About

Hi there…

I’m one of five members of the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts to be sitting on the incoming NUS NEC, alongside James McAsh, Edmund Schluessel, Arianna Tassinari and Gordon Maloney. The NCAFC is a broad left wing anticapitalist student organisation working across the UK, and you can find out more about us at http://anticuts.com (where I also write). I’m on the National Committee of the NCAFC too.

I’m also a member of the revolutionary socialist group, the Alliance for Workers Liberty (Workers Liberty or AWL for short). With AWL I organise in the labour movement and student movement, and have written for our paper Solidarity, and worked on a number of campaigns since I joined in 2009. I’ve travelled to meet workers and activists in Israel and Palestine with AWL and other comrades, and wrote about my experiences there too.

Workers Liberty is proud to be a socialist feminist organisation, and that’s what I call myself too. Socialist Feminism is a particular school of thought (it’s not just me lumping to unrelated words together!) in the tradition of Marxist Feminism and the idea of ‘Capitalist Patriarchy’, looking at women’s oppression by capitalism, and their role in class struggle. There’s lots to read on socialist feminism, a good place to start is the Workers Liberty pamphlet ‘The Case for Socialist Feminism” available here.

I’m not the typical NUS NEC member…but I probably am the typical student. NUS is often seen (and accurately) as full time undergraduate focused, but the majority of its members are in the Further Education sector. I finished my undergraduate degree in 2008, and I’ve been working in the Civil Service as an admin worker ever since. I also work part time for a women’s refuge charity too. During that time, like a lot of people, I’ve been studying part time at my local college to further my career prospects as well as train in labour movement skills. I studied Trade Union Studies through the TUC from 2009 – 2012, and this year I’ve been studying counselling. I’m returning to university in September (fingers crossed) to study a placement-heavy masters in Social Work.

I’ve been a trade union activist in PCS since 2008, and held local and regional positions since early 2009, during which time I’ve been Young Members officer and Branch Chair of  a union branch of 800-1000 low grade DWP workers. I’m also a member of Unison in my charity sector job.

I’m relatively new to the student movement, and I’m still learning a lot of the NUS structures. I’m particularly keen to represent the interests of mature and part-time students like myself, and the issues that matter to them.

My work in the ‘women’s sector’ and in DWP means I have a wealth of experience on welfare issues and I hope to represent these in my year on the NEC.

Anyway. Enough of that! If you want to ask me anything about what I think or what I stand for, you can always contact me on rosiescomputer@yahoo.com and my phone number is 07810632653 (if I don’t answer, I’m at work, I’ll get back to you!).