Community spirit at end-of-year Ball

Almost 400 students and staff gathered together at Cardiff’s Mercure Holland House Hotel for the annual Summer Ball on 19 April 2018.

This year’s event, themed around a ‘Night at the Oscars’, was organised by the Geography and Planning (GeoPlan) student society, and celebrated the glitter and glamour of Hollywood.

Students from the first year through to postgraduate researchers turned out in their hundreds and were joined by academic and professional services staff. It was an opportunity to come together as one community and mark the approach of the end of the academic year.

The School was able to subsidise tickets this year through a pot of money made available by the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. This fund was created with the purpose of enhancing the student experience and helping to foster and cement a wider sense of community.

Jordan Martin, GeoPlan President and a final-year BSc City and Regional Planning student, said: "The GeoPlan ball is always well-attended but without a doubt, this year’s event being subsidised by the School certainly helped increase turnout. We had great representation from every year group, including first years, people on placement and postgraduate students. Everyone was talking to each other and building the GeoPlan community."

The School of Geography and Planning is committed to delivering the very best experience for its undergraduate and postgraduate students. It has a long and consistent history of student approval and achieved 94% in the last National Student Survey for overall satisfaction at undergraduate level, and 90% at postgraduate level (Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey 2017). A dynamic calendar of events and activities is arranged annually including talks and film screenings, while the School’s ‘sports day’, which brings students and staff together to compete in a range of different activities, is always popular. Competition is fierce but fun. This year’s sports day will take place on 30 May.