The following notes are provided to acquaint you with the difficulties of organising an event of this nature. We enjoy offering you this opportunity; the revision weekend has been successfully executed for the past 18 years, and we hope that it will continue for many more years. To ensure its continued success, however, we need you to help us and your fellow students by applying as early as possible. (More information on the historical background of the event is available on our history page).

The Science Revision Weekend (SRW) is run by a small group of volunteers. It has no formal connection with the Open University or any other official body; it is informally supported by the OU, OUCS (the OU Chemistry Society) and Fusion (the OU Physics & Astronomy Society) but is entirely separate from all these bodies. We have a very small financial reserve, but no funding other than the fees students pay in order to attend the event.

Because we have to sign a contract with our venue several months in advance of the event, committing us to pay for a significant number of the places reserved, holding places for people who register late (or decide not to proceed with full payment after registering) involves a significant risk of the organisers incurring personal liability if there are fewer applicants than expected. Understandably, this is not something we are prepared to countenance; consequently we have to be very careful in managing the finances, and we also have to adhere to a strict timetable. We therefore request that you book as early as possible. In addition, because we incurred a loss on last year’s event and VAT has increased by 2.5%, we have had to make some changes to our fee structure.  

We monitor course numbers very carefully, and courses not adequately supported may be cancelled. Consequently, if you wish to attend the revision weekend and revise your chosen subject(s), it is in your best interests to book as early as possible to minimise the risk of cancellation. Although it has never been necessary in the past, if we do not get sufficient numbers across the board before the contract is signed at the end of July, it may be necessary to cancel the entire event.

Each person attending the SRW does so on the understanding that he/she attends at his/her own risk. The organisers have Public Liability insurance for the event, but Personal Liability and Personal Accident cover remain the responsibility of the participant.

Every effort will be made to provide tutorial provision for the courses listed. However, inclusion of any course is subject to sufficient student numbers and to the availability of a tutor or tutors. The organisers cannot accept responsibility for the non-arrival of a tutor for any reason and students should take out any insurance cover they feel necessary to compensate in the event of such an occurrence, including travel insurance if applicable.

We may cancel revision sessions for a particular course if a sufficient number of students have not registered for them, or if a suitable tutor cannot be found. If we do this, we will refund your deposit.

To book a place

You must BOTH e-mail an electronic copy of the completed form AND post your cheque with a printout of the form. Sending in just the electronic copy will NOT reserve you a place until we receive your cheque.

Higher fees now apply

All bookings received from now on must include an additional £25 over and above the amount quoted on the booking form, and we require the full amount in a single payment, which must clear by 3 September. If you have already paid a deposit before the deadline, the balance will be at the original rate, but again we must have it by 3 September.

Download a booking form by clicking here, and follow the instructions at the top of the form.

If you are not ready to commit yourself to booking a place, however, you can register your interest by filling in our Expression Of Interest Form and e-mailing it to the "bookings" e-mail address on our contacts page.

Special Deliveries

Please don't send us your cheque by Special Delivery. Here's why:

One reason why we ask students to send us an electronic copy of their booking form is so that we can get back to them if the signed copy does not arrive in the post. The Bookings person works full time and so is not at home when the post arrives, therefore any forms sent by special delivery or other methods that demand a signature cannot be dealt with simply. The sorting office from which such post must be collected is open from 0800 to 1200. It is a 6 mile trip from home and a 25 mile round trip from work. To reach the sorting office before going to work (her day starts at 0730) involves negotiating arriving late and having to make the time up. To collect before 1200 means taking an early (and longer 1.5 hour) lunch break with the same caveats. The alternative is to collect on Saturday morning which is already occupied with processing booking forms and banking. If you want to get a certificate of posting as you do for TMAs please do so, but don’t use anything that involves additional processing and time for the SRW committee.

Data Protection

This year, because some tutors have suggested it in the past, we are asking tutors whether they would like their students' e-mail addresses in advance of the revision weekend so that they can contact you and advise you about what to bring etc. You can of course opt out of this if you wish.

We do not share your personal details with anyone else. We pass names only, plus relevant special requirements, to the venue, and to the tutors. We are not responsible for any additional personal information you may pass to the venue. We like to keep students' details until early in the year after the event, so that we can remind you of the details of next year's event. However, you can opt out of this if you wish. We destroy all the previous year's personal data after that reminder has been sent.