gair rhydd Monday November 21 2011 | freeword – Est. 1972 | Issue 964
...Third time lucky?
First...
...Second... Poor packaging
Hannah Pendleton News Editor
gair rhydd can exclusively reveal that the annual Summer Ball will now take place at the end of the summer term following the examination period. The decision to alter the date of the event comes after negative student feedback and the huge losses incurred from 2011’s May Ball. An online poll in August invited students to specify which time of year would be best for the event in the future. 98% of students chose June and consequently the Ball will now be held over a month later than last year’s May Ball. The contested choice of date for the May Ball resulted in losses of £30,000 for the Student Union. The lack of success for the event was widely considered a direct consequence of the date that stood in the start of the end of year examination period. At this time most of Cardiff University’s student
population were busy preparing for their final exams. The £30,000 loss the May Ball suffered ensued the previous year’s Cooper’s Field Summer Ball that suffered a record loss of £58,775.80. This figure prompted the Student Union’s Board of Trustees to make the decision to cancel future Cooper’s Field Summer Balls to make way for the new end of year celebrations, eventually announced as the May Ball. This revamp was established to avoid further losses of such magnitude which the Student Union’s budget could not afford. However, it only proceeded to sustain another huge consumption of this budget; the total income stood at just £12,000 alongside a total expenditure of £42,000. Harry Newman, Societies Officer who campaigned to bring back the Summer Ball commented, “I’m very pleased that we’re in a position to offer a quality high-class event at the end of exams. The dates work out really well this year.
“It’s very important we don’t get ourselves in the same position as recent years.” Now this year’s event will take place on Saturday June 16 2012; a date that may prove a more convenient time for students to celebrate the end of the academic year. In December, around 3,200 tickets will go on sale for just one day. Beachbreak Live have even gone to lengths to change their dates to avoid a clash. Harry Newman added: “Beachbreak Live have cooperated to settle on the best date possible. This will set a precedent for coming years.” Although the Cooper’s Field Ball has not returned, this year’s Summer Ball will be an expansion of the May Ball format. It is expected to begin in the grounds of the Main Building, finishing over in the Students’ Union during the evening. The celebration will host fairground rides, multiple bars and live music. Live entertainment in the past has ranged from the local
to the global, including Calvin Harris, Feeder, Scouting for Girls, The Automatic, Girls Aloud, Zane Lowe and Pendulum. Harry Newman told gair rhydd that the event will be either maximised further or reduced based on the demand for tickets: “The event will be shaped around demand. Depending on how many tickets we sell, we can make a better event.” Possible ideas for expansion include utilising the grass area outside of the Students’ Union, spilling out onto the back of the Main Building and closing the road on Park Place. Tickets at £20 each will go on sale for one day only on Friday December 16 2011; they will no longer be available after this date. Through the introduction of a new deposit scheme, tickets can be secured on this day for £5 with the remaining £15 payable in February. Tickets can be purchased from the Students’ Union Box Office or online at: www. cardiffboxoffice.com.
Laura Evans News Editor
Concerns have been raised by students regarding the lack of ingredients information on food packaging in the Union. Students have noticed that products such as sandwiches sold in the Kitchen, Taf and the Union shop, do not contain information about ingredients or allergy advice. This could be a serious problem for people who suffer from severe allergies and have to be careful about what food they consume. According to the Food Standards Agency, it is not a legal requirement for businesses like the Union, who prepack their products in-house to indicate whether the food contains ingredients that people may be allergic to such as nuts, wheat or eggs. However, students have raised concerns that the union may not be fulfilling their moral requirement to ‘put students first’.
The Legends Issue
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