A plain-English guide to who sits on SU Council, what it can decide, and how an idea becomes a decision.
Council members are student representatives. Each one votes on behalf of the students they represent.
The number of Council members changes during the year as Student Groups affiliate or leave.
Not a Council member? You can still come to meetings and speak. You just can’t vote.
Chair of SU Council, 2026/27
The Chair runs each SU Council meeting, keeps debate fair and makes sure the rules are followed. They’re independent and only vote to break a tie. The Sabbatical Officers are Deputy Chairs.
The Chair of Students’ Union Council is appointed through a selection process rather than elected. They must be a current Roehampton student, but cannot be a current Sabbatical Officer or Part-Time Officer. The Chair is independent and paid, and are subject to the private benefit restrictions. They are non-voting, except that they hold a casting vote in the event of a tie.
Contact the Chair: studentvoice@roehampton.ac.uk
A position the Students’ Union takes on an issue. It guides what officers and staff say and do on students’ behalf, but doesn’t commit money or staff time.
Needs two-thirds of the votes cast.
An instruction to the Sabbatical Officers to take a specific action. Each mandate shows progress updates in the Policy Book until it ends.
Needs more than half of the votes cast.
A formal warning (censure) to an officer or the Chair, or no confidence in the Chair.
Needs two-thirds of all voting members.
Council can also call a referendum so every student can vote on a question (two-thirds of voting members), and each year it votes on the list of organisations the Union is affiliated to.
Abstaining counts towards the 40% of members needed for a meeting to make decisions, but doesn’t count for or against a motion.
A decision lasts for the rest of the academic year it was made in, plus the next two years. After that it ends automatically unless Council renews it. A decision also ends early if a newer one replaces it, or, for a mandate, once the action is done.
The Students’ Union is a charity, so its Trustees are legally responsible for its money and for keeping it within the law. They don’t override student decisions. They check each motion for legal, financial and reputational risk and work with Council to find a way forward. If they can’t agree, the Trustees have the final say and will come to Council to explain why.
Students can also call a referendum themselves with the support of 2% of students. About referendums
A written proposal asking Council to make a decision.
A suggested change to a motion’s wording, voted on at the meeting.
A Council member or Sabbatical Officer who backs a motion so it can go on the agenda.
The number of members who must be present for decisions to count: 40% of voting members.
A formal warning to an officer or the Chair.
A vote of all students on one question. Its result becomes Union policy.
The full rules are in Bye-Law 5: Student Voice .
Something wrong with this page? Let us know!