FAQ

As a student at University of Gloucestershire, you may have heard of your Students’ Union (SU). But do you know what your SU really does, and why it's a non-profit charity? Let's take a closer look. The SU is an organisation run by and for students. It serves as a central hub for student life on campus, providing a range of services, resources, and activities to enhance your university experience. These can include social events, sporting activities, and advocacy on behalf of student interests. But here's the important part: the SU is a non-profit charity. This means that any money generated from student activities is reinvested back into the SU and the university community. Unlike for-profit businesses, which seek to generate profits for their owners or shareholders, our primary goal is to serve the needs and interests of the students of UoG. This is why all the money generated from student activities is reinvested back into the university community.

The answer is simple: to provide more opportunities and resources for students. For example, we might use the funds to organise more social and sporting events for you all, invest in the SU spaces you as students hang out in or even offer a helping hand by providing free resources on campus, for example, the Community Cupboards that we launched in 2023. This means that every time you buy something from the SU, you're not just getting something for yourself - you're also contributing to the greater good of the university community as a whole. By supporting the SU, you're helping to create a more vibrant, supportive, and enriching environment for all students. In summary, your SU is a non-profit charity, and we exist solely to serve the needs and interests of you, the students of UOG.

 

 

Each individual Society committee set their membership amount before the start of the academic year. Each individual sports club sets their club membership at the start of the year PLUS if players are wanting to compete in BUCS, they will each pay £135 for the #TeamGlos membership (they can also pay this cost in two payments: one payment of £90 and another or £50) OR if they want to play recreationally, they can also pay £60 for the year to just play for fun.

Yes, on the SU website all clubs and societies we offer are listed there.

3 committee members are required to run a club or society. Club: Club Captain, Vice-Captain, and Welfare officer Societies: President, Vice President, and Welfare Officer

Payments made by members into society account directly - which can be spent how the society would like (being over seen by the SU Activities Manager); Society membership amount is decided by committee; Training is provided by the SU around how to be an effective committee; Support for hosting events is provided by the SU.

Mostly at Plock Court (Arena, 3G, Rugby 3G and Hockey Astro). Also, training can take place in Oxstalls Sports hall.

No, you can join sports teams and play recreationally.

 

 

British University Colleges of Sport.

Universities of the South West Region.

Wednesday or weekends.

Academic courses take priority over weekly fixtures.

All travel to fixtures is organised for clubs by the Student Sport coordinator.

Match playing tops are provided, however training kit or stash can be bought online from the AKUMA store.

An annual sporting competition between two rival universities in a handful of sports fixtures. UoGSU competes about Worcester University.

An annual sporting competition between two rival universities in a handful of sports fixtures. UoGSU competes about Worcester University.

Across sports facilities in Gloucester (Oxstalls Campus) and Worcester (University Arena).

A collaborative effort between UoGSU and UoWSU.

No, players pay a low contribution fee.

Commitment to training throughout the year and put yourself forward for team selection.

The SU Advice Service operates from within our Student Voice team. Our Advice Service is here to support and guide students through various processes within university life, such as appeals, complaints and suspected breaches, as well as support you in advocating for yourself. We are here to offer confidential, non-judgemental, impartial, and independent support. There is no problem too big or too small to come to us to discuss. Our service is here to support YOU! If we are unable to offer the best support for your query, we can help you find a university team that will.

The service is vailable from Monday to Thursday, 9am - 5pm on: Park Campus: Monday and Thursday FCH: Tuesday Oxstalls: Wednesday

Don't let your problem grow. To get in touch, email suadvice@glos.ac.uk or book an appointment through our bookings form on uogsu.com. There are a few FAQ's around booking in on the advice page of uogsu.com.

We cannot proofread any work, appeal, complaint, or submission for a student. We are here to support students in understanding the process and steps that are available and advocating for themselves. Any submission must be your own, as each case is different and often there is no set way to respond to an issue. For any proof-reading the student achievement team may be helpful to contact.

The service can support students in advocating for themselves by attending meetings with a student. We can also facilitate getting in contact with the correct team for you issue. If you wish to have a staff member attend a meeting with you, please ensure you request this support a week prior to your meeting to ensure we are available.

Our advisor is not legally trained, and therefore the service cannot offer legal advice. For legal support, Citizens Advice may be available. There is also a law clinic within the University that may be available to provide support.

Change It is a feedback tool where students can submit motions/ideas for things they would like to improve in the University. Such motions can range from academic-related topics to food options in the canteen. A few examples of previous submissions include providing access to Adobe software on personal devices and removing re-submission fees for students’ assessments for first resit attempt. After motions are submitted, students are then able to upvote or downvote motions on the Change It website. If an idea receives a net positive of 25 upvotes within 3 months of submitting the idea, then the motion is escalated to Student Council – our highest decision-making body – where it is then discussed and voted on. In addition, it’s important to review past submissions to see if your idea has already been passed, as the SU might already be working to action this motion.

Think about what the issue is and how you want it solved. Think of the facts of the issue you are trying to address, the impacts this issue has on students, and the students might react to this issue.

Voice It is the SU’s online feedback tool that allows students to voice their experiences, good or bad, about anything here at UoG. Whether it’s an issue concerning your course, the facilities around campus, food options in the canteen, or anything else. Unlike Change It, Voice It is an open feedback form, posing the questions, “Which topic does your feedback fall into?”, “Tell us what’s going well”, “What is the issue you are facing?”. After answering these questions, the feedback form then allows for optional anonymity, asking the student what they would like to happen next. Voice It is super quick and easy to use, taking only a minute to complete. The tool is open 24/7, and while students cannot see the student data (age, course, nationality, etc.) behind each response, the SU has access to this information, which is vital for report writing and data analysis.

Course Reps are students who have been elected by their peers to represent their cohort or course. They represent Student Voice by listening to your feedback, encouraging you to fill in Voice It, and then presenting your feedback to Academic Course Leaders to bring about positive action and change. By reporting these changes back to the students, Course Reps help to close the feedback loop.

Course Reps are an integral part of the Student Representative scheme. Their main responsibility is to liaise with their cohort on a regular basis and encourage them to submit feedback through the Voice It tool. Once feedback is submitted through the tool, the SU can then review the data and relay trends or other useful information to Course Reps, so that they are well-informed ahead of meetings with their ACLs. As it’s near impossible for the SU to monitor the condition of every course at the university, the hundreds of Course Reps we have volunteering at the SU are instrumental in the feedback collection process.

Only students studying at UoG can be Course Reps. If there’s a course, then a student from that course is eligible to be a Course Rep, meaning the scheme caters for both undergraduate and postgraduate students.

To become a Course Rep, you must be duly elected during our Course Rep election period, which runs in October and January for the academic year.

The role is completely voluntary, meaning it is not paid.

It’s a great way to gain experience in working with fellow Course and students to achieve changes for your course. If you are somebody who is passionate about your area of study and improving the course experience for yourself and other students in your cohort, then it’s a fantastic opportunity to work with senior academics within your course.

Varies every year, but roughly 300-400.

Student Voice Assistants are paid, part-time members of staff who with the SU and university colleagues to action change for the benefit of their school. SVAs work to improve the quality of the student experience at the University of Gloucestershire by engaging effectively with Course Reps and students. SVAs are crucial in representing the student voice at a variety of levels both within the SU and UoG. Additionally, an SVA would traditionally work with the Director of Quality Enhancement and Associate Heads of School to make decisions to improve their school based on students’ feedback.

Again, only students can apply to be an SVA.

To become an SVA, you must submit a formal application to the SU via our website. We then invite you to complete a short task ahead of a video interview. We then notify successful applicants via email.

£10.42 per hour as base pay, with an additional 12.07% wage uplift in lieu of holiday entitlement.

Roughly 8-10 hours per month.

We currently have 14 SVAs, but the maximum number the SU allows for is 20.

Head to the Student Voice section of the website.

Official UoG merchandise (hoodies, sweatshirts, t–shirts, hats, scarves, ties and lanyards) can now be purchased through the UoGSU Online Shop HERE. Any enquiries about UoGSU merchandise should be directed to su@glos.ac.uk

Where can I find SU events? You can find all events from the SU by visiting www.uogsu.com/events How do I access my ticket? There are two ways you can access a ticket you've booked: Click 'Log-In/Sign Up', hover your cursor over your initials in the top right corner and click 'Bookings'. Here you'll see a list of all the events you've booked; click on any to access the ticket and its QR code. Check your email. We email tickets to your registered email address at the point of purchase! Can non-UOG students come? Events held in UOGSU spaces are delivered as private events for members of the University of Gloucestershire community. You are entitled to bring one, non-UOG guest with you to each event, for whom you will have the responsibility for, during the event. You MUST buy a ticket for your guest if the event is ticketed. Please note, UOG students can bring one carer free of charge to each event. Please see the guidance on carers below. If the event is after 5pm, under-18s are not permitted into SU venues unless otherwise specified. For external events, please refer to the external venues’ terms and conditions. Can I bring a carer? For all events held in SU spaces, you are allowed to bring one carer. You do not need to buy a ticket for your carer but please contact su@glos.ac.uk so we can ensure we reserve a space for your carer. For external venues, please contact them directly for their carer policy. Whats your refund policy: In the event you have booked is cancelled, rescheduled, or has changed location, you are entitled to a refund of at least the face value of the ticket. You may request to cancel your ticket for a full refund up to 24 hours before the date and time of the event unless otherwise specified in the event description. To request a refund, please follow the link found in your email confirmation or email su@glos.ac.uk. Refund requests submitted after the event will not be honoured unless you have mitigating circumstances. Where are SU events held? On campus events are typically held in the Students’ Union spaces which you can find here - https://www.uogsu.com/about/suspaces/ Events can also be held around campus; this will be specified on the event. We also hold events at our partner venue, MooMoos.

Can students book to use the SU Space/Bars? Yes, students can book all 3 SU spaces to host their own events, these could range from society nights, personal birthdays, or just a get-together with friends. All spaces can be booked with or without the bar. How do I book an SU space? Visit www.uogsu.com/bookaspace and go through the login page and you should be able to select ‘Book a Students’ Union Space’. Click on which SU space you would like to book. Click on the calendar on the day/time you would like to book the space. Complete the booking form. Please be aware the SU bars are no longer functional and cannot be booked. Wait for confirmation of your booking. I need specific equipment for my event, how do I request this? If you need something specific for your event, eg speakers or a projector, please email su@glos.ac.uk

We are run by a team of career staff and three elected full-time officers. These are students or recent graduates of the university who aim to improve student life over three areas: Activities and Opportunities Education and Community Welfare and Diversity The officers also represent the student voice at university meetings and ensure that the student experience is central to decision making. We also run individual priority campaigns based around our roles. These campaigns have specific aims which combine lobbying the university for change and providing events and experiences for students relating to the campaigns.

Officers are elected by students over the course of a week towards the end of the year. Any student can run to be an officer. Every candidate will write a manifesto, attend a hustings event where they can be questioned by students, and campaign for a week to be elected.