Heather Rawling, Leicester Socialist Party
Having the Socialist Students conference in Leicester is exciting for us. It’s the product of work socialists have done in the community over many years. Socialist Students and Socialist Party members have been organising campaign stalls, and putting up posters to advertise the conference.
Highfields Centre is enthusiastic about hosting this conference, because they have huge respect for the Socialist Party and Socialist Students.
De Montfort University in Leicester announced late last year that it was planning to raise tuition fees and cut staffing. Socialist Students is campaigning for free education and against staffing cuts.
Over many years, the Socialist Party has been out campaigning against Labour council cuts in this area of Leicester. Highfields Centre was originally supported by council funding, but the Labour mayor cut this completely.
We supported their campaign against that cut. We organised a ‘needs budget’ conference in 2015, where the Highfields Centre was represented.
Campaigning with young people affected, together we pushed the Labour council back on plans to cut post-16 SEND transport. Socialist Students and the Socialist Party have campaigned against rent and council tax rises, increases in energy costs, and against illegal wages in the textile industry.
We successfully played a leading role in a campaign to save the East Midlands Children’s Heart Unit in Leicester. These campaigns have earned us respect in Leicester, especially in Highfields.
Early in the 2024 general election campaign, the Socialist Party hosted a meeting where Shockat Adam, the independent candidate MP for Leicester South, was one of the speakers. He defeated Labour’s Jonathan Ashworth.
Highfields is in the Leicester South constituency, and Shockat will be attending the Socialist Students conference, and speaking.
Many issues facing students and the wider community will be debated at the conference. Come and add your voice, and get involved in our campaigns.
