Motions Deadline

Motions deadline for Disabled Students’ Conference 2007 is 3 November 2006. If you’d like to see an issue debated, if you’d like us to change our policy on an issue or if you’d like us to be working on something we’re currently not – please submit a motion!

Motions may be submitted by any Students’ Union in the UK on issues affecting disabled students. If you submit a motion that is due to be debated at conference, you will have a speech to make in favour of that motion at Disabled Students’ conference.

So, lets say you want us to start working on the fact that sports societies don’t often include disabled students. You might submit a motion like this:

Motion Title: Disability and Sport

Conference believes:

1. That most sports societies at UK colleges and universities do not consider disabled people

2. That facilities for disabled sport in UK institutions is poor

Conference further believes:

1. That disabled people have a right to play sport in the same way as non-disabled people

Conference resolves:

1. That the NUS Disabled Students’ campaign should encourage student unions to make their sports societies accessible

2. That the NUS Disabled Students’ campaign should produce a briefing on disability and sport and make it available on the website

3. That the NUS Disabled Students’ campaign should hold an event day in 2007 aimed at training sports officers how to make their societies accessible to disabled students

That’s just an example.

The key point to remember is that the ‘believes’ and ‘further believes’ should go on to justify the ‘resolves’ and the ‘resolves’ is what you actually want the campaign to do about the issue you have raised in the ‘believes’ and ‘further believes’.

After the motions deadline, all the motions are made available on NUS websites and you can submit an AMENDMENT to a motion. The amendments deadline is in early January, and I’ll blog closer to the time.

So lets say you feel that the motion above is good, but it doesn’t cover completely the issue of disabled sport, as it neglects to mention the Olympics due to be held in the UK, and how important participation of disabled people is. You might submit an amendment that says something like:

Amendment Title: Disability Sport at the Olympics

Conference believes:

1. That the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games are vital for the progression of disability sport

2. That the Paralympic games are a vital opportunity for disabled people to engage in sport.

Conference further believes:

1. That unless facilities improve for disability sport, the paralympic games will be a wasted opportunity for UK disabled athletes

2. That the government has made some commitment to improving facilities for disability sport, but not gone far enough

Conference resolves:

1. To put pressure on the government to commit funds to accessible sports centres and networks of disabled athletes

2. To encourage disabled students to participate in sports in the hope that we groom some paralympians for the 2012 games

3. To include the actual playing of disabled sport in the event day so that disabled students can be introduced to accessible sport

If both the motion and amendment were submitted to Disabled Students’ conference, and after debate and speeches for and against, a vote was held and the motion and amendment passed – then the campaign would do the work you wanted in the next year.

As a result of resolves one and two in the main motion, we would make sure that we were raising the issue of disability sport when we engage with unions, and make sure a briefing was produced that explained the issues involved.

As a result of resolves three in the main motion, we would hold the event day!

As a result of resolves one in the amendment, we would make sure that we wrote to the relevant MPs and ministers, as well as raising the issue with other partner organisations.

As a result of resolves two in the amendment, we would ensure that we were discussing sport with disabled students that we came into contact with, and keeping an eye out for any talented athletes!

As a result of resolves three in the amendment, we would ensure that the disability sport day actually involved the opportunity to play some sport, rather than just being a day based on workshops.

It really is that simple! You submit policy for debate and, if passed, we make sure we do the work the year later. We respond to YOUR concerns, we’re here for disabled students and their unions and we make sure that any issues that we have policy on are actually WORKED on!

So if you’d like us to do something, like us to take action on an issue or like us to change our stance on a current issue – submit a motion!

You can do so by emailing your motion to motions@nus.org.uk - and they must be in by 3 November 2006 at 1.00pm. Get in touch if you’ve any questions.

Till next time,

Alex

alex.kemp@nus.org.uk

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