BLAST NEWSLETTER March
by aubsu
Update from the AUBSU’s SABBs (Sabbatical Officers - representing you and driving the changes you want, to make your student experience the best it can be!) Hey! It’s the Student Union President (Gabrielle) and the President of Student Experience (Beth). Gabrielle: February has sped by! This month we had the deadline for the badge competition, and everyone in the SU office was so impressed by the quality of the submissions. I also launched our search for three new student trustees to join the AUBSU Trustee Board: Scroll down to apply! Additionally, this month we were collecting submissions for this year's international exhibition, so make sure to check out the gallery this March! Finally, I hosted my first ever Art Jam- A chance for students to get creative with no boundaries. Beth: This last month has been a bit of a whirlwind. I was busy at the beginning planning the Cost-of-Living Fair, and I have begun my Cost-of-Living Report. Please fill out the survey below in the Cost-of-Living section to ensure my report is representative of the students here at AUB. If you answer the survey, you will also be in for the chance to receive a £50 or £20 ASDA voucher. We will be hosting another clothes and material swap and share, so come along and take clothes and materials. We are accepting donations again so please bring these to the AUBSU office, Tuesday – Thursday, 10:00 – 16:00. I will be planning another Noodles and Doodles session for April/May as the last one went well and we really enjoyed it.
GABRIELLE PARKER
President of Students‘ Union gparker@aub.ac.uk
I have an important announcement I would like to make – I will be leaving early to move onto my next step working as a Support Worker for a local charity. My final day will be the 28th of March. I am sad that I will be moving on so soon, but also incredibly excited for my next step and it is the perfect opportunity for me. Thank you to all the students I have worked with during my time as a sabbatical officer!
BETH EVANS
President of Student Experience bevans@aub.ac.uk
FEEDBACK Your Voice ELECTION WINNERS!!! Congratulations to Aditi Chotra & Amelia Mitchell for being elected as AUBSU's Sabbatical Officers for 2025/26. A huge thank you to every single one of our hardworking candidates for putting themselves forward, and thank you to everyone who voted & did democracy with us!
IS SOMETHING WORKING REALLY WELL OR NOT WORKING AT ALL? Think Tank will collect and collate your anonymous feedback for your Course Reps to take to the University. Submit your ideas to improve AUB for yourselves and each other! HOW? Contact your Course Rep or...
CLICK HERE Student Trustee - Apply NOW! Find out more:
CLICK HERE
Apply here:
CLICK HERE
Deadline 10th of April A brilliant opportunity to become a student trustee for AUBSU is now available. This will look amazing on a CV and is a great way to give back to the AUB community.
OPPORTUNITIES + EVENTS Market days
Here are the Market Day dates for 2025. Each will run from 12:00 - 14:00. Location will be confirmed closer to the time.
5th March (the courtyard) 7th May 4th June Bookings for the March Market Day are open until the 4th of March. Click below to book.
CLICK HERE
Ramadan Over in Faith and Reflection they have lots of events and support for students observing Ramadan. Many of our students and staff at AUB will be celebrating the month of Ramadhan from this Saturday 1st March for 29 or 30 days. Ramadan is a holy month for Muslims. It is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, and fasting during this month is one of the Pillars of Islam known as Sawm. It is a time of fasting, prayer, reflection, charitable giving, and trying our best to remember those less fortunate than ourselves. From sunrise to sunset Muslims will fast not eating or drinking for 12 hours. When there is a sighting of the new moon, it will be marked by a new month and a celebration called Eid-Ul-Fitr - festival. We wish all that are celebrating a blessed month.
Arts by The Sea Festival The Arts by the Sea Festival currently have an open call running, this is for their Artist in Residence. The theme for the 2025 festival is “WE ARE HERE”. Deadline 10th March If you would like more information, click here:
CLICK HERE University Mental Health Day
We have several events on campus for University Mental Health Day. This is on the 13th of March from 12:00 14:00
The Courtyard
Free Hot Drinks Mindful Crats Free Daffodils Table Tennis
The Activity Room
12:00 – 12:30 - Student Led Yoga Session with Erin Brodrick (yoga matts provided) 12:45 – 13:15 Writing workshop with AUBSU Writing Society 13:30 – 14:00 Boxing session with AUBSU Boxing Club
Coffee with the SABBs Our Sabbs this year love two things: yapping and cake. So, we have combined the two and will be hosting Coffee with the Sabbs sessions. These will take place (mostly) on the last Wednesday of each month. Come along, have a yap, learn more about the SU and have free hot drinks and a slice of cake (or two). If you are an avid baker, like the Sabbs you are wlelcome to come and share your own sweet or savoury treats too. As the Students’ Union we are here to represent you, our students. So, if you want to learn about how we represent you, what the Sabbs have been up to, or if you have ideas for us, come along. What more could you want? Come along for our next coffee with the sabbs session on the 13th of March from 12:00 – 14:00 as part of our university mental health day events.
The Festival of Colours Holi is an Indian festival celebrating spring and the joy of togetherness. Throwing coloured powders symbolises how colours erase differences, bringing us all closer. Join us for a fun-filled, colourful celebration, with free Indian snacks and henna by the Henna Society! Everyone’s welcome!
🎉🌈
Neurodiversity Celebration Week - Human Library Join a special Human Library event in honour of Neurodiversity Celebration Week! “Borrow” neurodivergent students and staff as living “Books” to hear their stories, engage in conversation, and gain deeper insight into neurodivergent experiences at AUB and beyond. Wednesday 19th March 12:30–14:00 | 15:00–16:30 Upstairs in AUB Library This drop-in event is open to all AUB students and staff. Find out how it works and meet the Books here:
CLICK HERE
Clothes and Material - Swap and Share Free Stuff!!! We are bringing to you another clothes, material and junk swap! Donate items and take new ones. You are welcome to drop off any donations to the SU office between 10:00 – 16:00, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. You are welcome to also take items if you don’t donate anything, this is just preferable. The next one will be on the 20th March from 12:00 - 14:00 in the Courtyard.
Badge Design Competition Congratulations to all our badge competition winners and thank you to everyone who entered! The quality of submission was incredible and everyone who entered should be proud of themselves. Our three winners for this competition were Grace Raggett, Rebeca Sansores and Ellie Bussey. Keep an eye out in the Art's Bar for the arrival of The Tiny Art Machine in the next few weeks so you can get your hand on one of the badges! See the winning designs:
CLICK HERE The Bug Ever wanted to host your own exhibition? Well this is your chance! We want to fill the BUG spaces filled with your art! Whether you're solo, part of a group, a tutor or a society, we have a space that will suit your needs. Check out the specifications of the spaces and the available dates then email thebug@aub.ac.uk to book in! Please note: the basement space is only available for group exhibitions
CLICK HERE SU Pop-Up-Shop Have you ever wanted to sell your own products in the centre of Bournemouth? If so, join us on the first floor of The Avenue in the SU Pop-up shop! To register your interest please fill in the survey below. Note: if you are an international student, please check your visa requirements to find out your eligibility to take part in this opportunity.
CLICK HERE Art Jam Winners This month Gabrielle hosted her first ever Art Jam. For those who haven't heard about Art Jam, it was an evening where students were able to get creative with no boundaries. On the night, students received a mystery theme, this time it was revival, and then they had 1 hour and 15 minutes to respond to the theme in any way they liked. The responses were then judged, and the winners received all the entry fee money as their prize. This time the winners were Ricko Tang and Charlotte- Ann Cartwright. A big thanks to everyone who entered! All the responses were incredible, and the kindness and camaraderie of the participants made it a great evening.
International Collective Exhibition The AUB Internation Collective Exhibition is back again for another year! This exhibition is a collaboration between AUBSU, The Gallery and AUB International. This is a unique collaboration that embraces artwork created by students with different cultural and religious backgrounds. This show demonstrates the range of skills and specialisms of international students currently studying at Arts University Bournemouth, specifically those on a student visa. Make sure to come by the gallery this March to view the exhibition and support your fellow students.
Repair Cafe - Volunteering Opportunity Bournemouth Repair Cafe would like to invite students to participate as repairers and help teach people skills to help them repair items e.g. clothes. It may be as simple as teaching someone to sew on a button. Their goal is to reduce landfill, and challenge the throwaway culture changing thinking and behaviour. This is a way of reducing costs for people, reducing spending on clothes and other consumer goods. They fix bikes, toasters, electrical appliances etc. If you are interested here are some of the dates of sessions and their locations. If you would like to help people repair their goods please email: transitionbournemouth@gmail.com you can also message Bournemouth Repair Cafe on Facebook
YOUR PROJECTS We are now sharing your projects here, in the BLAST. If you would like your project featured please send an email to studentunion@aub.ac.uk or pop into the SU office.
Courtyard Bookings We at the SU manage the events hosted in the Courtyard (the area outside the Refectory and the Library). If you would like to book the campus courtyard for an event. Fill out the form below:
CLICK HERE TO BOOK
Yard Party - Survey
As part of the Events Management course level 6 (3rd year), this year as a replacement of the AUBSU Yard Party, we want to create a bigger celebration for the start of summer and celebrating a year of working hard. We would like to hear your ideas, thoughts and feedback so we can bring you the best end of year celebration this summer! All answers will be anonymous and will only be used for research purposes.
CLICK HERE Fundraising Guidelines We have created an easy-to-follow set of guidelines for students who are fundraising. There are lots of rules you must follow when fundraising, so we wanted to create a list to ensure you feel informed when fundraising.
CLICK HERE
Did you know? AUB Futures launched their new Student Collab Board in December—missed it while indulging in holiday treats? No worries! Here's a summary:
🎨 Post your projects 🤝 Join creative teams 💡 Find your next collaborator
CLICK HERE
—it’s that easy!
Check out what’s live now: (Don’t forget to bookmark it for quick access!)
You Said, We did Here is you said, we did. As a Students’ Union, our purpose is to represent YOU – our members! This involves supporting you in academic matters, running events, clubs and societies, holding fair and democratic elections and enhancing and upholding student voice. We want to make sure you know, we are listening and here for you! You Said: “The cost of living in Bournemouth is expensive” We Did: We are working with our local MP to discuss living costs in Bournemouth. We hosted our Housing Forum on Friday 28th to give students the opportunity to share their housing concerns. We are also working with NUS (the National Union of Students) around maintenance loans and improving these.
You Said: “We don’t like the current campus opening hours” We Did: We have been working on ensuring that students have alternative options of venues and study spaces on campus. You are welcome to use the BU Library. Follow the instructions on how you do this here:
CLICK HERE You Said: “We loved the clothes swap! ” We Did: We will be bringing this back again on the 20th March. Bring any donations to the SU office, Tuesday – Thursday, 10:00 – 16:00.
COST OF LIVING Student Pantry If you’re struggling with the rising cost of living you’re welcome to visit our student pantry. Find the pantry at the back right corner of the library and the scan the QR code on the door for the code to the lock. Take what you need and feel free to fill in our pantry survey to suggest items that you would like to see in there. Additonally, if you’re in need of budget friendly meal ideas, check out the link to our cost of living cookbook below.
SURVEY
We have launched our cost-of-living survey to hear student feedback on the cost of living so we can better support students and we can carry on championing their voices. If you fill out the survey, there is also a chance for you to win a £50 or £25 ASDA voucher.
COOKBOOK
Last year one of our students Bee Taylor deigned our Cost of Living Cookbook with lots of affordable recipes in it.
Money Saving
We have recently launched our Money Saving Document filled with the different ways students can save money. It covers on campus and external support options. We understand the cost of living is a challenge and we want students to feel empowered to help themselves.
Document
5TH MAR
MARCH MARKET DAY
10TH MAR
ARTS BY THE SEA FESTIVAL - ARTIST RESIDENCY
12PM - 2PM
The Courtyard
Deadline for applications
13TH MAR
UNIVERSITY MENTAL HEALTH DAY
13TH MAR
COFFEE WITH THE SABBS
13TH MAR
INTERNATIONAL COLLECTIVE EXHIBITION - PRIVATE VIEW
12PM - 2PM
12PM - 2PM 5PM
The Courtyard and Activity Room.
The Courtyard
The Gallery
14TH MAR 12PM - 2PM
19TH MAR 12:30PM - 2PM 3PM - 4:30PM
20TH MAR 12PM - 2PM
HOLI CELEBRATION The Courtyard
NEURODIVERSITY CELEBRATION WEEK - HUMAN LIBRARY Upstairs in the AUB Library
CLOTHES AND MATERIAL - SWAP AND SHARE The Courtayrd
Any dates and times of events are subject to change. Keep an eye out on the AUBSU instagram and Native for further updates.
MORE INFO
WHERE CAN YOU FIND US If you would like to pop into the office, we are open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 10:00 - 16:00.
@aubsu
www.aubsu.ac.uk
studentunion@aub.ac.uk