STUDENT COUNCIL ELECTIONS 2025
Nominations will open on 29th September for the College’s Student Council elections, the representative body for our student members – and you could be part of it!
These pages will give you all the information you need about the Student Council, the election process and guidance on how to become a candidate.
- What is the Student Council?
- What region am I in?
- Being a Student Member Representative
- How to nominate yourself
- Election timetable
- Voting process
WHAT IS THE STUDENT COUNCIL?
The Student Council is the platform for the student member voice. The Student Council holds regular meetings to discuss regional and national topics important to student paramedics. It advises and is consulted on College policy relating to students and education, and it will ensure the student perspective is embedded in all activities the College of Paramedics is involved in.
The
Student Council tenure runs from January to December starting on the 1st of January. Members have the option to stand down after one year or continue for another year.
WHAT REGION AM I IN?
Our regions are based on the
Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) used by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and others.
Regions are predominantly related to the geographical location of your university. The nations of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales are clear.
However, some of you may spend the majority of your clinical placement time outside of the geographical region of your university, for example in a neighbouring Ambulance Service. Your individual situation, when applying for a position on the Student Council, will be taken into account. You may apply for the region in which your university is located, or the region where you complete your Ambulance Service placement hours. You will choose which regional role you are applying for in the registration form.
If this is the case for you, please think carefully when you chose your region as, should you be successful in your candidacy, your role on the Student Council is to be the representative voice of your student colleagues in that region.
The following regions are up for election in 2025:
- Scotland
- Northern Ireland
- North West
- North East
- Yorkshire and the Humber
- West Midlands
- East Midlands
- Eastern
- London
BEING A STUDENT MEMBER REPRESENTATIVE
The student member representative is the voice of the student members in their nation/region/sector, advocating for their interests, articulating their perspective to the College and communicating with them on the College’s work. This could be you!
Member Representatives have a vote on the Student Council and elect the Student Representative on the Paramedic Council (who also takes part in Congress meetings). Here’s what being a Rep is like, according to people who have served in the role:
Isobel Abbott, former East Midlands Rep: “Being able to make actual positive changes to students across the country, whether that’s helping to establish or run student events or fixing issues in your area that improves student experiences”
Gavin Keymer, former Scotland Rep: “It can involve as little or as much as you want it to be. You are part of a national team that liaises with students and multiple academic professionals. You also have the opportunity to represent the student body which can sometimes be overlooked within the paramedic profession.”
Emma Wainwright, former Chair of Student Council and Wales Rep: “Being a representative is extremely rewarding; not only are you given incredible opportunities for networking and for building up your strengths as an individual to go into the working world, but you are also the go-to person for all student paramedics in your area and can make a genuine difference. It is fantastic to see projects that you have brought to the table for discussion come to fruition.”
HOW TO NOMINATE YOURSELF
To stand, fill out the form when nominations open. The link will be posted here.
Your candidate statement – Nominating yourself for the election is simple: just take 2 minutes to fill out the form, upload a photo for our website, and write a maximum of two paragraphs (200 words) outlining why you want to be on the Council and what you can bring to the role.
Your nomination will need to be supported by a fellow student member, so find someone whose name you can add as a supportive nominator.
Seek support – ask a fellow student member in your region/nation/sector to act as your nominator. You will need to enter their name, email address and College membership number in the form.
The College of Paramedics recognises the need and inherent benefit of diversity and inclusion within the organisation and amongst its representatives, is committed to equal opportunities in appointment and employment, and seeks to eliminate unlawful discrimination, including racial, sexual or disability discrimination, to promote equality of opportunity and good relations between all.
The College of Paramedics welcomes and encourages all student members to stand as candidates. However, we would like to increase the diversity, in terms of race, ethnicity and cultural heritage, within the Board of Trustees, the Paramedic Council, the Student Council, and the employed staff of the College, so we would particularly welcome candidates from Black, Asian and other minorised ethnic backgrounds.
ELECTION TIMETABLE
2025 Student Council Elections
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Candidate registration opens
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19th October 2025 (midnight)
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Voting (if appropriate) opens
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24th November 2025 (12 noon)
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Election results announced
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VOTING PROCESS
Voting is available for all student members in the region/nation/sector where the position is contested. All eligible voting members will receive an email from Civica Election Services (CES). If you cannot find the email you should:
1. Search your inbox for an email from
takepart@cesvotes.com with subject: Student Council Election 2025
2. Email
support@cesvotes.com to request a reissue, being sure to mention it’s for the College of Paramedics Student Council Election 2025
3. Request an automatic reissue via
https://secure.cesvotes.com/V3-0-0/contact/forgotcodes.aspx?JMSJobno=m1724_1 – for this process, you will need to enter the email address that we have registered to you in our database
4. Check that we have the correct email address for you by checking your profile at
Member login
5. If you are still unable to find an email and believe that you should have received one, please contact
penny.jones@collegeofparamedics.co.uk