The next BRIT Challenge will start on
25th January 2025 & finish on 25th December 2025
MIDLANDS
STEERING GROUP
By respecting and embracing existing mental health support and services, BRIT will work closely with universities, colleges, Students’ Unions, governing bodies and charities throughout the UK to facilitate a collaborative and proactive student, and staff, network.
Together, we will share best practice, provide opportunities to champion innovative mental health strategies and discuss ways to improve mental health provision both regionally and nationally.
The BRIT Midlands (East and West) Regional Steering Group will;
-
Provide a forum for students and staff to share both their activity and fundraising successes when taking on the BRIT Challenge
-
Enable the annual BRIT Challenge to act as a catalyst to involve the student body in meaningful mental health promotion throughout our feel-good fundraiser and the year ahead
-
Establish a student network that can share best practice of university and college mental health provision and support
-
Facilitate a collaborative fellowship of students and staff that can direct a cohesive approach to supporting and improving young adult mental health and fitness throughout the UK.
A MIDLANDS-WIDE NETWORK OF STUDENTS & STAFF
BRIT have established a BRIT Midlands (East and West)
Regional Steering Group.
BRIT Regional Steering Groups enable student, and staff, volunteers to represent every UK university and college, be integral to our vision, and both steer and guide our charity.
We want to ensure students, and staff, are at the heart of BRIT and will provide opportunities to join our BRIT Trustees’ Board and Chair, Co-Chair and Deputy Chair our 10 BRIT Regional Steering Groups.
“The BRIT Midlands Regional Steering Group will bring together Student and Staff Representatives from every university and college in our region. Together, we will have the opportunity to share successful ways institutions have taken on the annual inclusive BRIT Challenge to ensure more teams take part, discuss ways of engaging students and staff of all abilities throughout the Midlands, explore ways of destigmatising mental health and share best practice for championing equality, diversity and inclusion.
It is a pleasure to gift my time, and support BRIT, as the Chair of the BRIT Midlands Regional Steering Group, for a three-year tenure, and I look forward to working with university and college student and staff representatives throughout the Midlands; together we can grow our Steering Group and providing opportunities for students and staff to be integral to the success of the BRIT Challenge.
At the heart of everything we will be striving to achieve is supporting and improving young adult, student and staff mental health, fitness and wellbeing. I hope every university and college in the Midlands will share the opportunity for their staff and students to represent them on our BRIT Steering Group."
Andy Alford
Director of Sport
University of Birmingham
Chair of the BRIT Midlands (East and West) Regional Steering Group
AIMS
The aims of the BRIT Midlands (East and West) Regional Steering Group are to;
-
Promote the annual BRIT Challenge to ensure that every university, college and Students’ Union have the opportunity to enter teams each year and encourage student and staff participation
-
Encourage every university and college team to choose a second charity to fundraise for, alongside BRIT, in order to support local, regional and national charities
-
Champion disability inclusion and invite students and staff of all abilities to take part
-
Embrace the BRIT Challenge as a catalyst for promoting student services, mental health charities and support available to students and staff
-
Reduce the stigma surrounding mental health by welcoming BRIT Ambassadors who will share their lived experience in order to encourage, enthuse, inspire and thank students and staff who participate in the BRIT Challenge
-
Ask universities in each region to use their regional network to encourage and invite FE colleges to enter teams in the annual BRIT Challenge
-
Encourage universities and colleges in each region to use their regional network to invite independent colleges and institutions who support students with disabilities and Special Needs to enter teams in the annual BRIT Challenge
-
Conduct meaningful discussion in order to identify and proactively champion innovative and successful mental health strategies that can be shared across their region and feed into an annual BRIT national forum to promote positive action around young adult and student mental health and fitness.
COORDINATION
A university and college have been asked to Chair and Co-Chair the BRIT Midlands (East and West) Regional Steering Group that will comprise of;
-
Chair – Member of staff from a university (a 3-year tenure)
-
Co-Chair - Member of staff from a college (a 3-year tenure)
-
Deputy Chair - Student Opportunity (a 1, 2 or 3-year tenure)
-
Representatives from every university and college in that region (minimum of a 1-year tenure).
COMPOSITION
The BRIT Founder and Non-Paid CEO will work closely with the Chair and Co-Chair on a strategy to promote the invitation for students and staff from every university and college to join the BRIT Midlands (East and West) Regional Steering Group.
In addition to BRIT Ambassadors being invited to deliver inspirational talks, we hope to secure long-term support from;
-
Regional university and college (staff or student) mental health, wellbeing or sport networks.
-
BRIT’s existing network of university or college staff (and students).
-
Association of Colleges (AoC) Area Directors.
-
AMOSSHE.
-
NAMSS.
-
Natspec.
CHAIR AND CO-CHAIR
We are delighted that The University of Birmingham and Loughborough College have kindly agreed to Chair and Co-Chair the BRIT Midlands (East and West) Regional Steering Group
Andy Alford, Director of Sport, at the University of Birmingham is Chair of the BRIT Midlands (East and West) Regional Steering Group and Lynsey Smith, Vice Principal, at King Edward VI College, Coventry University's Better Futures Multi-Academy Trust, is the Co-Chair.
“I am delighted to be invited to Co-Chair the BRIT Midlands Regional Steering Group to support young adult, student, and staff, mental health, fitness, and wellbeing, in the region and across the UK.
Together, we aim to encourage a staff member and student to represent every specialist college, college, and university, in our region and share the opportunity to embrace the annual BRIT Challenge and the many benefits that it can bring including; the delivery of inclusive wellbeing activities for students and staff of all abilities; promoting Acts of Kindness in the Community and Volunteering; and fundraising for local, regional, and national charities, alongside BRIT.
Our BRIT Midlands Regional Steering Group will enable us to share the many successful ways our regional institutions have engaged students and staff through their participation in the annual BRIT Challenge and how we can unite our region to destigmatise mental health, improve wellbeing, and further deliver social good in our communities.
Bringing student and staff mental health issues to the fore is critical and the BRIT Challenge is central to that ambition; and one that is shared by many education governing bodies supporting BRIT including Universities UK, Healthy Universities, GuildHE, Independent HE,NUS Charity, the AoC, NAMSS, Natspec, and Good For ME Good For FE.”
Lynsey Smith
Vice Principal
King Edward VI College
Coventry University’s Better Futures Multi-Academy Trust
Co-Chair of the BRIT Midlands (East and West) Regional Steering Group
“At WCG we recognise the importance of good mental health and the challenges that many of our students and staff face in dealing with mental health issues.
So we are delighted to be able to support the British Inspiration Trust (BRIT) in their plans to create a regional steering group of universities and colleges, to widen the discussion and raise awareness of the these matters, and to explore ways in which we can engage our students and staff in the BRIT Challenge.
We will be encouraging staff and students right across our six colleges to get behind the BRIT Challenge by participating in it and raising funds for the worthy charities that BRIT supports. At the same time we hope that all those who participate will benefit from their Challenge through improved fitness, wellbeing and mental health.”
Nicola Perrett
Director of Student Services
Warwickshire College Group (WCG)*
*Six unique colleges, one heart - All part of WCG
Sites across Warwickshire and Worcestershire, with a central base at Royal Leamington Spa College;
Royal Leamington Spa College
Rugby College
Moreton Morrell College
Pershore College
Warwick Trident College
Evesham College
“Nottingham Trent University Sport (NTU) have embraced the BRIT Challenge for a number of years now and for 2023, NTU Sport have teamed up with our SU to reach as many students as possible and invite them to participate.
By promoting the BRIT Challenge across the university, we currently have twelve sports clubs and societies looking to support our BRIT Challenge activity which is likely to be focussed on inviting our students to complete 23 minutes of activity for 23 days from the 30th January 2023 (our NTU BRIT Challenge Launch Day).
The BRIT Challenge is inclusive and enables students of all abilities to take part in many different ways; wheelchair push, row, paddle, adaptive row, cycle, hand-cycle, walk, jog, run or swim. 23 minutes of activity a day to support and improve student mental health and wellbeing can also include meditation, yoga, dance, drawing; any activity that improves wellbeing, reduces isolation and helps to destigmatise mental health.
We are looking forward to engaging with our students to ask them what activities they would like to take part in and how we can encourage them to engage in the BRIT Challenge; a mile for mental health, 23 acts of kindness and inviting our VP Sport to kick start our launch. We hope will engage as many students as possible and raise funds for our chosen charities”.
Steven Drake
Sport Development Officer – Outdoor Activities
Nottingham Trent University
“Bishop Grosseteste University are excited to support the British Inspiration Trust (BRIT) Vision of implementing a BRIT Regional Steering Group to bring together Student and Staff Representatives from every university and college in our region. This innovative initiative will provide the opportunity to; share successful ways universities and colleges have taken on the annual inclusive BRIT Challenge; how others are planning to take part; explore and talk through ways of engaging students and staff of all abilities; share different ways of destigmatising mental health and discuss best practice for championing equality, diversity and inclusion. The Chair of our Wellbeing Committee and Student Union Vice-President for Clubs and Societies look forward to representing our university.
We are looking forward to taking on the BRIT Challenge and our Senior Management, Students’ Union and Wellbeing Committee are all embracing the opportunity to participate and engage our staff and students in this inclusive feelgood fundraiser to support and improve student and staff mental health, fitness and wellbeing.”
Rafe Elliott
Programme Leader for Sport
Bishop Grosseteste University
![Lincoln College 23 in 23 BRIT Challenge[1].jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/fb5f0d_52f1aa08c9504b95a58178a5ccaeea1b~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_800,h_566,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/Lincoln%20College%2023%20in%2023%20BRIT%20Challenge%5B1%5D.jpg)
Inclusive Boccia Challenge - Staff v Archie Eaton (Medal winning Boccia Champion & Boccia Coach)
Our thanks to Rebecca Foster MBE
(Principal Lecturer for Adapted Physical Education)
Professor David Green CBE
Vice Chancellor
University of Worcester
_.jpg)
“Students at the college thoroughly enjoyed participating in the BRIT bike challenge. It was a thrilling experience and really put our fitness levels to the test!”
Anya Priya Luis
Access to HE student and President of the Students’ Union
City of Wolverhampton College
“Students at City of Wolverhampton College were excited to get involved in the BRITChallenge this year. In their tutor groups they decided how they would like to contribute, some chose to do physical exercise and others more mindfulness. This culminated in all students collaborating in a bike challenge completing 29 hours over five days. A fantastic opportunity to raise awareness of mental health.”
Rose Urkovskis
Head of Student Entitlement
City of Wolverhampton College
“City of Wolverhampton College was thrilled to take part in the BRIT Challenge this year. Tutorial groups from all around the college got involved and came up with their own challenges related to the theme of 2023, all in aid of raising awareness of mental health and fitness. Students really embraced this challenge and had a lot of fun. It has been fantastic to see them all get enthusiastic about health and fitness and understand the importance of it.”
Lucy Bennett
Student Project Officer
City of Wolverhampton College
“BSL society took on the BRIT challenge from the belief that communication is one of the key issues when supporting mental health. To overcome this challenge, we decided to create 23 videos of simple words and phrases in British Sign Language. These can be used wherever and whenever to try and encourage more young people to realise when they need help and ask for it. We believe this is a positive step in being able to help more people gain the support they need.”
Beth Williams
President of the British Sign Language Society
Nottingham Trent University Students' Union
Nottingham Trent University
We are sincerely grateful to all the students at Nottingham Trent University Students' Union's British Sign Language Society for sharing their 23 videos in the hope that you will enjoy learning these phrases and words.
If you would like to learn British Sign Language (BSL) from your own home, halls or accommodation, please check out british-sign.co.uk where you will find more inform on their online courses and resources that will enable you to learn at your own pace and will break down barriers.
