UCU: Building a brighter future for post-16 education

Motion

Motion text: Congress commends education committee’s work and urges its continued development of practical, participative campaigns to pursue our education policy agenda, including:
1. a sustainable funding model to widen participation and ensure proper, stable resourcing across post-16 education
2. collaboration not competition between institutions
3. abolition of tuition fees
4. challenging “low value” narratives, instead celebrating all modes and fields of post-16 education
5. challenging the notion that international student recruitment comes at the expense of places for domestic students
6. embedding climate justice in curricula and institutional practices
7. continuing UCU’s Cradle to Grave conferences
Congress calls on NEC and education committee to:
a. work with sibling unions (including NUS) to:
• develop joint approaches
• promote community dialogue about education
• combat cuts and ideological attacks upon disciplines and subject provision
• continue commitment to the Defend the Arts campaign
• resist the scapegoating and policing of international students
b. work with UCU Future of Work in Post-16 Education Working Group / International Working Group to understand and tackle global challenges including AI and education technologies
c. resist attacks on freedom of speech and academic freedom
d. defend professional autonomy.
e. To call a UK wide demonstration in defence of post 16 education in Central London on a Saturday in the Autumn term.