This article lists some of the students' unions in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

that are not affiliated with the National Union of Students. Around five per cent of student unions in the UK are not affiliated with the NUS, including of student unions who represent

Russell Group The Russell Group is a self-selected association of twenty-four public university, public research university, research universities in the United Kingdom. The group is headquartered in Cambridge and was established in 1994 to represent its memb ...

Universities (the

Aldwych Group The Russell Group is a self-selected association of twenty-four public university, public research university, research universities in the United Kingdom. The group is headquartered in Cambridge and was established in 1994 to represent its memb ...

). Some of the institutions have disaffiliated from the NUS, whereas others such as those in the previous Scottish Ancients Group (''see:

Coalition of Higher Education Students in Scotland The Coalition of Higher Education Students in Scotland (CHESS) was a body representative of students in Scotland, founded in 2001 by the Students' Associations of Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and St Andrews Universities, and Glasgow University's st ...

'') have never been affiliated.

Durham Students' Union Durham Students' Union, operating as Durham SU, is the students' union of Durham University in Durham, England. It is an organisation, originally set up as the Durham Colleges Students’ Representative Council in 1899 and renamed in 1969, with ...

voted to disaffiliate in March 2010 but subsequently voted to reaffiliate in January 2011.

Oxford University Student Union The Oxford University Student Union is the official students' union of the University of Oxford. It is better known in Oxford under the branding Oxford SU or by its previous name of OUSU. It exists to represent Oxford University students in t ...

was reported as having voted to disaffiliate in 2014, but this was overturned after voting irregularities were uncovered. Four unions voted to leave the national body in 2016 Lincoln, Newcastle, Hull and Loughborough (Lincoln later rejoined but has since again disaffiliated). In 2022, Reading University Student Union voted to leave the national body citing a lack of representation and concerns over the direction of the NUS. As of December 2022 Brighton Students' Union also decided to leave NUS stating that the NUS do not offer value for money.

Non-affiliated students' unions

Open University Students Association The Open University (OU) is a British public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate students are based in the United Kingdom and principally study off- ...

Never affiliated. *

Glasgow University Students' Representative Council The Glasgow University Students' Representative Council, also known simply as the Students' Representative Council or by the acronyms GUSRC and SRC is a student union at the University of Glasgow. Unlike at other universities in the United Kin ...

Formerly a member of the

Scottish Union of Students The National Union of Students Scotland ( gd, Aonadh Nàiseanta na Oileanaich na h-Alba, sco, Naitional Union o Collegianers Scotland) is an autonomous body within the National Union of Students. It is the national representative body of aro ...

(SUS) until it merged with the NUS in 1971. ** Glasgow University Union ** Queen Margaret Union *

Glasgow School of Art Students' Association The Glasgow School of Art (GSA; gd, Sgoil-ealain Ghlaschu) is a higher education art school based in Glasgow, Scotland, offering undergraduate degrees, post-graduate awards (both taught and research-led), and PhDs in architecture, fine art, and ...

Formerly a member of the SUS until it merged with the NUS in 1971. *

University of St Andrews Students' Association The University of St Andrews Students' Association is the organisation which represents the student body of the University of St Andrews. It was founded in 1885 and comprises the students' representative council and the Student Activities Forum ( ...

Formerly a member of the SUS, it joined the NUS but disaffiliated in 1975. *

Dundee University Students' Association Dundee University Students' Association (DUSA) is the students' association, legal representative and students' union for matriculated students of the University of Dundee. It is known locally as 'The Union'. Membership of the body is automati ...

Formerly a member of the SUS, it joined the NUS but disaffiliated in 1994. *

University of Southampton Students' Union The University of Southampton Students' Union, branded and commonly known as SUSU a contraction of Southampton University Students' Union, is the students' union at the University of Southampton in southern England, United Kingdom. SUSU operates ...

Disaffiliated in 2002. * Imperial College Union Disaffiliated in 2008. * Cardiff Met SU Disaffiliated in 2009. * Hull University Union Disaffiliated in 2016. *

Loughborough Students' Union Loughborough Students' Union (otherwise known as LSU) is the students' union serving members from Loughborough University, Loughborough College and the RNIB College Loughborough. The Union is unique amongst British universities, in that its ...

(LSU) Disaffiliated in 2016. *

University of Surrey The University of Surrey is a public research university in Guildford, Surrey, England. The university received its royal charter in 1966, along with a number of other institutions following recommendations in the Robbins Report. The institut ...

Students' Union (USSU) Disaffiliated in 2017. *

University of Essex Students' Union The University of Essex is a public university, public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, Essex is one of the original plate glass university, plate glass universities. Essex's shield consists of the an ...

Disaffiliated in 2017. *

University of Plymouth Students' Union The University of Plymouth Students' Union (UPSU) is based on the University of Plymouth campus, in the Drake Circus area of Plymouth, Devon, England. With about 30,000 student members it is one of the largest student unions in the UK, and hos ...

(UPSU) Disaffiliated in 2018. * Queen Margaret University Students' Union (QMUSU) Disaffiliated in 2019. *

University of Portsmouth The University of Portsmouth is a public university in Portsmouth, England. It is one of only four universities in the South East England, South East of England rated as Gold in the Government's Teaching Excellence Framework. With approximately 28 ...

Student's Union Disaffiliated in 2019. * University of Lincoln Students' Union Disaffiliated in 2019. * University of Reading Student's Union Disaffiliated in 2022. * Queen Mary University of London Student's Union Disaffiliated in 2022
University of Brighton Students' Union
Disaffiliated in 2022. *

University of Warwick Students' Union Warwick Students' Union, also known as Warwick SU, is the students' union for the University of Warwick, in Coventry, England. History The Students' Union developed in tandem with the University and has existed since 1965. In its first few de ...

to disaffiliate after a vote in February 2023

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Students' unions in the United Kingdom not affiliated with the NUS National Union of Students (United Kingdom)

NUS NUS or Nus may refer to: * National University of Singapore * Nus, a town in the Aosta Valley of Italy * Neglected and Underutilized Species, or Neglected and Underutilized Crops * National Union of Students (Australia) * National Union of Students ...

Non-affiliated students' unions

See also

Notes

References