By Anna Dodd, Features Editor
We are steadily approaching SU election season where campus will soon be adorned by candidate manifesto flyers and university buildings will be bustling with applicants hoping to connect with students and secure their place as a Full Time Officer (FTO). But what do these FTOs actually get up to once they’ve been voted into their roles, and what kinds of changes have been implemented in the past academic year? The effectiveness and importance of the SU officer team can often be overlooked by students, Epigram reached out to the current group of FTOs to hear about their experience working for the SU and the three achievements they’re most proud of.
Union Affairs Officer – Katie Poyner
Reopening of the SU Hawthorns Hatch
The much-loved hatch at the Hawthorns reopened this term, bringing more affordable plant-based food to campus. Whilst soup and hot meals were an option at Source cafes previously, Katie lowered the price of these back down to £1 and £2 respectively.
Opening the SU basement for activity space
This bookable society room is open from Monday to Thursday in lower ground Hawthorns, a huge space for all kinds of activities, giving many societies greater opportunity to host events and workshops.
Society Forums and trialing a society ambassador structure
Katie trialled new structures to improve society representation. Bringing societies in the same category together allows them to identify common issues earlier, help committees learn from each other and strengthen the link between societies themselves as well as their relationship with the SU.
‘before this there wasn't enough accommodation stock to ensure that students had a room that matched their budget[…]moving forwards this shouldn't be the case and I think the impact that this will have on our incoming students will be profound!’
Lucy Pears - Student Living Officer
Shifting cultural narratives
Instead of perceiving students as merely ‘experiencing the cost of living crisis’, Lucy has shifted the narrative towards it being understood as ‘Student Poverty’. The number of students using food banks has doubled since 2022 and more students are spending time on part time jobs, leaving less time for studying and socialising. This change in perspective has facilitated some amazing work to mitigate the harms of this issue.
Exams bus service
From talking to students directly, through to a research and pilot phase and now in its second year of operation, this has been a full journey officer project for Lucy. Arranging transport to the exam hall at Coome Dingle can add both stress and significant costs to an already tough time for students (research suggested students were spending 6k a term to get to exams) but the new bus service takes them there for free (or £1 depending on the term.) 99.1 per cent of students surveyed said that they would use this service again.
Bringing rent prices down
What once seemed like an impossible job in the second most expensive city in the UK has been actualised this year - Lucy has been able to go through line by line with the accommodation manager to help set the rent prices. They managed to match and exceed the student demand to the number of beds available in that price range. Lucy elaborated ‘before this there wasn't enough accommodation stock to ensure that students had a room that matched their budget[…]moving forwards this shouldn't be the case and I think the impact that this will have on our incoming students will be profound!’
Linlu Ye - Equality, Liberation & Access Officer
Free period products on campus
Beginning in January, the university has agreed to pilot a three-month trial of providing free period products in the main buildings. They are currently in the following bathrooms:
- Senate House - LGF & 4th floor
- Beacon House - LGF rear of study centre
- Wills Memorial Building - main w/cs by entrance
- Richmond Building - Balloon Bar
- ASSL - Ground floor
Gender Expression Fund
Launched in 2024, Linlu secured funds to keep the Gender Expression Fund going into this academic year. This allows students who are trans, non-binary, intersex or otherwise gender diverse to apply for up to £100 for gender affirming products and/or necessary travel.
New wellbeing system
Students can now book online or in-person appointments with an adviser to discuss challenges, it can be accessed through the ‘Useful Links’ section on Blackboard.
Sport & Student Development Officer - Ella Lovibond
Injury Support Group (ISG)
Ella established this in her first year as officer, with the aim of bringing injured students together to create a community, knowing herself how hard and isolating a sports injury can be. Over the past two years she has sourced extra funding and the ISG now run two free sessions a week in term time, which has been positively received by members
Developing Derby Day
Now an embedded event in the university sporting calendar, Ella has brought in more sports clubs to participate in Derby Day, which is growing bigger every year. This day brings together many exciting competitive local rivalries and is a great chance for final years to enjoy one final match.
Wellbeing Champions
Ella introduced this as a mandatory role in all student group committees, bringing wellbeing to the forefront of societies and making sure all members are looked after.
Undergraduate Education Officer - Mia Stevens
Implementing a university‑wide assessment feedback project
Working closely with university colleagues, this ensures that every school has a student partner to work with in improving feedback practices. Receiving good-quality assessment feedback gives students a more inspiring and fulfilling academic experience.
Earlier release of teaching tables
This was successfully lobbied by Mia and will be implemented next term to allow students to view teaching tables further in advance.
Accessing marking criteria
Mia worked with the university to improve students' access to marking criteria, allowing them to perform better in assessments and to understand what their schools are looking for.
Postgraduate Education Officer - Sharan Khemlani
Increasing the three tiers of the Financial Assistance Fund
This means students in financial hardship are provided with immediate monetary support in the short term whilst getting longer term support from the Student Money Advice Team. This year the tiers have been adjusted to provide more financial support to students (from £250 now to £300, £500 now to £600 and £750 now to £900).
Building the postgraduate community
Before this academic year, the SU didn’t consistently offer PG events due to low turnout. However, this year Sharan has established monthly PG meet ups at the Beckford and biweekly PG yoga. She has additionally sought to boost PG presence in societies and has plans for an upcoming workshop to reach less engaged students (PGs and international students) during Committee Fest this summer.
Expansion of Bristol Mentors Scheme
Traditionally for undergraduates, this expansion gives PGT students a chance to receive 1:1 guidance from alumni professionals in various industries.
International Students Officer – Jessie Yeung
Lobbying Parliament for international students welfare
Jessie went to Parliament twice for the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) to lobby for the welfare of international students. Here she also focused on students from sanctuary backgrounds (such as students from Gaza and Ukraine) and shed light on the challenges they face. She led the SU consultation submission for international student levy and earned settlement, guided by the notion that migration is a right and an aim to create a welcoming environment for all migrants.
Challenging racism and anti-migrants narratives
Following the attack on a Chinese student in October 2025, which was believed to be a racially motivated assault, the SU are keen to challenge rising anti-immigrant narratives. Jessie explains that ‘we do not want international students to be scapegoated as the solution to decreasing net migration numbers, as we know colloquially that this harms the wellbeing of international students significantly.’ She wrote to Carla Denyer regarding the issue and is now leading a campaign to ask fellow students to do the same.
Secured more English as an additional language (EAL) support
As an international student, Jessie noticed limited and inaccessible offerings for EAL support at the university. This year she convinced the university to hire a four-man team to provide EAL support, ensuring it is a part of their key strategy and plan for supporting international students in the next few years. You can now book free one-to-one EAL tutorials with study skills and/or join an upcoming weeklong program for English support which can be an asset for employability and Linkedin.
Stanley Davies
Lilja Nassar
The FTOs have evidently had a busy but very successful year in their respective roles. Their suggestions for improvement/things they wish they could’ve done more of include additional support for students in part-time work, increasing the presence of politics and lobbying in International Students Week, and addressing educational inequalities. All the FTOs emphasised their enjoyment in the role, and how interesting it was to go behind the scenes to learn more about how much the SU actually offers for students and its importance in shaping and improving student life. Look out for the upcoming chance to vote and have your say in who represents student voices to not only the university, but also the city’s local community and government. The FTOs actively represent the student community and collectively seek to make students’ experiences at Bristol easier and more enjoyable, from addressing the cost-of-living crisis to ensuring academic fulfilment.
Featured Image: Epigram / Frankie Curtis
Will you be voting for next year's FTOs?
