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.

With Price Ikechi, President Activities at Sunderland SU, Mike Hill, Director of Membership Services at ARU Students' Union and hosted by Livia Scott, Wonkhe’s Partnerships Coordinator, and Alan Roberts, Director at Counterculture.

Registration for Membership Services Conference 2025 is now open. It’s the two-day conference for clubs & societies, advice, student reps, democracy, governance and campaigning staff. Hosted by Manchester Met Students’ Union, and supported by NUS, Wonkhe, Counterculture and Manchester Met, it features skills training, networking, and peer learning from SUs and sector specialists. We provide content, venue and catering – you choose your Manchester accommodation. Register now.

A student leadership revolution is overdue

Sunderland SU President: Activities May 2025 Update

Should you be student-led for student-led’s sake?

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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 Dublin City SU, Susan from Nottingham SU, Aisling from Mary I SU, hosted by Livia Scott, Wonkhe’s Partnerships Coordinator, and Alan Roberts, Director at Counterculture.

Registration for Membership Services Conference 2025 is now open. It’s the two-day conference for clubs & societies, advice, student reps, democracy, governance and campaigning staff. Hosted by Manchester Met Students' Union, and supported by NUS, Wonkhe, Counterculture and Manchester Met, it features skills training, networking, and peer learning from SUs and sector specialists. We provide content, venue and catering - you choose your Manchester accommodation. Register now.

Supporting student trustees to succeed

The Pantry @ DCU Student Life

Mary I SU

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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 Leeds Beckett SU, Sam from Nottingham SU, a whole crew of folk from Poland, Magdalena Herman, Przewodnicząca Samorządu Studentów Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego, and hosted by Livia Scott, Wonkhe’s Partnerships Coordinator, and Alan Roberts, Director at Counterculture.

JuweKRK - the only such Juwenalia in Poland

Community Organising at Leeds Beckett

An exploration of student food insecurity at the University of Nottingham

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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 University of Westminster who shares insights from their QAA-funded research project auditing student representation practices.

With Laura Corcoran from Dublin City University, Rosie Hunnam from Organized Fun, Tom Lowe from University of Westminster, and hosted by Livia Scott, Wonkhe's Partnerships Coordinator, and Alan Roberts, Director at Counterculture.

DCU Student Life

Organised Fun

The Audit of Student Representation and Voice Practices Project

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This week on the Membership Services Show Livia and Alan explore essential needs and skills development. Steph from the University of New South Wales explains their "checkpoint" program, delivering nutritionally balanced meals and education to support student wellbeing.

Plus Darcy from Students' Union UCL shares their innovative approach to helping student leaders recognize and articulate the skills they've developed, and Ashleen from Mary I Students' Union discusses how they've rejuvenated their Charity Week by creating drop-in daytime activities that better suit today's busy students.

With Steph Wiley from University of New South Wales, D'arcy Mcguinness from Students Union UCL, Aisling Knox from Mary I Students' Union, and hosted by Livia Scott, Wonkhe's Partnerships Coordinator, and Alan Roberts, Director of Western Europe at Counterculture.

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This week on the Membership Services Show Alan and Livia talk policy books, with Ed from Salford SU explaining how they're making sure students know what their SU thinks about things.

Plus Sean from Sheffield SU shares insights into their use of students in faculty voice coordinator roles, and Mack from the team takes us through learnings from Wonkhe's recent commuter student series curated by Susan Kenyon. And Alan shares key takeaways from the recent Portugal trip, exploring how Portuguese SUs operate.

With Ed Moloney from Salford Students' Union, Sean Keen from Sheffield Students' Union, Mack from Team Wonkhe, and hosted by Livia Scott, Wonkhe's Partnerships Coordinator, and Alan Roberts, Director of Western Europe at Counterculture.

Saford’s policy book

Portugal study tour

Academic reps at Sheffield SU

Commuter students on Wonkhe

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This week on the Membership Services Show Alan and Livia talk AI, UCL SU shares insights into their Leadership Race, which saw record engagement, UMass Lowell discuss the development of their gaming zone and the NUS Charity discusses their research on international sabbatical officers.

With Jeffrey from UCL Students' Union, Adam from UMass Lowell, Charlotte from NUS Charity, and hosted by Livia Scott, Wonkhe's Partnerships Coordinator, and Alan Roberts, Director of Western Europe at Counterculture.

NUS: International officers

UMass Lowell Gaming Zone

UCLU Leadership Race

Membership Services Conference session proposals are now open! The conference team will use submissions to shape the agenda, with sessions potentially accepted as is, modified, or reworked. Engaging discussions are encouraged, and presenters can platform their work via NUS, Counterculture, and Wonkhe through podcasts and articles. Submissions should have clear yet engaging titles, accurately reflect session content, and specify the format, with one presenter per union eligible for a 10 per cent fee discount; the deadline is 1pm, Monday 12th May.

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This week on the Membership Services Show, Eve from Hallam SU shares the story behind their new fabric Swap Shop – a community-led initiative offering art and design students free access to essential materials like fabric, clay, and canvases.

Callum from Arts SU introduces “Art or Algorithm” – a qualitative research project unpacking how creative students view artificial intelligence. And Danny from NUS Charity marks ten years of the Quality Students’ Union programme, revealing what we’ve learned about the student movement’s strengths.

With Eve from Hallam SU, Callum from Arts SU, and Danny from NUS Charity – hosted by Livia Scott, Wonkhe’s Partnerships Coordinator, and Alan Roberts, Director of Western Europe at Counterculture.

Membership Services Conference session proposals are now open! The conference team will use submissions to shape the agenda, with sessions potentially accepted as is, modified, or reworked. Engaging discussions are encouraged, and presenters can platform their work via NUS, Counterculture, and Wonkhe through podcasts and articles. Submissions should have clear yet engaging titles, accurately reflect session content, and specify the format, with one presenter per union eligible for a 10 per cent fee discount; the deadline is 1pm, Monday 12th May.

You can subscribe to the show on Acast, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or via your favourite app with the RSS feed, and if you’re interested in being on, do get in touch.

Hallam SU https://www.hallamstudentsunion.com/cost-of-living/shop/

Arts or algorithim https://www.arts-su.com/news/article/6013/Art-or-Algorithm/

DMCC https://wonkhe.com/blogs/honesty-and-accuracy-is-about-to-get-even-more-important/

Consumer protection law has changed, and the changes apply to universities now

Quality SUs

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