Swansea University Students' Union

Swansea University Students' Union.

Swansea University Students' Union (Welsh: Undeb Myfyrwyr Prifysgol Abertawe) is the students' union for Swansea University and is part of the part of National Union of Students of the United Kingdom. The Students' Union aims to promote the interests of students at the University. It is currently located on the Swansea University campus in Union House,[1] and also has offices in Fulton House- an adjacent building which the university plans to tear down during renovation of the university. [2]

Democracy

The Student's Union is a democracy governed by the articles of governance and schedules.[3]$ All students of Swansea University are automatically enrolled into the Union at the beginning of each term and then have the right to propose and vote on Ideas (motions) at the Student Forums.

Representing the students are the executive committee which is made up of Full Time Officers and the Part Time Officers. The Executive sets the policy and direction of the Students' Union, and is guided through with policy proposals made at the Student Forums. Commonly referred to as the 'Exec', it is made up of the elected 5 full-time Officers and 13 part-time elected officers. The Chair of the Committee is the Union President.

Student Forums

Student Forums are held every month. All students who are members of the Students' Union are welcome to attend. Students automatically become members upon enrolment of the University. Student Forums and the Annual General Meetings are one opportunity for students to have their say over the direction of the Students' Union. Students can put forward Ideas, and if passed can become policies of the Students' Union. Minutes of these meetings are made available on the Student Union's website.

Part Time Officers 2014/15

Name Title
Lewys Thomas General Secretary
Ajing Jipur International Officer
Stephanie Paisley Lockwood Women's Officer
Tori Evans Disabilities Officer
Jakub Derlukiewicz Fresher’s Officer
Rhydian Francis-Morris Part-Time Students Officer
Welsh Affairs Officer
Jianni Grima Mature Students Officer
Student with Caring Responsibilities Officer
Postgraduate Officer (Taught)
David Mair Postgraduate Officer (Research)
Robiu Salisu Black and Minority Ethnics Officer
Christopher Walburn LGBT+ Officer (Open)
Dharani Vijayakumar LGBT+ Officer (Womens)
Chris Whitty Ethics Officer
Alice Mercer Environment Officer

Full Time Officers 2014/15

Name Title
Ceinwen Cloney President
Jerry Isokiari Societies & Services Officer
Ilana Cohen Education Officer
Joel Gascoyne Welfare Officer
Charlotte Peters Sports Officer

Services

The Union runs a variety of services including a supermarket ("MyCostCutter"), a coffee shop (Fulton Coffee Co), and student bars ( JC's, and The Wonkey Sheep). There is also an Advice & Support Centre and a Nursery.

Advice and Support Centre

The Union runs the Support Centre which has 3 advisers. It is a free and confidential service that gives advice on a variety of topics, such as debt, academic problems, consumer advice, housing, contracts, personal issues, employment and health.

Swansea Accommodation Service

The Students' Union officially launched Swansea Accommodation Service (SAS) on 1 February 2007 in the Digital Technium. The Students' Union took the decision to create Swansea Accommodation Service because "it wanted to improve the standard of accommodation available to students, which in turn may help to reduce the high level of complaints made by students every year" [4] SAS has now become a partnership company with the University recently moved offices to the Accommodation Office in Penmaen and to online resources.

Student Swansea Events

The events or ents department, re-branded as Student Swansea Events in 2010, currently run 7 club nights every term-time week. ilovemondays @ Oceana (Monday Night), Flux @ Diva's (Tuesday Night), PlayOn Wednesdays @ Odyssey (Wednesday Night), Sin Savers @ Sin City (Thursday Night), Tooters @ Diva's (Friday Night), Face/Off @ Sin City (Friday Night), Sink @ Sin City (Saturday Night).

Student Swansea Events also run the large-scale annual events during the academic year, including Freshers' Fortnight, for the first two weeks of term.

Student Swansea Events also run the Swansea Summer Ball on the main campus site. This event takes place on the University's Abbey Meadow. Previous headline acts have included Feeder (2009), Florence & The Machine (2010), The Streets (2011) & Pixie Lott (2012).

The ents department also help run the annual Welsh Varsity between Swansea University and Cardiff University by selling and distributing tickets as well as match entertainment, merchandise and the after party. There was much student anger in March 2013 when queues to pick up tickets meant students didn't receive tickets, after queuing for several hours.[5]

On Saturday 8 October 2011, Student Swansea Events along with Jokers Masquerade attained their second Guinness World Record. 2018 students dressed as skeletons to record the 'Largest Gathering Of Skeletons' during the infamous Freshers Fortnight. This was their second Guinness World Record following their triumphant record of 'Largest Gathering Of Smurfs' at Oceana in the early hours of Tuesday 9 June 2009 when 2510 students all dressed up exactly the same for the event.

JC's

JC's is situated on the second floor of Fulton House, and is the Students' Union's bar and coffee shop. It runs a quiz night on Sundays. A popular venue with students, the bar has recently reopened after undergoing significant renovation in time for its reopening in September 2011.

The Wonky Sheep

The Wonky Sheep is situated in the heart of the student village. Prior to its refit in 2006 it was called "Idols Bar", then known as "Woodys" until 2011. The bar is known for its themed nights, and end of year Carnival.

Divas

Divas is the student night club, previously named DV8. There was a competition in 1993 to rename the Students' Union bar after it moved from the top floor of the Students' Union building to the first floor. While on the top floor the bar had been called the "Mandela Bar" in honour of the South African freedom campaigner. This was won by Mr Rhys Sage (now a professional photographer) who was a guest at the opening of the bar.

Divas hosts a range of events including the flagship Tooters; a Friday club night with £3 entry, two rooms of music and two drinks for £2 each night.

Sin City

Sin City is a nightclub and live music venue, which opened December 2006 and was originally partly owned by Swansea University Students’ Union. In 2010 Swansea University Students' Union took full ownership of the club.

Media

The Students' Union operates the newspaper The Waterfront and the radio station Xtreme Radio. A TV station SU-TV is currently on trial.[6]

The Waterfront Newspaper

The Waterfront Newspaper is Swansea University's Students' Union Newspaper. The paper is part of the PR and marketing department of the Students' Union. Founded in September 1995, it published its 200th issue on 7 March 2011.[7] The 32-page newspaper is distributed around campus fortnightly during term time.

Xtreme Radio

Xtreme Radio is Swansea University's Students' Union Radio Station, founded in 1968, making it the third oldest in the UK. It broadcasts around the campus, through the Union's shops and the Student Swansea Box Office as well as online. It is run by students, and the committee is democratically elected from the society members each year.

Financial Information

Between 20 Mar 1967, and 19 Jun 2002, the Students' Union was a registered charity.[8] During 2002 the Union withdrew from the Charities Commission, after the law changed in 2001 and enjoyed 'Exempt Charity' status, as set out by UK legislation .[9]

From 26 November 2012, the Students' Union once again became a charity.[10]

Guinness World Records

The Swansea University Students' Union has played a massive part in achieving two Guinness World Records in association with online fancy dress retailer Jokers' Masquerade. In 2009 both worked together to break the world record for the largest gathering of Smurfs.[11] In 2011 they again joined forces to break the largest gathering of skeletons record.[12]

Pole Fitness Controversy

In October 2013 Swansea Students' Union Societies & Services Officer Ceinwen Cloney banned the University's Pole Fitness society, citing "sexist attitudes" following a motion to the Trustee Board by external Trustee Ali Morris. They listed among their reasoning that "Pole fitness and pole dancing are a direct spin off from lap dancing [...] We should not be deaf to the very real issue of pole fitness playing a part in upholding this raunch culture and objectification of women and girls and the impact of this on our female students [...] Evidence shows that young women aged 16 to 24 are the group of women who experience the most domestic and sexual violence. This is the age of a large group of our female students. We believe that activities such as 'pole fitness' contributes to an atmosphere where women are viewed as sexual objects and where violence against them is acceptable." [13]

The decision has sparked a significant backlash in social media and news sites. The President of the society described comparisons made as "highly offensive" [14] and stressed that “Males and females come to class to keep fit and gain strength, flexibility and coordination.” The society Treasurer said “I see it as a fitness class like any other form of dance or gymnastics class." [15]

Sam Remmer, founder of the society and representative of the Pole Dance Community, released a letter in response to the ban, concluding: "your actions are against equal opportunities and that you are merely discriminating against a society on the basis of ignorance and misplaced stereotypes." [16] He has been joined by students of the university through news websites calling the link to violence being "completely wrong and dangerous" and the decision as motivated by "prejudice and fear" against an "empowering" movement.[17]

The Pole Dance Community itself issued a series of demands as options to the trustees of the students union:

1.You must justify your position. In doing so, please refrains from the use of the statement "we believe..." and instead use a phrase such as "it has been shown that..." followed by evidence of what has been shown. We welcome any expansion or explanation of your stated beliefs as the statements made by you thus far are unfortunately, unworthy of rational argument.

2.You must reverse your decision.

3.You must resign your positions on the board. The stance taken by you is an embarrassment to common sense and unbefitting of a board paid for by the students and tasked with such responsibilities. You should therefore allow the students of Swansea University to elect a new SU board more befitting of this respected educational institution.[18]

The Union then U-turned on their original policy. The Union President admitted the decision was "wrong" and, following a student referendum suggested by Women's Officer Rosie Inman (who had previously opposed the society), the society was fully reinstated.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Students Union website: Campus Map". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-04-23.
  2. ↑ "This is South Wales: UNI BATTLING FOR GLITTERING FUTURE". 2007-03-03. Retrieved 2007-04-23.
  3. ↑ "Union Constitution" (DOC).
  4. ↑ "Waterfront Newspaper". 2007-02-12.
  5. ↑ Booth, Samantha. "Student fury at Varsity one-day ticket collection". The Waterfront Newspaper. The Waterfront Newspaper. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  6. ↑ "SU-TV.co.uk". Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  7. ↑ "Issue Archive". Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  8. ↑ "Charity Commission".
  9. ↑ "Charity Commission- Exempt Charities". Retrieved 2007-05-29.
  10. ↑ "Students' Union Charities Commission Profile". Charities Commission. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
  11. ↑ "The Telegraph". 2009-06-09. Retrieved 2011-11-02.
  12. ↑ "Guinness World Records". 2009-10-11. Retrieved 2011-11-02.
  13. ↑ "This Is South Wales". 2013-10-21. Retrieved 2013-10-22.
  14. ↑ "Daily Mail". 2013-10-21. Retrieved 2013-10-22.
  15. ↑ "Independent". 2013-10-18. Retrieved 2013-10-22.
  16. ↑ "Pole Dance Community". 2013-10-18. Retrieved 2013-10-22.
  17. ↑ "Huffington Post". 2013-10-18. Retrieved 2013-10-21.
  18. ↑ "Pole Dance Community".

External links

Coordinates: 51°36′36.00″N 3°58′51.00″W / 51.6100000°N 3.9808333°W