Bristol Uni to undertake huge pastoral overhaul

Bristol University has come under criticism from its student body for proposed changes to pastoral support networks in University-owned halls of residence.

The proposals will see the traditional pastoral roles removed in favour of a new ‘hub’ system. Wardens and deputy wardens will be abolished and senior residents, live-in senior peer advisors, will no longer have their rent subsidised. There will also be a cut number of senior residents.

The new system will appoint new student and wellbeing advisors in charge of one of the three ‘hubs’ of University accommodation: Stoke Bishop, Clifton and the city centre.

Wills Hall will be part of the Stoke Bishop hub

There have been fears that the new system will cut the number of staff available to help students who may be struggling in their new environment. A group of university students have launched a campaign, titled Keep our Communities, to oppose the reforms.

In an open letter to Simon Bray, director of residential and hospitality services, 67 senior residents detailed their objections to the proposals. They wrote: “As a collective we are very concerned about the repercussions of the proposed changes to the welfare system. As we know from this year and those before, the role of the warden/deputy warden is one that has been under immense pressure.

“Reducing this team down to three people who are responsible for the whole first year student body is ludicrous.

“This system is not broken, it is just under immense pressure. We should be improving it by funding the additional support our students need and showing that we value the needs and wellbeing of our students, rather than creating a whole new system we have no evidence for.”

Speaking to Epigram, Bristol University’s student newspaper, Simon Bray responded to the criticism. “This is no knee jerk reaction,” he said. “This review is part of wider university strategy. For the students this should be seen as a win-win. We are aiming to provide a service that students and the University are proud of, costing the university and therefore the students less.”

Goldney Hall, which will be part of the Clifton Hub

Despite initial support, the Students’ Union, Bristol SU, has called for the University to address the student body’s concerns about the changes. Lucky Dube, student living officer, said: “While we believe that some of these changes could address genuine issues with the senior resident system, we agree there are also reasons to be concerned. This why we have urged the University to immediately review the number of residential life mentors in their proposal, to make sure the resource at this level of the model is sufficient to meet student need”.

In an email sent to all University of Bristol students, the University of Bristol’s vice chancellor Hugh Brady wrote: “The review of the service has always been focussed on providing the best possible support for our students in response to increasing student numbers, greater diversity in the student body, and more complex student wellbeing issues.

“The proposed model has been informed by student and staff feedback through the University’s strategic planning process and through earlier stages of review and consultation.

“We acknowledge that concerns are being raised about the numbers of staff and peer mentors in the proposal. We take this very seriously and will be reviewing the proposal on this basis.”

A consultation on the plans closes on February 9. Find out more about the plans by visiting www.bristol.ac.uk/residential-hospitality/residential-life/review

Read more: New £80m University of Bristol library to go ahead