Impact Report: 2025-26 Term 1

Introduction

Term 1 has been a busy, exciting, and impactful start to the year for Warwick Students’ Union. From the first days of Welcome Week to the end of the term, students have been at the heart of everything we do – shaping priorities, building communities, and driving change across campus.

This Impact Report brings together the highlights of how the SU has supported, represented, and connected students during Term 1. It shows the scale of support provided by the Advice Centre, which has helped hundreds of students navigate housing issues, academic concerns, finances, and wellbeing. It also reflects the growing focus on being visible and approachable, with outreach activities, drop-ins, and events designed to meet students where they are.

Student voice has been stronger than ever this term. With record numbers of Course Reps elected, new forums and assemblies launched, and the introduction of the Make a Change platform, more students now have clear and accessible ways to share ideas, raise issues, and influence decisions at Warwick. Alongside this, our democratic spaces have continued to grow, with strong engagement across councils, forums, and liberation assemblies.

Beyond representation and support, Term 1 has been full of opportunities to connect. From societies and sports fairs to cultural events, campaigns, and nights out in SU venues, thousands of students have come together to make the most of life at Warwick. Our Full-Time Officers have also led ambitious work on key student issues, securing funding, building partnerships, and championing student needs at every level.

This report is a snapshot of what we’ve achieved together so far – and a strong foundation for what’s still to come.

Support

SU Advice Centre

In term 1, the SU Advice Centre opened a total of 521 cases. This was made up of 117 Academic cases, 60 Finance, 233 Housing and 121 Health and Wellbeing. According to our latest survey:

97% of users were satisfied with the advice they received
97% would use the Advice Centre again
95% felt the advice they received empowered them to make an informed decision
97% would recommend the Advice Centre to a friend

Case wins this term include:

A Warwick Alum who graduated in 1991 had checked their Warwick degree and found that QTS status was not awarded. We helped them start an investigation with the University, and through historical records we found that a professor’s mistake in a report to the department’s admin team had resulted in the degree being awarded without QTS status. The University admitted and rectified the error, meaning the Alum can now train as a teacher.
A student had to extend their temporary withdrawal due to a diagnosis of Parkinson’s and needing to try a new treatment. The student was on their second TWD period, and a third one is not allowed under Reg. 36 unless there are exceptional circumstances. Their department had advised that extending the TWD for a 3rd year was not possible. We supported the student through a successful complaint that earned them another year of TWD. Without the 3^rd year, the student would not have been able to trial a new treatment and would not have been able to rejoin study.

Feedback we have received includes;

"I had the best advice I can get regarding my concern. I have nothing to ask your team to do better."
"I can't imagine anything that could go better than how it worked"
"I was really satisfied with the service, went above and beyond."
"I had greater trust in this service than the SLC/university."

Successful projects this term also include:

Our annual Housing Day saw upwards of 500 students attend to speak with the Advice Centre, Warwick City Council, Warwick Accommodation and more, to ask questions and find out guidance on their student housing journey
We supported the Vice President Welfare & Campaigns to host the SU's first ever World Mental Health Day Fair. This saw a variety of University services and external charities gather in the SU Atrium to advertise how they can support our students.
We jointly hosted Academic Integrity Month with the University, which saw us attend stalls across campus throughout November to raise awareness of how AI should be used in university work and how our service can help.

Representation

Student Voice

First Student Council of the year was extremely positive. A new Chair for the year has been elected – Raj Hacker
Held the first Forum Welcome event – this was for newly elected members sitting on our democratically elected Forums to participate in workshops, share knowledge and learn how they can engage and make an impact with their Forums.A hugely successful event considering it was the first time the SV team had run it – lots to build on for next year
Held the Academic Rep Conference for the second year running. Building on the success of last year, we had over 150 students attend with sessions on how Reps can get involved in WIHEA, Unitu and understanding how to create impactful student voice committees.

612 Course Reps have been democratically elected – the highest actual recorded number in many years. Course Reps play a pivotal role in influencing change at a University level on their academic and course experience.
Re our Student Forums, already Operations and Sustainability have approved over 5k of student funding ideas and projects. Sustainability have begun planning their Green Week event.
The Make a Change Platform is live!This new platform is a simplified way for students to suggest changes on the things that matter to them.These ‘ideas’ can be easy to implement quick fixes or suggestions for long term change.The platform is split into 3 sections (Ideas, Policy & Motions, Stances & Affiliations) and there is a simple backend process which directs the suggestion through our democratic routes of Exec Committee, Steering Group, Student Council and All Student Vote.
Sports, Societies and Liberation Assemblies have all been held to great success with good engagement.
Website updates have begun. New Supporting Documents, Bye-Law revisions, Student Council minutes 2024-25, new Course Rep handbook, Democratic Calendar have been uploaded.
Student staff recruitment is well underway this term, recruiting Campaign Ambassadors and Decolonise Advocates. Planning has already started on LibCon - next term they will craft the LibCon workshops with officers from other SUs, LibSoc presidents and PTOs. Ollie has started to work with the Campaigns Assistants on ‘Know Your Rights,’ the large-scale campaign for the CAs this academic year.
2 new Student Voice Coordinators have been recruited and inducted onto the team.

Social Activities

Venues & Outlets

We kept you fed, refreshed and entertained throughout Term 1, with:

8,700 burrito bowls from The Food station
15,000 burgers from The Dirty Duck
20,500 hot drinks and 3,500 paninis from Curiositea
17,500 Jungbombs and 17,500 VKs in our venues
7,500 cocktails from The Terrace Bar
27,700 event tickets

Societies

Societies Fair took place over 2 days in Welcome Week, hosting the majority of the Societies affiliated with the SU. The event had 8,000+ people attend on day 1, and just over 10,000 people on day 2.
One World Warwick took place in November, which included Sikh Soc's Langar and multiple societies joining the Global Illuminations Procession.
344 x External speakers
181 x Society events
175 x Sponsorship contracts
2 x Conferences (with 13 more being planned for term 2)

Sports Clubs

The Sports Fair in Welcome Week had new entertainment and performances outside the Sports & Wellbeing Hub, including "Bumble Bee" the Transformer and a DJ.

Touchdown - The American football showcase against Nottingham Trent University on 22^nd November at Butts Park Arena had fantastic engagement with 417 tickets sold. The event included an energetic halftime performance from the Warwick Devils cheerleaders.

The “Leadership Fund” for Club Execs was launched in term 1. The feedback that has been received from Clubs has been very positive as it’s a great development opportunity for the members.

The Sports Club Accreditation Scheme was launched in term 1. This scheme is an incentive for Club Execs to demonstrate that their Club is well run.

Clubs Engagement:

59 x Trips and tours
30 x Club events
13 x Sponsorship contracts
232 x Accreditation submissions
435 x BUCS fixtures
50% of BUCS fixtures won
19 x BUCS events attended

Full-Time Officers

Alijah Taha – President

Strengthened relationships with University Council. For the first time, the Full-Time Officer team was invited to the opening session of Council to present our shared priorities and clearly set out what students need from the University.

Negotiated with the University to secure its highest innovation funding bid to date. This included over £10,000 for a sports club, around £10,000 for a society, and funding for multiple officer-led projects and student events.
Wrote an open letter to the Minister for Skills, Further and Higher Education, challenging government policy on international students and inviting dialogue. The letter received over 60 signatures from sabbatical officers across Students’ Unions nationally.
Launched weekly “SU & You” Tuesdays. For the first time, the SU Advice Centre has a regular presence at the Medical School on Gibbet Hill, joined by a Full-Time Officer. At the same time, officers spend two hours each Tuesday from 12pm to 2pm in SU South, away from offices and among students, with pool tables made freely available to create an informal and accessible space to engage with elected representatives.

Ananya Sreekumar – VP Education

Successfully presented the SU’s Education Strategy for 2025-26 at the Education and Student Experience Committee.
Secured £13k in funding from the Warwick Innovation Fund for the upcoming National Liberation Conference.
Held a successful Gender-Based Violence Solidarity Panel in collaboration with Survivors Sanctuary Coventry, Anti-Sexism Society and academics from the PAIS Department.
Revamped the SU’s Decolonise Project, hired and trained up our new Decolonise Advocates.
Successfully held our first Liberation Assembly of the year with a record turnout.

Adam Skrzymowski – VP Societies

I updated Exec Resources to make them easier to navigate, reducing a key pain point for society execs and replaced Regulation 9 with easier, updated rules.
Promoted the Lord Rootes Fund to societies for the first time ever, leading to a record number of applications.
Organised the Term 2 Societies Fair, and our first term 2 societies taster programme.
Extended SUHQ opening hours to make it easier for societies with storage to use it after evening events, and expanded the range of rooms societies can book for activities.
Made it easier for societies to book and use card readers.

James Varney – VP Democracy & Development

Remunerated Part-Time Officers, leading to greater engagement and satisfaction. Better integrated them into our democratic structures.
Launched new Make a Change platform to better collect student input, ideas and motions.
Entered full-scale discussions with Stagecoach and National Express about their bus services
Kicked off a comprehensive Governance Review to make our democracy more accessible
Campaigned for NUS to take a stronger position on Palestine; signed an open letter in solidarity with students at Birzeit University.
Started discussions on better utilising the SU buildings, including a new room booking system, opening up the space above the Duck, and improving the Green Room.

Louis Gosling – VP Sports

Major ongoing work around the Sports Partnership Review and Sports Identity Projects to create a better supported Sports Club environment at Warwick. Both projects have had a huge amount of input from club Presidents, and we will continue to involve students heavily as they develop over the rest of the year.
A record 83 Sports Officer Bursaries awarded, helping to ensure that active lifestyles at Warwick are available for all students, including those in financial hardship.
New investment into the rest of our sports storage areas, following the renewal of the Sports Arena storage last year, to replace knackered old cabinets with new lockable cages.

Maanya Raju – VP Postgraduate

Secured funding through the Innovation Bid to deliver a dedicated Postgraduate Sports Day, supporting community-building and student wellbeing.
Collaborated with Together at Warwick and multiple student societies to host Sangam, a large-scale cultural celebration that showcased diversity and strengthened intercultural engagement.
Worked closely with the University on the development of AI policy guidance, including ensuring that assignment coversheets contain clear, assignment‑specific AI usage guidelines for students.
Successfully organised and hosted a Christmas event for students who remained on campus during the holiday break, creating a sense of belonging and support during a quieter period.

Ollie Chapman – VP Welfare & Campaigns

Food For Thought – a multi-faceted and incredibly ambitious campaign surrounding food affordability for students in need at Warwick. With the tri-weekly Eat Well Hub already launched this term, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. There is much more to come!
World Mental Health Day – A fair attended by over 500 students signposting to all available services relating to wellbeing at Warwick, as well as various charities which students can access.
#EndPeriodPoverty – Saw the continuation of the scheme and assisted with expanding into Warwick Conferences. Additionally, ensured that my predecessor’s vision to introduce dispensers in SU locations is happening!
16 Days of Activism – Led on the delivery of the 16 Days of Activism campaign surrounding violence against women and girls. I couldn’t have done this without the hard work from Eva Pemberton and Martha Coleman!
Gender Based Violence panel – Completed the logistical organisation of the GBV panel event, ran and led by Ananya, VP Education.