Council for the Defence of British Universities
@cdbu.bsky.social
The crisis of marketisation has put universities in danger. We believe that it’s time to fight back. Visit our website to become a member 🎓
CDBU’s Chair has penned an open letter to the new Prime Minister, read now on our blog: cdbu.org.uk/open-letter-...
Open Letter to the Prime Minister - CDBU
20 July 2026 Dear Prime Minister On behalf of the Council for the Defence of British Universities (CDBU), I request a meeting with you to discuss Higher Education. The sector needs a review of managem...
cdbu.org.uk
Reminder that there is still time to register for our AGM. We will be joined by an excellent panel of speakers, abstracts linked below. Email cdbuchair@gmail.com to reserve your spot!
Council for the Defence of British Universities@cdbu.bsky.social · 4w agoJoin us for our AGM on Wednesday 22 July at 3pm! Talks by: David Berry - How Not to Run a University Aisha Qadi - A Seat at the Table, A Voice in the Room? Exploring Stakeholder Voice in UK HE Governance Martin Mills -The Future of Knowledge Institutions: AI, Universities and the Human Question
Join us for our AGM on Wednesday 22 July at 3pm! Talks by: David Berry - How Not to Run a University Aisha Qadi - A Seat at the Table, A Voice in the Room? Exploring Stakeholder Voice in UK HE Governance Martin Mills -The Future of Knowledge Institutions: AI, Universities and the Human Question
Annual General Meeting 2026 - CDBU
The Annual General Meeting for 2026 of the Council for the Defence of British Universities will take place online via Zoom on Wednesday 22 July at 3pm. The meeting is open to members and non-members b...
cdbu.org.uk
Remember to get your funding applications in by the end of the month! #funding #researchfunding #CDBU
Council for the Defence of British Universities@cdbu.bsky.social · 3mo ago🚨 PLEASE SHARE WIDELY! 🚨 We are delighted to announce that we have opened a new round of project funding applications. More information about how to apply for up to £7,500 worth of funding can be found on our website: cdbu.org.uk/funding-appl...
🚨 PLEASE SHARE WIDELY! 🚨 We are delighted to announce that we have opened a new round of project funding applications. More information about how to apply for up to £7,500 worth of funding can be found on our website: cdbu.org.uk/funding-appl...
Funding Applications Now Open! - CDBU
The Council for the Defence of British Universities invites applications to our second call for project funding. Projects can encompass any aspect of higher education in the UK, including policy and i...
cdbu.org.uk
🚨 PLEASE SHARE WIDELY! 🚨 We are delighted to announce that we have opened a new round of project funding applications. More information about how to apply for up to £7,500 worth of funding can be found on our website: cdbu.org.uk/funding-appl...
Funding Applications Now Open! - CDBU
The Council for the Defence of British Universities invites applications to our second call for project funding. Projects can encompass any aspect of higher education in the UK, including policy and i...
cdbu.org.uk
We recently held our first election! Please join us in welcoming our new executive committee members 👏🏻
“GenAI systems throw out ‘best guess mashups’, generating articles that bear some similarity to the work that academics publish, but are simply unreal. Meanwhile, the real publications written by actual people very much do exist, and have never been easier to find”
GenAI – an enabler, a disrupter: how should universities respond? - CDBU
Words by Professor Leo McCann and Professor Simon Sweeney, University of York The sudden availability and widespread usage of Large Language Models (LLMs) and Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI...
cdbu.org.uk
On governance, the recent @cdbu.bsky.social report contains a lot of insights: cdbu.org.uk/wp-content/u...
cdbu.org.uk
You have until the 28 February to apply to join our executive committee!
Council for the Defence of British Universities@cdbu.bsky.social · 6mo ago
You have until tomorrow to apply to join our Executive Committee! ⏰⏰⏰⏰⏰
Council for the Defence of British Universities@cdbu.bsky.social · 6mo ago
📢 BOOK GIVEAWAY ends next week: Share this post to win 1 free copy of *Women, 'Failure' and Academia*(Apr 2026). Raffle ends Thrs 5March. www.bloomsbury.com/uk/women-fai... #FreeBook #Academia #AcademicPrecarity #Failure
You have until the 28 February to apply to join our executive committee!
Council for the Defence of British Universities@cdbu.bsky.social · 6mo ago
I was on precarious, short-term, hourly-paid teaching contracts for 12 years, to the (ongoing) detriment of my mental health, and I can't stress enough how awful and unethical casualisation is. But here are five simple and effectively free things universities could do to improve matters.
Council for the Defence of British Universities@cdbu.bsky.social · 6mo agoNew on the CDBU blog: 5 low cost things employers could do to help precarious staff 💰 Words by @hagenilda.bsky.social ✍️
100% this. Also, universities need to cough up what they owe in a timely manner for part-time folks, precariously employed people and self-employed suppliers. That institutions are quick enough to cut you off but slow to organise entitlements and money owed is beyond unfair.
Council for the Defence of British Universities@cdbu.bsky.social · 6mo agoNew on the CDBU blog: 5 low cost things employers could do to help precarious staff 💰 Words by @hagenilda.bsky.social ✍️
I wrote a piece for the CDBU blog with some low or no cost things our employers could do right now if they care about precarious staff as much as they say they do.
Council for the Defence of British Universities@cdbu.bsky.social · 6mo agoNew on the CDBU blog: 5 low cost things employers could do to help precarious staff 💰 Words by @hagenilda.bsky.social ✍️
New on the CDBU blog: 5 low cost things employers could do to help precarious staff 💰 Words by @hagenilda.bsky.social ✍️
Our employers say they care about precarious staff. Here are five low cost things they could do right now to help us – and them - CDBU
cdbu.org.uk
Excellent launch event for the CDBU Code of Ethical University Governance. Very important principles set out - starting with constructive criticism. There’s been a reminder today from OfS that providers need to meet the public interest governance principles.
Steve Jones@profstevenjones.bsky.social · 8mo agoExcited to see the final version of the @cdbu.bsky.social Code of Ethical University Governance in the public domain, and looking forward to the launch event in Parliament later today. cdbu.org.uk/cdbu-code-20... #UKHE #governance
“HEPI’s new Policy Note finds striking consensus across the higher education community for more ethical, transparent and balanced university governance.” @profstevenjones.bsky.social
Higher Education Policy Institute@hepi-news.bsky.social · 8mo agoNew Post: New HEPI Policy Note: Views on University Governance www.hepi.ac.uk/2025/12/04/n...
Thank you to everyone who responded to the consultation. This is the first Code of #governance in the #UKHE sector to be grounded in academic research and to reflect a broad spectrum of views. A summary of consultation responses is here. www.hepi.ac.uk/reports/stro...
Strong support for ethical reform of university governance - HEPI
New research suggests there is strong backing for a university governance Code that addresses power imbalances and over-financialisation. This is the first of two reports that HEPI is publishing on un...
hepi.ac.uk
Well done to Steve & others involved in producing this 👏 Now we just need university governance to live up to such principles! The code, usefully, lays out practical steps towards this. It's collective/political pressure & organising that can make it a widespread reality.
Steve Jones@profstevenjones.bsky.social · 8mo agoExcited to see the final version of the @cdbu.bsky.social Code of Ethical University Governance in the public domain, and looking forward to the launch event in Parliament later today. cdbu.org.uk/cdbu-code-20... #UKHE #governance
Excited to see the final version of the @cdbu.bsky.social Code of Ethical University Governance in the public domain, and looking forward to the launch event in Parliament later today. cdbu.org.uk/cdbu-code-20... #UKHE #governance
CDBU Code of Ethical University Governance | CDBU
cdbu.org.uk
After extensive consultation and development from individuals and organisations across the sector, we are very pleased to publish the CDBU Code of Ethical University Governance. You can read the code and the tracked changes version here: cdbu.org.uk/cdbu-code-20... @profstevenjones.bsky.social 👏🏻
There are only a few spaces left! RSVP now to secure your place 👇👇👇
Council for the Defence of British Universities@cdbu.bsky.social · 9mo agoWe are pleased to announce that the CDBU Code of Ethical University Governance will be officially launched by @profstevenjones.bsky.social on 4 December, at the House of Commons. Prof Jones will be joined by an excellent panel of speakers. There are limited spaces, so RSVP as soon as possible.
We are pleased to announce that the CDBU Code of Ethical University Governance will be officially launched by @profstevenjones.bsky.social on 4 December, at the House of Commons. Prof Jones will be joined by an excellent panel of speakers. There are limited spaces, so RSVP as soon as possible.
We need to begin to tell these stories about universities as well. So — what did university mean to you? Contact @cdbu.bsky.social at cdbupress@gmail.com with your story. You can read some previous submissions here: cdbu.org.uk/stories/
Stories Gallery | CDBU
cdbu.org.uk
