Welcome to your SU!

Who are we

Welcome to uni life beyond studying! Of course, your studies are important, but that’s not all there is to life at UWE Bristol, and that’s where we come in. The Students’ Union at UWE is here to represent your views and make your time at University the best it can be. We're here to encourage you to participate in the things you love, make new friends, advocate for your peers, and support the causes that matter to you.

So what do we actually do? Let’s break it down:

Presidents and Part-Time Officers

Every year, you - the student body - elect 5 full-time Presidents and 10+ Part-Time Officers to lead The Students’ Union for the academic year. They represent the student voice and push for positive change in various areas of UWE Bristol life.  As well as making sure your ideas and issues are heard and put in front of the relevant people, they work towards delivering their individual manifestos. You can get to know your elected Presidents and Part Time Officers, what they do what they are working towards here.

Student Reps

Our Student Reps play a vital role in representing students’ academic interests. Each year there are around 1100 Student Reps elected from every level of every programme to champion the student voice. They work with students and staff to collect and deliver feedback and create positive change to the learning experience at UWE Bristol and become co-creators of the student experience. If you’re interested in becoming a student rep or want to learn about what they do you click here.

Sports Clubs and Societies

We have over 130 sports clubs and societies that you can join. With sports clubs ranging from archery to windsurf, and a huge range of societies, including academic, national, faith and identity and some just for fun. It’s the perfect chance to meet like-minded students with similar interests and make new friends. Even better, if you can’t find a society that suits you, we can help you make a new one!

Events and Activity

Throughout the year we host a number of events and activities across the campus sites. Whether you want to learn something new in a craft or cooking workshop, have a boogie at our annual summer ball or flex your green fingers in the Community Garden our ‘What’s On’ page and socials are the best place to find fun things to do outside of your lectures!!

Campaigns

We support and encourage students to get involved with the causes that matter to them, by facilitating campaigns and providing advice, resources and access to funding. You’re invited to get involved from providing feedback on plans, attending events, or helping to run and drive our campaigns. Past and ongoing campaigns include: Black History Month, World Mental Health Day, LGBT+ History Month, Trans Awareness Week, Women’s History Month, Disability History Month and Diversity Day.

Advice

We’re here to support you throughout your time at University. Our Advice Centre gives friendly, non-judgemental and confidential advice. It’s a totally free service, and because The Students’ Union is independent from UWE, our advice is impartial and unbiased, and nothing you tell us will appear on your UWE file. The team can provide advice and guidance on areas such as accommodation and renting, academic issues, financial struggles and many more. You can find out more about our Advice Centre here.

Cost of Living Support

Food: We have Community Larders at Frenchay, Glenside and Bower Ashton students’ union receptions where students can take up to 5 free items at a time. This can include kitchen cupboard staples such as rice, pasta and noodles or household items like toothbrushes.

Period Products: The Students’ Union and UWE work in partnership to provide free, disposable period products across the campus sites. We also run a Sustainable Period Product Trial where students and staff can sign up to receive a reusable period product of their choice for FREE! For all things periods click here.

Uniform: For our Healthcare students at Glenside Campus, we run a Placement Uniform Swap Shop where students can donate, swap and collect placement uniforms – giving our health students a more budget-friendly, eco-friendly placement experience. Placement Uniform Swap Shops will be held every Wednesday during term time, between 12:00-14:00 in The Students' Union at Glenside. Find out more here.  

Sustainability

For those who love all things nature and sustainability our Green Team run a number if events throughout the year and offer opportunities to volunteer at our Community Garden and in local woodlands.  If you are interested in taking on more of a leadership role you can apply to be part of the Sustainability Committee.  Contact the greenteam@uwe.ac.uk to find out more about getting involved or follow us on instagram @su_greenteam

At Bower Ashton we have our very own Community Corner.  In this space we have a book swap, the community larder, clothes swap, art supply swap, free period products, free condoms and bring your own cup teas and coffees.  We have clothes swaps at Glenside and Frenchay Campus - keep an eye on our ‘What’s On’ page for the next one at your campus site!

Our Student Wellbeing Champions is a newer scheme that gives all students the opportunity to get involved in promoting positive mental health and wellbeing across campus.  Students meet on a semi regular basis to discuss key wellbeing issues, help out at events and provide feedback and ideas for health and wellbeing programs.  Contact sucommunity@uwe.ac.uk to find out mor and how to apply.

Getting involved

We're here to drive change in our student community , whether that's tacking environmental issues, or driving social justice campaigns.  We have lots of opportunities for you to take action and make a difference.  Follow our socials to stay up to date with events, campaigns and opportunities:

The Students' Union - @thesu@uwe

City Campus - @citycampusuwe

Glenside Campus - @thesuatuwe_glenside

Job Shop

We advertise a broad range of Part-time opportunities on our various campus location and around Bristol/Gloucester and the wider area.

All of the roles we advertise are student friendly and will fit around your studies flexibly (we advise working nor more that 16-20 hours per week whilst studying , but you can of course increase your working hours during the holidays).

We advertise roles in bars and hospitality, care and working with children, admin and office work and all sorts of varied and exciting industries.  We add new roles on a daily basis, so it is worth keeping an eye out for the perfect working opportunity, whether you are looking for some extra money, or you need a wage to pay your bills, we will likely have a role suitable for you!  See the latest job vacancies here.