ABSTRACT
Most students’ unions in the United Kingdom are charities, subject to charity law. This gives them benefits such as tax relief, but comes at a price – restrictions on what they can say and do. This chapter explores the impact of charity law and charitable status on freedom of speech and political activism in English and Welsh students’ unions since 2010 – the year they came under the auspices of a new regulator, the Charity Commission for England and Wales. This is an area that has received little research previously. The chapter draws on new research with Chief Executive Officers and sabbatical officers in students’ unions, conducted in 2016–17. It shows how some students’ unions are being pushed into risk aversion when it comes to hosting external speakers, as a consequence of the need to comply with Charity Commission guidance. Some students’ unions are discouraging students from requesting speakers who may be perceived by the public as ‘controversial’. This chilling effect has a disproportionate effect on Muslim students and speakers.
