• Monday and Tuesday of this week was the NUS/ NUSSL/AMSU joint seminar in Yarnfield Business Park, a mixture of Student Officers and General Managers. They each all have a different theme; this one was on ‘managing change’, something that I do have some experience of! As ever a useful couple of days, with a wide range of sessions from the Australian Model, to Governance. I was able this time around to do the closing speech, which I would attach, only I’m writing my blog on a Sunday afternoon in the office and have forgotten my memory stick and so I’ll have to add it later.

• Spent Wednesday flitting in between the office and various other exciting commitments, trying to catch up on my work backlog. In the evening I was invited to the inaugural Times Higher Education Awards, in the Dorchester Hotel no less! The Awards have been set up to celebrate some of the achievements of our HE sector, and I was invited to present outstanding support for disabled students (which was judged, by amongst others Sian) and Best Student Experience. The latter is voted on my students alone, and was won by Swansea Uni, which was great because I got to present to Becky the SU President. and the runners up were both non affiliates, which could have got me into hot water. Having made it onto top table for dinner it also gave me another opportunity to push Bill Rammell again on our LSDA bid. All in all a great night, and something I’ll never get to experience again I imagine, all cut short rather early though as we couldn’t afford any wine at the post awards reception as it was £12.50 a glass.

• Thursday James J, Kat L, and I met with the National Blood Service, which was extremely controversial, and very informative, more on that from them.

• Met with Simon Gen Sec of the NPC

• Attended SE/LDN, Presidential Residential Training in Hove for two days.

• Saturday was the National Hindu Students Forum in Leicester, where Pav and I spoke on the importance of getting involved.

• Sunday morning was various interviews on Sky about the pensions crisis.

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