It’s 9pm on a Friday night and instead of sitting in some nice pub somewhere having a nice glass of vino I is sat on a train on the way home from Warwick University and still won’t be home till 1230pm- ouchie ouch!!!! I am one very shattered bunny after a very very hectic week travelling over a 1000 miles for the NUS Get The Vote Out Tour- it’s been an awesome week but will quite happily admit can not wait to do a huge bed dive at home tonight.

It started on Tuesday when I set off in the hire car to Cardiff- loaded up with wristbands, banners, flyers and even lovely NUS rosettes. Yahoo. I picked up Flick Cox on route and we were on our way to Cardiff for the next day of our part in the NUS Get the Vote Out roadshow.

So what was it all about? Basically there were 3 roadshows heading around all over the country to marginal seats where the student vote was going to have a massive impact upon the outcome. The whole reason for doing this was empowering students to get out there and vote. To be honest this general election has not been the most motivating and education, students and young people have not been high on the election agenda. The theory was that if more students went out there and vote it would put education and students at the top of the agenda and MPs would have to start engaging with their local student population. In some of the seats the margin was only 600 so the student vote would be an important one. The message was just make sure you go out there and vote, and contrary to some rumours we were not out their canvassing. We were just out there telling students to please use their vote, talk to candidates, hell spoil ballots papers if that was the way that they were feeling, just make sure they voted.

On the tour I would be driving and be joined by others. All the NEC were asked to volunteer for the get the vote out but only 4 of the current NEC did so therefore some of the NEC elect and the FE advocates stepped up to the plate and volunteered their time and commitment to NUS (and they don’t get paid). I know that some NEC had good reason not to volunteer such as their exams and finals but gonna be honest at times does get a bit disheartening when for things like this it seems to be the usual people that volunteer. It’s the same for disaffiliation campaigns too usually. I think it says something when on the Get the Vote Out Tour there were more FE advocates than current NEC. I am sure they all had their reasons but at times I do think the question has to be asked why is it the same people that always volunteer, especially when people thought we were ‘specially’ invited. Hell no all NEC were asked to volunteer and some of us did and some of us didn’t. Anyway ranty bit over and back onto the tour.

So we rocked up in Cardiff met Dan Anderson (president from Wolverhampton College) and Stephen James (national council rep for Wales). We put up our banners, got out the wristbands and went into campaign mode talking to loads of students. Now usually when doing disaffiliation campaigns you get the obliquely I have voted line said very quickly and off handed but this time what was great and motivating was actually how many students said that they had done a postal vote or that they were ready to vote. Lots of them asked questions about where to vote etc. and it was great to think that in Cardiff the students were definitely getting the vote out. We were there until 5pm when we grabbed quick bite and drink with Pete and Jenny from Cardiff before hitting the road to head off to Canterbury. Now one piece of advice if you are gonna do a tour like this make sure you get some decent CDs in the car because if you hear that song Lonely that sounds like Alvin and the chipmunks 4 or 5 times in one journey it could mean that you might start liking it and knowing all the words!!!! We got into Canterbury about 10pm (missing all the M25 traffic- yay) and booked into the hotel before meeting some of the Kent Union sabbs for a drink.

Then it was Wednesday morning and the first point of call was Canterbury Christchurch Union. Bubble, Geordie & Wiggy had done lots of hard work here making sure students were registered to vote which was awesome. They’d had hustings, got footprints already to put down at midnight from the halls of residents to the polling booths, got maps printed and stickers saying I have voted so have you? We gave out loads of the wristbands and spoke to loads of students about where to vote and when. Again it was great to see so many students motivated to get the vote out.

In the afternoon it was over to meet Budd and Jen at Kent Union. All their 1st years were registered to vote- all 4000 of them and there were gonna be polling booths on campus. The margin in Canterbury was about 2000 (I think) so really proved that students could have a huge influence. The Kent Union team had huge banners up and had even got a plane all booked for the Thursday, which was carrying a banner to remind students to vote. We spent the afternoon going around the bars; cafes and refectories reminding students to get out there and vote. Then it was time to hit the road again and head up to Leeds- this is where Flick was leaving me but I was going to be joined by Martin Ings and Stephen Brown. Got to the hotel and fall into bed- the driving was starting to tire- but hey only 1 more day to go!

Leeds Union was all hectic on the Thursday as it was also their sabb bi-election. We spoke to loads of students and it was great to see how many of them had said they had voted and unlike sabb elections I actually believed them when they said they had voted. It was also great to be on hand to tell people where their polling stations were and have to say it felt good to be out their campaign in Unions and supporting our members and chatting away to students.

The afternoon was spent at Leeds Met Union where Anne Marie and Dave (2 of the sabb team) joined us motivating those students who hadn’t voted yet to get out their and use their power (in the words of Dave!!!!). Then at 4pm Stephen and Martin headed off to vote in their home towns and I jumped into the car to head up to York University to do a final 2 hour push with another Get The vote Out roadshow there. Loads of students hadn’t voted yet so we were there doing hall knocks, giving out wristbands and generally motivating students to vote. I think we definitely got the student vote up. And then it was 7pm and time to head off to Oxford for an election party. By 1130pm was happily sat in Oxford with a glass of white wine in my hand and watching Jon Snow play with his swing o meter (or whatever ya call it- hell I am tired). The tour had ended but had thoroughly enjoyed it (shocka) and a huge well done to all those Unions (including the ones that we didn’t get to see on the tour) for getting the vote out and making the student voice heard (guess the line of the week!!!). This week has been great and shown what NUS is a campaigning Union and hopefully more students in the places we have been will now know NUS as more than a discount card. I really hope that we do more things like the Get the Vote out tour in the future as think it was really effective.

Friday morning had to drag myself out of bed- was shattered after watching election results and the get the vote out tour but it was off to London for the BUSA executive meeting. An interesting thing came up about disability and sport and watch this blog because you will hear more- we have ideas a forming and really hope NUS and BUSA can work closely together on the equality in sport agenda- great to see the 2 organisations work together.

Then after the meeting it was onto another train to head up to Warwick University for their disability awareness week were I was doing an hour seminar, workshop, whatever yak wanna call it (told you I was tired) about the Disability Discrimination Act and the social model of disability. Had a really good discussion with the students who came along and hopefully they find it usual. Congrats to Roxanne the SWD officer at Warwick for arranging the week with her disability committee.

So now it’s home time- I is very shattered, have had a hectic week and travelled oh so many miles but it has been a really productive week and loved it. Now have also just realised it’s 10pm am still writing this blog- am thinking how stoopid am I- maybe it’s time to switch off- so I is outta here to have 2 days off (the folks are coming to visit- hopefully gonna get spoiled- yay) cause I think I needs them. So this is me saying goodbye cause sleep is a calling.

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