2017 General Meeting

Date: Sunday 3rd week, Michaelmas 2017 (2017-10-22)

Agenda

 

Michaelmas Term 1st Week GM Agenda 2017

 

a) Matters arising

President's and Treasurer’s reports

 

b)  Amendments to the Governing Documents

i) Gym Officer (Ali Nicklin)

 

c)  Motions relating to financial matters

 

i) Self-Defence Workshops (Monique and Laura)

ii) Arts Week (Zach Leather)

iii) Entz levy (Zach Leather)

iv) TVCR lecy (Zach Leather)

v) Yarl’s Wood (Beth Cadwalldr)

vi) OUWO Funding (Alex Toal)

vii) Climate Society zine (Felix Heilmann)
 

d) Any other motions

 

i) College Pet (Tom Laver)

 

e) Appendices

 

 

 

a) Matters arising

 

b) Amendments to the Governing Documents

 

i) Gym Officer (Ali Nicklin) passes

 

This JCR notes

1. That there is a gym on mainsite.

2. That it is outdated, messy and in need of lots of care and attention.

3. That the Sportz reps currently are in charge of the gym (because sport).

4. That college have recently put together a working group to repair and replace equipment in the gym.

5. The college sports committee have already given permission for a Gym officer to sit on sports committee.

6. That Sportz already do a lot.

7. That replacing gym equipment is a lot more difficult than you would imagine.

This JCR believes

1. That sport is important (healthy body leads to a healthy mind).

2. That the gym is outdated, messy and in need of lots of care and attention.

3. That the JCR's opinion should be voiced to the working group mentioned in notes 4.

4. That gyms are complicated and only a few people truly understand how they should be.

5. It would be great for our gym to be better.

This JCR resolves

1. To create a non-committee position called Gym officer, who oversees the day-to-day running and improvements of the gym

2. To update the standing orders as required.

 

c) Motions relating to financial matters

 

i) Self-Defence Workshops (Monique and Laura) passes

 

This JCR notes

1. That there is interest among the women of Balliol for a self-defence workshop

2. That these workshops have previously run for Balliol students successfully

3. Self-defence classes may help people to feel empowered or more safe in situations where they may be at risk of harassment or violence.

4. That a self defence workshop costs £20 per person attending, and that this would put many people off from partaking, or prevent them entirely.

5. That there is precedent for Balliol JCR in passing some money for women to attend these classes (in 2015 the JCR passes £300 for such classes)

6. That at other colleges classes have previously been subsidised by the JCR

This JCR believes

1. Everybody has the right to feel safe and at ease while in Oxford, and that those who identify wholly or partially as women are more likely to be at risk of harassment or violence

2. These self-defence classes will provide an opportunity for Balliol JCR members to learn new skills that may have a positive impact on their wellbeing.

3. That £5 is a reasonable amount to ask people to pay to attend such an event, with £15 being subsidised the JCR.

4. The £5 charge will also encourage people who obtain a place to attend, given that we expect there will be less places than people who sign up

This JCR resolves to:

1. Pass up to £300 (20 spaces) for all those who identify wholly or partially as women at Balliol to partake in this self-defence class

 

ii) Arts Week  (Zach)

 

This JCR notes

1. That it is one of my responsibilities to organise arts week

2. That arts week in the past has been fairly poor

3. That college and the JCR for some reason set aside relatively little time to promoting and celebrating arts, and that Arts Week is one of the only such times

4. That arts is a very broad concept encompassing a huge variety of forms and activities

5. That some of these activities require money

This JCR believes

1. That arts is a hugely important part of student life and culture, and that the JCR should celebrate and engage in arts more than it currently does

2. That it would be a really good thing if the upcoming arts week managed to celebrate a diverse array of arts, both in terms of their form and their culture of origin

3. That achieving this is worth money

This JCR resolves

1. To pass up to £500, to go towards the funding of activities and events related to Arts Week

 

iii) Entz levy (Zach) passes

 

This JCR notes

1. That the Entz account has been losing money for quite a while

2. That this is partly because entz don’t have a terribly good track record of financial responsibility, but also partly because the normal expenses out of the entz budget are no longer covered by the entz levy

3. That the levy currently accumulates around £430 a term

4. That the levy hasn’t been put up in a long time (read: since before we can remember)

5. That increasing the optional levy from £1.50 to £2.50 would amply cover the normal expenses that Entz incur whilst also rewarding scrupulous entz with extra cash, that can be used for fun and exciting events

6. That Ste and Ellen have discussed such exciting events as booking out Thirsty Meeples for a day, and that these exciting events would certainly be infeasible without a larger levy

7. That since the entz levy is optional, this is not a binding commitment for all JCR members to pay more

This JCR believes

1. That £1 extra a term isn’t much to pay for more fun

2. That running down the reserves so that future generations can’t have as much fun as we have is morally suspect

This JCR resolves

1. To increase the Entz optional levy to £2.50

 

iv) TVCR levy (Zach) passes

 

This JCR notes

1. That the TV room (commonly nicknamed the TVCR) is an important social hub for many people

2. That the things in the TV room, such as the TV, games console, sofas, Sky Box etc. require maintenance that there is currently not much of an outlet in the JCR’s finance to fund

3. That an optional TV room levy would be one such way of funding the maintenance of the TV room

4. That optional levies are, by their nature, optional, meaning that if one has no interest in funding the TV room then would be able to opt out

5. That if everyone felt like they were funding the TV room, interest in the TV room may be piqued and it could end up not being as exclusive a space as it is currently viewed

This JCR believes

1. That maintaining JCR spaces is a good thing

This JCR resolves

1. To create a TV room levy, of £2 this term (as the money will not be recouped until next term) and £1 thereafter

2. To use this levy as described in appendix A, and to update standing policy to reflect the guidelines in appendix A

 

Amendment 1 (friendly)

Add to resolves: Mandate the next treasurer in Trinity Term to review this levy

 

Amendment 2 does not pass

Change resolves a) to To create a TV room levy of 1p this term and thereafter

 

v) Yarl’s Wood (Beth) passes

This JCR notes

1. Yarl’s Wood, in Bedfordshire, is one of 11 detention centres in UK which detains refugees for indefinite periods of time, without them having committed any crimes.

2. Yarl's Wood has come under particular media scrutiny because it is the only detention centre in the UK to detain women, and its population is almost entirely made up of women.

3. Abuse of the women inside by guards is common, whether verbal, emotional, physical or sexual, adding further cruelty to an already horrific system.

4. Oxford Migrant Solidarity are organizing a demonstration called ‘Oxford goes to Yarl’s Wood’ on November 18th That this demonstration is running under the slogan ‘Surround Yarl’s Wood’, and aims to show the detainees that the protesters care about them, that there are people in the UK who disagree with racist government policy, and who want a society which will keep them safe.

5. That this protest is also a chance to hear from those inside, detainees can be spoken to over the phone, and the protests are led by former detainees who often share their stories.

6. That coaches from Oxford to Yarl’s Wood are being arranged by the Oxford Migrant Society, and that the normal price per ticket is £10.

7. That the JCR political campaigning fund currently has around £500.

This JCR believes

1. The need to shut down Yarl’s Wood is urgent, engaging in the struggle of women and refugees at a direct level.

2. The student movement is gaining momentum in the UK, and now more than ever needs to create and build links with campaigners who have been fighting for many years against the unjust treatment of asylum seekers – the most vulnerable of whom are women.

3. Providing transport to this demonstration will show the commitment of students to supporting this cause

This JCR Resolves

1. To donate the value of coach tickets of Balliol students who attend from the political campaigning fund to provide for coaches for transport.

2. To support the Shut Down Yarls Wood campaign before and after this demonstration.

 

Amendment (friendly)

Add to notes: There is a separate ticket option costing £21.83 (which also pays for something(?))

Change resolves a: To reimburse up to £21.83 to Balliol students who attend from the political campaigning fund.

 

vi) OUWO Funding (Alex Toal) passes

 

This JCR Notes:

1. That OUWO is one of the university’s oldest and most prestigious ensembles, dating back to 1974.

2. That OUWO is organising a tour to the US and has arranged most of the funding for this privately as follows:

i) £26,600 from members (56x£475)

ii) £9,600 from colleges (including Balliol)

iii) £5,000 from the Vice Chancellor

iv) An expected £10,000-£15,000 from Crowdfunding

        c) OUWO has two members from Balliol, Rhys Underdown and Alex Toal.

        d) That the music fund still has a lot of money.

 

This JCR Believes:

1. That sponsoring cultural activities, including music, is a good thing to do.

2. That OUWO, as a longstanding ensemble with a good management team, is a responsible use of funding.

 

This JCR Resolves:

1. To sponsor OUWO £200. (from JCR general fund)

 

Amendment 1

Add to resolves: To endeavour to involve OUWO to perform in Balliol Arts Week

 

vii) Climate Change zine (Felix Heilmann) passes

 

This JCR notes

1. That the Oxford Climate Society (OCS) is an entirely student-run society that has not yet been supported by any funds from Colleges or the University;

2. That OCS has produced a zine, “two degrees”, which collected contributions from students across the University, as well as others;

3. That the costs of the zine production and launch event, while not yet fully quantified, will overall be ca. £350;

4. That it is very difficult to attain sponsorships or other means of accessing money for Societies with strong moral principles;

5. That OCS members have made all possible efforts to access externalise funding, such as private funding from donors, but there is still a funding gap;

6. That Felix, a Balliol JCR member, was involved in putting together of the zine.

This JCR believes

1. That climate change is a major threat and that all possible action should be taken to resolve this issue;

2. That the work done by various societies around Oxford on this issue is a valuable contribution to the wider struggle;

3. That outreach events are an important contribution to the fight against climate change;

4. That having some copies of the zine “two degrees” in the JCR would be a valuable contribution to the JCR.

This JCR resolves

1. To donate 100 GBP towards the Oxford Climate Society, on condition that copies of the zines will be placed in the JCR.

 

d) Any other motions

 

i) College Pet (Tom Laver)

 

This JCR notes:

1. Balliol has had no pet since Rosa Luxembourg “disappeared” in 2003

2. Comrade tortoise feels lonely

3. Many other colleges have pets

4. Studies have shown that petting animals can lower stress

This JCR believes:

1. Animals are adorable

2. Balliol has been lacking something without a college pet

3. A college pet would bring together the entire college community and do great things unity as all years would come along and look after them

4. A college pet would act as a fantastic de-stressing tool during the exam period, and help to promote the welfare of students during those busy times

This JCR resolves:

1. That Balliol should have a college pet

2. That said college pet should be funded and supported by the JCR

3. That during the holidays the college pet should be looked after by a member of the JCR committee, or anyone co-opted from the student body willing and capable to look after them

4. To begin a selection process to determine the species of college pet – low & easy maintenance being the key criterion

5. To open a commission for a suitably leftist name for the pet

6. To aim to have the college pet fully installed by the beginning of Trinity term 2018

 

Amendment 1 (friendly)

Add to resolves: To ethically source the pet

 

e) Appendices

 

Appendix A

1. All money from the levy is to be deposited in the JCR general reserves

2. All expenditures greater than £50 are to be approved by GM in the normal fashion, unless they fall under the normal expenditures described in 3), are less than £150 AND have been approved by the treasurer

3. Normal expenditures are defined as follows:

   1. Games and DVDs, so long as less than £100 has been spent cumulatively on games and DVDs thus far in the term

   2. TV, console or Sky Box repair

   3. Replacement kettle or microwave

   4. Anything not covered by a, b or c that is deemed by the treasurer absolutely necessary for the normal functioning of the TV room

4. Reimbursement for expenditures is conditional on the receipt having been signed by the treasurer

Minutes

Minutes GM MT 3rd Week 

 

 

Zach Treasurer’s Report 

Zach set out the running of the JCR finances for any freshers or people who don’t know how it works, saying that we run our own cafe and bar, hoping that both break even. We get money from college and through compulsory and optional levies to go into different funds. There are three different accounts; the bar’s account, Entz account and one big JCR pot. We have quite a lot of money in reserves as well as more in picture fund money. 

Zach then detailed the Hilary term finances. It was not a good term for the bar, and so prices were raised before the start of Trinity. Entz did okay, but not as well as hoped for with a loss of £800. Pantry had its best term on record which is good because it normally loses a lot of money. The price rise in the bar has since been successful and Entz have had a much improved Trinity term. In order to close the financial gap, Zach said he may look to increase general levies in the future. 

Flora asked how much is spent on welfare teas and GM snacks and it was answered by Amrita and Hannah that £10 for each welfare tea and £25 for GM snacks. 

 

Hubert’s Presidential Report will take place at the next GM

 

Gym Officer (Ali) 

Ali explained that this motion was to introduce a Gym Officer. The gym is currently rubbish and needs to be improved, however the job is quite difficult and we need someone specifically focused on improving it so people are not put off running for Sportz if they don’t understand how gyms work. 

Hope asked what Sportz reps do and Ali replied that they go to Sports Committee meetings, meet with sports captains, reply to lots of emails and submit all the bids to colleges for termly amounts for the sports teams. 

Leah asked if it is college or the JCR who provide the money for sports and Ali replied that it is the college, with some gifts from alumni. Also, sports committee is chaired by Lisa Walker, and contains Rachel, the President of the boat club, some tutors and Bruce. 

Nermeen asked if the plan is for the gym to be refurbished, in which case would we need an ongoing role for the long term. Ali said that he doesn’t know of any plans for revamping the gym, however the rep would sort out the day to day running of the gym, working with college when machines stop working. 

Flora asked if, instead of two Sportz reps, could we have one Sportz and one gym rep and Elliot replied that there are two Sportz needed to represent the sports for different genders. Ali supported that having two reps is good to share the workload. 

Johnny suggest that it might end up being a role that people wouldn't run for, and the Sportz might end up doing their job anyway. Ali replied that a specific role can get more done and that doesn’t it shouldn’t be a possible position. 

Flora’s suggestion that the boat club be in charge of the running of the gym was rejected by Hope, who said that the gym already seems too exclusive. 

 

We move to a vote. 

Motion passes with over 75% of the room in favour. 

 

Self-defence workshops (Laura and Monique)

Laura explained that the WO have posted a poll on the Bal Gals group, getting a response in favour of self-defence classes for women. These have run successfully in the past and can make women feel empowered and safer. The company charges £20 per person and to stop people being put off, they are asking for up to £375 to subsidise the cost for 20 people. There is precedent for this, with the JCR passing £300 in 2015. 

Nermeen asked if there is a way of asking the company to subsidise the costs so that more than 20 people can attend. Laura replied that it has been capped at 20 because of space restraints and there didn’t seem to be any space for negotiation, however if it was very popular, she would encourage the future WO to run similar ones next term. 

Alex asked how the 20 people taking part would be chosen and Laura answered probably by random number generator. 

Leah asked if there could be a way for people attending the class to learn the basics and later teach others who couldn't attend and Laura supported this idea, saying she will email the company back and ask if this is possible. 

Joe asked if there is any equivalent for men who identify as LBGTQ and Laura said that the company did offer this and she would pass on the information to the LGBTQ reps. 

 

Motion passes. 

 

Arts Week (Zach) 

Zach explained that Arts Week is happening in 7th week and he would like it to be good which requires money. He doesn’t know how much he will spend but would like £500 as it is unlikely to be more than this. 

Moyo asked what happens to the money that is unspent and Zach said that it just stays in the JCR account. 

Flora asked what events we are aiming to have and Zach replied that he wants to put on 2 film showings, a wine and watercolour session, a tie dye event, dance workshop, academic talks and potentially a trip to the Ashmolean with a guide. 

Amrita asks how much has been spent in the past and Zach said he doesn’t know but probably not much as they haven't been that good. 

Flora asked why Balliol arts week is a less high profile event than at other colleges. Zach said it’s probably because organising it is within the job of the Treasurer but from next year will be within the job of the Arts rep. 

 

Motion passes

 

Entz Levy (Zach)

Zach explained that Entz in recent years hasn’t been doing very well. It has to pay for decorations, parts of licenses and subscriptions and the levy is only £1.50, which doesn't cover this. Zach said he would like to raise the levy by £1, which would reward good Entz reps with the chance to spend more money. 

Nermeen asked if Entz could carry on running as it is and Zach replied that it couldn’t, it would just get money from the JCR. The freshers tickets for club nights every Michaelmas cause them to make a big loss each year. 

Flora asked why Entz Officers don’t have a good track record of financial accountability and Zach replied that Entz are often not elected for their financial knowledge. However, this is starting to change with Entz on Fexec. 

Moyo asked besides freshers tickets, why are Entz going over budget. Zach explained that there is a budget for bops independent of revenue, their fixed costs exceed the termly levies they get. Entz never make back what is spent on freshers’ tickets as the popular nights always sell out but you can never tell which nights will be popular. Also, bops previously haven't broken even, although now they are starting to. 

Nermeen asked why boptails are sold by Entz rather than the bar and Hubert pointed out that this isn’t directly related to the motion. Zach added that we don’t want to tell Entz to stop selling drinks because in bops, we want to shift people into the JCR where the actual bop is happening. 

Nermeed asked if this is a problem now or one that’s likely to exist in a while and when it does, we could put up the levy then. Zach said that this has been existing for five years and is likely to just get worse unless we do something. 

 

Move to a vote.

Motion passes. 

 

TVCR (Zach) 

Zach introduced the motion, saying that nobody spends money on the TV room, the stuff like the TV and Sky box have been there for a long time. The TV room is considered a social hub for lots of people and if it was better provided for, it could be for more people. It makes sense to implement a budget through an optional levy to repair the TV, buy new video games and consoles because if people don’t use the TV room, they don’t have to pay. This would provide the kind of money to really be able to help and anything about a certain amount would need to go to a GM. 

Ali asked how much money this is expected to raise and Zach said the most it could be is £364 but the likely amount is around £300 with an 80% uptake. Ali asked why 300 people should be expected to pay when the space is only used by 50 or so people. Zach said that in the JCR we often fund things that aren’t used by everyone, like welfare teas and newspapers. 

Johnny asked if this would usually go to a specific D&M fund if the Officer were still here, although Zach explained there is not allocated budget for D&M and there is an added component to this than just maintenance, which is the promotion of the space in a positive sense, making it new and inclusive. 

Joe asked if it be worth it considering that there might not be often costs. Zach said that any amount larger than £150 would have to got to a GM and the availability of funds mean more people might want to buy things to make it homely. If the fun wasn’t used it could be removed or reduced, but this isn’t a reason not to try it. 

Hope added that at the moment, the TV room might be a bit cliquey because individuals have put things inside themselves, whereas if it was JCR funded, it will open it up to a wider group of people. Juliet said that if something big in the Pilch breaks, the college will pay for it, and so the college may be more willing to fund some of the TV room things if the JCR shows a willingness to take responsibility and participate in the costs. 

Nermeen said that she feels that just because the TV room was made nicer, this doesn’t mean that people won’t be put off. Zach disagreed, saying that the JCR contributing towards the TV room will mean that people can feel like they have a right to be there. There are lots of things that we contribute to that only a small percentage of college benefits from. Zach also said that if it is the accessibility which is a problem, then maybe we need to do something else, for example an evening booking system. 

Beth added that she also would like to make the TVCR feel more like an extension of the JCR, and is aiming to hold welfare teas in there. 

Flora asked why there should be a distinction between funding for the nook, which came out of general JCR funds, and the TVCR levy. Amrita replied that the nook was more of a renovation thing, rather than the Tv room which will require ongoing costs and maintenance. 

Moyo said that if there is a disagreement between whether there will be increased use or not, the better thing to do would be to keep the status quo but Zach said the better thing would be to try it. Moyo proposes an amendment to mandate the Treasurer to rediscuss this in Trinity term, and this was taken as friendly. 

Ali then proposed an amendment to reduce the amount in the motion to 1p (rather than £1) so that it becomes more of an op-in system. This amendment falls. 

It is said that this system will allow everyone to get involved with the TV room by buying movies and games to watch and play in there, and even if it’s still only a minority that use it, it is good that the JCR funds these things. Also, if anyone doesn't want to pay it, they can always cross it out. 

 

Move to a vote. 

Motion passes. 

 

 

Yarl’s Wood (Beth) 

Beth explained that these motions are quite regular, reimbursing travel costs of students who demonstrate outside Yarl’s Wood detention centre. The aim is to get as many demonstrators as possible, making a lot of noise so the women inside know there are people supporting them. 

There is an amendment brought by Pria to reimburse the more expensive priced ticket so that asylum seekers can also attend. This is taken as friendly. 

Felix asked how many people with asylum seeker status there would be going from Oxford and Beth replied that there are buses all over the country. 

Flora asked how many people went last time, Beth said half a dozen. 

Will asked what else can be done by the JCR to support and fund the Yarl’s Wood campaign. Beth said she would look into it, but is hesitant to do anything specific at the moment due to allegations of abuse with Movement for Justice. Hannah added that someone could nominate the charity at the end of term and it could receive JCR funding from that. 

 

Motion passes. 

 

Wind Orchestra (Alex) 

Alex explained that he is going on a tour to the US with OUWO and it is very expensive. They are trying to make it as accessible as possible, so each person only has to pay 1/3rd of the costs. The rest of the funding has to come from other sources like running the Oxford half marathon, bake sales etc. They have raised 85% of the money and are asking for £200 to help make up the final amount. 

Amrita asked if this has been sponsored in previous years and Alex replied that it had not, although the music fund does have a lot of money that goes unused. 

Julia asked if this was essentially funding Alex to go on holiday, Alex said that touring is an important part of the music industry for making connections and keeping ensembles alive. 

Flora proposed an amendment for Alex to endeavour to perform in Balliol in Art’s Week and this was taken as friendly. 

Zach said that encouraging students to do this and supporting them is a good thing for the JCR to do and should be taken out of general JCR funds. 

 

Motion passes. 

 

Climate Change zines (Felix)

Felix explained that Oxford Climate Society have organised a zine with submissions from students and alumni. It does cost a lot and he is asking for £100 on the condition that we put some zines in the JCR. 

Amrita asked if other college JCRs would be funding this and Felix replied that there are not many people on committee and so there is not that much representation. 

 

Motion passes. 

 

College Pet (Tom)

Tom said that Balliol does not have a pet and hasn't for a long time. It would be good for the JCR to have one and the JCR should fund because we are nice and like animals. 

Zach asked if Tom had spoken to college and especially the porters, and Tom said he will do that. 

There were concerns raised about tourists harming the pet, making sure the animal is ethically-sourced and not neglected, paying and reimbursing vet bills and student allergies.  

Zach said that because there are lots of problems associated with this, we should think about this more before passing a motion and should return with more details and considerations, for example whether it is more effort than it’s worth. 

 

Motion falls.