The activities portal is where student groups submit everything for their activities and events, including room bookings, trips, external speakers, transport bookings, emergency contacts for trips etc.

All committee members will have access to the admin tools of their webpage on upsu.com, and they are able to access the portal for the aforementioned. Please refer to the committee training which provided in-depth instructions on how to use the activity portal. 

Are you looking to book a room for your student group gathering? You’re in the right place!

We can help you with anything from one-off room booking for an event night to multi-date bookings for your regular sessions or meetings.

Before you go about booking your room, there are some guidelines we ask you to follow to make this process as smooth and as easy as possible:

• We ask for at least a weeks’ notice to book rooms for your student group – please take into consideration busy periods. The further in advance you can notify us, the more likely you will get the room you want!
• A helpful hint: if you know that you would like to use the same room throughout term time, you can make a block booking to save time and secure the same room for your regular hangouts.
• Rooms can be booked from 09:30am
• Rooms can be booked until 10:30pm

You May Ask ‘What Rooms Are Available To Be Booked?’

There are a variety of rooms available to be booked – please note that rooms will be allocated on a first come first served basis and are subject to availability. It’s also worth noting that the number of attendees to your event will be taken into account and can influence what room will be able to be booked.

• Rolle Building: our out of hours building. This is perfect for your evening socials. Think games nights, debates and discussions, workshops, and more! You can book general ‘flat’ classrooms, small meeting rooms and lecture theatres. This is our ‘go – to’ building to pop you in. The bread and butter of the room bookings world.
• Roland Levinsky Building: RLB Hall, the Jill Craigie Cinema and RLB LT are the most sought after here! Showcases, conferences, cinema screenings and more tend to be the main events that book out these rooms. These are usually available AFTER the teaching day… lectures first, fun after!  Be considerate to other societies – this is a shared space so, try not to rely too heavily on this space.
• Davy Main Hall: showcases, training sessions and more can be hosted in this space. Like RLB, these can be used AFTER the teaching day.
• A helpful hint: use timetables https://timetables.plymouth.ac.uk  to see what rooms are available on the dates and times you require – this helps the department complete the room booking process in an efficient manner!

You May Be Wondering ‘Can I Use The Student Union Space?’

Yes! This is your Students’ Union, and The Big Room, Little Room, Coffee Lounge and the Hive are all spaces designed for YOU and can be booked subject to availability. Note club nights, event nights like Jam House and opening and closing times may affect your booking.

• The Coffee Lounge: Sunday – Thursday until 10pm. Friday and Saturdays until 9pm.
• The Little Room: Sunday – Thursday until 10pm. Fridays and Saturdays until 9pm
• The Big Room: slightly trickier due to events put on by the SU team*
• A helpful hint: check the What’s On page to see what events are already scheduled to help plan accordingly.

Booking The Student Union Space

When planning an event in the SU, there are certain things you have to consider. Please submit your event into the Activities Portal where a member of the team will pick this up.

Once you have done so, we will set up a meeting with the team to get your event up and running.

Please consider the following information and guidelines that will help you to put everything together:

A helpful hint: look at the drop-down list above for all the rooms in the SU rooms available to you.

 

Big Room Capacity:

The Big Room can hold 750 people standing. However, for some events, you may want to use a stage, this changes slightly:

• 650 with no seating
• 500 with seating (similar to the Jam House format). In this case, a Duty Manager would likely review this in conjunction with the event that is being put together.

Small Room Capacity:

The Small Room can hold 100 people standing.

Hiring the Bar

If you would like to hire the bar for your event, there is a cost to pay however, if you make double on the bar, that cost is waived.

You don’t NEED to hire the bar when booking an SU space.

It is decided by the bar department how many staff members are needed and if a supervisor is required.

Only alcohol purchased from the UPSU bar can be consumed. No alcohol can be brought on site and consumed – including university rooms. Disciplinary action will be taken if members bring alcohol on to our licensed premises with the intention of distribution and putting our premises license at risk.

We advise that, no matter what, a core committee member or event organiser to remain sober during an event to ensure the safety of students and that matters are dealt with promptly.

Security

You don’t necessarily need security; this will depend on the type of event. Provisionally, if you have 50 people or fewer attending, you may not need them – but this will depend on what the event is. For example, we do recommend the use of security, especially if you have the bar open or using a ticketing system. In these instances, it would be helpful to have security on staff, otherwise this falls onto the committee to police.

Security is £17.95 per hour, including VAT, and you MUST use them for a minimum of 4 hours.

Use of Tech

• The equipment you can access are speakers, microphones and lighting.
• You will be required to sign the equipment in and out and sign a liability form for the equipment and the space you are using
• All equipment must be returned in the same condition as handed out.
• Venue spaces are required to be left how they were found or, set up for teaching (Davy Main Hall and University rooms)
• There is no charge for hiring SU equipment but there can be associated costs. These can vary from use of SU technicians or use of the bar, to set up and pack down time.
• If you know an UPSU technician who is registered, and they are willing to support your event without being paid, they are permitted to do so.
• If you require a specialist set up, the technicians may not be able to support you, meaning you may need to source and pay an external company – please keep this in mind when planning so you can consider any additional costs.
• You will be asked to sign a terms and conditions form when booking a space in the SU or using SU equipment. This form agrees your group is responsible for the space and equipment and will return it in the correct condition. This will be provided when you come to collect your equipment.

What Tech Can I Use?

Currently, we have the following:

• Pioneer DJ CDJ2000 x2
• Pioneer DJ DJM900 Mixer
• 3x se7 Vocal Mics
• 2x Shure SM58 Vocal Mics
• Assorted Instrument Mics

A helpful hint: for additional information or questions regarding tech, set up a meeting with the team as this may help you get a better idea of what you need.

For Venues on Campus

If hosting events on campus, you will require more steps than hosting events off campus. However, your costs will be lower as you do not need to pay for venue hire. If hosting an event on campus such a showcase, cultural night, conferences or ball you first need to think about how many people you are expecting and if the room is suitable. On campus you have the following venues that you can book:

• Davy Main Hall 
• Roland Levinksy Hall
• Lecture Theatres and General Rooms – typically, in Rolle unless requested otherwise.
• Sherwell Centre 

If you require food for your event you would need to hire this externally. The Communities team can help you with some recommendations. However, they must not reheat the food on site and will need to fill out a food indemnity form. 

If hosting large scale events on campus you will need to submit an activity on the activities portal with your room booking form. A meeting with the Communities department may be required to discuss your options and some essential criteria. Be ready to discuss:

• Dates
• Times
• Expected attendees
• Outline of your event
• Risk assessment 
• Whether you require tech, a bar, security or cleaning services

Your risk assessment is a crucial part of your event and needs to contain details of your planned activities. Please check out the health and safety training to help you complete your risk assessment. 

External Speakers

As a student group you can invite guests to come and give a speech at group events. If you would like someone to come and speak at your event you would need to complete the external speaker form - this can be found when you submit your event through the Activities Portal. 

This rule applies to anyone speaking who is not a student or staff at the University of Plymouth.  

In line with the University of Plymouth's External Speaker Policy, it is our duty to advocate safe free speech. This is why when completing the external speaker form, we as for information including three links about the speaker and the topic they are speaking about.  

A helpful hint: try to link LinkedIn profiles, websites from their companies or articles they may have written. Sometimes we get Instagram profiles, but this can be tricky if they are private so remember, they must be public for the team to approve your speaker.

If not, enough links are submitted or the links you have provided are not suitable and don't provide enough information, we will prompt for more links. Without enough information we cannot make a proper judgment, and they will not be approved until a conclusion has been reached.

 

*Q Can Food Be Taken Into Campus Rooms?

*A Yes, you can take food into campus rooms, but you will need to submit a risk assessment with your event – please note that you must clean your room after food is consumed.

*L If you are serving food you have cooked, you may need to submit a Food Safety and Hygiene Level 2 certificate. More information on this can be found under the Health and Safety resource.

*Q Can Alcohol Be Consumed?

*A No alcohol is allowed to be consumed in any room on campus – failure to comply with this rule will mean that your student group will no longer be able to book any spaces on campus. 

*Q What Are Large Scale Events?

*A If your student group is planning to run things such as balls, showcases and cultural events,  we call these large-scale events! They will need to be handled slightly differently to a smaller room booking.

*Q Can I Book External Venues? 

*A If hosting events off campus, you will first need to find yourself a venue. You will need to consider your budget for this event and whether your student group has enough in your bank account to cover any costs. Occasions like balls and cultural events may require food, which may come at an additional cost. With an external venue your student group is generally covered under their risk assessment. However, if you have planned activities and games for your event, you may not be covered so a risk assessment submission may be needed to cover those activities. If you are unsure, please contact your relevant department. 

Why get your student group involved in volunteering?

Volunteering is a great way for your student group to get together and involved in something with a purpose. It is a great way to make new friends and become part of the local community as well as developing new skills and experiences. It also allows student groups to do positive work as a group either on-campus for other students, or off-campus with the local community.

Getting Started:

• Be realistic: Think about the number of members you have. How many would want to be involved? How much they will enjoy the opportunity and how helpful and useful you would be to the charity or club your offering to support?
• Types of Events: Big events, marshalling, or ushering people at special events or local community events such as fairs, fun runs, bucket shakes, fundraisers, outdoor conservation, maintaining or cleaning up land, sea and outside spaces and physical work are all types of volunteering for large groups.  
• Volunteering with children or vulnerable people: this can be difficult to organise with a group and requires a lot of paperwork, including DBS checks. We therefore advise that this kind of volunteering isn’t appropriate for large groups.  
• A helpful hint: if you are interested in taking part in this line of volunteering, this is something you can do individually! Check out the Volunteer page for a list of all volunteer providers and their opportunities.
• Do you have a particular charity in mind? If there is something that your club or society is passionate about and offer time and support to, speak to them and see what they would like help with and where volunteers could be useful.
• A helpful hint: If your chosen charity can’t offer you any volunteer opportunities, why not try your hand at fundraising – you can log this on your Admin Tools on your Student Groups Webpage!
• Think about the types of people you have in your group - what they would enjoy doing, what will they get from volunteering? Volunteers to need to enjoy their experiences and benefit from it.   
• Location and transport – Consider accessing locations and making it easy for members.
• Fun! Make sure whatever you are doing is fun and ensure members have fun and enjoy themselves, or they won’t want to do it again.

Logging Your Hours - Volunteer Recognition Scheme

All the volunteering hours that you do count towards our reward and recognition scheme.

This can include:

• Committee role jobs
•  Helping at student group events
•  Volunteering within the community.

You can receive recognition from 25, 50, 100 and 200 hours of volunteering. 

To receive recognition, you will need to log your hours with our Volunteer Toolkit.

You will need to register your details and then you can start logging. Please keep an eye on you emails as the Communities team may get in touch to ask for more information about your volunteering journey and let you know that your rewards are ready to be picked up. 

Running a student group means you must follow certain democratic procedures. This means you must ensure that your student group is run in a way that allows ALL your members to have their say. They also outline rules that ensure your group and its members run in a way that is in line with the Students’ Union guidelines.

What is an AGM?

AGM stands for Annual General Meeting.

This is a chance for all members of your Society to get together, review the year, discuss any issues and elect a new committee for the following academic year. The AGM is a meeting that all members of a society are invited to and is held by the end of the academic year. Following your AGM, the Communities team will ask you send over your new and/or reviewed paperwork – these are linked further down the webpage.

What Are The Key Things I Need To Remember For AGMs?

• Annual General Meetings (AGM) are compulsory for every society.
• AGMs must be advertised at least 14 days in advance to all members.
• There must be a quorate of 10% of the society membership for the AGM to be valid and take place.
• The AGM must include a brief financial update for the society members & the future committee.
• Minutes must be taken and made available to all your members.
•  A copy must also be sent to Communities Team.
• Check with the department for AGM deadline.
• The online committee form must be submitted by the deadline date.
• Only the current Chair can submit and amend this document, please note there will be no amendments after the deadline.
• All other relevant forms (see compulsory list) must be submitted by the deadline to the Communities Team.

Committee Handover

• Explain your committee role and take them through your responsibilities and actions - let your new committee know that there are training modules available. 
• A helpful hint: take them through examples, or hypothetical scenarios and action them together!
• Allow the new committee to shadow you. Joint committee meetings are a great idea to help with the transition. 
• Introduce the new committee to the Communities Team - share their contact emails. 
• Outline your yearly objectives and barriers for the year. 
• Share any login information for email accounts and social media. 
• Share any annual events.
• A helpful hint: reflect back on ‘what went well’ and ‘even better if’, this will help the new committee to improve and make it easier and, better!
• Go through your student group paperwork - code of conduct, model constitution, risk assessment, development plan. 
• Advice on promoting tour activities and events.
• A helpful hint: sign post their committee training and take them through the Activities Portal to show them the best practice, tips and tricks to make this go smoothly.
• Records of sponsorships and contracts.
• How to apply for funding.
• Whether you have any student group items in storage.
• A helpful hint: take them to the storage, for example, Robbins, and show them how to access the space.
• What to expect at the fairs in Freshers Week

A document to outline your student groups activities and ways you will be mitigating risk.

Our club has applied on BUCS play for a competition, but our entries haven’t been approved what should we do?

Contact the BUCS Administrator at bucs@su.plymouth.ac.uk

I am not part of a sports club; can I still go to a competition?

Individuals who would like to enter a competition which is not funded by the Students’ Union, or the club, will need to transfer the money to the SU prior to booking the individual place. Please contact sport@su.plymouth.ac.uk for non-BUCS comps, and bucs@su.plymouth.ac.uk  for BUCS comps. 

Facilities

We use a range of facilities, both on campus and across Plymouth.

Campus Facilities – the SU Gym:

• Sports Hall
• Dance Studio
• Squash Courts

These can be booked online at https://www.upsu.com/gym/ , you can also pop in person and book with the team at the reception desk! * These must be paid by your student group

A helpful hint: if you have any questions or queries, you can also pop the Gym Team an email at recreation@su.plymouth.ac.uk

Off Campus Facilities

Aside from the training sessions the Communities team books for you, you are also able to book additional sessions yourselves – this must be paid by the student group

• Lipson School
• Heles Secondary School
• Life Centre
• Ivybridge RFC
• Devonport High School for Boys

If you need any help contacting the above, please contact the Communities team and we can send you over the relevant details.

*Q What’s an external speaker?

*A This would be anyone from outside of the university coming to talk during your student group event. You must give us notice and information of your speaker, as they must be approved by the department before the event can go ahead. This information must be submitted through the activity portal 14 days prior to your event.

*Q How do I complete the external speaker form?

*A You must fill out the external speaker form on the activity portal. We need 3 web links about the speaker, for example their LinkedIn profile. Please don’t send generic information about the company they work for, we need to know specifically about the individual you are inviting to your event.

*Q How do I book large spaces like Davy Main Hall, or the SU?

*A You need to complete a room booking form on the activity portal. Please remember there is a 7 working day policy for room bookings, and no guarantee the space will be available!

*Q When do you need all of the emergency contacts for a trip by?

*A These must be submitted 2 working days prior to your trip or it will not be authorised!

*Q How do I request transport for my trip?

*A You need to put in a tranpsort request form through the activity portal. If you are hiring a car, you need to list the names of your drivers before we can book a vehicle. Please ensure they have completed the driver regsitration form here. Look though our driver policy as you need to have the correct number of drivers depending on the length of your journey! 

*A Please give us as much notice as possible to book transport. We will add quotes for the booking onto the activity portal, and confirm your booking on that system.