The role of the Accountability Panel is to represent and advocate for the student body and offer feedback to the Officers in terms of their goals so far. The panel is made up of seven students, with one space specifically reserved for postgraduates, which supports the democratic function of KCLSU by asking questions, raising concerns and celebrating wins. 

What does the Accountability Panel do? 

• The Accountability Panel sits at the heart of democracy at KCLSU because it is the body to hold elected Officers to account; it's an exciting opportunity, especially for those interested in democracy and politics. 

• Panellists come to understand the work of KCLSU representatives and hold them to account for their election promises. They might forward suggestions, work with them to improve, and even make recommendations to the membership and the KCLSU Trustee Board. 

• They gain insight and understanding of the work of the full-time Student Officers and other crucial representatives.

This year, we caught up with two Accountability Panelists of the 2024-2025 academic year, Claire and Krishna, to hear about their experiences. Here’s what they had to say: 

Claire (Mental Health Studies)

"Having the opportunity to question and hold accountable our student union officers in the first Accountability Panel meeting was a great experience! I learned a lot about the inner workings of our University and felt very grateful to our officers who are working hard to uphold our rights and interests. Building a strong partnership through open communication will be key to ensuring their continued success, and I’m excited to contribute to this ongoing collaboration!" 

Krishna (Human Resource Management & Organisational Analysis)

“The role of the accountability panel involves reviewing the work of the Student Officers and deciding whether they have adequately acted in the interests of the student body. My experience of being on the panel was insightful as I initially did not know what the Student Officers did.

I understood that their role was to represent students and improve the student experience, but I did not realise the sheer magnitude of what this work actually involved. This is something that I feel the student body in general needs to be more informed about. For example, the student officers have done a great deal of work on trying to increase the threshold for students to be eligible for KCL's Affordable Accommodation Scheme, which would be of great interest to students who are in a position of financial difficulty.

Yet, many people who are in this situation do not know of such a scheme, or what their representatives are doing to help them, which is something I feel needs to change.”