Candidates campaign in the library

Voting has opened in this year’s Students’ Union elections, with over 450 votes cast in the first three hours.

Voting opened at 12pm and candidates for all positions were welcome to campaign on the ground floor of the library.

A Question Time event will be held tomorrow from 4pm in the Atrium. The event will see candidates open to questions from an audience about their policies, and Pluto will be providing live coverage on the website throughout the event.

This year’s election has seen the highest number of candidates standing for positions.

The Students’ Union President, Reni Eddo-Lodge said: “This is an amazing amount of votes, we are hoping for around 1000 votes by the end of the day – we are almost half way there!

“I would urge all voters to take time to read manifestos and to try and catch a couple of minutes with candidates if you can. Come down to Question Time tomorrow at 4pm at the Atrium. Cast your vote and cast it wisely.”

Votes can be cast here.

Students warned that content put on social media could be viewed by potential employers (flickr:Franco Bouly)

Companies are using more social networking sites than ever before, such as facebook, to check out potential employees.

Students are having to become more aware of the image they project to future employers via their online activity on networking sites.

A recent survey conducted by CareerBuilder concluded that the top reason employers reject prospective employees is for posting photographs that are of an inappropriate nature.

With many graduates, chasing so few jobs, social networking monitoring is a way of companies filtering applications. A recent US study has also claimed that Facebook users with a lot of friends and even ‘partying’ photos, possess the jobsworthy traits of being both friendly and extroverted.

Professor of Management at North Illinois University and leader of the study, Don Kluemper said: “In five or 10 minutes, our raters could look at the tone of a subject’s wall post, note the number of friends they have, peruse their photos to see how social they were, and assess their taste in books and music. It’s a very rich source of information.”

Becca Vafeas, UCLan’s Education Officer, when asked about the threat facebook poses, said: “Employers are humans like the rest of us, and they know applicants have a life outside of work, but students need to be aware of what their Facebook and Twitter pages say about them. If your profile picture is you in a pretty bad state on a night out, or half naked in the street (for example), it doesn’t look good.”

Vafeas added: “Some progressions are stricter than others, like teaching or working with children. If employers are looking at social networking pages, that’s going to be their first impression of you. You wouldn’t walk into an interview looking drunk or covered in glow paint. Even I’ve started keeping in mind what goes up on my own pages.”

by Chloe Vinden

This sign at the sports centre desk gave students 10 days notice before the charge was enforced

A charge of £1 is now in force if a student forgets their university card when wanting to use the new sports centre.

From February 20, students wishing to use the Sir Tom Finney Sports Centre (STFSC) can no longer gain access to the facilities without their cards unless they pay the fee each time.

 The decision has been defended by the facilitiy’s manager.

 The sports centre provided 10 days notice to customers before the rule was established, but some students still feel the charge is unjustified.

 Some felt that bringing in additional costs on top of already the inflated gym fees this year wasn’t fair.

 James Bradbury said on Facebook: “Seems unfair when most of us have paid nearly 200 pounds to join already!”

 Hockey Club Chairman Sean Barrett agreed. He said on Twitter: “It’s a complete joke. Considering the cost of playing sport at UCLan in the first place to add further charges is ridiculous.”

 Sports facility manager, Martin Baines, said a few frequent offenders not bringing their cards was affecting other customers.

 He said: “It’s bad customer care to keep other people waiting that have paid and brought their cards just to facilitate those that haven’t.

 “We’re not out to make money, we just want people to bring their cards.”

 He also stated that it is part of both university regulations and the gym’s terms of use that students must carry cards with them.

 Last year, at the Foster fitness suite, students were given one chance to gain entry without their cards, but Mr Baines said persistent offenders continued to forget their cards.

 “Since we’ve brought in the charge, those that were frequently forgetting their cards have started bringing them so it’s solved the issue.

 “Without the swipe in system we can’t verify people’s membership and this affects our participation statistics.

 “Also because we have a tiered payment system, without being able to verify membership efficiently people could potentially be using the gym facilities when they haven’t paid for them,” he continued.

 Although Mr Baines said he initially didn’t agree with the charge, he does believe UCLan is more lenient than other universities.

 “At a meeting with the North West Universities sports facility managers I found out none checked student details if they’d forgotten their cards, instead operating a no card no entry scheme similar to Total Fitness and some of the other gyms in Preston. Some operate a two week ‘grace period’ but found this only prolonged the issue rather than really solving it.

 “We think we have a great relationship with our customers and bringing in one off costs for those few who aren’t following the rules helps keep the overall price down for everyone else.”

by Emily Childs

Orienteering is UCLan’s latest club where students can develop not only their physical health but also their mental skills through a unique experience of outdoor activities.

 Orienteering is aimed at helping beginners or people who want to improve their fitness, navigation, mental skills and problem solving.

As part of the exercise designed both for the body and the mind, participants will be given ‘an orienteering map’ with different check points marked on it. The purpose of the task will be to complete the course in the quickest time.

 Members of the club can take part in the exercise in many different ways, either by running, jogging or walking on a variety of terrains, ranging from a remote forest and countryside to urban parks and school playgrounds.

 The Orienteering club’s motto is: “No ordinary run!” as the activities are meant to develop participants’ sociable skills through various active, dynamic and challenging exercises.

 The Orienteering club has been set up on the behalf of British Orienteering, which is the national governing body for the sport.

 Paddy Walsh, a third year Adventure Sports Coaching student, has been chosen by British Orienteering to set up the club at UCLan through his involvement with the local club, South Ribble Orienteering Club (SROC).

 Mr Walsh, who is a highly- accomplished student with UKCC Level 1 Certificate in Coaching Orienteering, said:  “With more interest the club can enter local competitive events and enter BUCS next year.”

 Mr Walsh later added: “Orienteering is a great way to develop both physical and mental fitness, with a competitive edge.” 

 Despite being very much in its infancy, the founders hope that Orienteering will turn into a fully-developed competitive club.

by Slavka Atanasova

Sport Relief mile events are currently taking place around the country (flickr: dawarwickphotography)

UCLan Sport Relief mile hopes to raise £5000 for unprivileged children across the world.

The Universities Sports Arena is due to host its very first Sport Relief event for students and staff later this month.

The Sport Relief event will be taking place in Avenham Park on 23^rd March 2012 at 4:30pm and will see participants taking part in 1, 3 or 6 mile challenges.

The challenge is in aid of people living in tough conditions in the UK and throughout the rest of the world.

Organisers are looking for staff and students to take part and raise money for Sport Relief through sponsorship donations.                                                                                                                                                       

Shiva Omidvar-Tehrani, duty supervisor at UCLan Sports Arena, said: “We have only just launched the UCLan Mile this week.

“We have had quite a lot of interest and awaiting applications. We have myself and a colleague already registered to do the six mile.

“I am hoping we can raise around £5,000. If we can get at least 100 runners who raise a minimum of £50 then we can reach our target so I do think it is achievable.

“We at UCLan Sports Arena would like to make the ‘UCLan Mile’ an annual event to raise money for Sport Relief as it is such a good cause.

“It is all about raising money and having fun so we would like as many staff and students to participate and represent UCLan in our effort for Sport Relief”, she added.

by Anneka Nicholls

If anyone would like to register and take part or be a sponsor for UCLan, click here (before 19th March 2012).

Mark (right) accepting his Oscar for Makeup on the Iron Lady

Ex Preston Polytechnic student Mark Coulier has walked away with an Oscar for his work on ‘The Iron Lady’ after transforming Meryl Streep into Margaret Thatcher.

Mark Coulier who is originally from Leyland, added the prestigious prize to an impressive collection of previously won awards, including a BAFTA collected just days before the Oscar win.

J. Roy Helland collected the trophy alongside Coulier for “The Iron Lady”, in which Streep relives the role of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

During a short speech, Mark thanked Meryl Streep, who portrayed former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in the biopic, describing her as “incredible”. He also paid tribute to Barrie Gower, Stephen Murphy as well as his wife Amanda and children Ethan, 9, and twelve- year- old Isabelle.

A spokesperson from the LEP has said that Mark insisted that he won the Oscar for Lancashire.

“It is the ultimate honour, but I feel bad for those who didn’t win and wish we could all have won”, Coulier told the LEP.

 “You are hoping to win, but don’t want to think like that so you won’t be too disappointed.

“It has been going around in my head that Harry Potter would win, so that when Harry Potter was called out I wouldn’t be disappointed, so when I heard the Iron Lady it was like, wow, amazing”, he added.

The dad- of- two’s previous work includes movies such as Frankenstein, Alien, Harry Potter, Star Wars, Merlin and The Flintstones.

Speaking from his home in Balshaw Crescent, Leyland, Mark’s proud dad said: “I am the proudest dad really, really, proud.”

“He has worked hard. It’s brilliant and has brought tears to my eyes”, he later added.

The 48-year-old Oscar winner attended Hutton Grammar School before completing a foundation course in art at Preston Polytechnic (which became UCLan in 1992).

Coulier then moved onto Cambridge College of art and technology to study for a higher national diploma in illustration, kick-starting his career through studying for a course in fashion and theatrical make-up.

 Mark’s next project is Rush, a cinematic dramatisation of the 1976 Formula One world championship season.

Ron Howard, an Academy Award winning director is also part of the project.

 by Claire Sherlock

UCLan facilities will be used to train athletes in a variety of different sports (flickr:n8xd)

A Fijian judokan has placed her trust in the University of Central Lancashire’s (UCLan) sports professionals in her effort to go for gold in this year’s London 2012 Olympic Games.

The Judo athlete Sisilia Nasiga Rasokisoki is a Commonwealth Games 2002 bronze medallist and has been a contestant in the last two Olympic Games. Whilst taking a break from her training at the Kendal Judo Club, she decided to spend the day with UCLan’s physiotherapists for a medical screening.

Sisilia said: “I’ve never used this level of analysis in my training before. It’s making such a difference and really enhances my performance. Such preparation will help me be as physically and mentally prepared as possible going into the Olympics.”

Six Secretary Generals from Oceania National Olympic Committees (ONOC) travelled to the UCLan Sports Arena (USA) and then the new Sir Tom Finney Sports Centre (STFSC) in December 2011 as part of a visit to the North West so they could officially ‘sign off’ the pre-games training camp agreements for the 15 Oceanic countries.

UCLan has been formally named as a training camp for a total of six Pacific countries in preparation for the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Sisilia is not the only athlete that will be coming to UCLan however; she is one of around 30 athletes that will use our facilities for pre-games training. The other sports identified for support include athletics, taekwondo, wrestling, rugby, football (male and female), swimming and weightlifting.

Senior lecturer and physiotherapist for UCLan, Karen May said: “Today we’ve run several tests on Sisilia including biometric screening and movement analysis. It’s great that we are able to lend our facilities and expertise to these professional athletes, which may really make a difference to their Olympic performances.”

Back in November 2008, the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the ONOC to work together in the provision of pre-games training camps for the 15 Pacific Island National Olympic Committees in the Northwest ahead of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

by Joshua Allerton

Men’s Squash 2nds 2

Liverpool 3rds 1

The Mens Squash 2nds achieved a mid-table finish in the BUCS 3A Northern Conference after a 2-1 victory at home to Liverpool’s 3rds.

UCLan moved level with Liverpool in the table following the result having started the day 2nd from bottom.

Captain Mark Lafferty was proud of their performance, and believes their final standing in the league is a fair reflection of the effort they have shown all season.

Lafferty said after the match: “I expected a win going in to this one”.

“We should not have been where we were in the table going into it. The boys have been great this season”.

UCLan made a fantastic start to the contest as both teams sent on their second best players.

The home side’s Chris Wilkinson won his match without reply as he beat the fiery Chris Burrows 11-7, 12-10 and 11-5.

Wilkinson was consistent with his strokes and was able to frustrate Burrows with some perfectly placed shots into the corners.

It took an equally good performance from Liverpool’s Matthew Bush to bring the contest to a tie.

Bush was playing in his first ever match as their number 3 though he recorded an impressive 11-9, 11-7, 11-7 win over the UCLan’s James Wierzbicki.

All was left in the hands of Captain Lafferty as he went up against Liverpool’s best in Guillermo Martinez.

The skipper took the opening game with a resounding 11-1 defeat of the Spaniard before winning 11-7 shortly after.

He was held in the 3rd at 8-8 but was able to survive a scare and clinch the next three points to pick up an 11-8 victory.

“There is always going to be pressure in this league,” Lafferty said.

“With it being the Northern 3A, and playing as the number one, it is possible to come up against an outstanding player, when you never know who you will be up against.”

By Sam Gilliland

Netball 1sts 42

Leeds Carnegie 2nds 43

Netball 1sts were unlucky in defeat as they lost 42-43 against Leeds Carnegie 2nds at the Sir Tom Finney Sports Centre.

UCLan currently sit in fourth position in the Northern 1A section, eight points adrift of third placed Leeds. Captain Sarah Titherley said: “We knew it was going to be close, it just wasn’t our luck today.”

The first quarter saw UCLan take an early lead, Titherley combining well with goal attack Danielle Parkinson to open the scoring.

Soon after, both girls combined again with centre Harriet Dunn in a showcase move which was capped off brilliantly by Parkinson.

As the quarter became stretched, Leeds equalised to make it 4-4, and again it was Parkinson who was on hand to give the home side the lead.

With the score at 11-8, UCLan succumbed pressure from the away side. As the quarter drew to a close, goal shooter Abby Loughrey was on hand to give UCLan a five goal advantage, but it was Leeds who had the final say in the quarter as they made it 13-11 at the buzzer.

Leeds took advantage at the start of the second quarter as they went into the lead for the first time.

The home side appeared to be struggling for possession as the bench raised the roof in support of goalkeeper Rachel Power and goal defence Kelly Mason as they kept Leeds at bay.

With the score at 14-15, the quarter looked to be slipping into the away sides favour as they increased their lead by five points.

Despite the score line, Mason and Power were working well to keep UCLan in the game as the ball consequently fell to Loughrey who made it 18-22.

As the quarter drew to a close, substitute wing defence Camilla Ashford also showed a good working partnership with Mason as the quarter ended 19-26.

It was clear to see that team spirit was high in spite of the score line at the start of the third, as Parkinson combined with substitute wing attack Jessica White which Loughrey finished.

This was the start of a comeback for the home side as UCLan scored four consecutive goals. Power, in her new role at goal defence continued to pressurise as Dunn sustained the hard work in the centre.

With the score at 24-29, the hard-working Loughrey scored twice to rapturous cheers, White and Parkinson then combined soon after to bring the score line to within one goal.

With the game now back in UCLan’s reach, Loughrey again capped off the home sides fight back to regain the lead.

It was nothing more than UCLan deserved, but with the score at 33-30, Leeds began to counteract and ended a breathtaking quarter at 34 apiece.

In an open, end to end battle at the start of the final quarter, UCLan looked to set their stall out early on as they regained the lead.

However Leeds were not going to lie down without a fight as they pulled back the deficit which carried on for much of the quarter.

With the score at 42-40, we were in for a tense finish. The home side had withstood some heavy pressure from Leeds as Ashford, in her new role as goalkeeper stood her ground.

Unfortunately it wasn’t enough as the game drew to a close, with the game looking likely to be a draw, Leeds broke UCLan hearts and scored right at the death in a 42-43 smash and grab victory.

By Laura Howard

UCLan’s Women Football 1sts 7

Manchester Met 1sts 1

Mel Bartley’s hat trick inspired UCLan Women’s 1sts to a thumping 7-1 victory of Manchester Metropolitan University 1sts.

The impressive Rebecca Grocott and Mamz Emosivwe were also amongst the goals as a superb UCLan side ran riot and sealed their third win of the season.

The home side were dominant from the start with Bartley and Grocott running the show from midfield. The pair provided numerous chances for striker Emosivwe who was wasteful on numerous occasions in the early stages.

MMU did give the hosts a scare however in the seventh minute as a swift breakaway resulted in a dangerous cross which was nearly turned into her own net by a hapless UCLan defender.

UCLan continued to push forward and their pressure was finally rewarded in the 17th minute when the referee awarded them a penalty after Grocott was pushed in the back. Bartley stepped up and coolly slotted the spot kick home into the bottom right corner to open the scoring.

The goal appeared to have opened the floodgates when Bartley scored her second of the game just two minutes later. After a fluid passing move, Tallie Bright’s cross fell to the UCLan skipper who finished brilliantly with the outside of her foot into the top corner.

The home side now had the bit between their teeth and looked like scoring every time they went forward. After Bartley and Bright had come close from range, Emosivwe made amends for her early misses by scoring UCLan’s third, ten minutes before half time.

The ball broke kindly for the striker 15 yards out and this time she made no mistake, powering the ball low off the post and into the net.

MMU made a determined start to the second half and were very unlucky to not be given a penalty in the opening minute when their striker appeared to have been brought down as she was about to shoot.

Their appeals were waved away and UCLan immediately resumed their dominance, coming close to putting the game beyond any doubt through Emosivwe and Bright.

The inevitable fourth goal came on the hour mark when a shot from the inspirational Bartley turned into a perfect cross which was tapped in at the far post as the home side’s dominance continued.

UCLan’s fifth goal came in spectacular fashion in the 68th minute. The impressive Becky Grocott sent a spectacular looping half volley sailing over the goalkeepers head from 25 yards to cap a sparkling individual performance.

Minutes later it was 6-0 as a goalmouth scramble ensued following another pinpoint Bartley delivery and the ball eventually found its way past the helpless MMU ‘keeper into the net.

To their credit the visitors kept up a high work rate and were rewarded in the 80th minute with a well worked consolation. Their striker beat the offside trap to latch onto a slide rule pass and finished well over the goalkeeper’s head.

However just seconds later Bartley completed a well deserved hat trick to round off a sublime performance from the UCLan skipper. The ball fell to the hosts’ star performer just outside the penalty area and she curled it over the stranded ‘keeper to complete the rout.

The Women’s Football 1sts now move level on points in the Northern 1A division with Leeds Met Carnegie 2nds who they travel to face next week.

By Will Rivers