Sheffield Hallam has pledged to develop a Student Futures Manifesto – promising joint action between the University and its students to tackle the problems caused by the pandemic

Press contact: Jo Beattie | j.beattie@shu.ac.uk

The University is one of 20 institutions across the country to have made the pledge following the launch of the final report of the UPP Foundation’s Student Futures Commission.

Developing a Student Futures Manifesto is the key recommendation from the Commission. The Manifestos will be a blueprint for how universities and students work together to improve the student experience.

As part of the Manifestos, Sheffield Hallam will co-produce and publish a series of actions within the six themes the final report of the Student Futures Commission identified for successful student futures: 

1. Support for students before they reach university
2. An induction into university life for each year of study
3. Support for mental health and wellbeing
4. A clear outline of the teaching students will receive and the necessary tools to access it
5. Activities inside and outside the curriculum that build skills, networks and communities
6. A clear pathway towards graduate outcomes

The manifesto will be a public statement of the commitments Sheffield Hallam is making, and showcase the positive initiatives being undertaken. It will be co-produced with students and led by the University’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor David Shepherd.

Professor Shepherd said: “The themes identified by the Commission’s report chime strongly with Sheffield Hallam’s existing approach to providing our students with a superb experience, one in which they are engaged and challenged, one in which they can collaborate and thrive. We are delighted to commit to working with our students to produce a Student Futures Manifesto that will help us to reimagine and reinvigorate our university community as we emerge into a post-pandemic world.

Chair of the UPP Foundation Student Futures Commission, Mary Curnock Cook CBE said: “A Student Futures Manifesto, co-created and co-owned by students and their university, will be a powerful expression of intent about what students need to support successful lives and careers. They will help to rebuild the full student experience through a partnership between universities and their students. It is a testament to Sheffield Hallam University and the wider HE sector’s commitment to successful student futures that 20 universities have already taken on this challenge.”