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► About us

We aim to make our members' lives better

The University of Sussex Students' Union aims to make the lives of its members better by providing opportunities such as sports clubs and societies, advice and support services on issues such as housing and coursework and student-friendly shops and bars on campus.

The Students’ Union exists to represent students’ interests both within the University and the wider community and campaigns on relevant local, national and international issues. The Students’ Union is a charitable organisation and its direction is democratically determined by its members, the University’s students. We carry out research to find out what students think of us and to assist in our campaigning and lobbying.

As well as representation, the Students’ Union provides a variety of services to help students through university life, including welfare and academic advice, sports clubs, social, cultural and political societies, commercial services such as bars and shops and funds award-winning student media.

Who are the members of the Students' Union?

All registered students at the University of Sussex and Brighton & Sussex Medical School (BSMS) are members of the Students’ Union and can influence what the Students’ Union does by voting in our elections, providing feedback on our services, taking part in meetings and more.

How does the Students' Union operate?

The Students’ Union is run by six elected full-time officers who are either recent graduates from Sussex or BSMS or taking a year out from their studies. They are elected every year by students to make sure that we’re doing what out members want. We also have a number of elected part-time officers and reps on a range of committees who make decisions on behalf of students.

We have around 1000 volunteers in a variety of roles such as society committee chairs, student reps and Badger newspaper writers. We also have 20-30 full-time staff and almost 200 students who work to support the activities of our elected officers and keep our services running.

You can find out more on our website about how decisions are made, our plan for the future, the policies which guide what we do and plenty more including where our money comes from and how we plan to spend it.

What do we do?

The things that we can do can be broadly divided into four areas;

Provide opportunities for students

We help students run sports clubs and societies and offer a range of volunteer placements within the Students’ Union and in the local community. Students can also contribute to the Badger, our newspaper and The Pulse, our magazine.

Provide advice and support

Our Advice & Representation Centre aims to support students during their time at University on welfare and academic issues.

Represent students’ views

We represent students within the University, within the local community and nationally as part of the National Union of Students. Our elected officers and reps gather students’ feedback and use it to lobby for change.

Run shops and bars on campus

We run three shops and two bars on campus to provide safe and convenient for students to buy the things they need and socialise. We also offer part-time employment that suits students’ timetables and lifestyle. We also organise a number of events throughout the year from Freshers Week right through to the Graduation Ball.

Our values

Our five key values tell us how we should do things, what we are and what we aim for:

Friendliness

We want you to want to be involved in the students’ union, either as a volunteer, an employee or using our services and venues. Whatever you are doing with us we want you to feel welcome. Being friendly and approachable is a very important part of that and we take it very seriously.

Responsibility

We are ethical and responsible in all of our endeavours. We place a very high value on the wellbeing and safety of our users, our staff, our community and the environment. We are committed to promoting equal opportunities in the provision of all our services, as an employer and as a representative and campaigning body and we are honest and open in all our dealings.

Fun

Being involved in the students’ union as a member, a volunteer or an employee should be an enjoyable and rewarding experience. Through this sense of enjoyment we aim to promote enthusiasm for what we do.

Democracy

We are a democratic organisation controlled by our members, who actively participate in setting our policies and making decisions. Members serving as elected representatives are accountable to the membership and all members have equal voting rights with one member having one vote. Furthermore we believe democracy is about making sure that our volunteers and staff members have a say in the way we run our services and the students’ union as a whole.

Improvement

We want to make things better. We are here to improve students’ lives by improving their educational and University experience. We always aim to improve our services and we strive for and seek to attain continuous improvement in all that we do.