SSAGO News

The 2021 SSAGO AGM will be the first ever fully online AGM. This article will have everything you need to know regarding how this new format will run.

It’s been nearly a year since our last in-person event: Roman Rally. There’s been a lot of changes in that time, and a lot of changes yet to come, but one thing that still needs to happen is the SSAGO AGM.

For those of you who don’t know, the SSAGO Annual General Meeting (AGM), or Spring Conference, usually takes place on the Sunday morning of our Spring Rally. It’s around 2-3 hours long and involves the election of the next Executive Officers (Exec) and Events, and serves as a conclusion for the outgoing Exec. Unfortunately this year will be the first year where there will be no in real life AGM and the Exec have had to adapt the usual format so it can still be run online. There will be a lot of changes to the formula this year so this article will hopefully explain the madness!

What's changed?

The first change is that there will be no 2-3 hour AGM event where everything happens at once. Instead the AGM will span over several weeks. This has been done to allow flexibility for those running and voting and to increase member engagement.

The updates from the outgoing Exec and other Team Pink members will be available online throughout those weeks for you to browse at your leisure. You won’t have to listen to an hour of verbal updates - hurray! 

The hustings, where nominees can be questioned, will be happening in two ways. Firstly you can submit questions online, where nominees can then answer them when they can. Secondly there will be a Zoom hustings at 7:30pm on Wednesday 3rd March, where nominees can be questioned live. It’s up to you how you would like to ask a question if you have one, but questions can only be asked through these two avenues. 

Voting will be online and open for an entire week. This way you can run through the candidates and vote for them whenever you like. However crucially, unlike a normal AGM, everybody will need to register to vote. This is a really important step and you will not be able to vote unless you have registered beforehand. Remember though that only full student members can vote so sorry associates you miss  out this time! You will be able to register to vote between Monday 15th February and Saturday 27th February. At least this year there will be no vote on how to vote!

The final, and arguably biggest change to this year's AGM is that there will be no elections of 2022 National Events. This has been a difficult and sad decision to make, but the reality is with an ongoing pandemic it is unlikely that the planned events for this year can take place. Fortunately, this year's event organisers, who have already spent a lot of time planning their events, have offered to postpone to next year if necessary. Therefore it is sensible to keep the 2022 calendar open for them to postpone to. The situation will be reviewed with Reps at the next Reps meeting, and again at each meeting until the situation is more clear. As soon as we know that it is safe and financially viable to run National Events, there will be an EGM (bonus AGM) to fill in any event slots in the next academic year that are unfilled. There is always the possibility of virtual events, this year and next year, to fill in for the National Events. However at this time how this will work has not been decided and this will likely be a discussion for the next Exec. 

If you have any questions about running for the Exec, this new AGM format or anything else, the Exec will be having an open Zoom that anybody can attend on Saturday 13th February at 1pm. 

Key dates

Running on the National Exec

What do the Exec do?

The National SSAGO Executive (usually just shortened to Exec) is made up of 5 SSAGO members who are elected at the AGM and then spend 12 months running national SSAGO. It is very similar to how clubs work with their committees but the Exec can be from all over the country and are responsible for all aspects of SSAGO from communicating with Girlguiding and The Scouts, organising support events, ensuring membership is all paid, supporting clubs and members through disputes or disagreements, and overseeing the national events and all our financing. The Exec can be identified by their pink merchandise and are there to make SSAGO the best it can be for all its members.

Can I run for Exec?

Running for Exec is a fantastic thing to do and if you are a full member you can probably run for a position. The only people who aren’t eligible to run are associate members, anyone who has already served 3 terms on the Exec and anyone who is on a committee for a national event.

What positions are there?

The Exec is made up of; Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Officer and Publicity Officer. A description of each role can be found in the appropriate policy document on the website here

If you want to know more about a position, do get in contact with the current Exec, they are the best port of call for any advice! They can be contacted on their email addresses listed below, or can all be found on Facebook and are happy to be messaged.

• Adele Upton, Chair - chair@ssago.org
• Brittany Long, Secretary - secretary@ssago.org
• Maddy Brett, Treasurer - treasurer@ssago.org
• Amy Franklin, Membership - membership@ssago.org
• Reuben Cone, Publicity - publicity@ssago.org

How do I run for Exec?

In order to run for the National Exec, you need to apply at vote.ssago.org (this link will be updated when avaible). You will need to write a manifesto explaining why you think you would be good for the role and what you want to achieve in your 12-month term. Remember this manifesto is what a lot of SSAGO will use to decide on their votes so make it as epic as you are!

You will also need to find someone to propose you (your proposer) and someone to second you. These both need to be current members who are from different clubs from both you and each other. Your proposer also needs to be willing to write a speech about why you would be good for the role. 

Can I campaign?

No. Electioneering (or campaigning) is banned within SSAGO. All the manifestos will be fairly and evenly displayed before the elections, candidates must not publicise their own bid.