I have been involved with Redbrick since week one of my first year, from a writer all the way through too now – as editor. I have seen many student issues come and go – some have been dealt with and others not. I have always been vocal when this is the case – to the point where I am too involved.

I do not believe that when given the chance to change or influence something you care about you can walk on by. I have moaned about the Guild and its failures – I have moaned about the University, so now it is time for me to ‘put up, or shut up’.

I want to put up because that way I won’t have to shut up! But on a serious note I have a real passion for being your President because I want to make sure that each frustrated student can get their voice heard and make sure that their opinion is listened to.

Democracy and representation are words that are just banded about and it is important to have an appreciation of what they mean. The essence of the two concepts is ‘acting in the interests of students’ – taking the time to ensure you know what the student body wants and then going about getting it.

This might be done through helping groups, meetings or through more visible methods of campaigning, but the bottom line is about having something tangible at the end. Being able to stand up and say here are the promises I delivered on.

I have actively campaigned on behalf of the student voice through my role in Redbrick and now I want a chance to campaign directly to the University, the government and wherever else students need a voice. I want to campaign with you and for each and everyone of you.

Campaigning is underway and it has been a good start – seeing all the candidates on the campaign trail really gets you excited about your own campaign.

I wanted to take a few moments to give all of you some insight into my campaign, my manifesto promises and my understanding of the Guild. Through my three years of involvement with the Guild I have learnt that nothing gets done quickly – so the one year term each officer gets is not much time to implement and finish projects. You will spend time starting your own ideas and finishing the projects of those that came before you.

That is not to say that big changes cannot be made or that we should shirk away from the difficult or big decisions. It does, however, mean that a potential year in office and my aims for that year need to be realistic. You only need to think back to the problems caused by the review of the Sociology department to see that officers’ time will be taken up doing what they are there to do – protect the students of Birmingham, but not by working on their projects or promises; instead by dealing with an immediate problem that was not foreseen.

So I want to highlight how my campaign is achievable, realistic and deliverable:

I do have specific promises – such as getting better essay feedback, better library opening hours and developing student campaigning workshops(read them all here), but my campaign is about a new focus for the Guild. I think it is of vital importance that we make the Guild accessible to as many of the 28,000 students at Birmingham as possible.

We know what the Guild does well – you only have to look at the success of our student groups and volunteering projects to see what dedicated and driven students can achieve with the right support. So we need to do two things here – extend the support the Guild offers to these groups and make sure more students know how to join in.

We need a new community around the Guild where more students are aware of what it is (OUR union) and what it can do for them. Greater interaction will mean that the Guild can grow and that more students will gain skills invaluable in later life.

I really want to stress that I have not made any empty promises. For example: I have not pledged a new website (even though I believe we need one with upmost urgency) because I know how hard it has been to deliver the Redbrick site this year – a project a 10th of the size.

There are many things I wish to work on, develop and improve, but at the same time I will not make promises which I cannot keep.

I am trying to convince you all to vote for me – and that is because I want our Guild to be all about the students it is here to represent and I think the biggest part of that is giving students ownership of it.

So please read my policies – email me any questions you might have vote@votefornick.co.uk and keep your eyes on the blog for updates.

You can read my written statement and the answer to the questions posed to the presidential candidates here.

If you spot me on the campaign trail – drop me a message on Facebook or a tweet – @petren. Even better –get a photo with me or my campaign team during the next two weeks (tag it on Facebook) and you can win a prize (most likely to be some sweets).

More updates soon.

Saint Nick