There was a palpable energy at Labour's first conference since Andy Burnham became Prime Minister in July, noted final year politics student Joe McCarron. Having attended the conference himself, Joe commented on the "hopeful attitude" within the room.
Joseph Morris, a recent Politics graduate from Newcastle University, also emphasised the sense of hope at the conference, commenting on policies like the Your First Home scheme as "extremely exciting".
Burnham also declared the need for "parity between academic and technical education", reinforcing the necessity for a better range support and opportunities for young people.
However, there was a significantly low attendance for the Labour Women's Conference on Saturday. Major Labour unions such as Unison, Aslef, Usdaw, and the Musicians’ Union did not attend, over the decision to ban trans women from partaking in formal proceedings at the event. McCarron added that the lack of attendance by trade unions was a "clear message to the leadership" about members' rejection of the guidance on single sex spaces.
..."50 per cent more young people" at the conference.
Kemi Badenoch, leader of the Conservative Party, noted that there were "50 per cent more young people" at their conference in Birmingham. The party revealed their plans to get more young people in work with their aim to halve national insurance for those aged 21 to 24. The policy aims to boost graduate recruitment, as it would remove the deterrent for employers of having to pay Employer National Insurance.
Despite this support for younger generations, The Conservatives also revealed their plan to cut student loans for EU and "non-EU foreign nationals".
At the Green Party conference in Brighton Mothin Ali, co-deputy leader, revealed the party's pledge to guarantee young people a job within just four months of leaving education or training. Under their plan, the government would pay half the salary and employers would be exempt from paying National Insurance contributions, on the condition that they would provide in-job training.
Reform's Party conference took place before the parliamentary conference recess, in early September. The party still has not written its education policy. However, they have expressed their views on proposals to ban international students from accessing student loans. Additionally, they wish to cut public funding for courses they do not consider to provide strong financial or job-market value.