Content Note: Misogyny
On 3rd April 2025, I packed my bag, powered up the playlist, and travelled to Lincoln for NUS England 2025 – the annual gathering of students’ union officers from across the country. The aim? To get serious about how we win big for students in this moment of crisis, creativity, and change.
Spoiler alert: we covered everything from rent strikes to rising far-right— with a surprising amount of karaoke in between.
🎤 Opening Notes (and Opening Karaoke…)
First things first: the night before the conference, reps were welcomed with what can only be described as karaoke chaos. If you’ve never heard an SU president belt out “Bad Romance” by Lady Gaga like it’s the national anthem, you haven’t lived.
But come morning, we were all business. The opening plenary set the tone for a bold new NUS — focused less on endless procedural motions and more on what actually matters: campaigns that win​.
🧠Workshop 1: Fighting the Far Right – Because We’re Not Here for Bigotry in 2025
Let’s get real: one of the most powerful sessions of the day was “The Battle for Young People: The Role of Students’ Unions in Tackling the Far Right”.
We unpacked how loneliness, digital echo chambers, and political alienation are fuelling far-right ideologies, especially in FE spaces. We also talked about misogynistic subcultures like incels and the bizarre Andrew Tate pipeline, which, unfortunately, isn't just TikTok nonsense anymore​​.
Solutions? Stronger support for students, better media literacy, actual reporting mechanisms for hate incidents, and empowering SUs to lead the charge against division. This was decolonial, anti-fascist, student power in action and yes, I had thoughts.
🧑🏽🏫 Workshop 2: Further Education Deserves Better (and So Do Apprentices)
Over in the “FE & Apprenticeships” room, we dreamt big: properly funded colleges, protected study time, and students’ unions that are more than just a table at Freshers’ Fair.
One union said it best: “The biggest difference to FE students’ lives? Real investment, beyond qualifications, with vibrant unions and a richer student experience”​.
This isn’t just a funding issue, it’s a respect issue. And as someone who believes education should be transformational, not transactional, I’m 100% behind this.
đź’° Student Funding, Transport, Mental Health — Pick a Crisis, We’ve Got It Covered
Throughout the day, we tackled:
Skyrocketing transport costs
- Mental health burnout
- The cost of literally existing as a student
- Campaigns for fairer pay and SU funding
- We weren’t just diagnosing the problems — we were workshopping tactics to win.
✊🏾 What This Means for Cambridge
This wasn’t just a national vibe-check. It was a call to action. What this conference reminded me is: we’re not alone. Across the UK, students are organising, resisting, and reimagining what universities could be.
🎉 Final Thoughts
Between plenaries and policy, karaoke and campaigning, what I took from NUS England 2025 is this:
- We don’t need another consultation. We need action.
- We’re building movements, not just minutes.
So whether you're a campaigner, committee rep, or just a student wondering “what even is NUS?” — know that your voice matters. And if you want to help decolonise, democratise, and divest Cambridge, my inbox is open.