Students' Union Archive
Newspapers and newssheets produced by the Students' Union of the University Salford and its precursor institutions from 1947 to the 1970s. They provide insight into the lives, experiences, interests, and opinions of the student body.
The earliest in the collection are issues of Colunion which was the magazine of the College Union of the Royal Technical College. The first edition was in 1947 around the time the Union first formed. According to the first editorial, the purpose of the magazine was to ‘help unite [students] and give expression to their views’. Articles in the first edition covered the Music Society (established 1943), sport (football and boxing) and an article ‘In violent opposition to the proposal that “Modern Art is Decadent”. We hold four issues of the magazine, dated 1947, 1948, 1949 and 1950, and all have been digitised.
It is unclear when Colunion ceased publication, but it appears that by the end of the 1950s it had been replaced by The Lion (Students' Union Handbook, 1959-1960). The University Archive does not currently hold copies of this publication.
Amus News was a fortnightly news-sheet of the Union, first published in October 1961 and running until 1971. It was ‘open to contributions which may express any opinion a student wishes to put forward…an excellent medium of airing one’s criticisms of Council, one’s grievances of the individual courses, as well as informing one’s fellow students on any matters which may amuse, annoy or fill the writers heart with pride’. Issues of Amus News typically include articles about the various student social and sport societies such as the Football, Motor and Badminton Clubs and the Photograph Society and Pakistan Students Association. There is also coverage of student elections and Rag activities (student-led charity fundraising), as well as numerous opinion pieces throughout the editions on topical issues and current affairs.
In 1972 Amus News was replaced by The Salford Gazette, the first issue appearing in February as a 12-page typescript news-sheet. Salford Gazette continued to provide coverage about the activities of student social and sports societies, elections and Rag and commentary on developments around the University campus. Articles and opinion pieces are of a political nature covering student protests, grants and government funding, gay rights, women’s rights and anti-apartheid. There are also numerous film and gig reviews.
The collection contains negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures that are not consistent with today’s values. This content was wrong then as it is now. The University of Salford Library provides access to this content to educate and generate conversations about how to create a fairer and more inclusive future. To learn more about the University's and the Students’ Union’s inclusivity work, please see our most recent Equality, Diversity and Inclusion report.
If you have a concern about this content, please contact library-archives@salford.ac.uk.
How can it be used?
This collection of student journalism can used to find information about the history of the University and also to understand the lives and experiences of students, their politics, and reactions to social issues.
Who might be interested?
Current students and alumni; researchers and students of journalism, social and political and cultural history; researchers and students of politics and sociology.
Type of material
Newspapers and news-sheets.