With Chads being an extremely social college this comes with lots of exciting events throughout your time at Chads! One of these major events in the college’s social calendar is Candlemas. Transforming the college into a mysterious theme, with months of hard work, Candlemas is one of the balls that you do not want to miss!
Candlemas is a student-led committee with lots of important roles all contributing to the success of this magical event. Students go through a thorough application and interview process and are truly passionate about making the night one to remember.
A mysterious lead up to the event is what makes this event so special for Chad’s students. A theme reveal a week before the event makes the week before an exciting time to be in college. On the night, all of the college gathers for a drinks reception, 3 course meal, and time to explore the college and all of its decorations, ents, and food stalls. If you manage to last the night, at 4am a survivor’s breakfast is served and a survivor’s photo is taken to show your true resilience and love for Chads.
Themes have been anything from Greek Gods to Fairytales and we are excited to see what the future holds for this fantastic event!
The Committee
Head steward
Head Steward has the absolute honour of selecting the theme for the upcoming Candlemas, overseeing the planning and organisation of the event, and ensuring the committee works effectively together to produce the best night possible!
Deputy Head Student
Their job is to assist the head steward in any way possible, coordinate sign up and to organise both the launch party and the theme reveal video. Essentially I am responsible for building the hype for Candlemas!
Head of Catering
Head of catering sorts all things food! From planning the menu to organising the tableware and marquee, I’m responsible for making sure you’re happy and full within a great setting.
Treasurer
The treasurer is in charge of ensuring the finances of Candlemas are in order and that we stay within our budget for the current year. Decs, ents and catering all need to be paid for, and their job is to make sure it’s all done cost effectively so we can have the best possible Candlemas!
Head of Ents
This role is all about keeping the ball buzzing and bringing the theme to life after the meal. From live bands and food stalls to interactive activities like inflatables and karaoke, they transform each room of chads to create a fun, energetic atmosphere.
Head of Staff and Safety
This role plays a vital part in ensuring everyone is safe during the night and throughout the process leading up to the big day! They ensure that everyone is having the best time possible whilst keeping in line with health and safety regulations including the decs, ents and all things Candlemas.
Secretary
This is a merged role of secretary and sponsorship and publicity officer and therefore a crucial part of this role is organisation. The role makes sure Candlemas can be as big as it can be and that the exec can stay organised throughout the countdown to Candlemas. This involves taking minutes, booking rooms well in advance, and acquiring sponsors.
Head of Decs
For this role, creativity is key for ensuring that the whole of college is decorated so the theme can come to life. As well as creativity, organisation is a crucial part to lead the Mini-decs team, and leading the biggest week of the Candlemas calendar- Decs week.
Deputy Head of Decs
Their job is to assist the head of decs with ideas, planning and the practicality of making the vision come to life. As well as this, Mini-decs rely on them for direction and leadership. They are responsible for the creativity behind all of the decs.
Committee
Beth Gray
Head Steward
E-mail: bethany.l.gray@durham.ac.uk
Alongside having the privilege of choosing the secret theme for the ball, my role is to oversee the planning, organisation and running of the night in coordination with the other members of the exec committee to ensure it is executed to the best standard possible.
Charlotte Mather
Deputy Head Steward
E-mail: charlotte.mather@durham.ac.uk
My role is essentially supporting and helping the Head Steward as much as possible, as well as maintaining communication between other members of the committee and helping them in their responsibilities along the way. Another important part of my role also includes the organisation of the launch party, which takes part the weekend before Candlemas itself where the theme of the event is revealed and the Candlemas hype truly begins!
Alex Milne
Head of Catering
E-mail: alexandra.a.milne@durham.ac.uk
This is a pretty self explanatory role- I'm in charge of all the food! My role means I design the menu for the Candlemas meal and work with the catering staff to make it a reality. I am also in charge of planning and sourcing the wine for the meal and the midnight drink, and co-ordinating arrangements for the marquee, the tables and the seating plan.
Sam Shackleton
Head of Staff
E-mail: samuel.e.shackleton@durham.ac.uk
I am responsible for ensuring that the night of the Candlemas Ball runs as smoothly as possible. I ensure that all ents can function safely and correctly, that the security is booked and working efficiently, and that any mishaps that occur during the ball are solved promptly. Whoever holds the role has to be slightly crazy because they're willfully dedicating the best night of the year to their fellow students.
Joseph Monaghan
Treasurer
E-mail: joseph.p.monaghan@durham.ac.uk
I am responsible for the finances and book keeping of the ball. I plan the budget closely with college bursar and stewards and I also attend meetings and report on the budget and balance for each of them. In addition, I am in charge of the chequebook and make all payments.
Nina Mansbridge
Head of Ents
E-mail: nina.l.mansbridge@durham.ac.uk
I am in charge of organising all the ents for the night, to make it as fun and memorable as possible for everyone attending. I work closely with the Head Steward to execute their vision and to ensure the ents follow the theme.
Izzy Keefe
Head of Decs
E-mail: isabel.keefe@durham.ac.uk
The head of decs position involves creating all the beautiful decorations you'll see on the night, revolving around the top secret theme to make the night extra special. Head of Decs is also in charge of the creative practicalities and of leading the Mini-Decs in the intensive week of prep before Candlemas.
Alice Watters
Deputy Head of Decs
E-mail: alice.g.watters@durham.ac.uk
My job is to assist the head of decorations with ideas, design planning and selection of the mini-decs in order for the head steward’s theme to come to fruition.
Freddie Bearn
Secretary
E-mail: frederick.w.bearn@durham.ac.uk
My role involves having to type up the minutes from each meeting so we have a record of what ideas we've come up with during the meetings. Another part of my role is organising when the meetings are and making sure we actually have a place to hold them as that is quite important! I am also working with the Decs team to organise stash for the committee.
Ellie Prebble
Health and Safety Officer
E-mail: eleanor.l.prebble@durham.ac.uk
My role is making sure that all of the decs and ents etc. for Candlemas are safe, as well as making sure everyone has as safe and enjoyable a time as possible at the ball- if you need any help on the night, myself and the ambulance crew are the people to go to!
Giovanna Rojas
Publicity and Sponsorship Officer
E-mail: giovanna.p.rojas-henriquez@durham.ac.uk
My role is to attain sponsorship for Candlemas in order to make it the best it can be. This involves speaking to a wide range of firms in order to gain some form of sponsorship, monetary or not. If you know of someone who would be willing to sponsor Candlemas get them to email me at the above address in order for me to give them the full range of sponsorship opportunities.