We put students first.

Our values We put students first. Representative. Friendly. Fun. Collaborative. Innovative. We represent students. We put students first. We will always welcome people in a friendly, open way. We like to have fun at work and hope this rubs off on everyone we interact with. We will be collaborative with each other and University colleagues to make the changes that benefit students. We love coming up with innovative solutions and being creative in our approach..

We put students first. Our strategy: 2017-20 Representing students’ interests will be our number one priority. We will communicate transparently, seek student feedback and promote open conversations with the University. We put students first. Our activities, services, and spaces will be as diverse as our students. We will employ great people who are passionate about improving students’ lives. We will offer a fun, safe and affordable social programme and our student-friendly services won’t break the bank.

Our KPIs Representing students’ interests will be our number one priority. We aspire to be in the top quartile of all HE Students' Unions in the UK (measured by question 26 of the National Student Survey). We will communicate transparently, seek student feedback and promote open conversations with the University. We aim to have student representation on 85% of University committees. Our services, spaces and activities will be as diverse as our students. At least 80% of UK students at UH will engage with at least one service annually and we will have positive Net Promoter Scores in our outlets. We aim to achieve a staff satisfaction score of over 85%. We aim to achieve a staff satisfaction score of over 85%. We will offer a fun, safe and affordable social programme and our student-friendly services won’t break the bank. We will work to achieve an annual surplus of at least £10k.

Representation strategy We will actively seek and listen to student feedback to inform and develop policy, representation and change campaigns. We will work with University colleagues at all levels and in all schools to continue building positive working relationships. Representing students’ interests will be our number one priority. We will ensure all student representatives have access to high quality training and tools to empower them in achieving their goals. We will develop our research function even further in order to most effectively represent our members. We will strengthen our independent and highly credible Advice and Support service to grow our support for students. We will develop information campaigns on issues that impact student welfare. We will develop a communications plan around our representation and campaigning activity.

Student engagement strategy We will grow our engagement with our diverse population by providing relevant activities that students want to participate in. We will continue to grow our programme of academic-related activities and non-alcohol based events. Our activities, services and spaces will be as diverse as our students. We will increase our support for student-led events. We are proud to be Herts and will actively champion our community. We will deliver key employability and leadership skills to our students. We will celebrate the impact and value of our activities and services to students and staff.

Commercial strategy We will seek and act on student feedback on our entertainments programme and run nights students want to attend. We will operate our shops in a student-friendly way, focusing on customer service and competitive pricing. We will offer a fun, safe and affordable social programme and services that won’t break the bank. We will continue to run our Lettings agency in a legally compliant way that looks after the needs of our students. We will ensure all SU services are identifiable as being run by us and promote the fact that our money is reinvested in student services. We will meet or beat our budgets, actively working to ensure great value for money. We will ensure all security staff are continually trained and developed to offer a balance of safety and customer service. We will increase our support for student-led events and welcome even more student groups into our social spaces.

Communications strategy We will ask students what they think, listen to what they say and act on their views. We will develop a more personalised approach to our communications according to behaviour, demographics and school of study. We will communicate transparently, seek student feedback and promote open conversations with the University We will raise the profile of our representation through effective campaigns that demonstrate the Union’s impact on student voice. We will equip all SU staff to deliver high quality communications, understanding that word of mouth has the biggest impact. We will continually evaluate the impact of our communications to ensure we keep improving.

People strategy We will employ great people who are passionate We will recruit great staff through targeted recruitment and selection procedures. We will develop our staff with the skills and capabilities to achieve their full potential. We will employ great people who are passionate about improving students’ lives. We will empower our staff to make decisions and develop shared ownership for our vision and goals. We will celebrate staff and recognise their contribution to our success and improving students’ lives. We will ensure our staff have a positive work-life balance through flexible working. We will develop a positive, supportive environment where achievement and effort are celebrated and where colleagues work together to achieve our goals.