Only the second NUS president to have attended a further education college instead of university, Shakira was re-elected by a huge majority at NUS conference earlier this year. Her style is forceful and passionate, but that approach belies more moderate and pragmatic political views than many of her rivals – exemplified in an interview for Radio 4’s Nick Robinson earlier in the year on a podcast series reserved normally for major politicians.
Most NUS presidents tell stories of overcoming adversity, but Martin’s inspiring (and genuine) story of the power of education to break a background of hardship and poverty in south-east London is compelling and impossible to ignore. Her “listen, learn and lead” approach has captured the imagination of student officers, and another of her stump phrases – “it’s about getting in and getting on”- has been adopted wholesale by Chris Millward in his OfS access role.
Martin’s combination of effectiveness and authenticity is a real rarity for NUS, and shone through in NUS’s Poverty Commission report this year – a significant contribution both to the post-18 review and wider decision making across government, institutions and both sectors. In what is constitutionally required to be her final year as an NUS officer she has been inevitably adopting a lower profile, taking the time to address longer-term internal issues in the union. But once Phillip Augar’s review is out in January, her leadership of students’ unions on maintenance could make a significant difference to the government’s response.