Back off Blackbullion!

(Please Note: This article was amended on 16^th April to include some clarification and further information.)

Recently, Students’ Council supported the Big Idea, ‘Back off with Blackbullion’ by voting on and passing the Big Idea unanimously as policy, in favour of removing the barriers between students and support.

The Big Idea aims to lobby the University to ensure completing the Blackbullion budgeting module is not mandatory, as part of any of the financial hardship application processes and this is made clear to students.

Following our research and input from Students’ Council members, the policy concluded that having to complete the Blackbullion module as part of applying for financial support was often frustrating and disheartening for students.

Students' Council members also raised how the budgeting module could have a negative impact on students’ mental health, and infers that financial hardship was often a result of poor money management, especially throughout the pandemic. However, we understand financial hardship impacts students during more ‘normal’ times also, there are many factors that can influence a person’s financial stability.

The Big Idea acknowledged that Blackbullion can be a useful financial education tool, but recognised that it should not be used as a barrier, or a ‘hoop’ for students to jump through, by the University.

The University has since clarified that the Blackbullion module is still required for the standard hardship loan funding, but not for the non-standard hardship funding, which includes the Office for Students fund that is linked to Covid-related financial difficulties and also the Overseas Student Hardship Fund.

Following this, the Students' Union will begin working on the Big Idea with the University and discuss removing the mandatory budgeting module from all other hardship fund applications.

We will also start conversations for change for the other areas of the ‘Back off with Blackbullion’ Big Idea. Which includes the following:

• The University makes the Blackbullion Budgeting module not mandatory, and makes this clear to students in their funding applications, and to those who approve cases. Cases should not be turned down due to students not engaging with the module.
• All staff involved with student hardship cases undergo training around mental health and finances and appropriate guidance is put in place for application discussions with students.
• The University factors the rental expenditure of students on a case-by-case basis.
• The Blackbullion module is advertised to all students at the beginning of the year.

Your Students’ Union President Zuleikha said: “As your Students’ Union, we want to make all areas of student support easier to access, and the Big Idea was in-line with recent work we have been doing about students’ financial hardship.”

“COVID-19 has presented many challenges for students and those reaching out in desperate need are not doing so because they don’t know how to budget, but because they do not know where their next meal is coming from. There are other places where we can introduce the module as students navigate their University experience and we will be having those conversations with the University.”

This year, the Students' Council will be holding an additional meeting, on the 28th April. Head over to our Big Ideas page to submit your Big Idea and help to make positive change for all UCLan students.