Working for Students

This week on Working for Students we’re previewing some of the sessions coming up at the Membership Services Conference. Livia Scott catches up with Andrew Minutillo, Manager, Student Life (Programs and Wellbeing) at ActivateUTS, to hear how students’ unions work in Sydney, how ActivateUTS supports and represents almost 50,000 students, and what delegates can expect from Andrew’s conference sessio...

This week on Working for Students Liv catches up with Penny Hampden-Turner and Joel Dowson from the Greater Manchester Students Partnership to discuss their vision for happier renting conditions across Greater Manchester. They talk through the partnership’s housing work, the case for more ambitious regional collaboration, and how students’ unions can push policymakers to imagine genuinely affordab...

This week on Working for Students there’s a bumper collaborations special. What does it really take for students' unions to genuinely work together – and what hard questions should boards be asking themselves as costs rise, income falls and institutional instability spreads? Alan caught up with Steve Coole and Ben Ward on the Greater Manchester Students Partnership, the cultural conditions that ha...

This week on Working for Students we’re thinking about belonging, inclusion and the student experience – from the work of Living Black at University to what students’ unions can do to build communities that work for all students. We hear about Essex SU’s work on representation, education and student voice, and look across the Atlantic to Montclair State University to explore how commuter students...

This week on Working for Students Middlesex SU’s, Leanne Lewis explains how a gamified induction treasure hunt is helping students navigate campus, activate their accounts, and build early relationships. We then turn to Anglia Ruskin SU, where Demi Smith challenges the sector’s reliance on election turnout as a measure of success, and Arts SU, where Margarita Marie Ronquillo explores stigma in bas...

This week on Working for Students, Livia speaks with Ben Sanders from Wrexham Students’ Union about efforts to reclaim the power behind student democracy. Alan catches up with Sarah Waterhouse at Manchester Met Students’ Union to unpack their innovative “Union Unfiltered” platform. And Livia talks to Mack from Wonkhe about new research into how students are actually using AI in their learning. Wit...

This week on Working for Students, we hear from Rosie of Organised Fun on the launch of the Safe Adventures report, exploring how students’ unions can take a more structured, principles-led approach to student group safety – from competence and risk to communication and equipment – while still enabling participation and fun. We also hear from Jill at the University of Westminster on a QAA-funded s...

This week on Working for Students we hear how Durham SU has moved savings out of HSBC as part of a push for more ethical banking, and why that decision could strengthen the case for wider divestment campaigns across higher education. We also look at how Middlesex SU has been building liberation networks through student-led community development, and how Sussex SU is working to make sport more incl...

This week on the show Alan and Livia hear from Cheyenne at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, about using student programme advisors to support clubs and organisations at scale, and how peer-led support can help stretch capacity while building students’ own skills. They also catch up with Sam at York SU to discuss the rising cost of campus laundry, why it should be seen as part of students’ b...

This week on the show Alan and Livia talk to Nick Smith to work out what election candidates and voters should understand about the realities of sabbatical officer roles, from campaign promises to the slower work of influence and negotiation. Then Kes from MDXSU reflects on building student engagement through events and Sheeba and Jacob from KCLSU explain how students and staff worked together to...

This week on Working for Students – the Membership Services Show, we’re exploring how SUs can design services and spaces that genuinely work for the students they represent. Livia and Alan talk to Layna Forbes at Coventry SU, who talks about what it really means to build a neuroinclusive campus . Sharanya Sivarajah at MDXSU discusses student engagement with petitions . And Alex Harden-Way at UCB G...

This week on Working for Students (the podcast formerly known as the Membership Services Show), Livia and Alan reflect on the year ahead – including the Secret Life of Students event and its focus on the human side of AI – before diving into three interviews. Lexi Baynes from the University of Manchester SU discusses the launch of their new student basic needs service, Essentials. Tom Levers share...

This week on the Membership Services Show Ed Moloney from University of Salford SU shares how they've repositioned themselves as an "anti-loneliness charity" – a strategy that's united everything from their bar to their advice service around tackling what affects 42 per cent of their student population. Drawing on World Health Organization research and working with Professor McWalter from Universi...

This week on the Membership Services Show Liv catches up with Liz and Nat from Lincoln Students’ Union to explore paying part-time officers. In a sector where volunteer leadership roles often clash with student financial realities, they reflect on how Lincoln SU’s governance review reshaped student voice, representation, and accountability – and what they’ve learned a year in. Later, Hannah Sketch...

This week on the Membership Services Show, Alan and Livia dive deep into the complexities of change management and student engagement across the students' union sector. Ellis Page from Sheffield SU opens up about their controversial decision to restructure liberation committees – including dissolving the LGBT committee – and the intense backlash that followed. From being compared to Margaret Thatc...

This week on the Membership Services Show, Alan and Liv explore how students' unions are reimagining engagement and support for diverse student communities. Alan speaks with Simon from UWTSD Students' Union about their innovative approach to student voice engagement across multiple campuses and nations. Drawing on his background as a teacher and conductor, Simon shares how they transformed course...

This week on the Membership Services Show, we’re exploring how students’ unions are adapting creatively to rising challenges – from shoestring event budgets to shifting university leadership. Livia visits Edinburgh Napier Students’ Association to hear how a small team pulled off a Welcome Week for under £900 – complete with a petting zoo – by embracing creativity, partnerships, and popcorn machine...

This week on the Membership Services Show Alan and Liv talk to West Chester University, who share how their Division of Student Affairs is drawing on the healthcare concept of social prescribing to reshape “Weeks of Welcome” – a six-week induction period designed to tackle loneliness and foster community. They also speak to Nick Smith about the pitfalls of mixed category trustee boards – and why t...

This week on the Membership Services Show Alan and Liv talk to Rachel from Highlands and Islands Students' Association about insights on the pressures officers face within the current sector crisis and how universities can step up to support manifesto delivery.  Meanwhile, Tom from Citizens UK explores how community organising is evolving in SUs, and at Middlesex SU, Sarah talks us through th...

This week on the Membership Services Show Liv and Alan kick off  officer-induction season  with Mack, exploring how the  Summer Training Programme  helps new sabbatical officers get to grips with their union’s policy environment and institutional context. They also talk to Gary Hughes of Durham SU about  building an ethical framework for officer support , and answer a ques...

This week on the Membership Services Show Alan catches up with Ghika from the Student Community Partnership in Bath to explore how a unique, city-wide collaboration is improving life for students and residents alike – from managing community tensions and waste to pioneering vape recycling and promoting student safety in the night-time economy. Meanwhile, Livia speaks with James Coe (Associate Edit...

This week on the Membership Services Show Alan and Liv talk to Price at Sunderland who's been busy this year lobbying the university to introduce flexible payment plans for international students struggling with the cost of living. They also debate whether it's wise to be student led for studdent led's sake, and talk to Mike at ARU Students' Union about their bold real student leadership strategy....

This week on the Membership Services Show Podge from Dublin City SU shares how they built their student food pantry from the ground up. Plus Susan from Nottingham SU discusses their comprehensive approach to supporting student trustees, and Aisling from Mary I SU reflects on her year as a sabbatical officer, sharing what kinds of support matter most at different stages of the year. With Podge from...

This week Livia and Alan talk to Leeds Beckett SU about complementing their community organizing focus with public affairs strategies to improve their influence beyond university settings. Plus Jim reports from Poland about Juvenalia, a festival where students take over the city, and Alan speaks with Nottingham SU about eye-opening research on food precarity among students.  With Claire from...

This week on the Membership Services Show, Livia and Alan talk to Dublin City University about how they reimagined their elections after failing to meet quorum, shifting from traditional campaigning to a more career-focused approach that attracted diverse candidates. Plus, Rosie from Organized Fun continues last week's debate about student-owned spaces, and Alan talks to Tom Lowe from the Universi...