for President – Manifesto

Hey, I’m Rohan Rajesh, and I’m running to be your next President!

Over the past year as the 📌 Vice President of ARU Students’ Union and NUS Regional Head of East Anglia, I’ve worked with students, staff, and national organisations to create real change—but we’re just getting started!

💡 What have I Achieved So Far?

I’ve had the opportunity to work with the National Union of Students (NUS), where I’ve fought for students’ rights as renters. Through our collective efforts, we successfully secured two critical amendments currently being debated in the House of Lords—

• One that limits landlords from demanding more than 1 month's deposit.
• And another that caps tenancy contracts at a maximum of 6 months.

I’ve taken this fight to Parliament, met with MPs, and participated in All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) sessions, all to ensure students’ voices are heard on the national stage.

In addition, I’ve secured an affiliation with ACORN, a community union that fights for renters’ rights.  Now, it’s time to start - working with ACORN to protect ARU students from the challenges and injustices of private renting.

On campus, alongside my team, we were able to launch and run the "One Voice" campaign—a movement that demanded and delivered:

• Clearer and transparent communication from the university to students.
• Live attendance monitoring to improve engagement and wellbeing.
• Stronger academic support through effective personal tutoring.
• Faster response times from student facing university services.
• A dedicated graduation support team to guide struggling students to the finish line.

Inside the Students’ Union, I played a crucial role in reshaping our strategy and democracy, leading a bold rebrand to building a truly student-led Union that empowers every ARU student.

This is just the beginning. As President, I’ll represent students across all five campuses, be their voice at the highest levels, and act as the bridge between students, senior leadership, and national stakeholders. With the relationships I’ve already built, I’ll hit the ground running—ensuring ARU students are heard, valued, and empowered like never before.

🔮 What’s Next – My Vision for ARU Students

My vision for next year is to: enhance the student experience by ensuring every voice is heard, every student feels valued, and every campus is empowered. I agree, we should build a more supportive, inclusive and accessible university environment—one where students have the tools, resources, and opportunities to thrive.

Key Priorities moving forward:

• Cross-Campus Unity & Representation: Ensure equal representation for each campus - no student left behind. Strengthen student democracy by making sure every campus has a strong voice in decision-making.
• Officer Support & Collaboration: Work closely with my fellow officers, empowering them to reach their full potential and amplifying their work across all campuses and nationally:
  • By collaborating with Education Officer for stronger academic support, including better access to tutors, study resources, and faster response times from academic staff and student services.
  • By collaborating with Welfare and Liberation officer for expanding mental health services to meet the unique needs of each campus.
  • By collaborating with International and PGR officer for international student rights’, leveraging my network within NUS to lead a nation-wide movement.
  • By collaborating with Activities and Opportunities officer for a better rapport with Team ARU, more sports facilities and funding for sport and societies across all our campuses.
  • By collaborating with Peterborough Campus officer addressing the need to keep university premises open on weekends for students to access study spaces and library, strengthen support for student societies, clubs, and cultural events and create more student spaces on campus for Peterborough students.
  • Continuing to protect students from exploitative landlords with National Union of Students’ (NUS) and through our new ACORN partnership.
  • Continue reshaping the Students' Union to be more student-led, engaging, and impactful.
     

I’ve had the privilege of serving as Vice President and NUS Regional Head of East Anglia, fighting for renters' rights and securing key changes. If elected President, I will continue to push for stronger representation, cross-campus unity, and expanded support for mental health, academic resources, and student rights. We can build a future where every student thrives—your voice, your vote, let’s make it count!