This article lists students' unions in the United Kingdom that are not affiliated with the National Union of Students (NUS UK). Most students' unions in the United Kingdom are affiliated to NUS UK, although a minority are not affiliated, have never been affiliated, or have disaffiliated following student referendums or other constitutional processes. As of May 2026, 28 university students' unions were not affiliated to NUS UK, including students' unions or representative bodies at ten of the 24 Russell Group universities.
The reasons for non-affiliation vary between institutions. Some students' unions or representative bodies, such as the Open University Students Association, have never been affiliated to NUS UK. Others, particularly in Scotland, were historically associated with the Scottish Union of Students before its merger with NUS in 1971, or disaffiliated in later decades.
Several disaffiliation votes have later been reversed. Durham Students' Union voted to disaffiliate in March 2010, but subsequently voted to reaffiliate in January 2011.DEVote online voting - Results Oxford University Student Union was reported as having voted to disaffiliate in 2014, but the result was overturned after voting irregularities were uncovered.
A further wave of disaffiliations began in the mid-2010s, following the controversial election of Malia Bouattia as NUS president. Four unions voted to leave the national body in 2016: Lincoln, Newcastle (though Newcastle voted to rejoin in 2026), Hull and Loughborough.
From 2025, several students' unions voted to leave NUS UK in campaigns that were linked by campaigners and student media to criticism of NUS UK's response to Palestine solidarity activism, alongside wider concerns over democracy, representation, accountability and value for money. Cambridge Students' Union voted to disaffiliate in October 2025; in the same referendum, students also voted for Cambridge SU to campaign to end university investments and collaborations with institutions involved in occupation and weapons manufacture. Varsity reported that the pro-disaffiliation campaign was led by Cambridge for Palestine and that campaigners criticised NUS UK over Palestine and Islamophobia.
In 2026, students at LSE Students' Union, Liverpool Guild of Students, University of Manchester Students' Union, Sheffield Hallam Students' Union, Leeds Beckett Students' Union, City St George's Students' Union, the University of Bath Students' Union and Students' Union UCL also voted to disaffiliate from NUS UK. At Liverpool, the official Leave campaign statement argued that NUS UK was poor value for money, lacked democratic and political accountability, and had taken nearly two years to address the genocide in Gaza.
Non-affiliated students' unions University Leave Year Remarks Open University Students Association Never affiliated. Glasgow University Students' Representative Council Glasgow University Union Queen Margaret Union Formerly a member of the Scottish Union of Students (SUS) until it merged with the NUS in 1971. University of St Andrews Students' Association Formerly a member of the SUS, it joined the NUS but disaffiliated in 1975. Dundee University Students' Association Formerly a member of the SUS, it joined the NUS but disaffiliated in 1994. University of Southampton Students' Union 2002 Imperial College Union 2008 Joined the NUS's trading consortium in 2024. Cardiff Met SU 2009 Loughborough Students' Union 2016 Joined the NUS's trading consortium. Hull University Union 2016 University of Surrey Students' Union 2017 University of Essex Students' Union 2017 Queen Margaret University Students' Union 2019 University of Portsmouth Student's Union 2019 University of Lincoln Students' Union 2019 Voted to disaffiliate in 2016, but overturned the decision within December of the same year. Reading Students' Union 2022 Queen Mary University of London Student's Union 2022 University of Brighton Students' Union 2022 Is a member of NUS's trading consortium. Birkbeck Students' Union 2023 University of York Students' Union 2024 Disaffiliated in 2024 through a Trustee Board resolution. Disaffiliation was later confirmed via referendum in 2026. Cambridge Students' Union 2025 LSE Students' Union 2026 Liverpool Guild of Students 2026 University of Manchester Students' Union 2026 Sheffield Hallam Students' Union 2026 Leeds Beckett Students' Union 2026 City St George's Students' Union 2026 University of Bath Students' Union 2026 Students’ Union UCL 2026
See also List of students' unions in the United Kingdom
Notes
References