Tuition fee march ends in frustration, but students vow to fight on

It was expected to be a grand march in London: more than ten thousand people in high-profile areas of central London, with loud slogans and numerous banners. It was billed as the biggest event after last National Union of Students (NUS) demonstration with 50,000 people in 2009. However, the reality turned out to be different; a protest with fewer than 4000 people, soaked and muddy, that ended in anger and frustration.

General Information

More than 230 students from Sheffield joined the NUS Demo.
• 'Demo 2012' was a considerably smaller affair: while the NUS predicted a turnout of up to 10,000, the real figure was less than half that, somewhere between 3000 and 4000.
• See reclaim your educationfor more information

We from Sheffield

More than 230 students from Sheffield paid £5 for a round-trip to London by coach. The Student Union hired four coaches and departed at 6.30 in the morning on 21 November. When they arrived at 1pm, after being delayed by traffic problems, they had already missed nearly half route of the march. Finally, they caught the main force of the protest in front of the Houses of Parliament at 1.30pm. Then they headed into south London, travelling down Kennington Road before turning into a rally at Kennington Park at around 2pm.

The marchers from the University of Sheffield started off in a positive mood, waving protest banners and shouting slogans such as: “We from Sheffield, we know Nick, he’s a liar he’s a dick” and “They say cut back, we say fight back”. 85% of them were freshmen, who had to pay £9000 tuition fee per year from this year. Kirył Zach, a student from the department of economics explained the reason that he was there: “I will be a bankrupt after graduation”.

The rain was torrential after 2pm. Some hand-made banners were broken and words on them were fuzzy. Everyone was soaked and they moved closer to keep warm. Though they still shouted loudly, their voice became more and more hoarse.

There is nothing like winter rain to dampen enthusiasm. Not far from the end of the march the mood seems to be dampened by the rain. Only 300-400 marchers arrived at Kennington Park at 3pm. The team of the University of Sheffield also scattered. Speakers included comedian Josie Long, columnist Owen Jones, singer Grace Petrie, NUS president Liam Burns, Kathy Taylor of the UCU and Roger MacKenzie of Unison, who expressed their support for students at Kennington Park. However, most Sheffield marchers only stood on the muddy lawn and trembled with cold.

At 3.30pm the students from the University of Sheffield returned. When they were back on the coach, everyone was demoralised, and wet through.

As a whole, 'Demo 2012' was a considerably smaller affair: while the NUS predicted a turnout of up to 10,000, the real figure was less than half that, somewhere between 3000 and 4000.

Fight for everyone

Before the march one of the protesters, Jamie Glydon, a junior student majoring in Aerospace Engineering and Politics in the University of Sheffield said: “It won’t affect me directly”,. “But Even under￡3000 tuition fee system, I still have￡2500 debts. So I am worried about the future’s students. ”

In his hometown Hersham, Surrey, some poor students could not afford to get an undergraduate degree so that they gave up making applications this year. Among the whole country, there has been a 30,000 fall in applications this year.

Arguments have raged over whether it is fair to ask graduates to pay more money for their education. Some argue that graduates will get a premium in salary compared to those who don’t have a degree and that those who will get financial benefit in long-term should contribute towards to their study. Others say education is a right not a privilege and fees of ￡9000 each year, it will deter a lot of students from entering university. And also, women, black, LGBT and disabled people will take longer, on average, to pay back their student debt due to pay gaps and discrimination.

Apology made no sense

Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg's apology for his party's failure to block a rise in tuition fees was released ahead of the party's annual conference on 19th September. But although Mr. Clegg said he was sorry, it was not for the increase in tuition fees itself. Instead, he was sorry the Lib Dems ever opposed the increase because they had not costed the policy properly.

“It was very diplomatic. All he said was apology for making the pledge that he knew and in fact they knew the price of general reflection but they would not keep it like any scenario.” the education officer of the Sheffield Students’ Union, Richard Alderman said

Jamie added: “Politicians should be representatives of us. Thousands of students voted in Sheffield from university for Nick Clegg on his promise that he would not increase the tuition fees. They broke that promise so the apology didn’t mean anything for us.”

Clegg’s apology has become a pop sensation after a spoof song that mixed his message with music entered the charts. This song, called Nick Clegg Say's I'm Sorry, was created by satirical website a spoof song that mixed his message with music entered the charts. This song, called The Poke and has more than 2 million viewers on YouTube till now.

Not an end

Though the NUS National Demonstration has ended, the Student Union won’t stop “Reclaim Your Education” campaign, which was selected among most important issues by students in the Sheffield University from referenda last year and made a priority.

Abdi Suleiman, the president of the Sheffield Students’ Union, said that the year’s campaign focuses on five areas:

• Establishing a funding system for postgraduate study
• Protesting against cuts in education budgets
• Campaigning for the reinstatement of public investment in education
• Taking away government’s power to change the terms of all current and previous student loans without a vote
• Protesting against the demonisation of international students

“I think doing a long-term campaign can be smarter than a single-day campaign,” Richard said. “We have a launch event with 150 people turning out in September. After that, we meet on every Wednesday with 50 to 100 students to talk about making a push, talking to university staff, to government officers and local MPs.”

“I think doing a long-term campaign can be smarter than a single-day campaign,” Richard said. “We have a launch event with 150 people turning out in September. After that, we meet on every Wednesday with 50 to 100 students to talk about making a push, talking to university staff, to government officers and local MPs.”

They are preparing many relevant activities to concern on the future of the student movement and of Higher Education in the UK. Students in the University of Sheffield can join a series of activities at 5-6pm on every Wednesday in Arts Tower Lecture Theatre 4.

Though it rains heavily, the students from the University of Sheffield are still on the road.

by Megan Chen