| Description | Minutes of a committee established by Senate to provide a formal means of consultation and communication between the Guild of Undergraduates (later the Guild of Students) and the Senate
Membership consisted of the Vice-Chancellor (chair); five members from the Guild of Undergraduates appointed by Guild Council; and five members elected by the Senate. Minutes of the first meeting, held on 4 November 1965, record that the President of the Guild of Undergraduates hoped that the terms of reference of the committee would be 'interpreted as widely as possible'. It was agreed at this first meeting that the committee would not make formal resolutions to be forwarded to other bodies but that Guild Council itself would make recommendations on appropriate matters. It was also agreed that the commitee would provide an channel of communication between the Guild of Undergraduates and the Senate enabling an exchange of views to be made between the two bodies
The committee appears to have met only when there were specific issues to consider. Minutes of early meetings contain details about changes in the University timetable which affected student athletic trials; the movement of examination period which affected the student Carnival charity fundraising activity; and issues relating to student accommodation policy, car parking, and the provision of Broader Education following the cancellation of the June Academic Festival
Minute of meetings held in 1966 and 1967 contain some references to student dissatisfaction with refectory services
Minutes of the first meeting of the committee, held on 4 November 1965, include a copy of a Memorandum to University Senate on the Students Carnival dated January 1966, setting out the Guild's wish to organise a carnival jointly with Aston University; to change the time to the first week of March; and to investigate possibilities for including Colleges of Education within the structure of the joint carnival. Minutes of the meeting held on 8 July 1966 discuss the case for the University allowing sabbatical leave for the Guild President while in office. A Memorandum on this subject, issued by the Guild, is included with minutes of the meeting held on 5 December 1966. Minutes of the meeting held on 7 March 1967 include a copy of a report of the Freshmen's Conference Commission, as well as papers on Broader Education and a proposed students' festival to replace the June Academic Festival which had been discontinued
There is no record of meetings between March 1967 and October 1969 when the committee composition changed from having a merely consultative function. It now had the right to submit proposals tothe Senate, and Guild members were to be elected by a ballot of the whole Guild. Minutes of this meeting record discussion about the fair representation of the personal views of individuals, whether within committee meetings or outside them, and regulations to be followed concerning the conduct of business
Minutes of the meeting held on 27 November 1969 include papers compiled in response to the Report of Select Committee on Education and Science. Further discussion of this is recorded in minutes of meetings held on 8 December 1969 and 4 February 1970 which include a copy of the Guild of Students paper on the Select Committee report
Minutes of the meeting held on 21 January 1970 set out the committee's discussion about welfare services affecting students, including accommodation, the University Health Centre, and the Counselling Service. These minutes Include a photocopy of an article from the Transactions of the Society of Occupational Medicine 1968 entitled 'Occupational Health Problems of Oxford Students' by S. J. G. Spencer
Minutes of the meeting held on 16 February 1970 refer to Guild opposition to the exclusion of student observers from the reserved business of Senate. There is further discussion of this issue recorded in minutes of meetings held on 23 February 1970 and 6 March 1970 which state the Guild's need for the Senate to define areas within which it might exercise its reserved powers, presumably for greater transparency. A Draft Temporary Ordinance on Reserved Areas of Business is included with minutes of the meeting held on 12 May 1971
Minutes of the meeting held on 23 November 1971 contain papers on financing student unions, and record discussion about the student counselling service. The minutes also include a copy of the Report of the Educational Survey Steering Committee to the Senate on student counselling and a report of the results of the questionnaire entitled 'Students views on Counselling' circulated to students leaving University 1969-1970. In addition, there is a paper issued by the Guild of Students on student representation on committees, and a record of the Guild's disagreement with a consultative document issued by the Department of Education and Science on the financing of student unions. Minutes of the meeting held on 1 December 1971 include recommendations by the Guild/Senate Committee to Senate and Council on the financing of the Guild of Students, setting out their support for continued continued finance by an ear-marked grant rather than from within the University block grant
No meetings appear to have been held in 1972
Minutes of the meeting held on 25 January 1973 contain a reference to the NUS campaign for higher grants for students and Guild action comprising a Grants Campaign and Rent Strike. Minutes of the meeting held on 22 November 1973 include papers relating to the procedure for making representations on student withdrawals from the University for examination failure, involving a method of making representation before a final decision was taken by a Faculty body. There is further information about this with minutes of the meeting held on 10 December 1973
There is no record of further meetings until 31 October 1974 at which the committee discussed proposed changes in the Quorum for General Meetings of the Guild. The minutes do not give any information about whether there were any further meetings of this committee |