ELSA Exeter hosts National Council Meeting for ELSA UK

The European Law Students’ Association is the largest student-led legal association in the world with over 52,000 members, spread across 44 National ELSA Groups with over 360 Local ELSA Groups.  It operates with a vision for a just world in which there is respect for human dignity and cultural diversity and it does so through its four Key Areas; Academic Activities, Seminars & Conferences, the Student Trainee Exchange Programme, and Moot Court Competitions.  The organisation is continually growing and with it so does our alumni network and reach.

ELSA United Kingdom is the national group of the UK.  It is made up of 8 annually-elected board members from our network; the current President of ELSA Exeter is also the President of ELSA United Kingdom.  It serves as the intermediary between the 18 Local Groups found at prestigious Universities across the United Kingdom, other groups across Europe and ELSA International. 

In order to ensure that ELSA is able to function as a single, cohesive unit it has to be regulated.  Every year, ELSA International holds two International Council Meetings (ICMs), attended by every National Group, where we discuss our Statutes and Standing Orders and share ideas to help forward the network.  Every National Group also holds two of its own National Council Meetings (NCMs) where it discusses its internal regulations and shares experiences learnt at the ICMs.  

After a successful bid at the last NCM in London, ELSA Exeter was elected to host the Autumn NCM of 2017.  It took place from the 17 to 19 November and by all accounts it was a resounding success with over 60 attendees - a record number in recent years.  This NCM brought major change to the national network with the very structure of the NCM itself changing.  There was a greater focus on the Local Groups and their training.  Additionally, the National Board were given permission to look into officially registering ELSA United Kingdom a charity and Bristol, King’s College London and the London School of Economics were welcomed into the network as new ELSA groups after successful pitches!

As a new group to the ELSA network, hosting this event was important to ELSA Exeter.  It gave groups an awareness of our existence down here in the South and sets a very high standard for future events.