Your new VP Societies and Sport, Alastair Copland gives you a quick rundown of his recent trip to the British University & Colleges Sport (BUCS) Conference. Find out what he got up to and how he'll be utilising his experience to improve sport at Royal Holloway.
Hi everyone, I’m Alastair and I’m the newly elected VP Societies & Sport for 2023/24. After taking over the role from Hannah (your 2023/24 President), it’s been a busy start. In my first week, I had the opportunity to attend the BUCS Conference 2023!
British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) is the national body for sport at universities across the UK. Everything from your weekly fixtures to national competitions is run by BUCS and from Tuesday 11 – Thursday 13 July they held a three-day conference at the University of Leeds, consisting of workshop sessions, key speakers from the sports industry, and platforms to discuss and influence the direction for BUCS in the future.
What I got up to
Turning up after a long four-hour journey from Egham, I immediately met with other Societies & Sport Sabbs from across the country, taking notes on the different ways to improve sport at Royal Holloway.
Keynotes
- Sessions on how to secure sponsorship opportunities for student groups, policies to help increase female participation in sport, and utilising physical activity to benefit students' wellbeing.
- A collaborative workshop and talk from the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam on how to create a successful Varsity event.
- Talks from keynote speakers in the Sports Industry, such as rugby league coach and former player Jamie Jones-Buchanan, England's 2003 Rugby World Cup winning coach Sir Clive Woodward, and ex-Lioness Ellen White - record goalscorer for the England women's national football team.
London Regional Chair
Alongside everything at the conference, I also put myself forward and was successfully elected as the London Student Chair!
All BUCS member universities are divided into 12 regions, with Royal Holloway sitting within the London region. Each region elects a Student Chair and a Staff Chair to convene at regional meetings, and then take a report to the National Advisory Group.
I will also be working with the London Staff Chair, Katie Sykes, the Head of Sport and Physical Activity at UCL, to help deliver a strong and supported London region for BUCS!
Overall, the BUCS Conference was a fantastic opportunity to learn and develop skills and knowledge around University sport.
Keep an eye on this space for further updates on how I’m utilising this experience to improve sport at Royal Holloway!
#GoBears