Living Black at University Commission – TERMS OF REFERENCE

Purpose and scope

The purpose of the Living Black at University Commission is to respond to the findings and recommendations of the Living Black at University research at a national level, in a way that supports and encourages individual universities, accommodation providers and other relevant partners to implement the recommendations more effectively.

Following an initial phase from May 2022-October 2023, the scope of the Commission from 2024 will be broadened to working towards inclusion and belonging for Black students throughout all campus services.

Objectives

• Keep the voices of Black students at the centre of the work of the Commission
• Embed good practice principles into national standards, processes and award criteria
• Develop and enable meaningful race and inclusion training relevant to campus services
• Provide visibility and recognition for projects and initiatives that take forward the purpose of the Commission
• Draw on pilot projects and complementary research to develop and share good practice guidance and examples

Secretariat

CUBO and Unite Students will work in partnership to provide the secretariat for the Commission, which includes:

• Convening meetings
• Communications and awareness raising
• Sector engagement
• Support for Commission actions, including financial support

Meetings

Meetings will take place every two months online, with one or two in-person away days per year.

At the in-person meetings, opportunities will be taken to listen to Black students from local higher education institutions, and to engage with local campus services teams.

Membership

Members of the original Living Black at University Commission will be given the opportunity to continue to serve as Commissioners.

The Commission will have the power to:

• Identify, create and appoint to vacancies for new Commissioners to meet current gaps, for example to ensure representation of a specific professional area or to address a skills gap
• nominate specific individuals to be invited to become a Commissioner

The final decision will be subject to a majority vote at a Commission meeting.

The Chair will be appointed through a nomination and voting process. If the role of Chair is vacant, any Commissioner may nominate or second a Commissioner to stand as Chair subject to their consent. The decision will be taken on a majority vote. The tenure of the Chair will normally be a maximum of two years before seeking reappointment.

Should any cause for concern arise in regard to a specific Commissioner, this should be discussed with the Chair in the first instance. If the concern is about the Chair, this should be discussed with the Secretariat.

Roles and responsibilities

Chair and Deputy Chair

The role of the Chair is to lead the Commission in ensuring that it achieves its aim of improving the experiences of Black students in UK university halls and privately owned PBSA, through facilitation of meetings, delegation of actions and ensuring that the Black student voice remains front and centre of the Commission’s efforts. The Deputy Chair acts for the Chair in their absence, provides peer support and undertakes tasks at the Chair’s request.

Responsibilities include:

• Developing the workplan, annual meeting cycle and liaising with partner organisations.
• Leading the Commissioners in the achievement of the agreed workplan
• Chairing meetings (reviewing minutes and communications before publication)
• Monitoring the completion of actions
• Promoting the work of the Commission across the sector
• Representing the Commission externally when appropriate
• Maintain appropriate confidentiality as agreed in Commission meetings

Commissioners

The role of Commissioners is to contribute to the work of the Commission by providing organisational and or subject matter expertise that will inform and enable the achievement of positive change for Black students’ accommodation experience. They are expected to design and action activity that supports the accomplishment of the workplan.

Responsibilities include:

• Endeavour to attend all meetings, providing comments on agendas, communications and papers in advance of meetings in instances of absence
• Represent the interests of their organisation or professional body and provide specialist expertise as required
• Draw attention to any potential risk or conflicts of interest that may arise
• Complete agreed actions, providing progress updates at meetings
• Promoting the work of the Commission across the sector
• Representing the Commission externally when appropriate
• Maintain appropriate confidentiality as agreed in Commission meetings