Hi, I’m Dean, your Welfare & Community Officer at the Guild for this academic year. I’ve just graduated from my undergraduate in Philosophy, and I am now studying a Masters in Philosophy of Religion and Ethics part-time. A couple fun facts about me are:
- I have worked as a member of student staff at the Guild for two years prior to becoming an Officer.
- My favourite way to make coffee is by using a Moka pot (if you know, you know).
Why I applied to become your Welfare and Community Officer:
I have always had an interest in student welfare and housing, but in my third year I worked as a Community Warden at the Guild. The Community Warden scheme is a partnership between the University and the Guild to make Selly Oak a safer, cleaner, greener, and more cohesive community.
In this role, I engaged directly with students on a number of wellbeing and housing issues, providing advice and support. So, when Officer Elections rolled around, it felt natural for me to progress from Warden to Welfare & Community Officer. As an Officer I am well placed to influence Guild policy and work with the University on issues relating to student welfare and housing, which really appealed to me.
What I will be working on this year:
My top priority for this year is getting the Guild Renters’ Union up and running. The Renters’ Union will be a one-stop-shop for housing advice and support. Having all housing information in one place will make it easier to access, resulting in students having greater awareness about their rights as renters and how to assert those rights if the need arises.
My aim is that the Selly Oak rental market will be more responsive to students’ requirements, especially with regard to housing standards, communication, and responsiveness to maintenance queries.
If you have any questions or would just like a chat, please do get in touch! You can follow my socials for more updates @guild_welfare, or get in touch via email welfare@guild.bham.ac.uk.