Issue 02 - University of Surrey's Student Union

The Great Mathscapade
By Justin Waite
Co - Societies Editor
For many societies, living on the bread-line is
a common enough experience. Short of funds
and devoid of the large number of members
that characterise some societies, it can be
hard to hold a diverse range of events that
extend beyond the odd pub crawl, socials in
Chancellors or scheduled trips to items of interest.
For some societies, the only way they
can generate enough income to do something
different is to hold an event in Rubix or HRB,
selling tickets and opening the bars up to attract
any potential punters to donate to the
coffers and help fund something a little more
exciting.
However, this carries its own risks. Should a
society fail to make the required total at each
bar, they will be charged the remaining amount
from the society funds up to a capped limit of
£300 for HRB and £650 for Rubix, meaning
that for some societies it can be a life-or-death
event, with success hanging on the reliance of
a binge-drinking campus.
Don’t believe me To open a bar in Rubix costs
£1550 and in HRB costs £660. If we factor
in the cost of the student drinking staple, the
honourable Snakebite, at £2.15, this means
that a staggering 721 snakebites need to be
consumed, in the 4 hour gap of 10pm—2am
that Rubix is normally opened for societies
wishing to hold an event on a weekday, or for
HRB nearly 307 snakebites.
Obviously this sort of ‘guesstimate’ has its
limitations, not everyone, including myself,
likes snakebite, and there are all sorts of other
drink costs that we could use. But this is
merely to bring a bit of perspective to the table.
Now if we include the figures of capacity,
whereby HRB can hold 220 people and Rubix
1550, this can seem a more daunting prospect.
Whilst some societies may find it easy
to fill out HRB, it can be a lot harder to attract
over 1500 people to an event hosted by a society
with a membership, on paper, of less than
100, which includes nearly every society.
But this isn’t the point that I wish to make. Now
the context has been set, and at the same
time information has been given for any societies
thinking about hosting an event in the
future, it is time to move onto the main issue.
After all, the Student’s Union is merely a company
holding our best interests at heart, and
they shouldn’t have to foot the bill should a
society’s event fail spectacularly (imagine one
guy with 6 pints on an empty dance floor).
Yet are these claims completely water-tight
Although we are repeatedly told that the Student’s
Union is “not for profit”, this would
appear not to be completely true. Whilst the
Union, quite acceptably, won’t provide for a
society’s short-comings, it won’t support them
when they succeed.
Going back to those earlier bar figures of
£1550 for Rubix and £660 for HRB, some societies
do actually manage to repeatedly earn
more at the bar than this! Indeed, one nameless
society even claims to have drunk the bar
dry in HRB. But whilst the Union is more than
willing to take away money from a lower than
expected intake, it refuses to provide you with
the proceeds if you go OVER the figures.
This means that quite often, a society will only
receive a total of anywhere from £880 if they
fill HRB, or £6000 for Rubix, if they charge £4
a ticket and fill the venue. This very often isn’t
the case, as not even the busiest Flirt night
manages to pack out the Union every time,
but surely societies should get at least a percentage
of the income from the bar
As far the Student’s Union is concerned,
you’ve already paid for the wages for bar staff,
bouncers (if required), lighting, technical expertise
(optional) and all the other gubbins
required for a good night out. So where is this
extra money from the bar going Its certainly
not going back into the hands of the societies,
the group which needs it the most and can
provide the Union a service by filling a venue
on an quiet weekday. So again I feel the need
to ask: where is this extra money going
Is it being used to help cover the costs of holding
constant Score/Citrus and Flirt nights
every week Whilst they may be packed out in
the first few fresher months, quite often it can
appear like you’re the only guy on the dance
floor…holding 6 pints. Is the money being used
to help fund the Chancellor’s refurbishment,
which replaced a bar full of atmosphere with
a bar that looks as if an Ikea truck reversed
into it and exploded Just where is this money
going and why can’t societies have access to
money that should be considered rightfully
theirs, or at least even a percentage of it
Hopefully we’ll have some answers soon for
you.
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