{"id":2164,"date":"2026-03-06T13:40:37","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T13:40:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/?p=2164"},"modified":"2026-03-06T13:44:43","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T13:44:43","slug":"students-recognised-for-shaping-services-and-spaces-through-student-shapers-programme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/2026\/03\/06\/students-recognised-for-shaping-services-and-spaces-through-student-shapers-programme\/","title":{"rendered":"Students recognised for shaping services and spaces through Student Shapers programme\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>On 4 March students from across the university gathered to celebrate a successful year of the Student Shapers programme, recognising the contributions students have made to improving services, spaces and initiatives across the University of Kent.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/student.kent.ac.uk\/life\/your-uni-your-say\/student-shapers\"><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Student Shapers<\/span><\/b><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> programme, co-run by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kent.ac.uk\/it-services\"><b>IT Services<\/b><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kent.ac.uk\/commercial-services-estates\"><b>Campus\u00a0Services<\/b><\/a>, is a flexible co-curricular initiative that empowers students to co-create and collaborate with staff on projects that enhance non-academic services and campus spaces across the University of Kent.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"371\" data-end=\"407\">A Year of Co-Creation and Impact<\/h3>\n<p>Through this year&#8217;s Student Shapers programme we saw:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">15+\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">co-creation sessions across Autumn and Spring Terms<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">210+<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0student attendances\u00a0across sessions<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">2,100+<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0Employability Points earned collectively<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The impact of this year&#8217;s Student Shapers has already led to quick fixes, content redesigns, procurement influence and strategic scoping following opportunities including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Engaging with a full-service review<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0of the IT Services\u00a0student\u00a0onboarding process, with discussions alongside senior stakeholders\u00a0to directly\u00a0shape\u00a0planned improvements for 2026<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Collaborating with the Space Planning team<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0on the Campus Lounges review, shaping\u00a0new furniture\u00a0layouts, accessibility\u00a0features\u00a0and promotional approaches for the space<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Reviewing institutional data<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0on campus printing and co-creating ideas with senior stakeholders to support more sustainable printing approaches across campus<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Attending briefing with external suppliers<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0and\u00a0directly\u00a0contributing to the redesign of Sports Centre artwork and wayfinding<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Reviewing live design concepts <\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">alongside staff,\u00a0discussing\u00a0and\u00a0informing the direction of planned comfort and accessibility improvements in the\u00a0Library<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Working with the AI and Education Specialist<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0to test and discuss\u00a0current AI student training and guidance,\u00a0directly\u00a0informing the planned relaunch of the module in September 2026<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li>and many more&#8230;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Celebrating and looking ahead<\/h3>\n<p>We held our end-of programme <strong>Reward Session<\/strong> on 4 March, where students were recognised for their contributions and commitment to improving the university experience. Attendees enjoyed a presentation on their impact, refreshments and networking with staff and peers.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-2186 alignright\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/files\/2026\/03\/student_shapers_completion_2026_ring.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"204\" height=\"204\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Participants completing the programme were awarded with <strong>certificates, letters of recommendation, and a set professional photos\u00a0taken<\/strong> for personal and professional use. All participants will also recieve <strong>digital badges<\/strong>\u00a0acknowledging their involvement, which they can showcase on professional platforms such as LinkedIn.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Looking ahead, the programme\u00a0will continue next year, with new projects and initiatives planned for students to contribute to.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Applications for the 2026\u201327 Student Shapers cohort will open in Summer 2026.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Students interested in getting involved can learn more about the programme here: <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/student.kent.ac.uk\/life\/your-uni-your-say\/student-shapers\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">https:\/\/student.kent.ac.uk\/life\/your-uni-your-say\/student-shapers<\/span><\/a><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\t\t<style 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class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/files\/2026\/03\/Image-59_Sophie-Pearson.jpeg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/files\/2026\/03\/Image-58_Sophie-Pearson.jpeg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2048\" height=\"1536\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/files\/2026\/03\/shared-image-3.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1663\" height=\"1247\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/files\/2026\/03\/Media-7_Karen-Goodwin.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/dt><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On 4 March students from across the university gathered to celebrate a successful year of the Student Shapers programme, recognising the contributions students have made &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/2026\/03\/06\/students-recognised-for-shaping-services-and-spaces-through-student-shapers-programme\/\">Read&nbsp;more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46900,"featured_media":2165,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[312383,223276,309363,312217,202865],"tags":[314616,314617,314615,178181],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2164"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/46900"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2164"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2164\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2210,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2164\/revisions\/2210"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2165"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2164"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2164"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/student-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2164"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}