As another academic year draws to a close, let’s look back at the highlights!
From new clubs and societies to award-winning student entrepreneurs, volunteering initiatives, wellbeing support, and student-led change, 2026 was packed with achievements across the Students’ Union community.
Clubs & Societies
Student community, creativity and ambition continued to thrive in 2026, with 21 brand new Clubs and Societies introduced across campus. Padel, Symphony Orchestra and Tea Society were just a handful of those bringing students together.
That brings the total number to an impressive 248 groups, including 58 Clubs and 190 Societies.
This year’s largest Societies were:
- International Students’ Society (556 members)
- Consulting and Entrepreneurship Society (456 members)
- Walkie Talkie Girlies (351 members)
Meanwhile, the biggest Clubs on campus were:
- Tennis Club (306 members)
- Surf Club (255 members)
- Hiking Club (227 members)
The overall funds raised by Clubs and Socs this year? A massive £1.1 million! And every penny goes back into creating new experiences and opportunities for the 16,500+ members. Amazing work to all those involved.
And of course, we couldn’t not celebrate all those amazing achievements. The 2026 SU Awards showcased the jaw-dropping talent of our students, with winners including Dance Club, Dragon Slayers and the Indonesian Society, plus a bunch of exceptional individual awards. Relive the night here!
Volunteering
Making an impact, feeling empowered and building skills in the process – that’s what our student volunteers did this year, and you can too!
- 3,500 students dipped their toes into the world of volunteering through taster sessions, fairs and more.
- Not sure you can make a long-term commitment but still want to volunteer? 769 students were in the same boat this year, and took part in one-off volunteering activities from community gardening to litter picking. Find out more about Handy Helpers here.
- 175 student volunteers dedicated their time to supporting children and young people living in areas affected by educational underachievement.
- As well as giving back, volunteering is a great way to boost your skills and let your CV shine! 121 Prestige Volunteer and Future Ready Awards were presented this year, officially recognising the time, commitment and skills demonstrated through their volunteering efforts.
Enterprise
Student innovation continued to flourish in 2026, with aspiring entrepreneurs turning ideas into reality through competitions, funding, and development programmes.
- £500k of funding was secured by 160 students with the support of 1-2-1 business support from SU Enterprise. Book your appointment here.
- From bouncy castles to mobile saunas, the Make It Happen Fund helps students do exactly that – make it happen! This year 27 student-led projects were awarded a total of £45k in funding to make ideas a reality. Applications are now open.
- 13 businesses stepped into the QUB Dragons’ Den this year for a share of the £32k prize pot. Congratulations once again to Oliver Woodward, who claimed 1st place with SwingSight, an AI-powered golf coaching app that analyses swing videos from a smartphone and delivers instant feedback alongside personalised drills.
- Meanwhile, former QUB Dragons’ Den winner Peter Gilleece received £50,000 after being named overall winner at the Belfast Telegraph Business Awards. An example of student talent making an impact far beyond campus.
Wellbeing & Advice
University can be stressful, so supporting your mental health and wellbeing is always going to be a top priority for the SU.
- This year, we introduced free weekly activity hours and welcomed over 700 of you for bad art workshops, photo journaling and so much more. You’re always welcome – check out the SU Activity Hours on the What’s On page.
- To help with cost-of-living pressures, we distributed 10k+ free meals throughout the academic year.
- The Pantry continued to play an important role in supporting students, recording more than 20,000 visits. Weekly specials throughout the term included essentials and household staples ranging from eggs to fresh fruit and veg.
- Student intern, Beatrice, harvested herbs for The Pantry from our hydroponic tower, a sustainable method of growing plants without soil.
- Alongside this, SU Advice provided support to 2,100 students on almost 4,000 issues, resulting in £42k in financial outcomes. The team offers impartial and confidential advice – find their drop-in hours here.
- Our free sexual health clinic had visits from over 1,250 students. Check out our What’s On page for clinic drop-in hours in the coming weeks (these change over the summer months).
Student Voice & Representation
Student voices rang louder than ever in 2026, driving meaningful change across campus and beyond.
This year:
- 45 students ran for full-time Student Officer roles.
- 6 Student Officers were elected to lead for the 2026/27 academic year – you will see them around campus from July!
- Students came out to the polls en masse for the highest ever QSU recorded referendum result.
- Our current SU President, Amy, was elected President of NUS-USI, and will go on to represent students in Higher & Further Education across Northern Ireland.
Engagement in SU Elections reached a huge milestone, with 57,526 votes cast by students throughout the year – and this is SO IMPORTANT because the people you vote for have the power to create change. This year your elected officers made progress on:
- Getting the green light from the University on a Housing Co-Op on campus
- Training and awareness events aimed at Ending Violence Against Women and Girls
- Student safety initiatives, including night buses
- Reusable period product initiatives
- Drug & Alcohol Harm Reduction accreditation (the first in Ireland to do so)
- Developing a virtual campus map – which we hope will go live in September and should make getting around campus a little easier
- Responding to consultations on the Postgraduate Tuition Free Loan and NI Executive Three Year Budget
- Lobbying on the HE Funding Review and student financial support
Looking Ahead
This year really showcased the power of students coming together to create change, support one another, and make campus life better for everyone.
Thank you to every student, volunteer, society member, club committee, officer, and staff member who made 2026 such a memorable year. You helped make us the UK’s No.1 SU for a second year in a row!
We can’t wait to see what you do next – here’s to an even bigger 2027…
