In the midst of the frantic activity of the student movement, important meetings took place on 4th and 5th December.
Members of Youth Fight for Jobs (YFJ) and Socialist Students held their national conferences, and Youth Fight for Education, a new campaign launched by YFJ and supported by Socialist Students, was launched.
There has been an uprising of young people in recent weeks, since they exploded onto the streets on the NUS demo on 10th November.
This Thursday sees the culmination of this first phase of the student struggle with the vote on fees in parliament.
Youth Fight for Education is calling walkouts all over the country and joining with others in a massive march on parliament.
Young people are angry and determined to fight for their future. In just four short weeks lessons have been learned about the role of the police and young people have won the support of workers and communities.
At the moment there is no real leadership or organisation in this movement. But it will not be over, no matter what happens on Thursday.
These conferences were therefore extremely important, discussing the need for democratic organisation and strategy, and the need for students to be joined by the strength of the organised working class.
Discussions also took place on strengthening Youth Fight for Jobs in the trade unions and campaigning amongst unemployed young people.
In the massive anti-cuts movement that is brewing, Youth Fight for Jobs can play a central role.
More detailed reports will follow.