On the 21st November, the National Union of Students is organising a march in London. This is a march in support of higher education, marching against government cuts that are leaving students with massive debt in a climate of high unemployment.
Now, let’s put this in context. The government cuts – 80 per cent – have already taken effect, which is why we have higher fees. These fees do not represent an investment into our education system, but a shifting of the debt from the government to the students. On top of this, studies have shown that the new system is actually going to be more expensive for the country, and will leave a legacy of increased debt in 30 years’ time.
The cuts have also had a real effect right here in Bangor, impacting your education. This university has just had the results of the National Student Survey, an annual chance for students to describe their student experience, and students in Bangor are generally less satisfied than last year, whilst the rest of the UK is generally more satisfied. To improve your student experience, it is essential that the university invests in staff, resources and the support it offers you. Yet, because of these cuts, there is a freeze on recruitment, and another round of cuts across the university.
Now, we are working with the university to make sure that any cuts won’t affect you, and we’re lobbying hard for investments to improve your experience. The National Union of Students is working with the government to minimise the effects of the cuts, and continuing to lobby against them. But now, we need your help. Across Wales and the UK students are mobilising in solidarity, converging on London to defend the rights of the student, to show how important education is to this great island that we call home, and to tell the government that enough is enough.
So, keep an eye out on our Facebook (www.facebook.com/BangorStudentsUnion), our website (www.bangorstudents.com), and us Sabbs out an about to join us and take control of the agenda, and show the UK government that now is the time to invest in students; to invest in the future. See you there.
