Nationwide protests ahead of crunch vote on the future of college grants

On Tuesday, colleges and sixth-forms around the country will be holding lunchtime demonstrations and on Wednesday there will be lobby in the House of Commons from 1pm to 4pm. Following the lobby on Wednesday, MPs will vote on a motion that calls on the government to rethink its plans to scrap the financial support.
 
Studies show that the EMA is a key factor in improving participation in further education and colleges in some of the most deprived areas of the UK will be the hardest hit if the government breaks its pre-election promise and scraps the EMA. In some areas of Birmingham, Leicester and the north-west as many as four-fifths of students receive the EMA.
 
The recent Education at a Glance report, by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) revealed that the UK has one of the worst participation rates for 15-19 year-olds in education.
 
The protests and lobby are being organised by the National Union of Students (NUS), the National Union of Teachers (NUT), the National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT), the University and College Union (UCU), the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), UNISON, Unite, the GMB and the Save EMA campaign.