Contents:
Click on the links below to find FAQ related to that area.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What does the SU do? 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, sports 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, such as selling tickets to events, selling clothes in our shops, or drinks at our bars, 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.
So, how does the SU use the money generated from student activities? 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 spaces you as students hang out in, i.e., the SU spaces, or even offer a helping hand by providing free resources on campus, for example, the Community Cupboards or our toast on-campus initiative that we launched this year.
This means that every time you buy a ticket to an SU event, or purchase something from our shops or bar, 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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Activities
Is it free to join a club/society? 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.
Is there a place to see all clubs/societies here at UoG? Yes, on the SU website all clubs and societies we offer are listed there.
How many committee members are required to run a sports club or society? 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
If we start a new society, how do we get support?
Where are sports training sessions and matches held?
Mostly at Plock Court (Arena, 3G, Rugby 3G and Hockey Astro). Also, training can take place in Oxstalls Sports hall.
Where do society sessions take place? Across the multi campuses.
How many Sports clubs do we have? 25
How many Societies do we have? 41
Is all sport competitive? No, you can join sports teams and play recreationally.
What does BUCS stand for? British University Colleges of Sport.
What Universities do we compete against? Universities of the South West Region.
What day are BUCS fixtures played? Wednesday or weekends.
What happens if I have a lecture on fixture day? Academic courses take priority over weekly fixtures.
How does travel work to fixtures? All travel to fixtures is organised for clubs by the Activities coordinator.
Where do I get my playing kit from? Match playing tops are provided, however training kit or stash can be bought online from the AKUMA store.
What is Varsity? An annual sporting competition between two rival universities in a handful of sports fixtures
When is Varsity? 18th March - 20th March 2024
Who do we compete against in varsity? Worcester University
Why are not all sports in varsity? We can only cater for sports that are using University owned facilities.
Where is Varsity held? Across sports facilities in Gloucester (Oxstalls Campus) and Worcester (University Arena)
Can I go and spectate? Yes, for low priced ticket.
Who organises Varsity? A collaborative effort between UoGSU and UoWSU
Is varsity free to play in? No, players pay a low contribution fee.
How do I make the Varsity team? Commitment to training throughout the year and put yourself forward for team selection.
Want to know anymore? email: suactivities@glos.ac.uk
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What is the SU Advice Service: 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.
When is it available: The service is vailable from Monday to Thursday, 9am - 5pm on:
How can I get in touch: 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.
A few more that may be useful are:
Can the service proofread my appeal/complaint/submission?
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.
Can I have someone come and support me in my meeting?
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.
Can the service offer or signpost me to legal advice?
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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Student Voice
What is Change It? 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.
How does Change It work? 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.
What is Voice It? 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.
What are Course Representatives? 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.
Why are Course Representatives valued? 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.
Who can be a Course Rep? 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.
How do I become a Course Rep? 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.
Is the Course Rep role paid? The role is completely voluntary, meaning it is not paid.
What are the benefits of being a Course Rep? 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.
How many Course Reps are there? Varies every year, but roughly 300-400.
What are Student Voice Assistants? 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.
Who can be an SVA? Again, only students can apply to be an SVA.
How do I become 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.
How much are SVAs paid? £10.42 per hour as base pay, with an additional 12.07% wage uplift in lieu of holiday entitlement.
How many hours do SVAs work? Roughly 8-10 hours per month.
How many SVAs do we have? We currently have 14 SVAs, but the maximum number the SU allows for is 20.
Where can I find out more about SVAs & Course Reps? Head to the SU website -> Student Voice -> Student Voice Assistants/Course Reps.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marketing (SU Events, Awards, bars, booking an SU space)
Official UoG merchandise (hoodies, sweatshirts, t–shirts, hats, scarves, ties and lanyards) can now be purchased through the UoGSU Click and Collect shop (www.uogsu.com/shop/).
Purchased items can be collected from the collection points at Park (located just behind the SU's Living Room near the Refectory) on Thursdays, and Oxstalls SU space, The Lounge, (located in the Jonathon Porritt Building opposite main Reception) on Tuesdays. Collection point opening hours are 10:00am–12:30pm and 1:30pm–4:30pm on the respective days at each campus.
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 venues, MooMoos and Atik.
Booking an SU space/Bars
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.
-
If you have selected that you would like the bar open for the booking or you want your event to be added to the What’s On page, you may be contacted for more information.
-
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
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What role do the officers play: 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:
-
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. This year’s campaigns are:
These campaigns have specific aims which combine lobbying the university for change and providing events and experiences for students relating to the campaigns.
How do officers get elected: 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.