Reunions

Source: https://www.leeds.ac.uk/alumni-events/doc/reunions Parent: https://www.leeds.ac.uk/alumni

Reunions are a great way to reconnect with old friends and reminisce about your time at the University of Leeds. We love to learn about alumni getting back together so please tell us your plans.

If you are interested in organising a reunion, no matter how big or small, whether it’s in Leeds or anywhere in the world, please email the Advancement team at alumni@leeds.ac.uk so we can help you with your next steps or discuss potential options. You can also use our Alumni reunions guide to help you plan your event.

Would you like to contact a friend you made at University? Fill in our online find a friend form.

Alumni reunions guide

Use our Alumni reunions guide to help you plan your own event.

Get started

Consider who you would like to invite

We can help you organise reunions for your course, halls, clubs and societies. Whether you want to invite your entire graduating class or catch up with a few housemates, we can support you with this – email the Advancement team at alumni@leeds.ac.uk.

Decide on the type of event

• Do you want a large event in a hired venue with a sit-down meal? Or are you more interested in a small gathering, a meal at a restaurant and visiting your old haunts?
• The Visit Leeds website has further information on places to visit, eat and stay. The Visit Leeds Inspire Me page is particularly helpful with 24, 48 and 72 hour itinerary ideas.

Plan when the event will take place

From our experience, six to nine months are needed to plan your reunion and to give people plenty of notice.

Choose your location

Will this reunion be a return to Leeds, or held in another city or country? Do you want to visit campus? Would you run this reunion online?

Visiting campus

• Alumni are always welcome to visit campus at any time. Leeds has an open campus and there is a campus map on our website, which can be used to help plan your route.
• The Student Union is open most days of the year for you to walk around and visit the University shop, bars, cafés and Refectory. Additionally, as an alum you can visit the libraries if you register beforehand. Register with the University Library.
• You can visit the Treasures of the Brotherton Gallery and The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery, which both include items from the University Library Special Collections. Book group visits and free introductory talks at the University galleries.
• You could also follow the Public Art Trail which takes in the public art displayed across the University of Leeds campus.
• If you would like to visit your department, and you are visiting during the week, we can get in touch with the school to try and facilitate this.
• The University of Leeds Conferences and Events team offer a range of dining spaces in the heart of campus that are ideal for reunion dinners. For more information email the Conferences and Events team at conferences@leeds.ac.uk or phone the Conferences and Events team on 0113 343 6100. Weetwood Hall, a former student hall of residence and now a 4* Conference Centre and Hotel, is a popular choice for Leeds alumni reunions. To discuss your requirements please phone the Group Reservations Office at Weetwood Hall on 0113 230 6000.
• You can book a paid walking tour with former staff member Dr Rachael Unsworth by visiting Leeds walking tours. To get in touch directly, email Dr Rachael Unsworth at leedscitywalkingtours@gmail.com or phone Dr Rachael Unsworth on 0771 2739153. She can offer both tours of the campus and of parts of the city centre.

Virtual and international reunions

If you are unable to travel to Leeds and have alumni friends from all over the globe, why not try a virtual reunion? We can send you guidance on using various online platforms. Some ideas include:

• Hosting a quiz
• Sharing photos and memories of your time at Leeds
• Playing an online game such as a murder mystery or scavenger hunt
• Hosting a crafting, cooking or cocktail making class
• Hosting a virtual dinner party, picnic or happy hour

Our Global Networks team can also put you in touch with alumni in your city and help you get started on a reunion event in your country. Discover more about setting up and running an alumni group in your city.

Reunions timeline

Get in touch with us

• We can send you a list of people we are in touch with and who we have lost contact with. You can let us know if there is anyone missing and get an idea of numbers. If you see friends you are in touch with marked as ‘lost contact’ on our list, please encourage them to update their details so that they don’t miss out on alumni events on our alumni update my details page. Data protection regulations mean that we are unable to disclose any personal information on our graduates but we can contact them on your behalf.
• Make an initial call out – If you are unsure about details of your reunion, you can send out an initial communication via us to gauge interest and ask for opinions on when and where to run your reunion. Please note we can send out two postal communications and three email communications per reunion. If you know the who, what and where of your reunion you can skip straight to sending invitations, without an initial call out.

Send out your invitations

Before we send the invitations, you need to confirm a date, venue and cost for your reunion. Then, we can send your invitations. The details you’ll need to provide include:

• Date
• Time
• Location
• Cost to attend and whether they need to pay in advance
• The date by which they need to respond – do you want them to contact you directly or would you like all responses to come to us?
• Whether they can bring a guest
• Dress code
• Any additional information such as how to book accommodation (do you want guests to book their own rooms or book with you as part of a group booking?)
• A list of those we have lost contact with to see if anyone else is in touch with them

We can also publicise your reunion on our website.

Make final preparations

One to two months before your reunion takes place you should think about:

• Name labels or badges
• A guest book for alumni to fill in with details of what they are doing now
• A photographer
• Getting in touch with the venue ( if you are holding your event at a venue), to confirm final numbers and any access or dietary requirements
• Sendingout a reminder email/letter confirming all the details of the reunion including the date, time, location and brief description of the format

After the reunion

We love to hear about alumni getting back together so please get in touch with us and email the Advancement team at alumni@leeds.ac.uk with an update of how everything went and provide us with a list of those who attended.