On 16 November, in preparation for the upcoming public sector strike, Newcastle college students mobilised to get their students’ union to vote to not only to support the strike, but to call a college student strike for the day, and organise a public meeting with trade union speakers to call on students to strike alongside lecturers and support staff on the day. [Read more...]
10,000 demonstrators kick start student fightback
November 9, 2011 By 3 Comments
10,000 students from across the country demonstrated in London today on the national demonstration against cuts to education and public services organised by the NCAFC. [Read more...]
Students plan fresh wave of mass protest
September 16, 2011 By 4 Comments
See the full Guardian report by clicking here.
Contact: 07964791663
This letter will be published in the Guardian tomorrow, 17/09/11
As student campaigners, we fully support the trade union movement’s campaign against austerity, including the biggest wave of strike action since 1926. The government’s plans for universities represent a threat to the very purpose of education, with the poor being priced out of a marketised system of private providers, while school and FE students are being robbed of basic support. The National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts has now called a national education demonstration for Wednesday November 9th, and we will organise for a day of mass direct action and walkouts to coincide with the strike. We will not allow this government to abolish the welfare state and destroy our futures.
Michael Chessum, National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts and NUS NEC
Maev McDaid, Liverpool Guild of Students President
Luke Durigan, UCL Union Education and Campaigns Officer
Daniel Lemberger-Cooper, Royal Holloway Students’ Union President, NCAFC National Committee
Claire Locke, London Met Students’ Union President
James Haywood, Goldsmith’s Students’ Union President
Edward Bauer, Birmingham Guild Education Officer and NCAFC National Committee
Sean Rillo Raczka, University of London Union Vice President
Alusine Alpha, Bradford Students’ Union Treasurer and NCAFC National Committee
Mike Williamson, Edinburgh Students’ Association Education Officer
Alan Bailey, NUS LGBT Officer (Open Place)
Matthew Bond, NUS Disabled Students’ Campaign and NEC and NCAFC National Committee
Alex Peters-Day, LSE Students’ Union General Secretary
Liam Turbett, Aiden Turner and Liam McCombes, Free Hetherington Glasgow Occupation
James McAsh, NCAFC National Committee, Edinburgh University
Shakira Akther, University of East London Vice President Campaigns
Gordon Maloney, NCAFC National Committee and NUS Scotland Executive
Bob Sutton, Liverpool Guild of Students Vice President and NCAFC National Committee
Aaron Peters, NCAFC National Committee
Claire Lister, NCAFC National Committee, Birmingham University
Alasdair Thompson, STUC Youth Committee and NCAFC National Committee
Alice Swift, NCAFC National Committee, Birmingham University
Arianna Tassinari, SOAS Students’ Union Co-President for Education and Welfare
Amena Amer, LSE Students’ Union Education Officer
Edward Maltby, NCAFC National Committee, London
Lukas Slothuus, LSE Students’ Union Welfare and Community Officer
Students: Support the 30 November Strike!
September 16, 2011 By 1 Comment
Three million workers could strike on 30 November: students: take action in solidarity!
Facebook event here
The trade unions are moving towards a confrontation with the government over cuts to public sector pensions. Something like three quarters of a million teachers, lecturers and civil servants struck on 30 June (see here) for our solidarity at the time). Now the vast bulk of the public sector unions are going to ballot their members for strike action over pensions on 30 November – meaning that something like three million workers could strike. This is by the far the biggest challenge to the Tories? cuts program so far.
Already, members of the lecturers union UCU have voted for strike action (see here and here).
Students should support the public sector workers. Their fight is our fight. The Coalition is attacking pensions and slashing services for the same reason that it scrapped EMA and trebled tuition fees. It wants the majority of people in this country to pay for the crisis caused by the banks, so that the bosses and millionaires it serves can go on getting richer. (In the last two years the richest thousand people in Britain increased their wealth by £137 billion!) If the unions can beat the government on this it will be a huge blow to its whole agenda, and make all of us stronger to fight back.
The NCAFC is calling for students to make links with workers preparing to strike, to offer support and to prepare for our own action on the day: walk outs, demos and occupations. Taking action alongside the strikers is the best way to make solidarity. It also comes at the right time, three weeks after the national student demonstration on 9 November.
What you can do:
1. Make links between your anti-cuts group and student union and local union branches immediately. Offer you support in the run up to and on the day of the strike.
2. Pass a motion through your student union committing it to solidarity (a model motion will appear here shortly) and demanding that NUS also backs the strike.
3. If you’re a school or college student, walk out on 30 November! The walk outs over EMA last year had a huge impact. This time, with teachers on strike, we can have an even bigger effect, walking out to join the picket lines. If your school’s shut, join the teachers to demonstrate with them.
4. If you’re a university student, occupy! Get your occupation to issue a statement of solidarity with the strike.
5. Visit picket lines on the day. If you’re not in occupation, take part in the strikers’ demonstrations.
6. Link the struggles. Our fight is both about our own issues: fees, debt, grants/EMA, cuts to education ? and solidarity with the broader anti-cuts fightback, in the first instance the pensions battle. On 30 November we will be taking action both for own demands and in support of the strikers. Everything we put out publicly should make that clear.
If you want help, get in touch – email againstfeesandcuts@gmail.com or ring Ed Maltby from the NCAFC National Committee on 07775 763 750. Join the Facebook group for 30 November here.
British Youth Council ‘sacks’ Honourary Presidents for betraying young people
September 3, 2011 By Leave a Comment
At Saturday’s Annual Council Meeting in London, the British Youth Council (BYC) voted against adopting two of its three Honorary Presidents in protest at their voting record on tuition fees.
Jo Swinson MP (LibDem), whose Presidency was up for renewal, and Aiden Burley MP (Conservative), whose nomination was new, were rejected by the conference. Both voted for the bill to triple fees on December 9th, while students demonstrated outside and occupied their campuses. Swinson broke an explicit election pledge to vote against any rise in fees. The debate also focussed on the Coalition’s scrapping of EMA.
By its consitution, BYC must have an Honourary President from each of the three main parties, and the decision to reject the Libdem and Tory nominees was almost unprecedented.
Speaking against the nominations, an NCAFC activist said: “Jo Swinson is actively complicit in one of the biggest betrayals of young people in generations. She is part of a party that is part of a government that has tripled tuition fees, abolished EMA and betrayed young people… It would be ridiculous to make her an Honourary President of the BYC.”
Note: The British Youth Council (http://www.byc.org.uk/) is an umbrella network that represents millions of young people in the UK.
Contact: michael.chessum@nus.org.uk and 07964791663
Round one to workers and students at Newcastle College
May 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment
By a Newcastle College student
At the beginning of the year Newcastle College announced plans to cut 171 frontline jobs, 17% of the workforce. Students found this unacceptable as this would ultimately affect their education so set up SOS (Save Our Staff) to support lecturers. [Read more...]
Reinstate Sue Caldwell!
February 8, 2011 By 1 Comment
Sue Caldwell, head of maths at Friern Barnet secondary school, has been suspended while she is investigated for allegedly having encouraged pupils to leave school on 24 November and join protests against education cuts. [Read more...]
March on Parliament to save EMA – 19 January
January 14, 2011 By 1 Comment
On Wednesday 19th January, MPs will debate and vote on the abolition of EMA. Join the protest! [Read more...]
Save Southwark Adult Learning teach-in
January 14, 2011 By 1 Comment
The Save Southwark Adult Learning campaign is holding a teach-in today (Monday 17 January). [Read more...]
