Elections and Handover in UK Student Societies: How to Ensure Smooth Transitions

Every year, as exams wrap up and summer approaches, student societies across the UK go through the same ritual: elections and handovers. It sounds simple-vote for new leaders, pass on the keys, and call it a day. But in reality, half of these societies stumble through the transition. Budgets go missing. Contacts get lost. Events fall apart. And the new team starts with zero momentum. This isn’t bad luck. It’s poor planning.

Why Handovers Fail

Most student societies don’t treat handover like a process. They treat it like an afterthought. One president hands over a single Word document titled ‘Things to Do’ with five bullet points and a USB stick full of blurry photos from last year’s Christmas party. That’s not a handover. That’s a fire drill waiting to happen.

Take the University of Edinburgh’s Film Society. In 2023, the outgoing president didn’t share access to their YouTube channel, didn’t hand over the list of venue contacts, and forgot to tell the new team that the university had changed its event insurance policy. The result? Their first screening of the year got cancelled because they didn’t have the right paperwork. They lost 40% of their membership by February.

The problem isn’t laziness. It’s that no one teaches you how to do this. Universities run orientation for first-years, but no one runs a ‘How to Run a Society’ bootcamp. So people wing it. And when they do, the society suffers.

What a Real Handover Looks Like

At the University of Manchester, the Students’ Union introduced a mandatory handover checklist in 2022. It’s not fancy-just a Google Form with 12 clear questions. But it works. Here’s what it covers:

• Who has access to social media accounts, email aliases, and website logins?
• Where is the current year’s budget tracker? What’s left to spend?
• List of all active suppliers (printers, caterers, equipment rentals) with contact names and contract end dates.
• Upcoming events with deadlines, venues booked, and risk assessments filed.
• Key contacts: faculty advisor, union rep, security team, campus facilities manager.
• Unfinished projects: What’s stuck? What needs follow-up?
• Member feedback: What did people love? What annoyed them?
• Documents: Past event reports, sponsorship letters, insurance certificates.
• Any pending complaints or unresolved issues.
• Secret passwords or codes (e.g., for the society’s storage cupboard).
• One-on-one meeting time with the outgoing team (minimum 90 minutes).

That’s it. No fluff. Just facts. And it’s signed off by both teams and the union rep. No exceptions.

How Elections Should Work

Elections aren’t about popularity contests. They’re about finding people who will actually do the work. But too many societies run elections like school class president races-with posters, speeches, and votes based on who brought the best cookies.

At Queen Mary University of London, the Engineering Society changed their election process in 2024. They stopped allowing nominations from the floor. Instead, anyone who wanted to run had to submit a 300-word plan by email before voting opened. The plan had to include:

• One specific goal for the next year (e.g., ‘Increase female membership by 25%’)
• One budget line they’d cut to fund it
• One person they’d train to take over their role

That simple filter cut the number of candidates from 18 to 6. And guess what? The winning team actually delivered on all three promises. The year before, only one of the 18 candidates had even mentioned a budget.

Don’t let people run just because they’re loud. Let them run because they’ve thought it through.

The Role of the Union and Faculty Advisors

Student unions don’t just hand out funding. They’re the backbone of a smooth transition. The best unions don’t wait for problems to happen-they build systems.

The University of Bristol’s Students’ Union runs a ‘Society Health Check’ in March every year. They invite every society to a 20-minute slot. The union rep asks: ‘Who’s running next year? Have you started the handover? Do you have a backup person if your president drops out?’

Few societies show up. But the ones that do? They get priority for funding next year. It’s not punishment. It’s incentive. And it works.

Faculty advisors matter too. Too many are just names on a form. But the best ones sit in on handover meetings. They help spot gaps-like when a society forgets to renew their public liability insurance or doesn’t know how to file a claim.

What New Leaders Should Do in Their First Week

You won. Congratulations. Now what?

Don’t start planning your next event. Don’t redesign the logo. Don’t email everyone about your ‘vision’.

Do this instead:

1. Meet the outgoing team. Not a group chat. A real meeting. Ask: ‘What did you wish you’d known?’
2. Go through every document. Don’t assume anything. Even if it looks obvious, verify it.
3. Call every supplier. Introduce yourself. Confirm dates. Ask: ‘Is there anything I need to know?’
4. Check the bank account. Is the balance right? Are there pending payments?
5. Send one email to your members: ‘I’m your new lead. Here’s what I’m doing this week. Here’s how to reach me.’ No fluff. Just clarity.

That’s it. No grand speeches. No promises. Just competence.

Common Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)

Here are the five mistakes most new leaders make-and how to dodge them:

• Mistake: Assuming the old team will answer emails after they graduate. Solution: Get all contact info in writing before they leave.
• Mistake: Not knowing who controls the society’s bank account. Solution: Confirm login details with the union treasurer. Never rely on one person.
• Mistake: Trying to do everything yourself. Solution: Appoint a deputy by Week 2. Even if they’re quiet. Even if they’re a first-year.
• Mistake: Ignoring the society’s history. Solution: Read the last three annual reports. You’ll see what worked, what failed, and who still cares.
• Mistake: Thinking the society is yours to change. Solution: Listen first. Fix what’s broken. Don’t overhaul what’s working just because you can.

What Happens When It Works

At the University of Leeds, the Debate Society had a 10-year streak of growth. Why? Because every year, the handover was treated like a relay race. The outgoing president trained two successors. One took over president duties. The other became treasurer. They even recorded short video walkthroughs of their workflows.

When the new team took over, they didn’t just keep things running. They launched a podcast, got corporate sponsorship from a legal firm, and hosted their first national inter-university debate tournament. All because the previous team didn’t just pass the baton-they made sure the next runner knew how to run.

That’s the difference between a society that fades away and one that lasts.

Final Thought: It’s Not About You

Running a student society isn’t a resume booster. It’s a responsibility. The people who join your events, who show up to your meetings, who give you feedback-they’re not there for your name. They’re there because they believe in what the society does.

When you hand over the keys, you’re not just passing a title. You’re passing trust. And if you do it right, that trust keeps growing.