Students battle to save union bars

They are at the centre of any university campus – the place to meet, relax and, more importantly, drink cheap beer.

But today students at the University of Wolverhampton are mourning the loss of two bars at the main city centre campus.

The bars are closing because they are no longer making enough money.

Up to 30 jobs are feared to be facing the axe next week when the bars and a shop at the centre campus close for at least another year. University bosses today refused to confirm the exact number of jobs under threat but said Fat Mick’s, Poly Bar and the union shop would close “as normal” for the summer and would not open again in September while they are reviewed.

Students are not happy. They have plenty of other city centre bars to choose from, but they are more expensive.

Almost 400 have signed a petition on the on-line networking site Facebook calling for the bars to be saved while another 161 have signed a petition calling for their elected sabbatical officers, the students who made the decision, to resign. They are concerned that new students will be put off attending the university because of a lack of a social space and fears of further cutbacks in student support.

University staff have pledged that next Friday’s graduate ball will continue as planned and advice and support services will not be affected.

Students’ Union president Richard Longfils said there were no plans to open the bar again next year while staff discuss their future with students. He said: “We don’t want to make any false promises to students but we have ideas that we can put to them. We want to be as transparent as possible. We are aware of problems facing other city-based universities including Leeds Met and Coventry.”

Pro vice-chancellor for student affairs Jane Nelson said a higher number of mature students as well as more than three quarters of the university’s students coming from the West Midlands, meant a smaller number of people using the bars.

She said: “The National Union of Students has said that all students’ unions are going to need to be reviewed sooner or later. We just happen to be one of the sooner ones.” A meeting for students only will take place today at 3pm in room MA202 at the city campus.