This is mainly achieved through the collection of student feedback, on a range of academic and welfare issues, which is presented to staff at termly staff/student committee meetings in order to bring about change.
The other important branch of CAWC is in promoting student welfare, mostly through signposting, but on Tuesday 15 May, they did something a little bit special. As first year medical students came out of their final exam in the Great Hall after a year of hard work, they were surprised by members of CAWC who were waiting for them with balloons and freebies to help them celebrate!
The packages contained a congratulations message from CAWC with signposting to appropriate welfare services, sweets and some free merchandise from the British Medical Association, who ran an extensive mental health campaign last year. In addition, each package contained some vouchers from local businesses and raffle tickets.
The raffle had some great prizes, mostly donated by local businesses, including free massages, meals, cinema tickets and even a £100 Amazon voucher donated by the College of Medical and Dental Sciences. The purpose of the vouchers was to encourage the students to explore Birmingham and have some fun now that they have the time to do so and encourage them to start thinking about and prioritising their mental health and wellbeing.
The first year students were in great spirits as they come out of their exam to the surprise that awaited them, saying how "thoughtful", "sweet" and "uplifting" the gesture was.