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University College London Union, founded in 1893, has a credible claim to be England's oldest students' union.^[1] It was formed with the following objectives: "the promotion of social intercourse and of the means of recreation, physical and mental, of the students of University College, and the financial successes of students' clubs". UCL Union was the first of its kind as it was formed for both athletics clubs and social activities alike.

Since its formation, the Union has taken on responsibility for many aspects of student life. Events for example were seen as a key element hence the establishment of an Ents Committee. The student magazine Pi (then known as the Gazette) was formed a few years later and the Somers Town sports venue was also acquired.

UCL Union is affiliated to the National Union of Students and the National Postgraduate Committee.

Contents 1 UCL Union Today 2 Clubs and Societies 3 UCL Union Events 4 Current Union Sabbatical Officers 5 Past Union Sabbatical Officers 6 References 7 External links

Student Development is at the heart of the work the Union does today. UCL Union runs over 140 clubs and societies for its members. It runs commercial services including ten bars, cafés and two shops, a fitness centre. UCL students, through the Union has nine weeks free access to put on student shows and events in the UCL-owned professionally run Bloomsbury Theatre.

The Union's sports clubs have access to several different venues including Astor College Gym, Bloomsbury Fitness, the Somers Town Sports Centre and the 100 acre Shenley Sports grounds, which Watford Football Club rent for training purposes.

UCLU provides support to students through Workstation and the Rights & Advice Centre, and has a highly active Voluntary Services Unit, providing volunteering opportunities for over 250 students a year.

As well as magazine "Pi", the Union's media output includes the radio station Rare FM, the "alternative" magazine The Cheese Grater and a number of other smaller publications. The University of London Union's newspaper, London Student, is also distributed at UCL Union, as UCL is one of the University of London's constituent colleges.

UCL has numerous clubs and societies, catering to a range of interests, which include, sports, film, drama, martial arts, politics and degree-subjects. The University College London Union debating society, founded in 1828, is the oldest debating society in England.

UCL Union has, in the past, hosted regular events with cheap drinks and music to cater for a broad range of tastes. Famous amongst London students who have attended the Union bars are: "99s" on Monday nights, "Postgrad Nite" on Tuesdays, "Sports Nite" on Wednesdays, notorious for drunken sports player antics, Cocktails on Thursdays and Fives fortnightly on Saturdays (where drinks were even cheaper than usual).

When the Union updated its entertainments license for its (primary) Gordon St site in 2005, the capacity of the site was halved due to fire safety concerns. Due to increasing student financial concerns the most popular nights were dropped by the Union because they were unprofitable and conflicted with government legislation regarding drinks promotions and binge drinking. Now the Gordon St building is significantly quieter (except for Thursdays, when the Phineas bar on the third floor is full for the weekly Brain Squeezer Pub Quiz) and no longer finds itself the hub of student drinking that it once was. The full-time Union Sabbatical Officers and Union administration are based in the Gordon St building - Club & Society administration, together with student welfare services and student volunteering are based in the UCL Bloomsbury Theatre building.

Following the introduction of a new Events Department at UCL Union in late 2006, UCL Union has sucessfully made building changes to their main building allowing the capacity to increase to its previous size. There is now a new events programme operating six nights a week and they have also lengthened their opening hours to 2am in the morning on certain nights.

In 2007, UCL Union also dramatically increased the amount of events they hosted in external venues by creating their "VODPOP" brand @ Turnmills, that is now one of the biggest Student Club Nights in London. They have also produced events at a variety of other top london clubs including, Ministry of Sound, KOKO, Heaven and Egg.

Position	Office	Name
Education & Welfare Officer	2007-2008	Andy Fernando
Finance & Administration Officer	2007-2008	Jim Hunkin
Medical Students' & Sites Officer	2007-2008	Jules Dołęga Mazowiecki
Media & Communications Officer	2007-2008	Sean Clothier
Clubs, Societies & Student Development Officer	2007-2008	Steve Whittle
Services & Events Officer	2007-2008	Olivia Alford

Year of office	E&W Officer	F&A Officer	MS&S Officer	M&C Officer	CSSD Officer	S&E Officer
2006-2007	Ed Bray (Resigned)	Mark Littler (Resigned)	Eleanor Fletcher	Nick Barnard	Robbie Swale	Zoë Davies
2005-2006	Mary-Beth Young	Lucy Gould	Luke Yahanpath	Alan Gardner	Natasha Davis	Ben Williamson
2004-2005	David Renton	Victoria Green	Vishali Thakrar	Alex Walsh	Liz Oglesby	Steven Healer
2003-2004	Alex Coles	Sinan Rabee	Amy Hansen	Andreas von Maltzahn	Alex Lal	Alastair Boyle
2002-2003	Nigel Harris	Ben McMechan	Rob Farag	Pete Huggins	Frank Penter	Angi Bholé
2001-2002	Ursula Brown	Simon Luscombe	Dan Gibbons	Celia Parkyn	Sarah Chapman	Rachel Stone
2000-2001	Dan Ozarow	Rob Fear	Brian Hogan	Laura Emson	Felicity Espley	Nick Lovatt

v • d • e University College London

University History of University College London · List of UCL alumni · The UCL Bloomsbury · UCL Main Building · UCL Provost · Filming at UCL Departments and Buildings The Bartlett · Slavonic and East European Studies · Bentham House · The Panopticon · Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology · Institute of Archaeology · Slade School of Fine Art · Jill Dando Institute · University College London Law Faculty Research and Hospitals University College Hospital · UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience · UCL Biomedica · Royal Free and University College Medical School UCL Union University College London Union · The Cheese Grater · Pi Magazine · Rare FM

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