Five teenage members of a west London gang were recently given lengthy prison sentences at the Old Bailey for the murder of a 16-year-old A-level student. Kodjo Yenga was left dying in the arms of his girlfriend after the gang ran away. Judge Christopher Moss told the youths it was unclear who wielded the knife but the sentences had to be a deterrent because the violent gang culture was a serious problem. He ordered that Tirrell Davis, 17, and Brandon Richmond, 14, be imprisoned for a minimum of 15 years. Kurtis Yemoh, 17, Jamel Bridgeman, 15, and Michel Williams, 15, were given 10 years' detention for manslaughter with five years on extended licence after their release.
New NUS president
Wes Streeting was voted in as the next president of the National Union of Students (NUS) at its annual conference in Blackpool in April in a move that will lend weight to the fight to modernise the union. Streeting, who was NUS education vice-president, received 496 of the 962 valid votes to win, while nearest opponent Kieran Norris won 376. Daniel Randall, who is staunchly opposed to negotiating on fees, won 119 votes in the first round. He demands free education for all. Streeting insisted he would take forward the changes to transform the NUS which Gemma Tumelty had set in motion during her presidency. 'I have a clear agenda as a national president leading a reformed NUS that is representative, relevant and more focused on influencing the debate and students than shouting from the sidelines and having doors slammed in our face,' said Streeting.
Students have voted to get rid of the principle that the National Union of Students (NUS) will only argue for free education. The newly-elected president, Wes Streeting, said the union would propose alternatives to the current higher education fees system, which is to be reviewed next year. 'The Government's push for different markets has been disastrous. We will debate a graduate contribution if it means a fairer system that doesn't unleash market forces,' said Streeting. The motion to fight for the abolition of tuition fees fell by 41 votes after an emotive debate at an NUS annual conference.
Government plans to clamp down on the studentification of university towns could damage housing supply and deprive students of the chance to go to university, the British Property Federation (BPF) have warned. The review of houses of multiple occupancy announced by ministers would introduce measures that would make it harder to rent family homes to students. Housing minister Caroline Flint wants to prevent areas of university towns becoming ghost towns when students are on holiday. The review would also look at ways to do more to protect students from landlords. But the BPF warned that any measures to avoid shared housing would go against Government policies to support communities.
Apathy reigns in student politics
Young people make up a huge proportion of the voting public, yet apathy reigns supreme. Just prior to the 2005 election, a poll by research giant IPSOS Mori found that only 52% of young people of voting age intended to vote. The survey found that less than half felt they had sufficient knowledge about political issues and barely a majority found it of any interest. In a previous Mori poll, only 9% felt they knew what their local council was responsible for. YouthBank (www.youthbank.org.uk), Operation Black Vote (www.obv.org.uk), Theyworkforyou.com, UK Youth Parliament (http://www.ukyouthparliament) and the Votes at 6 campaign (www.votesat16.org.uk) all aim to counter political apathy by encouraging young people's participation in society and enhancing their understanding of citizenship.
Renewable energy for all new colleges
The Government has announced plans to equip all new colleges with renewable energy sources. The scheme, aimed at slowing global warming, is part of a Government plan to invest £2.3 billion in new colleges. The colleges will be powered by solar panels, wind power and other methods of renewable energy with the target of reducing the institutions' carbon footprint to zero by 2016. The move comes as the Government plans more atomic power plants to cover the nations' electricity needs.
Minister ignores rise in student complaints
Minister for Higher Education, Bill Rammell, has dismissed recent figures showing growing dissatisfaction among university students. Complaints to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education have gone up significantly; by almost 25%. The complaints were made by students unhappy with their final exam results. 'The six hundred complainants represent less than two hundredths of 1% of the student population,' said Mr Rammell. One theory behind the rising unhappiness is that more mature students are studying, who have 'given up a job somewhere and really need that qualification, can't afford failure, and have very precise expectations,' said Baroness Ruth Deech, an academic lawyer.
Overseas students face more tribunals
Overseas students at the University of York are 2.5 times more likely to be involved in an academic tribunal than their British peers, according to new figures. In the past academic year 12 undergraduate overseas students were involved in an academic tribunal, amounting for 1.73% of all undergraduate overseas students at the university. The equivalent figure for undergraduate home students was only 0.68%. Overseas students, who make up only 8.7% of the University's total undergraduate student population, accounted for over 20% of the number of academic appeal cases between September 2006 and July 2007.
Studying Israel
A growing number of Palestinians want to study Israel. The Israel studies course at the Palestinian Al-Quds University is growing in popularity. Between the university's West Bank and Gaza campuses, the two-year masters degree has more than 100 students - reflecting a year-on-year growth of 10% since 2005. At Al-Quds, scholarship and the Palestinian struggle are closely related. For example, one of the law courses involves running human rights clinics in the hope students will play a role in the struggle for change in Palestine.
Models protest to change university fashion courses
Skillfast-UK, the sector skills council for fashion and textiles, have launched a campaign to petition the Government to re-assess the way in which university/college fashion courses are funded and taught. They have warned that London's position as a world centre for fashion is under threat, due to a lack of skilled recruits entering the fashion industry. The new campaign, called 'No skills, no fashion,' aims to encourage fashion colleges and universities to put more focus on pattern-cutting, garment construction and other technical fashion skills. To mark the launch of the campaign, models protested on St Stephen's Green, in front of the House of Commons.
Gang members jailed for killing student