LONDON, 15 August 2025 -- Mr. Baiyu Liu AMBCS FRSA MIoD, President of the King's College London Students' Union, today attended the annual Russell Group Students' Unions (“RGSU”) Conference alongside fellow King’s College London Students’ Union colleague, Vice President Sheeba Naaz, at Queen Mary University of London.
The RGSU is a collection of 22 Russell Group university students’ unions aimed at furthering the interests of students across research-driven higher education institutions across the UK. Its stated goals include fostering collaboration and research between Russell Group universities as well as empowering students to inform governmental policy.
The RGSU hosts regular conferences attended by the presidents of its constituent members to formulate policy and promote mutual collaboration.
During the conference, Ms. Jessica Coles, the Director of Strategy at RGSU, gave a speech regarding the current state of higher education. Director Coles criticised the opacity of the current Labour Government under Sir Keir Starmer, claiming it is “a very closed government which is much less open to share information” than its Conservative predecessors.
The Students’ Union Presidents present identified major areas of student concern in the Higher Education Sector. These include tuition fees, the Cost-of-Living crisis, Post-16 Skills White Paper of the Labour Government, the Strategy of the Office for Students, Financial Pressures on universities and academia, and the political implications of international conflicts in the Middle East.
The Presidents devised three main areas of priority to focus on in the coming academic year. These include:
- Student Finance and Funding
- International Student Advocacy
- Social Justice and Divestment
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“As student leaders of the leading research institutions in our country, our foremost duty is to represent and safeguard the interests of our students. At King’s, we recognise that the challenges facing higher education today cannot be addressed in isolation. It is imperative that we work collaboratively—not only across Russell Group unions but also with government and sector bodies—to ensure that students’ voices shape policy. We are committed to constructive dialogue that delivers meaningful progress on funding, widening participation, and the student experience.”
President Liu sends his thanks to Ms. Diya Mary Selastin, the President of the Queen Mary Students’ Union, for her generous hospitality in hosting the RGSU conference.
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