We are SUSU, your Student’s Union made up of students, opportunities, places and volunteers; a team. At the helm of our team we have our sabbatical officers. Now, that’s all well and good, but what actually are sabbatical officers, who are they and what do they do?

A Students’ Union is a unique workplace as it is led by a team of five full-time Sabbatical Officers, who are elected annually by students to lead and direct the organisation and to represent students. We want you to get to know who your Sabbatical Officers are, so you can see the work … Read the rest

SUSU was recently made aware of a small number of racist submissions made to the RAG (Raise and Give) sign-up form for a fundraising activity in support of Stop Hate UK, an organisation working to challenge all forms of hate crime and discrimination. Both SUSU and RAG condemn these submissions in the strongest possible terms; the views expressed in them are completely unacceptable and against our fundamental values. We immediately conducted an investigation and reported the incident to the Police and the University.

As a result of our investigation, we would strongly recommend that all clubs and societies in … Read the rest

We know that some of you may not be aware of or see what SUSU have been doing regarding EDI (Equality, Diversity and Inclusion) work and more specifically work for our Black students. For us, this is not about virtue signalling or being performative just because this issue is in global media focus. We are committed to proactively pursuing equality and tackling racism. We know we have more work to do, and we always welcome collaboration, but we also wanted to share with you the projects and work we have been doing to this date. As ever, if you’d like … Read the rest

Your Sabbatical Officers have continued to make positive changes for students throughout lockdown and Term 3, ensuring your voices are being heard during the Coronavirus crisis, and the introduction of online learning and teaching.

Emily, Union President, has said: “I would like to stress my very sincere thanks to all the SUSU and University staff and our course reps who have all been working extremely hard to work on student feedback and come up with solutions to try and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on our students. I know not everything has been perfect. But having been involved in many … Read the rest

Statement from the Returning Officer

Spring Elections 2018-19

As Returning Officer, I received and investigated a series of complaints relating to one of the candidates standing for Union President, Henry Hill.

These complaints covered potential breaches of various aspects of the Elections By-law and Guidance, which are in place to ensure free and fair elections with accountable campaigning.  Amongst the complaints was a significant campaign overspend which resulted in extensive social media reach that is otherwise extremely unlikely to have been possible.

Having reviewed the evidence, I find that the candidate was in breach of the By-law and Guidance.   The … Read the rest

Meet our candidates for the Sabbatical Officer role of Union President on the Redbrick TODAY from 12:00 – 13:00. This is chance to ask them any questions you have on their key points and why you should vote for them.

The responsibilities of Union President include leading the Union, ensuring there’s a Union presence at all our sites, and creating a more sustainable environment. They will oversee all our sites officers, our Halls Officer and Sustainability Officer. You can read the full job description here: Union President.

Voting is NOW OPEN in our Spring Elections! You have until Friday 08 … Read the rest

If you’re thinking of running for the role of Union President, you might want to know what you’ll be working on day-to-day, and what you’re responsible for. Find out more about life as Union President below…

The Union President acts as the figurehead of the Union and is the public spokesperson, representative of all students. They ensure the Union has a strong presence across all University of Southampton campuses and Halls, and represent the views of students at sites to the University. By encouraging feedback from students about sustainability issues and lobbying the University, the President ensures we are doing … Read the rest

Emily Dawes has announced that she is to stand down from her role as Union President with immediate effect.

Emily commented:

“After careful consideration I’ve decided that it’s best if I step down from my role.

I sincerely apologise for the offence and disrespect caused by my earlier comments, which were misinformed.  I acted impulsively and as such fully accept how careless and hurtful my words were.

I’ve had a wonderful time as President and am sad to be leaving.  All my thanks go to everyone who has supported me throughout my Presidency, and I wish the team and … Read the rest

The University of Southampton has been awarded the Silver Teaching Excellence & Student Outcomes Framework (TEF) Panel Award. This is a fantastic achievement which recognises the University’s “priority and focus on delivering a transformative experience that enables and encourages students to excel during their time at the University and to continue their success as graduates throughout their lives.”

The Union would like to take this opportunity to thank our Academic Reps, as their hard work listening to ideas and feedback from students, and ensuring positive student-led changes are made at the University, has played an important part in the University receiving the Silver … Read the rest

Our affiliated Clubs & Societies have been ranked 9th out of 126 in this year’s Whatuni Student Choice Awards (up from 27th last year)

Based on the 30,000+ reviews from current students across the UK, this result not only recognises the very large number of clubs and societies we’ve got affiliated (338 groups), but also the commitment and passion of the hundreds of members who run the groups on a daily basis.

Our mission is to unlock the potential and enrich the life of every student at the University. One of the ways we do this is by funding … Read the rest