English Secondary Student's Association
Encyclopedia
The English Secondary Students' Association or ESSA is the independent representative body for secondary students in England. ESSA is run by students, for students aged 11 to 19 years old and supports young people in having a voice on issues which affect their lives at school or college.
ESSA works to become the representative organisation for students in key stages 3–5 (year groups 7 to 13) throughout England. ESSA provides support, training and advice to help students to get involved in decision making. It also works closely with students in other European countries through a student-led organisation called OBESSU (Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions).
following a Level 1 Award from UnLtd
- the Foundation for Social Entrepreneurs and support from the Phoenix Education Trust. It was officially launched at the Trades Union Congress in February 2005 where over 200 students gathered to discuss the future direction of the organisation and NUS President Kat Fletcher
was the keynote speaker.
ESSA's Council is made up of 18 students who are elected by members of ESSA. There are two elected Council members from each of the 9 regions in England. The Council aims to ensure that the actions taken by ESSA are representative of the views of ESSA's student members. The current council is this:
It should also be noted that the Council's current Chairperson is Andrew Elliott (North East) while Salil Bhate (East) fills the role of Vice Chair.
Manifesto 4 Change on the 5th May 2009, ESSA launched their video competition 'Manifesto 4 Change' at Portcullis House
, Westminster, with the support of many organisations and individuals including Natashca Engels MP, Channel 4 and NESTA. With a view to eventually creating a written manifesto for the next general election, ESSA have invited young people to send in up to 3 minutes of video on what they think should be changed in the education system.
There are 5 categories;
After the deadline for entries of 18 June 2009, the videos will be judged and the winning entries will be shown on Channel 4 later this year. As well as prizes for the winners, all of the views from the videos will be used to create a Students' Manifesto to show politicians what students want!
ESSA works to become the representative organisation for students in key stages 3–5 (year groups 7 to 13) throughout England. ESSA provides support, training and advice to help students to get involved in decision making. It also works closely with students in other European countries through a student-led organisation called OBESSU (Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions).
History
The organisation was founded in 2003 by a 17 year old school student, Rajeeb DeyRajeeb Dey
Rajeeb Dey is a serial entrepreneur. He is the winner of the 02 X Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2009 Award and has been referred to as “among the most high profile” young entrepreneur by the Financial Times-University life:...
following a Level 1 Award from UnLtd
UnLtd
UnLtd - The Foundation for Social Entrepreneurs is a charitable organisation in the United Kingdom set up by seven organisations that promote Social entrepreneurship...
- the Foundation for Social Entrepreneurs and support from the Phoenix Education Trust. It was officially launched at the Trades Union Congress in February 2005 where over 200 students gathered to discuss the future direction of the organisation and NUS President Kat Fletcher
Kat Fletcher
Kathryn Jane Fletcher was president of the UK National Union of Students between 2004 and 2006, the first to be elected from a political slate clearly to the left of Labour Students, who had held the position for most of the previous twenty years.-Early life:Fletcher was formerly the General...
was the keynote speaker.
Council
ESSA is a student-led organisation run by students, for students. This means that the ESSA Council makes the decisions about how ESSA is run.ESSA's Council is made up of 18 students who are elected by members of ESSA. There are two elected Council members from each of the 9 regions in England. The Council aims to ensure that the actions taken by ESSA are representative of the views of ESSA's student members. The current council is this:
| Region | North West | North East | East Midlands | West Midlands | Yorkshire and the Humber | East | South West | South East | London | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seat 1 | Seat 2 | Vacant |
It should also be noted that the Council's current Chairperson is Andrew Elliott (North East) while Salil Bhate (East) fills the role of Vice Chair.
Projects and campaigns
Campaign 4 Change in October 2007 ESSA launch Campaign for Change, a project which was funded by V and aimed to get as many young people campaigning about issues that they cared about as possible. ESSA achieved this in a number of ways, most notably through the creation of their workshop 'Campaign 4 Change', run entirely by young people, the C4C training was eventually taken by more than 2000 young people and is still being used today.Manifesto 4 Change on the 5th May 2009, ESSA launched their video competition 'Manifesto 4 Change' at Portcullis House
Portcullis House
Portcullis House is an office building in Westminster, London, UK, that was commissioned in 1992 and opened in 2001 to provide offices for 213 Members of Parliament and their staff, augmenting limited space in the Palace of Westminster and surroundings....
, Westminster, with the support of many organisations and individuals including Natashca Engels MP, Channel 4 and NESTA. With a view to eventually creating a written manifesto for the next general election, ESSA have invited young people to send in up to 3 minutes of video on what they think should be changed in the education system.
There are 5 categories;
- Teaching and Learning
- Where We Learn
- Enjoying Education
- Student Voice and Leadership
- The Future of Education
After the deadline for entries of 18 June 2009, the videos will be judged and the winning entries will be shown on Channel 4 later this year. As well as prizes for the winners, all of the views from the videos will be used to create a Students' Manifesto to show politicians what students want!
See also
- National Union of Students of the United Kingdom
- National Union of TeachersNational Union of TeachersThe National Union of Teachers is a trade union for school teachers in England, Wales, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. It is a member of the Trades Union Congress...
- OBESSUOBESSUThe Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions is a European platform for cooperation between the national school student unions active in general secondary and secondary vocational education in Europe...