Hello everyone, Samuel Dedman here – VP Education for the 2017/18 year. My role encompasses everything to do with educational experience at the University, including a whole bunch of work on study spaces and facilities.

Quite a few of us have been asking about free hot water access – this is something which the Students’ Union’s Academic Reps have campaigned on for many years now, and I’m pleased to bring a series of updates on the issue.

You might not be aware but the Students’ Union outlets have never charged for hot water and provide this free of charge to … Read the rest

Be Santa for the homeless this year by sending a Christmas shoebox to those in need through our Christmas Shoebox Appeal.

This Christmas we are working in partnership with Homed, one of our societies which supports homeless people living in Southampton, and Two Saints, a Southampton-based charity which supports the homeless and vulnerable. In this season of goodwill and gift-giving, we are giving back to the local community by preparing small boxes of essentials and gifts which would mean a great deal to those in need.

Some items to include in a shoebox may include:

• Toiletries (shower gel,

Hi everyone, Sam Higman here. As part of the Sustainability remit of my role as VP Welfare, I have been liaising with relevant Union staff to make more changes to ensure that we are as sustainable as we can possibly be.

As a result, I can now announce that from Monday 20 November, all outlets at the Students’ Union will be able to offer 10p off every hot drink when the customer uses their own reusable mug*! This is really positive, and it will undoubtedly help the Union to reduce our consumption of takeaway coffee cups.

The United Kingdom uses … Read the rest

Hello everyone! For those who don’t know me, my name is Samuel Dedman and I’m VP Education at the Students’ Union. During my election campaign for this role I made a commitment to look into printing and printing costs across the University of Southampton, and with the start of term fast approaching I thought it was worth doing a bit of an update. In order to make things easier I’ve divided the project into two parts – free printing and printing costs. And so without any further ado…

Printing Costs

Alongside looking into free printing (below) it also seemed … Read the rest

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…

Get ready to celebrate the festive season in style at the Freshers’ Christmas Ball on Friday 08 December 2017.

This year the Grinch has stolen inspiration from Christmases around the world and brought them to the Union. Chill out in The North Pole Bridge at our silent disco or grab a cosy mulled wine in the forests of Building 42 Bavaria. Prefer a sunny Christmas? Join us in the tropics of Hawaii Bar 2 with a BBQ and surf simulator. No Christmas would be complete without a family film, and we will … Read the rest

We recently met with the President of Football Beyond Borders Southampton, Adnan Bakir, to find out more about the fantastic projects the society run and what they’ve been working on since their launch last year. Football Beyond Borders is an education charity with a core programme based in London. Their aim is to support and develop young people (aged 8 – 19) in the local community who may be from disadvantaged backgrounds. This is achieved ‘on and off the pitch’ through the power of football but also through mentoring sessions, to help young people achieve their goals and make … Read the rest

Huge congratulations to everyone who was elected into position in our Autumn Elections!

During this round of elections we voted for Academic Reps, Halls Committees and Student Leaders, alongside electing our Halls Committees. Together, these students will work across the University and its various sites to make sure we represent the academic interests of all students, and make your university experience the best it can be.

Our Reps and Officers have varied roles and remits, from representation at course levels to putting on some events in halls. Find out more about the newly elected teams, and their plans at susu.org/elections… Read the rest

Voting for our Autumn Elections is now open. This is your chance to have your say on who will represent you, make your voice heard and feedback your ideas and concerns to those who can make change happen.

Vote for who will be your Course Reps, Faculty Officers, Halls Committee and Zones members. Postgrad students can choose who will be on the Postgraduate Committee and WSA students can decide who they would like to be their Winchester Campus President and International Officer.

Voting closes on Friday 20 October at 16:00, so make sure you’ve got your votes in by then. … Read the rest

Still thinking about which role to go for? The deadline for nominations for our Autumn Elections is Monday 16 October at 13:00, which means you have a whole weekend to decide which role is best for you and get your nominations in.

Getting involved with democracy at the Union opens up a huge range of opportunities and experience, including leadership and communication skills, representing the views of others to a board or committee, plus the chance to share your own ideas and see them implemented.

The roles we have available during this round of elections are:

Academic Rep: Represent … Read the rest

Freshers’ 2017 has been jam packed with a huge variety of fantastic daytime and evening events for everyone to enjoy.  From Welcome Parties to Fayres, Taster Sessions to Freshers’ Ball and everything in-between, we hope that your student experience has been kick-started in the best way possible. But wait a minute, Freshers’ isn’t over just yet, we have a huge event left and one very important question for you…

Are you Team Glitter, or Team Neon? Pick a side and head out into the city for Big Night Out on Thursday 12 October. This is your chance to experience … Read the rest