Union Council Officers

The Union Council is made up of 12 students elected from the whole student body, and 12 students nominated from existing democratic communities, who represent the diversity of students we have across the university. 

Here at Christ Church SU, our highest democratic decision-making body is called Union Council.

Students’ Unions are amongst the most democratic membership organisations in the UK. Every one of them has its own structure for debating ideas and campaigns and making decisions. They’re run by students who are elected by students – and everyone can have their say.

The Council meets several times a year and discusses issues affecting students: your life, your university life or your union. It can pass policy, which requires the Union to work on specific things or can be a forum for students to raise issues for the Union to take forward in other ways.

The Council also runs campaigns to change things for the better, focusing on the student experience, the community, and issues that matter to you. 

Your new Union Council officers for 2023/2024!

A huge thank you to everyone who took part and voted in our Union Council elections this year! 

Here are your new Union Council Officers for the year 2023/2024:

• Union Chair- Zachary Woodward

• Women's Officer- Diana-Stefania Coman

• Black Students’ Officer- David Oluwole Kofi Phillott-Williams

• Postgraduate Students’ Officer- vacant will be re-opened for bi-elections*

• Disabled Students’ Officer- Muhammad Ishtiyaq Ullah

• Environmental Officer- Archie Molt

• International Students’ (EU) Officer- Jillian Le Tellier

• International Students’ (Overseas) Officer- Sakshi Chinchole

• LGBTQIA+ Officer- Avery Taylor

• Trans / Non-Binary Officer- Octavia Collard

• Cultural and Minority Ethnic Officer- Syed Zain Ul Abidin

• Mental Health Officer- Yasar Ozbalci

• Student Parent Carer Officer- Francis Booker

• Mature Students Officer - Sam Block

• Sports Representative - Sarah Gourrege

• Societies Representative - Laura Spackman

• Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Education (FAHE) Representative 

• Faculty of Medicine, Health and Social Care (FMHSC) Representative - James Thomas

• Faculty of Science, Engineering and Social Sciences (FSESS) Representative - Jade Laura Knight

*If you are still interested in student representation we will be opening up a few more Union Council roles during our bi-elections taking place from the 6th of November onwards. If you would be interested in knowing what roles will be opening up please contact us at coursereps@ccsu.co.uk

Congratulations to all candidates and thank you for standing in our elections. We’re looking forward to working with you and seeing how you represent and advocate for students throughout this academic year!

How decisions are made

Any student can submit an idea for discussion at Union Council - if you have something that you would like to be discussed, you can submit it through the Padlet. Union Council Officers can view and comment on your ideas in advance, and the agenda for each Union Council meeting will be drawn from this two days in advance.

Some ideas may be acted on quite quickly, and the Union will report back on progress at the meeting. Some ideas will be further developed at the meeting, and some may be developed into a proposal for Officers to vote on. If a proposal becomes a policy then the Union takes that as a statement of belief of the organisation on the particular issue. These policies, when placed, can then instruct officers to carry out tasks, such as running campaigns on a particular issue.

You can view current policies and motions and updates on them through the Union Council Padlet

Who is responsible for ensuring policies are followed within the Union?

When a policy has been approved, the Union Council mandates and oversees the work on the policy; however, the party that is responsible is the elected officer(s) that has been selected to ensure the policy is worked on.

• Minutes from Union Council meetings are here