Oxford Education Feature Archive

Update (20/05/12): After a month, Occupy Brookes decided to pack up. The camp's demands were almost entirely ignored by management but many people nevertheless felt it was a valuable experience, building links, raising awareness, and establishing a precedent for action that can be taken further in the future.

Since Wednesday 18th April, a group of Oxford Brookes students and supporters have been camping in front of Gipsy Lane campus to demand free education for all, and more specifically and immediately, that the University switch from fee waivers to bursaries.

The camp has now survived over two weeks of extremely wet weather, hosted various workshops and discussions, and received lots of verbal support and sympathy. A letter containing 3 basic demands was sent to the authorities early on, but there has been no substantial response from them, and the group's next steps have yet to be decided.

Anyone supportive or curious is very welcome to come visit or stay, and upcoming workshops and meetings are listed on the blog.

[ Reports: 1 | 2 | 3 ] [ Photos ] [ Video ] [ Blog ] [ Fee waivers explanation ]

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Asylum has been high on the agenda recently as 24 Iraqi refugees went on hunger strike in Campsfield House. This was followed up with a very successful blockade of deportation coaches near Heathrow Airport [ 1 | 2 ] by No Borders.

Anti-military action has also been around recently. First, a group of Oxford-based campaigners managed to force the the British Government to admit that it was still training Bahraini officers, despite the brutality going on in that country as part of the 'Arab Spring.' This was followed by an apparently unconnected act of resistance against the military as the armed forces building in Oxford was daubed with red paint.

Fighting the cuts continued with the return of the Big Society Hospital, the launch of the Save Garsington Buses Campaign, and the continuing refusal of the City Council to listen to the public.

Education was on the agenda as activists told Grayling exactly want they thought of his plans for private universities, whilst locally based NGO - People & Planet published the Green League asking 'how green is your university?'

Climate change concerns raised their head again as the defendants from the Ratcliffe 114 (many from Oxford) launched an appeal against their convictions, and Oxford-based Campbell Road Productions announced their new film investigating the Tar Sands.

In other news, the summer also saw the fourth happening of the Oxford Radical Forum.

Don't forget to keep posting your news here on Oxford Indymedia.

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In the face of massive cuts to Oxfordshire's public services, a group of activists and campaigners are determined to fight the Con-Dem government's austerity package and their plans to privatise services that should rightly belong to all of us.

The group has recently campaign on youth services, NHS reforms, and welfare reforms for people with disabilities.

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It's been a busy year for activists and grassroots campaigners in Oxford. Peace campaigners have kept up the pressure on the war-mongers, including those at AWE Aldermaston and BAe systems. Campsfield Detention Centre has remained a target for people opposed to the inhumane treatment of migrants. And, of course, the anti-cuts movement has grown from strength to strength closing down shops, occupying buildings, and bringing angry people out on the streets.
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One of Oxford University's most emblematic buildings, the Radcliffe Camera library, was occupied for around 30 hours last week by students and residents campaigning against education cuts.

The occupation followed a mass demo and was part of a national day of action. The occupiers demanded the University oppose the cuts, and commit not to raise fees, privatise or punish those involved. They called for free and public education for all, and put this into practice by holding teach-ins, mass meetings and dancing in the newly liberated space, while the upstairs room was reserved for quiet study.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the authorities stopped this 'Free University' from thriving by doing their best to prevent people coming in, and, after the occupiers refused to compromise on their demands, by smashing their way in and aggressively evicting everyone.

Meanwhile an anti-cuts demo on Saturday led to an impromptu bank occupation and a second day of action on Tuesday saw the County Council offices briefly occupied, Castle Hill reclaimed and shopping centres invaded!

[ RadCam reports: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 ] [ RadCam videos: 1 | 2 | 3 ]
[ occupation blog ] [ demo: 1 | 2 ] [ Day X2: 1 | 2 ] [ Oxford Education Campaign ]

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Oxford's anti-cuts campaign, a network of service users, unions and student groups, rapidly mobilised an escalating succession of protests in the last two weeks against the planned demolition of the welfare state by the ConDem government.

About 200 people rallied during a day of action against the cuts in Bonn Square on 20th Oct, coinciding with the release of the Comprehensive Spending Review. There were speeches and several people gave us their reactions to the cuts. That same morning, activists dropped a banner on Carfax Tower.

The Oxford Education Campaign, a group of hundreds of Oxford and Oxford Brookes students mobilising independently of their student unions, organised over 1000 protesters to march on the day of Vince Cable’s (Government Business Secretary) scheduled visit (28th Oct). Vince Cable embarrassingly cancelled his talk, but the march occurred as planned and police cordons were broken several times.

Within 48 hours of the education march, the local Vodafone shop on Cornmarket was taken over by 30 protesters as part of a national action against the company, in which over 21 shops were occupied around the UK, for its widely reported £6bn tax evasion.

Throughout the month, the Oxford Save Our Services campaign spoke to the BBC, ITV, and others about the prospect of losing their services. SOS also leafleted in central and East Oxford and engaged with the community about the cuts.

Next steps

• The National Union of Students will march in London on 10th Nov. Over 7000 students and supporters from around the country are expected to attend.
• The Oxfordshire Anti-Cuts Alliance has called a meeting on 16th Nov, "United Against the Cuts" at Oxford Town Hall at 7.30pm.
• Nick Clegg will be in town on 17th Nov, to speak at the Oxford Union; if he doesn’t cancel then his presence is likely to galvanise thousands of activists in the region.

[ Bonn Sq rally: 1 | 2 | 3 | demotix ] [ banner drop ] [ education demo: 1 | 2 | 3 elsewhere: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 ]
[ vodafone demo: 1 | 2 | elsewhere ] [ Save Our Services | Oxford Education Campaign | UK Uncut ]

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Opposition to the planned public sector spending cuts is growing across Oxfordshire and beyond.

In early September there was a sit-in protest in Lloyds Bank in central Oxford. Protesters pointed out that the banks are being funded by the public at the expense of our frontline services including heath care, social services, and housing.

A week later, Oxford Save Our Services held a public meeting to start mapping the cuts in Oxfordshire and to start building resistance to them. Around 50 people - including service users and public sector workers whose jobs could be under threat - all spoke about the cuts that were being made. These ranged from closing the GAP homeless project, stopping schools & parks projects, closing care centres, turning off speed cameras, and much more.

There was a passionate speech from Stuart (pictured) who had been to the Oxfordshire County Council 'Big Debate' meeting calling for solidarity amongst all those seeking to oppose the cuts.

Resistance to the cuts is in fairly early stages, but rapidly gathering momentum. Events coming up in the near future include:
23 September 7pm: Town Hall Oxford Trades Council open community meeting for all groups and unions against the cuts.
27 September: Oxford Save Our Services planning meeting. Update: Meeting details.
3 October: Demonstration at the Tory party conference. Coaches going from Oxford.
20 October (day of the Comprehensive Spending Review): National day of action against the cuts.

[ Bank sit-in report ] [ Save Our Services meeting: Report | Photos | Audio ]
[ Oxford Save Our Services | Oxford Right to Work | No Shock Doctrine ]

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Students across the country are holding occupations and sit ins in solidarity with Gaza. SOAS shut down a MOD exhibition on their campus whilst students at LSE declared victory after seven days when the university agreed to all of their demands.

They are followed by others at King's College,Essex, Warwick, Sussex , Birmingham and over 80 Oxford University students have occupied the historic Bodleian building to demand that the university releases a statement condemning the attack on Gaza and cancel the lecture series at Balliol College inaugurated by Israeli war criminal Shimon Peres. There are also early reports of occupations at Manchester Met, Newcastle, Leeds, Cambridge [Pics], Bradford, Queen Mary, Sheffield Hallam, Nottingham, Strathclyde and Manchester universities. Update Wed 28th: The occupations have started to bring in results as both Sussex and Bradfod students have declared "victory" [See Sussex and Bradford declarations] On the other hand, the Cambridge University occupation is under threat of eviction [more] Update Sun 1st Feb: Nottingham occupation violently evicted [more | video] Update 11th Feb: Golsmiths University and the University of East Anglia are occupied.

In Yorkshire, students have occupied a building at Leeds University whilst the Bradford AGM voted to give the university the weekend to comply with demands to support the Palestinians, or expect action on Monday. On Tuesday morning, around 80 students occupied the university boardroom. The students say they "are enraged and horrified by the unspeakable atrocities that have been committed by the Israeli military on the people of Palestine, and ... will not tolerate the complicity of ... institutions of education in this violence."

Regional features: Cambridge | Nottingham | Sheffield

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E.ON has withdrawn from University Careers Fairs run by AIESEC following a string of protests around the country. E.ON did not show up at Birmingham today (12th Nov). The protesters object to E.ON wanting to develop new coal fired power stations, such as at Kingsnorth - the target of this summers Climate Camp. However E.ON cannot avoid the protests by avoiding careers fairs - expect more fun during 48 hours of action against E.ON and new coal on the 28/29 November.

Students have visited careers fairs to protest about the presence of parts of the arms and fossil fuel industries. Climate chaos related companies targeted include RBS (the oil and gas bank), BP and Shell. The arms industry representatives include the Army, B.Ae, Qinetiq and Rolls Royce. Careers fairs have been targeted in Aston, Birmingham ( 2 ), Bristol, Cambridge ( 2 | 3 ), Durham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Imperial College London, Kings College London, Leeds, Liverpool, Loughborough, Manchester ( 2 | 3 ), Nottingham ( 2 | 3 ), Oxford ( 2 ), Sheffield, Southampton, Warwick and York. More reports are available from People and Planet.

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Update (2:30pm): The occupiers of the Exam Schools have decided to end the occupation at 4 pm, by marching together to the University Offices and handing in a statement of demands and principles to the Vice-Chancllor. You won't be breaking any University statutes if you join the march...so please come along and show your support for the people who have risked being fined and disciplined for their opposition to fees.

Update (27 January 10:30am): Examination School is still occupied by students. Many students left this morning to join the protest in London, while others stayed in Examination School. The University decided to cancel all lectures for today. Students emailed all lecturers and asked them to go ahead with their lectures anyway, but the ones who came were refused entry by the security guards. However the students organized an alternative lecture about top-up fees that will take place at 11am. The next student meeting in Examination School is at 1pm. Join the occupation!

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At 4h30pm on Monday 26 January around 50 students of Oxford University, Brookes University and Ruskin College occupied the Examination School of Oxford University in protest to the top-up fees and to fees in total. They demand that the University opposes the government top-up fees bill. They also demand that the University reverses its stance of support for fees as there is strong evidence that many in Oxford also support full privatisation of the University.

Many other students joined the occupation later (there was more than 100 students around midnight), and the occupation is still going on overnight, especially after Tony Benn visited in solidarity! Anyone can come and go. The University may decide to cancel lectures tomorrow morning, but students encourage lecturers to give their lectures anyway. Students also decided to host their own teach-ins, with students presenting the case against top-up fees and the marketisation of education. Others will join the protest in London to express the viewpoint of Oxford students. Everyone is welcome to the teach-ins in the Examination School, and the more people is in occupation the more scope there will be for discussion and debate. Everyone who turns up will have an equal say in what is decided to do and how to proceed... come along and make your contribution!

Reports: [1] [2] | Reports and pictures: [1] [2] | Video | Solidarity statement from German students

Parliament backs fees - by 5 votes | Student pays fees in pound coins

OSAN (Oxford Student Activist Network) | OUSU (Oxford University Student Union)

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