Staff and students pitched ideas to five ‘dragons’ at the Luton Campus last week, bidding to secure funding from the University Vice Chancellor’s Student Experience Projects (Steps) Fund.

Vice Chancellor Bill Rammell, appearing in a short documentary at the event, outlined the reasons behind the Steps fund.

“I’ve got an absolute passion for involving students in their learning and their time at university,” he said. “I was determined, when I became Vice Chancellor, that we would prioritise the experience of our students.

“I saw the Steps fund as a way of sending out a symbolic message that we were putting students first [and] to make some practical improvements.”

Professor Mary Malcolm, the University’s Deputy Vice Chancellor, chaired the event, saying:

“We are delighted with the interest the Steps programme generates among students and staff across the University.

“The ideas presented at the Dragons’ Den event were great, and demonstrate enormous commitment to improving the student experience. This is one of our top priorities as a University, and the Steps initiative plays a major role in achieving this.

“I hope even more students and staff will submit their ideas and appear in the Dragons’ Den later this year.”

Those pitching also had to face Student Adjudication Manager John Perkins, Ken Roberts, Director of Teaching and Learning Mark Atlay and University of Bedfordshire Students’ Union’s (Beds SU) Frankie Davies.

A vital health-awareness student vending machine, proposed by Beds SU’s Vice-President of Welfare and Equality Rebecca Boyle, was one of the projects granted funding.

The ‘One Stop Shop’ will include items such as condoms, chlamydia testing kits and sanitary towels. It will also include miscellaneous items, like USB sticks, headphones and deodorant.

Radio LaB, a community station broadcast by Bedfordshire students, was the other project to benefit from the evening, with £14,000 granted in order to fund at least six external broadcasts, covering major events such as the General Election in 2015.

The money is to go towards state-of-the-art equipment and promotion material, with the aim to start the broadcasts before Christmas.

The project hopes to provide direct involvement and experience to 100 University students, across Bedfordshire campuses.

About Steps

Steps are the University of Bedfordshire Vice Chancellor's Student Experience Projects. Funding of £300,000 has been set aside for the initiative.

So far, over 170 ideas have been submitted by staff and students across the University, around 30 of which have since become a reality, including the likes of Bulls TV, I CARE and The Guildford Street Press