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2024-25 Term 1 Impact Report
Introduction
There is always so much going on at the Students' Union in Term 1, and this year was no exception.
We had an incredible Welcome Week, with the bigger, better, more vibrant Sport and Society Fairs definitely standing out as a highlight. The refurbished Terrace Bar looks fantastic, and now complements Curiositea, The Food Station, and The Atrium, which have also received a facelift in the last 18 months.
To make sure the needs of Warwick students were represented, the SU facilitated elections for Officers and Academic Reps, and recruited Decolonise Advocates to continue work in this important area. Our Full-time Officers led on campaigns including Safer Warwick and End Period Poverty, as well as working tirelessly across their many areas of responsibility to make the student voice heard.
The Students' Union's 300+ Societies and Sports Clubs put on events, balls and trips, and hosted multiple fixtures and activities, and the Advice Centre made sure you were supported with 547 cases covering academic, money, housing and personal issues.
The Students' Union exists solely to provide services and activities for our members, so thank you to every one of you who got involved with the SU in any way during Term 1. Here are just some of our standout stats and achievements...
Social Activities
Venues and Outlets
The Terrace Bar had a fantastic refurbishment over the Summer and feedback from students in Term 1 has been great! We were happy to keep you topped up with food and drink from T Bar and our other SU outlets. Throughout the term you got through:
- Curiositea – 20,000 hot drinks and 6,400 cakes
- The Food Station- 10,600 burrito bowls
- The Terrace Bar – 6,300 cocktails
- The Dirty Duck – 11,200 burgers
- Venues – 20,800 Jungbombs and 18,100 VKs
Plus, you bought 29,400 tickets and passes to SU events across the term.
It's also worth mentioning that we made nearly 20 tonnes of CO2 savings in the Dirty Duck during T1 through 'micro-nudging' sustainability initiatives.
Societies
We have had a fantastic term 1 in 2024, supporting over 8,500 society members:
- Societies Fair - over 14,000 people over both days during welcome week
- One World Warwick – Global light procession involving multiple societies, and Langar on campus delivered by the Sikh Society to over 900 people, with great student feedback
- 395 speakers at 200 society events
- 5 x Society Balls, 14 x Trips/Tours, 96 x general events
- Preparatory work for 18 x conferences planned for Term 2
- Processed 180 x sponsorship contracts for Societies
- First Societies Assembly has taken place
Sports Clubs
Sports Fair expanded this year and incorporated day 2 of the SU Welcome Fair in Zone D, with additional stall holders, music, performers and food vendors outside the building. The impact of these changes was in excess of 8,000 students attending the event, and a 9.5% increase in club memberships compared to a similar time last year.
The One Warwick project was launched, with key sports fixtures identified throughout each term, and promoted across campus to increase spectator engagement and create a community.
- 454 fixtures played
- 238 fixtures won
- Medals won by Clubs = 1 (Table Tennis)
- 31 x general club events
- 17 x Trips
- 14 x Tours
- 3 x Balls
Support
Advice Centre
The Advice Centre opened 547 cases in Term 1. This was made up of 142 Academic, 253 Housing, 48 Finance and 104 Health and Wellbeing.
According to the latest feedback survey:
- 97% of students were satisfied with advice given
- 97% would use the Advice Centre again
- 94% felt the advice empowered them to make an informed decision
- 97% would recommend us to a friend
Positive feedback:
"Service was fantastic"
"My situation was handled with the greatest care and was also professional and informative"
"SU had provide PERFECT advice!"
Representation
Student Voice
- 3 x Decolonise Advocates recruited to support delivery of work in T2 and T3
- 350+ Course Reps and Faculty Reps trained by Student Voice Team
- 200+ Course Reps and Faculty Reps attended Welcome Conference
- Unitu platform trialled and rolled out successfully by 3 x pilot departments, with engagement across all departments so far
- First Student Council organised
- Elected 2 x further Part-Time Officer positions and 22 forum members
- Held first Scrutiny Panel of the academic year
- Updating of bye-laws and regulations ready for T2
- All Forums met and supported across the organisation
- Supporting FTOs and Faculty Reps at University Committees
- Held Christmas Rep and Forum quiz with 30 attendees
Campaigns
- Enaya (SU President) has made incredible progress with Safer Warwick! Thanks to our Operations team, we certified the Copper Rooms and Terrace Bar as Safe Places by the Egalitarian Project, introduced That Friday Feeling, and got on Coventry City Council's working groups on Nighttime safety. The University has fixed 300+ lights on campus and we are FINALLY getting Safezone on campus!
- #EndPeriodPoverty! This term Naomi (VP Welfare & Campaigns) has managed to gather a group of student #EPP ambassadors; get the support of the Gender Taskforce; lobby for menstrual health to be considered on the Reasonable Adjustments policy; and get Innovation Funding for permanent dispensers on campus!
Full-Time Officers
Enaya Nihal - President
- Demilitarisation Campaign wins! Seeing the results of the work Anna, Sophie and I put into the Demilitarization paper to University Council last year in my first Council meeting this year. It felt quite rewarding when we got some of our demands accepted through the Ethical Assurance Framework, and I have contributed in various University committee spaces to the ongoing work being done around the policy review, editing where possible.
- Strengthening relationships with other SUs and national unions (NUS, RGSU, West Midlands SUs), working with them on Responsible Investment Policies, the International Student Experience, and Cost of Living support. The NUS Lobby Day was a brilliant chance for us to work with Zarah Sultana MP on amendments to the renters' rights bill.
Muneeba Amjad – VP Education
- Academic rep welcome conference – this was run for the first time and was very successful, with around 200 reps attending. Things ran relatively smoothly, and we have good feedback as well as knowing where to improve for next year.
- NUS lobby day - successfully lobbied for the abolition of guarantors and for improving the renters reform bill at the NUS lobby day in Westminster with FTOs from Warwick and Coventry – Zarah Sultana took on board all of our comments and will take them forward, as well as other MPs who spoke to SU Officers from their respective constituencies.
- Progress has been made on the reasonable adjustments policy review, and I was able to feed in to that alongside other officers sitting on relevant committees and DSOs.
Joe Stanley – VP Societies
- Societies Fair - Amazing turnout with over 6,000 in attendance, and a great overall success thanks to hundreds of exec members that got involved.
- Societies Forum – Fantastic work from the group on everything from new society applications, especially reforming it to be more of a place for student voice rather than a legislative body.
- Movember - We had excellent involvement from societies, helping us smash the target of over £30,000!
Sasha King-Smith – VP Democracy & Development
- Took part in NUS lobby day to support the NUS campaign ensuring that the voice of students is heard on a national level.
- Green Tuesday: Naomi and I co-ran a campaign to promote circular economy on campus, where students could combat fast fashion and promote anti-consumerist narratives.
- Worked closely with Steering Group to ensure that Operation and Sustainability Forums have met and that students are engaging with SU democratic structures.
Naomi Carter – VP Welfare & Campaigns
- Green Tuesday in November! Sasha and I successfully co-ran a student swapshop to provide a sustainable alternative to Black Friday, even getting some new pieces of clothes ourselves.
- Welfare Officer support - I have launched a regular Welfare Officer email, sent out a Welfare Officer feedback form, secured Innovation Funding for welfare packs, and begun collaborating with the FTOs, Advice Centre, Wellbeing, and Report and Support to improve welfare training!
Alijah Taha – VP Postgraduate
- Promoting Neurodiversity Awareness: This year, I've designed five wellbeing-focused events centred on neurodiversity and related themes, featuring interactive sessions and exciting stress-relief activities (yes, alpacas might make an appearance!).
- Empowering Postgraduates: Representing both PGT and PGR students in various university committees has been a cornerstone of my work. This term, I spearheaded the establishment of a dedicated Postgraduate Forum within the SU, and lobbied for fair employment opportunities for international students.
- To help tackle the cost-of-living challenges faced by students, I've initiated important conversations to bring about meaningful change. While these processes take time, some great news is on the horizon - stay tuned for updates this summer!
Louis Gosling – VP Sports
- Created the Presidents' Forum, allowing for unprecedented student input into top-level decision-making and the strategy for Active Wellness and Sport. Extensive follow-up ensured clubs felt engaged, and their issues were dealt with effectively.
- Revamped Sports Assembly to create a more engaging event which allows better two-way conversations between students and staff.
- Awarded a record number of Sports Officer Bursaries, which provide free sports club membership to students in need of financial support. We are also reviewing our support schemes to ensure that we are doing enough, and they will continue for years to come.
- Reorganised structures around the constituent staff teams of 'Team Warwick', allowing for a superior level of collaboration, featuring joint delivery plans and improved co-operation. This will help in future years as we seek to enhance our holistic sporting offer.