We have leant heavily on student officers and students’ union workers in lockdown to support and defend the rights of students (and of staff) in our many diverse educational institutions. They have been used to contact and inform the campus community, to distribute food, supplies and support, to disseminate information on the pandemic and identify barriers to effective quarantining and adherence to precautions included food access, housing, and access to screening and testing.
Officers, volunteers, and staff at students’ unions have stood up as community leaders that are credible to different audiences have helped to share public health messages effectively. Furthermore, research has shown community leaders model exemplary behaviour helped to promote prosocial behaviour and cooperation. Where government failure to account for structural inequalities has alienate vulnerable groups, community leaders have been involved in addressing and suggesting and creating solutions.
Many have been working with are in difficult situations and are now facing burn-out. Barriers to them carrying out their usual level of community engagement and projects have been included lack of access to childcare, health, employment and isolation. Some are also struggling with technology and motivation.
Back on Track
The aim of this ‘Back on Track’ programme would, through five one-to-one coaching sessions, get SU staff and officers who are struggling or have become exhausted during lockdown to get ‘back on track’ with their work. The programme would aim to help them establish work-life patterns that are healthy, realistic, balanced and productive within the limitations of their current circumstances.
The programme consists of five one-to-one coaching sessions; participants receive full notes of the session discussions highlighting their reflections, agreed actions for the following week, and links to any useful resources and contacts. Sessions are also a space where the participants can share concerns and worries, and provide an opportunity for signposting to additional services whether they relate to wellbeing, social connection or other support.
The sessions would be a supportive space in which the coach and community would agree weekly aims to get them ‘back on track’ with their work, projects or wellbeing, depending on the needs of the individual. The coach and participant co-create the coaching agenda around a rough structure, informed by general sector research and a pre-programme questionnaire.
Benefits of ‘Back on Track’ mentoring programme for community leaders:
- Regular contact – A weekly coaching session would offer a regular contact point for participants to have space to discuss their issues, feel connected, and reduce isolation. They will also be linked in to the Magnetic Ideals network and other local networks through the course of the programme
- Planning and Organisational support – creating space to think realistically about how they can progress, thinking about obtaining work/life balance
- Linking with Services and Building Networks – An opportunity for signposting to services and networks of support that can enhance a sense of belonging and promote wellbeing, also to signpost to mental health and medical services if needed
- Wellbeing focused – It takes a holistic approach, and there is a chance to discuss all aspects that constitute the life of a community leader (family life, work-life, academic life, social life, health)
- Confidence building – The sessions will focus on documenting progress made and potential, as well as planning and management. It aims to build confidence for those community leaders who are struggling and have been negatively impacted by their experiences in lockdown
- Sharing Good Practice – It will develop ways of tracking progress that the community leader can use and share best practice and techniques that others have found helpful
- Safe – Provided either online via video call or phone call so COVID-safe
What ‘Back on Track Coaching is not:
- Aiming to put undue to pressure on officers workers who are not coping to return to activities that will cause them ill health or distress
- It is not counselling, nor is it meant to replace professional help for mental health issues
Indicative Back on Track Coaching Agenda
The agenda will be co-created depending on the participants. However, here is an indicative five-week programme, including some key topics the coach will aim to cover and a basic arch of progress that the programme aims to achieve:
| Indicative Weekly Topics | Indicative Session Description |
| Week 1 – From fire-fighting to co-creating an agenda | Session one will look at ‘fire-fighting’ what is urgent, when are deadlines, does there need to be any immediate interventions in terms of community leaders contacting supervisors, reaching out to support services etc. Look at answers to pre-programme questionnaire and discuss the most difficult aspects the community leader is facing. Discuss what is essential/non-essential work. Agree task(s) that will help things move forward – identify what is achievable in the week (no more than 3 key tasks) |
| Week 2 – Techniques for coping and planning | Review of the last week, being OK not to be OK, dealing with Automatic Negative Thoughts, identifying stress or relaxation techniques and building self-worth, Agree task(s) that will help things move forward – identify what is achievable in the week (no more than 3 key tasks) |
| Week 3 – Wellbeing and time management | Review of the last week, set up some exercise targets – walking/useful websites/online classes, Mid-way check in – what is working/not – changes that can be made, Agree task(s) that will help things move forward – identify what is achievable in the week (no more than 3 key tasks) |
| Week 4 – Tracking progress and reaching out | Review of the last week, looking at daily journal statements and/11or affirmation work, suggested engagement with networks/events (COVID-safe), Identify helpful cycles/changes agree task(s) that will help things move forward – identify what is achievable in the week (no more than 3 key tasks) |
| Week 5 – Looking to the future and keeping the momentum | Review of the last week sustaining/maintaining networks Aspirational points and reflections on changes to work patterns and progress made, Action points moving forward, End of programme questionnaire |
Measuring Impact
Participants will complete a questionnaire at the beginning and end of the programme. It is hoped that there will be demonstrable progress on how well equipped participants feel to progress with their research in a healthy, realistic, balanced, and productive way.
‘Back on Track’ Coaching Leader Details
The coaching is delivered through Magnetic Ideals and led by Heather McKnight, who has worked advising coaching, training and mentoring for a number of years both in Higher Education and in the community sector. She has worked providing training, mentoring, research and coaching through Magnetic Ideals (2015 – 2021) for management in the community sector, emerging social enterprises and community groups, and individual tutoring and specialist access to work support for self-employed individuals in the arts. She has worked in many roles helping people get back on track.
She has over 10 years of experience in the Students’ Union sector, having worked for NUS, NUS Scotland and SPARQs. Heather was a policy officer working on issues impacting International Students at both NUS UK and NUS Scotland, and a College Reviewer for Education Scotland. She managed the Student Advice Service at the University of Brighton Students’ Union for three years. The Service employed an empowerment model of advising where students were encouraged to understand the university’s processes in a supported way that would both help them overcome their current issues while building confidence to overcome similar issues in the future. She managed complex advice cases, advised and reported to university boards on both postgraduate and undergraduate student vulnerabilities and policy changes. She has presented at numerous QAA and HE Sector events on matters around student engagement and progression. Working as the Equalities Development Officer for the Scottish Council for Minorities she ran and developed the volunteering programme to develop skills in the centre based volunteers and ensure voices were represented in the broader community, working to engage them in representative roles in community councils and other representative bodies. During this time she also offered mentoring and support to refugees, asylum seekers and other minority groups engaged with the centre.
As a Consortium of Humanities and Arts in the South Easy funded PhD student, she was an active member of the CHASE student community serving as the chair of the CHASE Student Committee, being a founding member of the CHASE Feminist Committee (where she still serves on the organising committee) and supporting a number of CHASE researchers in other funding bids. She has worked as a community leader in feminist and understands firsthand the difficulties of the experience in lockdown. Particularly through her work as a representative on the Feminist Network (which cuts across nine universities and a number of community groups), she is acutely attuned to how vulnerable groups that have been struggling during the pandemic, and the coping and networking mechanisms that have been put in place to help.
Booking and further details: Dr Heather McKnight heather@magneticideals.org
To book an appointment to discuss group bookings associated discounts for staff and officers please select a time here: https://calendly.com/magneticideals/30min