The Central Societies Committee (CSC) has said there is still no clarity on what freshers’ week will look like, as the committee and College are awaiting updated public health advice for September.
At a virtual town hall meeting this evening, societies were given details of the CSC’s proposal regarding this year’s freshers’ fair.
However, no plans have been confirmed yet, and what form freshers’ week will take is still largely unclear.
The proposal includes a three-day freshers’ fair with one person per stall and no handouts, as well as some in-person events with social distancing at one metre.
The committee’s proposal will be submitted to College and it will seek approval from the College Safety Officer.
Chair of the CSC Ben McConkey said the plans are dependent on “trickle-down responsibility”, as the CSC awaits guidance from College, and College awaits guidance from the government.
Last Friday, a survey was circulated by the CSC which asked societies for their preferences for a resumption of society activities. The results, the CSC said, informed its draft proposal.
Respondents were almost unanimous in their preference for a hybrid approach, where there would be a mix of online and limited in-person events.
The CSC’s proposal for a resumption of on-campus society activities is dependent on one-metre social distancing being permitted.
McConkey explained that the group will seek to run freshers’ week from September 20th, with a mix of online and in-person events throughout.
The proposed fair would be a three-day event with society stands on Front Square manned by a maximum of one student.
Speaking about the possibility of different freshers’ weeks for different year groups, McConkey said it would be unreasonable to ask societies to run this due to the amount of work involved. Furthermore, he said, the planned freshers week, as always, is not only for first year sign-ups but for all students.
Provost Linda Doyle confirmed today that the planned “orientation week” for second years will serve as a freshers’ week for second-, third- and fourth-year students.
Sign-ups for clubs and societies will begin online on September 6th and will remain online for the year with no in-person sign-ups permitted.
It is unclear whether indoor events will be allowed to run from September 6th for returning students, as approval from College is still pending.
The committee said that under its proposed plans, every indoor space would be given a maximum capacity, accounting for social distancing of one metre. These numbers will be made available “as soon as possible”, it said.
Various other spaces are planned to be made available to societies, including the New Square marquee breakout spaces, which will remain in place for at least the first term, and the Rose Garden situated between the Museum Building and the rugby pitch.
The CSC proposes that, instead of requiring a library booking or a pre-booked gym session to be allowed entry to campus, students should only be required to show their student ID.
“Otherwise how else can you attend in person society events?”, said McConkey. “Unless we have a lot of false library bookings.”
Mairead Maguire also contributed reporting to this piece.
