literally thousands of jobs in higher education were cut *last year alone* and there's been almost no media coverage and no government action

Willard Foxton@willardfoxton.bsky.social · 2d ago

I think it's absolutely mad that today there's a *national news story* about 400 oil platform workers losing their jobs, and the government being blamed. 25% of the UK TV industry lost their jobs in the last 4 years and we never hear a peep about it! Some jobs are 'real jobs' I guess.

Excited to share our new programme of Social Research Methods at Leeds @srmleeds.bsky.social, @emrinke.bsky.social & Jade Parker. Speakers include: Peter King, @janselby.bsky.social, @rsolymosi.bsky.social, @rjbeecham.bsky.social, Martina Feilzer, Sam Langton, Ieva Skyte, and Ana Manzano.

"Criminalising parents is unlikely to help children who need support, and putting them behind bars would only put further strain on a failing prison system that is already bursting at the seams." https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6lye7200g7vo

Parents could face prison for child's crimes under justice reforms, minister says

The reforms to Parenting Orders could also see parents losing benefits, Jake Richards MP told the Times.

bbc.co.uk

Early career researchers / PG researchers: do join us here @lawatleeds.bsky.social on 20 January 2027 if you're researching the Legal Profession - see below for full details.

lucindasoon@lucindasoon.bsky.social · 3d ago

Socio-legal academics, postgraduate researchers, early career researchers: the Society of Legal Scholars and @lawatleeds.bsky.social invite abstract submissions for a one-day workshop focused on developing research on the legal profession. All disciplines welcome. Deadline 18 Nov. Pls share. Thanks!

Exactly! And in that time your employer, to whom you are tied for the entire time, feels the same way (hard to invest in training you etc) and you have to pay huge Home Office fees every 2.5 years, meaning your family is very materially worse off than your co-workers and peers.

Heather Stewart@guardianheather.bsky.social · 2w ago

“The idea that you could be here for the next 10, 15 years and you’d still have no legal right to remain in the country … how the hell do you plan?..It cuts across any effort to integrate at all.” www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

No: it isn’t “genuinely bad news for the far right” that the framing & salience of its pet subject has been adopted by the entire political-media system. That assumption mistakes the far right‘s demands as genuine & limited, & thus manageable, rather than being a proxy or wedge issue for much worse.

Excited to share my latest article! Through interviews with pathologists, I explore the fascinating intersection of medicine and law, and the tensions between the demands of the law for certainty and the realities of expert medical judgement. doi.org/10.1111/jols...

The medico‐legal autopsy: medicine, expertise, and death investigation

This article sheds important new light on the hybrid space between medicine and law in which medico-legal autopsies are situated. By examining original empirical data obtained during interviews with ...

doi.org

New blog for @consoc.bsky.social on the Hillsborough Law’s legislative journey and the challenges it may face upon enactment ⬇️

The Constitution Society@consoc.bsky.social · 4w ago

On the blog this week: Kate Dewsnip examines the progress of the Hillsborough Law through Parliament, and asks where are we now with the Bill? Read it now: https://consoc.org.uk/hl-where-are-we-now/

I agree with this but also most work should 'only be a 3 in the REF' because ... honestly, not everything needs to set a field on fire. It should make a contribution but ...

We could, and just hear me out, not give a fuck about able bodied persons receiving the benefits of accommodations. This is actually what we should do about it: nothing. Not a fucking thing. supposed "grift" is only a problem in a world looking for an excuse to deny accommodations.

mtsw@mtsw.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Balancing "no person with a disability should be denied accommodations" with "it's important to discourage non-disabled people from pretending to be disabled to take advantage of these accommodations" is really difficult and I don't have a great answer for what anyone should do about it.

Rectification : plus grand chose ne distingue Macron de l’extrême droite, dont il embrasse les idées et le populisme depuis bien longtemps.

My grandmothers raised 5 children each. One was also a nurse and the other one did the accounts and general admin for my grandfather's small business.

Revan@revan.eurosky.social · 2mo ago

Enough “what would you do on the commune questions” If you got sent back 100 years and were given your grandparent’s job, what are you doing?

Welcome to our Research Interview Series, starting with Dr Laurène Soubise, who specialises in comparative criminal justice and criminal law. Read all about her work on the partial defence to murder of ‘loss of control’ 👇 tinyurl.com/597fex5x @ccjsleeds.bsky.social

Spotlight on our Research – Dr Laurène Soubise

Welcome to our Research Interview Series where we hear from academics and researchers across the School of Law making an impact in the field through their areas of expertise.

tinyurl.com

And here's a more recent article on the same partial defence and how it is interpreted and applied in domestic homicide cases: link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Weaponising Relationality? Judicial (Re)Interpretation of Loss of Control in Domestic Homicide Cases - Feminist Legal Studies

The plight of women who kill their abuser was a key driver in abolishing provocation and introducing loss of control. However, it is increasingly documented that the partial defence to murder continue...

link.springer.com

Laurène Soubise@lsoubise.bsky.social · 2y ago

Hurrah! Our article on loss of control is now available online: doi.org/10.1017/lst.2024.21 . In it, we argue that judges, juries and prosecutors all appear to struggle to interpret the defence's requirements in line with the objectives of the 2009 reform.

📣 People are understandably up in the arms about this (it is horrible). But just want to wave a hand out there 👋 as we're going through the same thing in Humanities at Northumbria (1 out of 5 staff need to go by end of July). 1/?

Margot Finn@eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 3mo ago

'About 150 academic roles are set to go at the south-west institution, which said it was targeting areas that are “no longer sustainable” or have seen changes in student demand.' History and English are name-checked. 1/3

It's much too late now to save large parts of Higher Education, but there's lots that can still be done if we stop and pause this madness. Otherwise most HE will just be concentrated in SE England at Oxbridge, LSE, Imperial, Kings and a few others. www.timeshighereducation.com/news/univers...

University of Exeter cuts an ‘existential threat to humanities’

Russell Group institution cites changing student demand as it puts 500 staff at risk of redundancy, with 150 jobs set to go

timeshighereducation.com

The cuts at Exeter University won't work. They never work. The high-ups will be back for more in a year or two, then even more a year or two after that. Unis just keep doing the same thing consultants tell them to do, over and over again. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

University of Exeter in talks to cut about 150 members of staff

The university says it is consulting with colleagues over "limited and specific potential changes".

bbc.co.uk

Another day where I wish UK windows had shutters. Surely this has to come at some point soon!

A statement from Exeter UCU branch @ucu.org.uk - please share far and wide.

The destruction of UK universities, and especially of the arts and humanities, continues. Let‘s see if a new PM does anything differently - I won‘t hold my breath.

Dr Laura Sangha@lsangha.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Along with almost all of my colleagues in history, this afternoon I got an email telling me that I am at risk of redundancy. It looks like the University of Exeter sent this email to the vast majority of people in Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty. Bit hard to breath right now.

Immigrants do not have to contribute exceptionally to deserve safety Immigrants do not have to permanently grovel to their new country to justify their existence Immigrants are allowed to be just as mediocre, grumpy or homesick as anyone else

Last Friday I spoke to Henry Bonsu (Times Radio) about the preposterous claim that White British are discriminated against by the criminal justice system. www.thetimes.com/radio/show/2... From 19:45 to 25:59 #TwoTierPolicing

Henry Bonsu | Times Radio | The Times and the Sunday Times

Listen to Times Radio live for the latest breaking news, expert analysis and well-informed discussion covering the biggest stories of the day.

thetimes.com

Absolutely agree with this. Back in Spain, one of my classes was taught by the VC at the time. It's possible! And he was just another Prof who had been elected by the staff to be VC for a few years. Again, it's possible to do things differently!! Who knew

Margot Finn@eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Or should VCs and the academic members of their senior teams instead be required to lead and teach 1 undergraduate module per term/semester, including all module admin and marking? Non-academic members of SMTs could all annually take a module, completing all assessments. Serious counterproposal. 3/3

Yes to this and to the suggestion below that they take on a normal load of personal tutees (30 odd for me now) and meet them all 2-4 times a year!

Margot Finn@eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Or should VCs and the academic members of their senior teams instead be required to lead and teach 1 undergraduate module per term/semester, including all module admin and marking? Non-academic members of SMTs could all annually take a module, completing all assessments. Serious counterproposal. 3/3

This. It should also be built into #TEF that if you hold an #academic title, then you are required to teach, regardless of position and wider duties. If not, then your university scores lower* * Not that any of these metrics (including #REF & #KEF too) have any actual value to #HigherEducation

Margot Finn@eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Or should VCs and the academic members of their senior teams instead be required to lead and teach 1 undergraduate module per term/semester, including all module admin and marking? Non-academic members of SMTs could all annually take a module, completing all assessments. Serious counterproposal. 3/3

A bit rich considering Macron and his allies have done and continue to do everything they can to normalise and legitimise the RN and their ideas. But I guess so does calling it "the populist right" rather than extreme right, racist and fascist.

Sophie Pedder@sophiepedder.bsky.social · 5mo ago

“Step by step Emmanuel Macron has been executing what looks like a plan to protect France’s institutions in case the populist right wins next year’s presidential election” economist.com/europe/2026/...

This also tracks the graphs showing women beginning to take a higher percentage of the medical and university workforce at all levels and successive governments continuously insisting on devaluing labour in those professions so much so that statisticians might claim correlation ….

Toby Nangle@tobyn.bsky.social · 5mo ago

The pay premium of the median teacher, or university lecturer, has also fallen

If you have an idea for #Specialissue or #ReviewEssay see 👇details lexnetwork.org homepage under #GenderandJustice

A really easy process. Took me about half a minute. Everyone in the UK please consider doing this.

Living Streets@livingstreets.bsky.social · 5mo ago

It's happening! 📢 On Tuesday, MPs will consider an amendment to enable local leaders to ban pavement parking in their area. We need you to help us get this amendment on to the Bill. Ask your MP to agree to Amendment 265 when it's considered on Tuesday: https://bitly.livingstreets.org.uk/4tMU2Uq

Gérald Darmanin porte au Sénat son projet de loi sur la justice criminelle et pénale. Ce qu’il attaque en réalité, ce sont les droits de la défense et l’État de droit, sacrifiés sur l’autel de la sécurité et au prétexte de la lutte contre la grande criminalité. Par @xavmon.bsky.social

Loi Darmanin : nouveau coup de massue sur l'État de droit

Gérald Darmanin porte au Sénat son projet de loi sur la justice criminelle et pénale : il est fait pour accélérer le processus judiciaire, dit-il, au nom des victimes. Ce qu’il attaque en réalité, ce ...

blast-info.fr