For the first time ever, we’ve organised to go to a National Demo alongside students and academics from both Bristol and UWE. Here are five reasons why you should get a seat on the coach and come with us.

1. Education’s going to s***: this is your chance to be angry about it

• We have lost our Disabled Students Allowance, our Maintenance Grants, and our NHS Bursaries. Everything’s rising with inflation except one thing: our maintenance loans.
• Tuition fees are rising, colleges are closing. International students are at risk of no longer being able to study here.
• The Government’s Higher Education Bill wants to convert the University sector into a competitive marketplace. Universities will be able to be shut down and set up like businesses, with no guarantee of student protection.
• The ‘Teaching Excellence Framework’ will rank Universities against each other, rewarding them with higher fees if they do well on data collection exercises.
• If this makes you want to punch a wall, this demo is for you. The people who will be affected the most by these reforms, students and academics, are the ones who have been listened to the least. Now is the chance to make our voices heard.

2. This march is historical

• #Nov19 is an historical demo: for the first time ever the NUS has collaborated with UCU (the Trade Union for lecturers and academics) to organise, meaning thousands of us will be marching alongside our teachers and lecturers.

3. Now is the time for international solidarity

• November is a month of international action for free education. The UK NUS President has worked with sister students' unions in Canada, South Africa, France and Spain to help them organise national demonstrations against barriers to education. In the current climate, solidarity with international students and staff is more important than ever.

4. It’s only a fiver (or free if you need help paying for it)

• We’ve managed to subsidise the coaches so they’re only a fiver! If this is still a stretch, you can get in touch and we’ll be able to subsidise them further so that you can come.
• It is therapeutic to express yourself through creative banner design If you’ve always had a snappy pun that you’ve wanted to whip out when another Government policy ruins students’ lives, now is your chance. 

5. Finally:

• It's important to note: demos are not necessarily an accessible form of activism, and you can get involved in #Nov19 even if you don't march on the streets. You can campaign on social media, lobby MPs to oppose the Bill.

UWE Bristol Students buy your tickets at:

https://www.thestudentsunion.co.uk/ents/event/6768/