On Sunday 15th December, 1968, one of the most important landmarks in the radicalising of the British people towards socialism took place. This event was the inaugurating conference of the London branch of the Secondary Schools Student Union.
The SSSU was originally formed in Manchester. There the union has over 500 members, with an even greater number of students influenced by it. The union has been quite active in Manchester and has had several confrontations. Its success can be attributed to its relatively (for Britain) high membership and influence over other students in the city. This, in turn, can be ascribed to its reputation as a non-political organisation, although the union is greatly influenced and largely controlled by International Socialism secondary school student members. In fact, it was the IS students who played the significant role in the formation of the union in Manchester. The experience gained from Manchester and the YCL failure in the high schools will mean that the national SSSU will be a non-aligned organisation.
Before the SSSU branch was formed in London there were two main organisations fighting for the rights of high school students in the capital. These were the North London RSSF and the London Schools Federation (consisting of South London schools). The former being the most important engineer in the formation of a London SSSU branch and the latter being the more active.
The London SSSU branch inauguration conference was very successful. It was attended by over 70 London high school [illegible] representatives. The London branch was divided into [illegible] divisions (West, North and South London). Each division has a secretary. The conference provisionally accepted three programmes, which will be compounded into one programme by a committee. The London branch will put forward its programme to the 1st national SSSU conference on the 14th January, 1969.
The first programme has eleven points:
(1) a reconsideration of the role of the secondary school within the total educational system;
(2) [illegible];
(3) a reconsideration of the relationship between [illegible] teaching staff, parents and [illegible];
(4) (a) greater participation by students in the affairs of their schools, including an increased role for the student body in disciplinary procedures; (b) a discussion of the role of prefects and of [illegible]; (c) the abolition of corporal punishment;
(5) a thorough revision of the external examination system, including a change from the present emphasis on preparation for a final examination to an emphasis on education as such and the preparation of students for life;
(6) a demand for a new Education Act to: (a) place on a firmer and more definite basis the transformation of our secondary school (including abolition of public schools) system into a comprehensive one; (b) an increase in both Government and local authority spending on education;
(7) an end to sex-segregation in the educational system and to the related discrimination against girls (in their syllabus) and all other forms of discrimination (racial or religious);
(8) increased autonomy and responsibility for school magazines, clubs and societies;
(9) increased contact and discussion between students at secondary schools throughout the country, including the publication of regional and national magazines and the holding of regional and national conferences on the subject of secondary education and related matters;
(10) a demand for the improvement of the Youth Employment Service;
(11) a demand for students of 16 years and over, under full-time education to get grants.
This programme suggested that the SSSU should have a small membership fee. This to subsidise the publication of a national magazine and to pay for facilities for national conferences.
The second programme has seven points:
(1) education for all;
(2) control of education by workers;
(3) introduction of non-segregated comprehensives;
(4) smaller classes;
(5) take over and abolition of public schools;
(6) [illegible];
(7) an education useful for life and compulsory till 18 years.
The third programme has five points:
(1) all power in elected councils, consisting of [illegible];
(2) [illegible];
(3) [illegible];
(4) [illegible];
(5) schools should become centres of culture, out of [illegible].
[illegible] of the utmost importance in the creation of [illegible] the SSSU is the radicalising of secondary school students; for it will not only make more students militant at a younger age but it will also lead to a growth of militancy amongst workers. This is because most of the secondary school students go to [illegible]. This, therefore, makes the 1st national SSSU conference on the 14th of January very important.