How your club fits into the Union
Student Activities Centre
How clubs fit in to the union
As a useful exercise in where your club fits in the overall picture of the Union, we shall work up from the bottom with a club member and move through the chain of responsibility until we get to the top. This will act a useful guide, for who you are responsible to, and who they are responsible to, right up to the President of the Union and Council, who are responsible for everything. We all also look at the 'contract' between the Union and its clubs and societies.
The 'contract'
The Union operates a 'contract' with each club and society which is signed by its chair and treasurer and a Union sabbatical setting out what each side's rights and responsibilities are:
The Union
The Union shall fulfil its objects and statement of intent (sections 3 and 4).
The Union shall provide a safe environment, free from harassment and discrimination for all Union activity (according to the Health & Safety and Equal Opportunities Policies).
The Union shall permit club and societies to be formed freely by groups of students with common aims, provided they do not reject the aims and objects of the Union or its rules and policies, particularly the Equal Opportunities Policy, and no club or society currently exists which caters to their needs.
The Union shall provide a Freshers’ Fair at the start of each academic year and will endeavour to ensure that all clubs and societies have a stall provided. No charge will be made to the club or society for the stall.
The Union shall provide space in the Freshers’ Handbook at the start of each academic year for each club and society to have an entry and contact details.
The Union shall provide funding for clubs and societies, according to budgetary constraints. The funding is allocated by the Student Activities Committee on which all clubs and societies have direct or indirect representation. The Union shall provide banking facilities, including assistance with ordering, deposits and advice for clubs and societies at no charge to them.
The Union shall provide basic use of rooms within its premises to clubs and societies at no charge to them.
The Union shall provide resources, including computing, printing, photocopying, phone and fax services, though a charge may be made for these.
Clubs and Societies
Clubs and Societies are expected to comply with the Union Constitution and its regulations and policies.
Clubs and Societies are required to conduct themselves in a fair and democratic manner. They owe a duty of care to for the health and safety of their members and a responsibility not to discriminate among them or harass them.
Clubs and Societies owe a duty to their members to ensure equal provision of facilities
The Union needs to comply with significant financial and health & safety requirements prescribed by law, College and other bodies or agencies. Clubs and Societies will need to demonstrate to the Union that they are complying with these requirements.
In particular, Clubs and Societies are expected to comply with the Financial Regulations, Health & Safety and Equal Opportunities Policies, as well as this policy.
Clubs and Societies represent the Union and the College when holding events or trips, or performing or competing. As such they are expected to behave responsibly as ambassadors for the Union and the College and not bring the Union or the College into disrepute.
Club or Society Member
So, you're a club or society member, maybe your even a member of many clubs.
Who are you responsible to?
Well to yourself obviously, don't do anything silly! You are also responsible to your Club Exec when participating in a club activity. What the Club Exec decides is what happens, as they are the people you elected to make decisions.
Who is responsible to you?
As a member of Imperial College Union, the entire Council is responsible to you. This mean that everyone, from the President downwards is accountable to you. If you think they are doing something wrong, say so. If they have a good reason, they will tell you - if not, why are they doing it?
Club or Society Executive Committee
Your Club Executive Committee are elected by the membership in the Spring Term of the previous year. They are there to represent the interests of all their members on a number of committees. To organise and run the club, and to be responsible for making sure nothing goes wrong.
Who are they accountable to?
The President or Chair of your club is ultimately responsible for your club to the CSC or FU Committee (see below) under which your club exists. Through that committee the chain follows upwards to the President of the Union, who is ultimately responsible to College.
Who is accountable to them?
The members of the club, including the exec. are accountable to the person in charge of that club. They have ultimate responsibility for what goes on, although questions would be asked if they over-ruled a duly elected committee.
Clubs and Societies Comittees and Constituent College Union Committee
There are 10 different sub-divisions of clubs within ICU, each one having a duly elected committee which has overall responsibility for making sure that group of clubs runs smoothly. These are called either Clubs and Societies Committees (CSCs) or Constituent College Unions (FUs) and are:
Arts and Entertainments - (A&E) - deals with the performance and arts based clubs
Athletics Clubs Committee - (ACC) - deals with sporting clubs
Graduate Students' Association - (GSA) - represents and provides social activities for graduate students
Media Group - (MEDIA) - deals with magazines, tv, radio and other published media of ICU
Overseas Clubs Committee - (OSC) - deals with clubs based around nationality
Recreational Clubs Committee - (RCC) - deals with skills based clubs
Royal School of Mines CSC - (RSM CSC) - clubs composed mainly of Mining Students
Social Clubs Committee - (SCC) - deals with socially based clubs
Silwood Park - (SILWOOD) - clubs based around Silwood Park campus
Wye College - (WYE) - clubs based around Imperial College at Wye
City and Guilds College Union - (C&GCU) - clubs composed mainly of Engineering Students
Faculty of Life Sciences Student Union - (Life) - clubs composed mainly of Life Science Students
Imperial College School of Medicine Union - (ICSMSU) - clubs mainly composed of Medical Students
Physical Sciences Union - (PSU) - clubs composed mainly of Physical Science Students
Who are they accountable to?
The Chair or President of the CSC/FU Committee is accountable to the Student Activities Committee (SAC) for the running of their clubs.
Who is accountable to them?
All of the club and society presidents who sit on this committee are accountable to the Chair or President of this committee.
Student Activities Committee (SAC)
The Student Activities Committee is chaired by the Deputy President (Clubs and Societies), and is responsible for all of the clubs of Imperial College Union. Its membership consists of all of the Chairs or Presidents and Treasurers of the CSC and FU committees above, plus all the Sabbaticals and the chairs of RAG and CAG.
Who are they accountable to?
The Deputy President (Clubs and Societies) is responsible for calling this meeting, and chairing it in the absence of the Council Chair. He or she will produce a copy of the minutes, and a report for Council every time this body meets. The DP (C&S) is responsible to Council and the Executive Committee for the conduct of this committee.
Who is accountable to them?
Every club and society is accountable to the Student Activities Committee (through their CSC/FU), along with the Chairs or Presidents of all the CSC/FU Committees.
Executive Committee
Imperial College Union has its own Executive Committee, responsible for co-ordinating all Union activity, including trading, services, retail, club and societies, welfare, discipline and staffing matters.
It delegates much of the role of co-ordinating clubs and societies to the Student Activities Committee, though policy decisions of the SAC must be confirmed by the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee is also responsible for operational policy within the Union, which is likely to have an impact on clubs and societies.
There is no area of responsiblity within the Union that does not run through the Executive Committee (and then to the Council).
Who are they accountable to?
The Council.
Who is accountable to them?
Every member of a club or society, its executive committee, its CSC/FU Executive, all non-club/society activity, or in fact anyone holding any position of responsibility within the Union.
Council
Council is the sovereign body of Imperial College Union. its membership is listed in full here, and it is quite a large body, meeting once a month to discuss the entire affairs and conduct of the Union.
Who are they accountable to?
Every single student who is a member of Imperial College Union.
Who is accountable to them?
Every member of a club or society, its executive committee, its CSC/FU Executive, all non-club/society activity, the ICU Executive Committee, or in fact anyone holding any position of responsibility within the Union.