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Members' Benefits
Founded in 1823, the Oxford Union has never been solely a debating society. Membership opens the Old Library and its reading rooms, the Members' Bar, full-sized snooker tables, high-quality pianos, discounts at businesses across the city, and reciprocal access to distinguished private clubs in Britain and across Europe.
This page sets out what your membership entitles you to and how to make use of it. Please carry your membership card whenever you visit as your card provides entry to our buildings.
On this page
Speaker Events and the Debating Chamber
Since 1823, the Union has invited leaders in every field, from politics and business to sport and the arts, to address its members in the Debating Chamber. Prime ministers, presidents, Nobel laureates, novelists and actors have all spoken from the despatch box, and members have questioned every one of them from the floor.
Admission to speaker events is included in your membership. Members put questions directly to the speaker during the event, and many speakers remain afterwards for photographs and conversation over a drink in the Members' Bar. Term cards are published before the start of each term and list every speaker, debate and social event.
View upcoming events →
The Debating Chamber, the largest purpose-built debating chamber in Europe.
The Members' Bar
The Members' Bar is one of Oxford's quieter pleasures. Members gather here for a coffee between lectures, a light lunch, or a drink in the evening, and the beer garden remains among the largest outdoor seating areas in the centre of the city. Speakers also often join members for a drink before or after an event.
We serve a choice of baguettes and soups from 12:00 until 14:00, Monday to Friday. The Bar is one of the cheapest in Oxford.
Take the virtual tour →
The Members' Bar is one of the most affordable bars in Oxford.
The Snooker Room
The Snooker Room holds the only full-sized snooker tables in central Oxford. Tables may be used throughout the day in term time.
We regret that we cannot accept bookings by telephone.
The Library and Extra Study Spaces
Many of the Society's rooms are able to be used as extra study spaces by members when not in use. Borrowing, printing, and accessibility support are all set out on the Library page.
The Old Library
Built in 1857 as the Society's original debating chamber, the Old Library is one of the most beautiful libraries in the world. The murals on its walls were painted by the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, among them William Morris and Dante Gabriel Rossetti when they were students here.
All members may borrow. For more details, please visit the Library page.
Visit the Library page →
Extra Study Areas
Beyond the Old Library we open further rooms to members who want somewhere quiet to read and work. The Goodman Library and Gladstone Room are the best known of them, and each room carries its own character and noise level.
Every room is listed on the Library page, with photographs and guidance on what to expect before you arrive.
See all study areas →The Piano Partnership with Kawai
Through our partnership with Kawai, renewed in June 2026, two instruments live in the Society's buildings: a Kawai DG-30 digital hybrid piano, which stands in the Macmillan Room, and a Kawai ES920, which travels to wherever it is needed, including the courtyard in summer.
The pianos can be heard at debate dinners, at drinks receptions, and at social events throughout the term, and whenever a piano is not in scheduled use any member is free to sit down and play it. Headphones are provided for those who would rather practise in silence. A high-quality piano is not something every college keeps for its members, and where one exists, time on it is often spoken for. Ours are available to you as a member of the Union, whatever you read.
Read more about the instruments at kawai.co.uk →
Harry the Piano at a Shigeru Kawai Concert.
The Shigeru Kawai Concert
Once each academic year, ordinarily in fifth week of Michaelmas Term, a visiting artist gives a concert on a Shigeru Kawai grand, hand-crafted in Japan by Kawai's Master Piano Artisans and brought in for the occasion. Kawai provide a concert grand again whenever distinguished guests from the world of music wish to perform, so members hear playing of a standard ordinarily reserved for the concert hall.
Members have enjoyed past concerts such as that given by Harry the Piano, who has played for both Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III, and who closed the evening by playing requests from the floor in whatever style the audience chose.
Watch the concert →Reciprocal Clubs
The Union holds reciprocal arrangements with a number of the finest private members' clubs in Britain and across Europe. Members who hold a Letter of Introduction from the General Office are received at each of them as guests of the Society, whether travelling for work, for study, or for pleasure.
Before you visit a reciprocal club A Letter of Introduction is required for every visit. Please read the rules before you travel.
These arrangements depend on the conduct of every member who uses them. Please read the following before you travel.
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A Letter of Introduction is required
Every visit requires a Letter of Introduction issued by the General Office, by email, which confirms to the club that you are a member in good standing. You will need to include your Union membership number in this email. Clubs will not admit members who arrive without one, and a membership card alone is not sufficient. Please bring both the letter and your membership card.
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Request it in good time
Please request your letter in reasonable time before you travel, as there may be minor delays during our peak periods. When writing, please quote your membership number, the club you wish to visit, and the dates of your stay. Letters for clubs marked with an asterisk are valid for 90 days.
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Check the dress code with the club
Each club sets its own dress code, and many expect a jacket and tie in their rooms. Please consult the club directly before your visit and dress accordingly.
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Observe the club's rules
When you use a reciprocal arrangement, you are representing the Oxford Union Society. Please observe each club's rules on conduct, guests, mobile telephones and payment, as a single breach can place the arrangement at risk for every one of our members.
Letters of Introduction for these clubs are valid for 90 days.
Accommodation and further clubs
Several of our reciprocal clubs offer accommodation, or discounted rates at local hotels, to visiting members. Please book directly with the club and consult its website for details, remembering that a Letter of Introduction is still required.
The Union has also partnered with the Anglo-German Club and the Übersee-Club, both in Hamburg. Visits to either club must be arranged in advance through the General Office.
Treasurer's Treats
Each term the Treasurer secures exclusive discounts and offers for members at businesses across Oxford, from restaurants and cafés to shops and services. The full list appears on the term card.
Please present your membership card at the point of purchase. If a listed discount is not honoured, please contact the Treasurer at treasurer@oxford-union.org and we will take it up on your behalf.
Your Membership Card
Your membership card is your proof of membership. Please carry it whenever you visit, and present it at speaker events, in the Members' Bar, in the Library, at any business offering a Treasurer's Treat, when voting in the Society's elections, and, together with your Letter of Introduction, at our reciprocal clubs.
If you lose your card, please complete the replacement request form and the General Office will arrange a new one for you to collect.
Request a replacement card →Not yet a member?
Membership of the Oxford Union admits you to every facility described on this page, and to a termly programme of speakers, socials, and debates. We look forward to welcoming you soon.
