On 23rd February 2015, Room One saw the first of the Exec Election Bubble Debates. The evening was hosted by Nina Blissett on stage and Dave Thompson in the crowd, talking to the panel and sharing social media interactions. Nina brought us an introduction to the evening and we were also introduced to the panel; Sarah Haar- Ex- VP Action, Axelle Savary- Butler Court Hall Chair, George Hones- former Rigg Rutt Hall Chair and Hamza Modi- involved in Action, 
Welfare and chair of Bakewell Hall. VP Sport saw Stefan Lloyd, current VP Sport on stage to guide questions, alongside candidates; Lauren Gough, Tom Haslam, Tom Hickson and Luke Thomson. The 30 second speech from Lauren looked at long term developments and maintaining spectatorships. Tom Hickson’s speech showed that he has been IMS chair and on AU Exec committee. He wants to safeguard the success of AU and improve the sporting experience of all students. Tom Haslam talked about his experience in BUCS sport, he wants to improve facilities through sponsors and hence recruit new infrastructure. Luke Thomson has been a sports sec, involved in winning a BUCS gold and has been on AU Exec. Sarah Haar: (question from Jenny Cooper ex- VP Sport), how do we generate more money? Tom Haslam: we can’t just leave it to the clubs to find their own sponsorships- I want to infiltrate and help out. Luke: I aim to make a template for all clubs to assist them in their applications for sponsorship.
Lauren: no one wants to sponsor us as a whole because we’re too big! Allowing people to sponsor on a smaller level for specific clubs would make it more feasible. Tom Hickson: I believe that we can seek out larger sponsors. George Hones: what experience do you have that makes you think you’re better than others? Luke: We all have similar experiences. I have experience in the sporting industry- I managed a programme with 200 sports clubs across the country so I believe that my external knowledge makes me stand out. Lauren: I work closely with lifestyle and have been sports sec of the year. I am the Vice chair equivalent in AU and work in coaching and development. I believe my experience is well- rounded. Tom Hickson: my involvement has been through all sporting levels, through coaching, volunteering academy and leader of IMS. This gave me a high level of responsibility and shows my skills in organisations and communication. Tom Haslam: I am chair in tennis and know how to deal with problems. This year I was part of making a change to the trial system for tennis. Audience question: how would you decide what was a performance sport? Tom Hickson: It’s about what the people want. It is currently directed by the STC and working with the clubs. Tom Haslam: It’s a battle with STC, sponsorship and raising funds.
Luke: The key thing is making people aware of what they need to do to become performance sports. Lauren: They need to meet certain criteria and not everyone can. We need to work with teams to meet their needs. Sarah Haar- question off social media: how do you stop fading teams? Tom Haslam: look after everyone to ensure equality for best student experience for all. Luke: focus on big spectatorship sports and then bring particular focus to other sports once a fortnight to generate spectators and members for the lesser known teams. Lauren: work to increase memberships and help draw attention to all clubs. Tom Hickson: We could do a secondary recruitment drive after freshers so that people who missed trials have a second chance.
As the largest competition hotted up between the four candidates in Room One, all four of them managed to remain clam, professional and confident throughout. A lot of similar ideas were shared, with some slightly differing on approaches, with a few differing points of view. Their response was impressive and their engagement with questions was particularly commendable considering that all four of them were answering the same questions.
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