► Mature Students

Bucks Students’ Union loves Mature Students

A campaign targeting University provision of childcare led by Vice President Laz Wood

A survey is currently being circulated around students in order to obtain more information on the needs of those students with childcare responsibilities and the popularity of a university run childcare service. Focus groups will also be run after this in order to gain a greater understanding of the issues facing those students looking after children.

With this information the Students’ Union is putting together a business case to take to the university. The Students’ Union is working closely with Ian Hunter (The University’s Director of Estates) on this campaign

Advice, support and guidance from our Advice Centre on issues ranging from funding to accommodation

The Advice Centre listen to and support students on accommodation, legal issues, personal problems, money advice, international problems and course problems.

The Welfare Advisors use experience and knowledge on student issues to influence University thinking to help create a positive impact on your time at Bucks. We recognise that Mature students sometimes need more support during their university life. Some mature students may be eligible for benefits; the Advice Centre is able to advised students on this.

Please feel free to contact any of us if you are experiencing any problems, all Advice Centre staff operate within a confidentiality policy

Julia Crooks or Kirti Soni
High Wycombe Campus
Ground Floor, North Wing
email: suadvice@bucks.ac.uk
Tel: 01494 605 038 (direct)
01494 603 016 (reception)

Kay Corden or Susie Kelsey
Uxbridge Campus
First Floor
email: suadvice@bucks.ac.uk
Tel: 01494 605 181 (direct)
01494 605 180 (reception)

A Mature Students Society led by Will Hoskins

This is a group for all students who start at Bucks over the age of 21. This group is a good networking tool for Bucks students and will highlight some of the Students’ Union work that is more relevant to more mature students. The Mature Students Society runs its own events and meetings catering specifically for Mature Students.

If you are interested in joining this society please contact willhoskin@inbox.com for more information.

The Mature Students Breakfast Club

The Mature Students Society "breakfast Club" is a way of getting mature students together, due to the time constraints that most mature students have we try to put on events that are based just before or just after the times of peoples lectures. Coming in to uni half an hour early and sitting down and having a chat and some free breakfast is often easier for mature students to fit around their busy schedules.

The breakfast clubs will be running again from February. For more information please contact willhoskin@inbox.com.

A range of Recreational Activities designed to cater for our diverse membership

The Students’ Union runs activities which are popular with our mature students such as language courses, fitness classes, theatre trips and cooking classes which are free to Bucks students as part of the Big Deal. For more information or to sign up please contact catherine.ducan@bucks.ac.uk.

A campaign to remove exams from Half Term weeks so student parents don’t have to juggle revision and their children

We understand that exams are stressful irrespective of when they take place. We also appreciate however that trying to revise in the last couple of days before an exam, when you have children to look after, is even more stressful. With that in mind we have written a paper on academic term dates and presented it to the University. Within the paper we call on the institution to schedule all exams, including Time Constrained Assessments (TCAs) outside of half term holidays. We hope that if this adopted it will lead to a better experience for student parents.