Welcome from the Students' Union

The University of Bradford Students' Union (UBU) is run for students by students to provide the vast majority of non-academic activities and support on campus.

We have:

• Our own cinema, run by students, showing blockbusters and previews
• The longest established student radio station in the UK
• A 1300 capacity venue
• 4 bars around the campus
• Our own print bureau providing great value and specialist activities
• UBUS to provide free, convenient, safe, night-time travel around Bradford
• First Class Cricket as part of the Bradford/Leeds Universities Centre of Cricketing Excellence
• Over 30 sports and 70 other pursuits in our clubs, societies and activities programme
• Volunteering opportunities ranging from working in the community, to providing sounds and light for Union events and representing student views within the University and beyond

In partnership with the University, we have recently launched a new safety initiative called SECURITEXT, giving students the ability to immediately contact the University Security Control Room should they require any help.

During your time in Bradford you will no doubt come into contact with the Union, its Officers and the services it provides. The UBU has two bars open daily with the Biko bar serving sandwiches at lunch, two shops, print shop, two nightclubs, cinema and a whole host of other facilities, clubs and societies. Over the last few years Bradford has played host to some top entertainment with bands such as Idlewild, Grand Theft Audio and the Stereophonics; DJs such as Tim Westwood; and cheesy acts such as Chesney Hawks, Timmy Mallet and Craig Charles.

On a more serious note, the UBU also aims to support its members with any academic, financial or personal problems they may have through our Advice Centre as well as providing a range of other services. For instance, our free safety bus will ensure you get home safely in the evenings and our Print Shop will print and bind your dissertation.

Activities

UBU has over 30 sports clubs and 40 societies, and we run our own award-winning radio station, RamAir, and magazine, Scrapie. We run a student cinema, which has the largest student cinema screen in the country, and we provide the rare opportunity for student volunteers to work behind the scenes at all our events through our Technical Services Association.

We run sports clubs as diverse as men's and women's rugby and football to Sub-Aqua and Ultimate Frisbee, and more or less everything in between. We have societies for people interested in cocktails, theatre and twirling (!), as well as societies for activists and budding politicians. Students can always set up their own society, so no wonder we have so many!

Volunteering

UBU works in partnership with the University in the UCAN project. UCAN is a volunteering programme, providing students with the opportunity to volunteer in local community projects. Projects include visiting the elderly, working with the homeless or helping in a playgroup. Students can choose to volunteer for just one day or once a week for the whole year - as much or as little time as they want to give. We at UBU recognise the fact that it is now more that just a degree that matters to employers, but a rounded experience that defines a successful student.

Representation

UBU exists to represent all students at the University of Bradford, and every student is automatically a member of the Students' Union. UBU is a democratic body and its members can make decisions on what Union policy should be. All of these policies last four years and can either be renewed or overturned at any General Meeting.

The elected students who run the Union make up the Executive, six of whom are full-time members of staff known as Sabbaticals; the other eleven are students who are currently studying, called Non-Sabbaticals.

UBU represents students within the University, locally and nationally through one-on-one meetings, student forums and campaigns. Nationally we are affiliated to NUS, the National Union of Students, and we are active in the student movement. Internally, we run the Hall Rep and Course Rep systems to ensure that students are getting the best from their time at the University of Bradford.

The Student Experience

UBU can be anything you want it to be - within reason of course! Sometimes it will be a shop or a bar; at other times it will be an activity or a sport, and then when you need, it will be an advocate and a representative for you.

The University of Bradford is committed to the student experience and UBU is a vital part of that. We aim to empower students through our democratic procedures, and equip them with vital skills and experiences through the activities we provide. With our diverse range of students, we do our best to cater for everyone. It's fair to say you won't get bored with the student experience we offer!

Contacts

If you need any further information you can email the Students' Union Communications Officer at ubu-communications@bradford.ac.uk or phone 01274 233300.

Alternatively, come and visit us - the Students' Union Executive Officers are very approachable and run an 'open door' policy. We live in the Communal Building, behind the J B Priestley library building.