Should BCUSU remain affiliated to NUS UK?
On Friday 27th March 2026 our Trustee Board voted to pass a motion, proposed by BCUSU President, Shoukat Mehsud, calling for a referendum on whether BCUSU should remain affiliated to the National Union of Students (NUS). This decision initiates a refererendum for all BCU students about how BCUSU represents you at a national level.
What is a referendum?
A referendum is when the outcome of a question is decided by asking the people it effects to vote. For this vote, that group is students who are members of BCUSU.
Typically, a motion will be put forward which proposes one possible outcome and the question of whether to support the motion is what is voted on. You have the right to question people representing each side of the argument, who will also campaign to try and persuade you to support their view. You'll then be asked to cast your vote and the winner is decided by simple majority.
Voting Details
All current BCUSU members will be able to vote through an online ballot.
- Campaigning starts: Monday 13th April at 12pm
- Referendum Meeting: Wednesday 15th April at 1pm
- Voting opens: Monday 27th April at 9am
- Voting closes: Thursday 30th April at 5pm
- Results: Friday 1st May at 7pm (online at bcusu.com)
The 'Vote Now' button above will become active when polls open on Monday 27th April at 9am.
What is the NUS?
The National Union of Students (NUS) was founded in 1922 and represents university and college students across the UK. Approximately 400 students' unions are affiliated, representing the interests of more than seven million students. Around 95% of all students’ unions in the UK are affiliated to NUS, including BCUSU.
Read more about NUS.
Prior to 2019, NUS was a single organisation but now has become two separate organisations - NUS UK and NUS Charity. While NUS doesn't have a direct say in the daily operations at BCUSU, the two organisations provide services in return for a membership payment:
- NUS UK exists to represent the views and interests of students based at UK universities through national campaigns and political lobbying. This arm of the NUS is often called the 'campaigning', 'political' and 'democratic' arm of the NUS, which has Full-Time Officers, with its work being guided by its national conferences.
- NUS Charity is a membership body that supports Unions to develop, through training and resources and has a trading consortium which allows us to negotiate collectively on behalf of our shops and bars to offer discounted prices.
Last academic year (2024/25) the amount spent on the combined affiliation to NUS UK and NUS Charity was £36,769.
This motion proposes that we disaffiliate from NUS UK only and remain affiliated to NUS Charity.
The Debate
Take a look at what it means when you vote to 'Yes' or 'No':
Vote No (to disaffiliate from NUS UK)
- BCUSU would save money on the annual membership fee and this would be reinvested back into the Students' Union.
- We would no longer participate in NUS democratic structures such as conferences, and would work more with other students' unions to influence national government directly.
- We would still have membership of NUS Charity, such as union development resources, trading/election support and other services.
Vote YES (to remain affiliated to NUS UK)
- We continue to pay our annual membership fee which would give us access to training, resources and support that would otherwise have to be funded differently.
- National representation gives us the benefit of any national lobbying campaigns NUS UK undertakes.
- We will retain the right to vote and have a voice in shaping national student policy through NUS conferences.
BCUSU aims to facilitate an open and fair referendum for all students to get involved with. Please read our rules for how campaigning should work on campus, and find our complaints form if you think there could be a breach to our rules.
BCUSU Neutrality Statement
BCUSU remains neutral in this referendum and does not take a position on the outcome. Our role is solely to ensure that the process is run fairly and aligned with our democratic procedures.
Any campaigns created by students or Officers during the referendum are independent and do not represent the official views of BCUSU.
The referendum is being administered by core BCUSU staff, who should be impartial and have no affiliations to either campaign, and are responsible for supporting students that want to get involved in campaigning, and facilitating a fair and transparent referendum.
To understand BCUSU's approach to referendums, view our Bylaws (Point 9, Pages 41-44) and refer to the Trustee Board report (Pages 14-16) for our latest financial accounts.
Refererendum Meeting
A Referendum Meeting was held on Wednesday 15th April 2026 where speakers for both sides of the referendum were represented.
A copy of this meeting will be made available here shortly.
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