UBU has transformed into a hot air balloon

Not the kind of balloons you’re into


Nothing lasts forever. The University of Bristol Students’ Union is shedding it’s crusty old UBU skin and re-branding itself as “Bristol SU”.

The new brand is an improvement on the stark, slightly sinister old UBU logo and is instead based around a blue balloon and the words “the best student life”.

Not many people were fond of the old logo, seen here floating above Mordor

The Union’s big re-brand coincides with a number of exciting (honestly) developments going on there:

  • The Richmond Building has been refurbished for a Rio Ferdinand-sized £30 million. You’d no longer be embarrassed to be caught getting drunk in its excellent new bar. On 20th March they’ll be hosting a huge party there to celebrate the building’s new gorgeousness.
  • In a statement released last week the Union explained it has “restructured” itself as an organisation with a new focus on giving us the “best possible student life”.

The best student life or your money back (JK)

The Union is now focusing on five key areas to bring you a more satisfactory student life.

These include representation, development, acting as a social hub, the improvement of their services (like the Letting Agency) and by building a sense of pride in the Union itself.

The new bar is really nice, stop reading this right now and go there

In its statement the Union said it was getting rid of the name UBU because its “a phrase that means very little”.

The new name – Bristol SU – is both “proudly Bristol and proudly a students’ union” while the accompanying hot air balloon is a symbol of “the great city we are part of and represents our ambition and your future”.

Five years ago the Union was in significant debt and the Richmond Building looked more Bagdhad than Bristol.

Things haven’t always been easy since – last year the Union topped our poll of the worst things about Bristol – as controversy followed controversy.

Experienced Union watcher and former Bristol editor of The Tab Michael Hindmarsh isn’t that impressed by the re-brand:

“Bristol students are well aware of the organisation’s inadequacies and a name change isn’t going to make much difference.”

One second year, who asked to remain anonymous, was more upbeat about the Union efforts:

“The fact they’re re-branding means they understand things hadn’t always been perfect in the past.

The new bar shows they’ve listened to what people have been asking them to do for quite some time. Hopefully things can only get better from now on.”