Kallum Taylor has been in talks with the NHS to improve the conditions for Health Science Students.
Taylor wants the Health Science Department to pay upfront for students transport fees rather than students waiting over half a term to receive reimbursement, with some students waiting over 10 weeks to get £200 back.
Research over the summer, as revealed by Vision earlier this academic year, showed that health science students were borrowing worrying amounts of money to fund degrees, compared with other students.
This is for reasons including longer terms and not having yet been reimbursed for their travel expenses to placements.
Taylor stated that he wanted to cut through red tape, which delays the reimbursement of funds, so students can get refunded straight away and “rid the students of the anxiety and stress they currently face with uncertainty over their money.”
But Taylor has taken a move directly to the NHS and is now in talks with top bosses, alongside University representatives from across the
UK to get a fairer deal for health science students.
The YUSU president commented: “We managed to find out the details of a gathering at the University of Derby. There was no formal student representation there, so we took a bit of a chance in sending me down there.
“I turned up and explained our predicament and the delegates were intensely welcoming and invited me to stay with them for the whole day – during which I discussed our idea as a potential best practice, and a great way to improve the student experience.
“We’ve been promised to get direct feedback on our idea. We’ve also been invited to attend further discussions with them on other occasions which focus on expenses and other funding more specifically.
“We just need the NHS to allow this to happen at universities who are willing to step up. If anything, it’ll save them time
and money.”
Taylor’s idea is a new one which hasn’t been implemented at other universities before.