to know.
But don't limit yourselves! The point of a handover is that it is personal to each society and to give the new committee the information they need and that you wish you had at the start of your term. It is good practice to work on this continuously throughout the academic year, so reflect on the successes and challenges your committee has faced.
Handover planning template
Society inventory form
If you have any questions regarding handovers, contact us at activitiesadmin@shu.ac.uk.
Your commitment to us
As committee members, we expect you to make a commitment to your membership and to us that you will follow proper processes, complete relevant paperwork, and meet your deadlines. We expect you to support one another with kindness, respect, and understanding, and that you prioritise the positive experience of your members. We also expect you to champion zero-tolerance of bullying and harassment of any kind.
Our commitment to you
We commit to supporting you with all formal society processes, providing instruction and guidance to completing paperwork. We will support you as a committee and as individuals through development opportunities and guidance, and we will support you in championing zero-tolerance of bullying or harassment of any kind.
Society Support 'Drop Ins': Our Societies Team has 'Drop Ins' for committee members to come to the HUBs and seek support for specific queries for leading your society.
What Drop Ins are and aren't for
For Semester 1 2024 with the last week being w/c 16th December 2024, the 'Drop Ins' are Mondays, 1-3pm and Wednesdays 2-4pm.
For Semester 2 2024, with the first week being the 6th January 2025 'Drop Ins' are Mondays, 1-3pm and Thursdays 2-4pm.