Ceilidh Dancing, Class Clowns and Common Good await AHP Students at night of entertainment
Four Societies are coming together to give students a night to remember, all while raising cash for charity.
GCU Students’ Association’s Physiotherapy Society have been working alongside Podiatry, Dietetics and Emergency Care’s very own societies to host an AHP (Allied Health Professions) Ball on the 23rd of April.
The event will take place in Glasgow City Centre at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel, with funds being raised on the night to help support a variety of different charities.
Physiotherapy Society Events Lead, Alice Summers, explained the background to the night of celebration.
She said: “This is the first time we’ve actually done an AHP Ball but we have ran the Physiotherapy Ball for a number of years.
“We are well aware that Physiotherapy is one of the bigger AHP societies in comparison to the likes of Radiography, Occupational Therapy, Podiatry and Optometry. They all do amazing work but it is quite difficult for them to hold their own events, and we had some interest from their society members asking if we would ever do something like this.
“We decided as a committee over the summer last year that this was something we were going to go ahead with. We reached out to all the AHP Societies and Podiatry, Dietetics and Emergency Care all said yes.
“The event just makes sense because it’s a really good way for students studying AHP subjects to meet each other. We are all going to be crossing paths out on placement and in our actual jobs beyond graduation, so why not start now? All of the nurses come together for their Ball, so it just makes sense that we do the same thing. It is going to be a lot of fun.”
Ticket sales have shown the popularity associated with such an idea, and those in attendance are set to experience an entertaining night.
“We have managed to sell 250 tickets, which is absolutely brilliant,” explained Alice.
“It is amazing to do this together with the different societies because it means there are more ideas brought to the table – something that can only benefit us all.
“Everyone will get a prosecco or soft drink on arrival. There is also going to be a photo-booth and we are also hoping to secure a photographer as well. There will then be a three-course meal for all our guests.
“There is going to be a raffle with prizes ranging from bottles of prosecco to tickets for sporting event. We also have a few other things up our sleeves, but I’m not going to reveal them just yet…
“It’s also been a tradition for each Physiotherapy year group to have a fun awards ceremony, with the likes of Class Clown and Walking Wikipedia receiving some special recognition. We will be doing that once again and I believe the other Societies are also going to get involved as well.
“The main part of the night will be our Ceilidh – something that people have wanted for years. We are delighted to finally do it because it previously just hasn’t been feasible – 250 people doing Strip The Willow should certainly be entertaining!”
Once students have managed to catch their breath, they will also have the chance to raise money for charity – something that Alice believes encapsulates the whole purpose of the event.
She said: “We’ll be raising money for a variety of different charities on the night, including The Beatson and Finding Your Feet.
“Raising money for charity has always been a vital part of our Physiotherapy Balls, so it was really important for us that this continued. It ties into the Common Good ethos of the University - giving something back is so important to all of the societies involved.
“We’re going to gather information onto a Powerpoint and also have leaflets about the different charities so that people coming along on the night know how their money is helping benefit others.”
On a personal level, with graduation just around the corner, Alice hopes the new format of the Ball can continue for years to come.
“Anything that bring people together and helps create new friendships can only be a positive. I’m really excited to see everyone on the night and experience our different courses being in the same place as one. I’ll obviously not be involved next year but I would love to see the AHP Ball continue.”
By Ross Clark
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