Andy Burnham knows the courses to avoid: he should tell A-level pupils www.thetimes.com/article Article says 18 yr olds need data on 1) earnings from jobs with L4-6 apprenticeships versus 2£ places on 3 yr FT L6 degrees But they also need probability data on getting 1 (low) versus 2 (high)

Andy Burnham knows the courses to avoid: he should tell A-level pupils

Arming teenagers with salary data would help the prime minister put apprenticeships and degrees on equal footing

thetimes.com

So my parents' town is on fire. Seems that Google is updating its maps so we can keep track. Which is great. For another day but the anti-net zero lot can hang their heads in shame. Of course, areas where Reform have made recent gains are on fire.

I feel like xkcd has been getting more into geoscience the last couple of years, and I absolutely love it. Bonus text reads "the administration thinks it's weird, but the geologists say it looks normal." xkcd.com/3284/

Looking forward to the commentators and politicians who complain that too many kids go to university expressing disappointment that their own kids have got into university today.

By February this year, @london.gov.uk's TfL had spent £66.5m replacing the #GallowsCorner flyover and re-aligning the traffic lanes below. This should have been a once in a generation opportunity to future-proof the junction for walking, wheeling and cycling. Instead, it's a failure.

Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan@london.gov.uk · yesterday

Good cycle routes don’t just move people. They change habits. That's exactly what's happening across London's dramatically expanding Cycleways network, transforming the way Londoners travel and making cycling a safer choice for everyday journeys.

On the one hand, there is abundant evidence that people are following the other algorithms. On the other hand, I personally find them almost useless. I can't remember the last time I watched something because Netflix recommended it. I use Spotify like it's an iPod. I like this feed not X.

Chris Dillow@chrisdillow.bsky.social · 18h ago

This is Packard's The Hidden Persuaders for the 21st C: whereas our preferences then were shaped by advertisers, now they are shaped by algorithms. Both undermine the neoclassical fiction that preferences are autonomous: laurenleek.substack.com/p/temperatur...

If you enjoyed this eclipse, you should pop the date of the next one in your colander.

...and thus began Colander Day when the peoples of Britain did take to the streets in their droves to worship the gods of the Sun with the utensils of the home... P.S. Try explaining *that* one, #Archaeology!! P.P.S. Did I mention I've got a new theory about wine strainers?? #Eclipse

ANNOUNCEMENT: All our sundials will be out of order this evening between about 6pm and 8pm, we apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. Normal service will resume tomorrow. In unrelated news, enjoy the eclipse later... Photos: Mike Selby, Annapurna Mellor, Chris Davies, John Millar

Yes that's correct. The gap between the (high) UK NEET rate and that of other similar economies is driven by the UK having lower education rates, not lower employment rates.

The evidence is clear: countries with lower NEET rates than the UK get there almost entirely through higher rates of post-18 education. In these countries, more young people stay in education for longer and often combine it with work.

Kirby move over, this baby boxfish deserves to be a star of its own video game universe!! 🤩👝🐟💨 #smoothtrunkfish #trunkfish #boxfish #swimminghandbag #coralcitycamera

Good article. But, the ONS response rates chart starts too late, in 2015. Response rates had been falling for a long time, including a near 10% fall in 2010, mostly in 2nd-5th wave interviews (maybe survey cutbacks). 70% response in 2000, now back up to 25%.

Amy Borrett@amyborrett.ft.com · 2d ago

📉 Long-term sickness may be smaller problem for the UK than previously thought, according to early estimates from the overhauled ONS jobs survey @financialtimes.com as.ft.com/r/25abc82a-7...

A curious ONS release on the impact of employment advisers in NHS talking therapies on benefit receipt. www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopula.... This sort of thing used to be commissioned by DWP or others from evaluation experts. Doing that could have been helpful.

Revitalising the high street? I think this is true. From free market liberals to green lefties, we basically agree... and voters think we're mad.

Nick Gray@path-dependent.bsky.social · 3d ago

Pricing motoring and free parking correctly might help. It's the wonk solution that cuts across the political spectrum but is close to guaranteed to get you voted out.

Is it some sort of pissing contest to see who can do the most damage to the planet? www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

Heathrow says need for expansion ‘clear’ as it loses title of Europe’s busiest airport

West London airport reports 7.86 million passengers in July, compared with 8.15 million for Istanbul

theguardian.com

UK national productivity trends: getting the data right By Niki Barbas, Anna Valero and John Van Reenen https://cep.lse.ac.uk/_NEW/PUBLICATIONS/abstract.asp?index=12425

The visual definition of a "cyclist" completely changes the second you stop designing infrastructure exclusively for middle-aged men riding for sport.

Trade offs are common in life as in education & skills policy Eg the graduate earnings premium v parity of esteem for nongrads 'The first argument says: the graduate premium over non-graduates should increase. The second conversely affirms: the graduate premium over non-graduates should decrease'

Wonkhe@wonkhe.bsky.social · 3d ago

NEW on Wonkhe: Omar Khan traces the contours of two contradictory national discussions on higher education - on buff.ly/MWMnC7W

I always suspected a UK government would eventually reverse course on "coding in public". So I've been backing up all government code. For six years. Today I finally generated a report on what has been deleted. Its much worse than I realised. github.com/uk-gov-mirro...

Materialist that I am, I think definition of advanced manufacturing is: you can charge a lot for the product. i.e. protected against commoditisation by a technological edge, (via formal IP or hard to reproduce process knowledge), by regulatory barriers, or by incorporation in new business models

This is a fantastic report. Based on dairies kept by zero-hours workers, it gives a host of useful insights including the chaotic management practices that variable hours contracts facilitate.

Work Foundation@workfoundation.bsky.social · 3d ago

📢 A record 1.24 million people are employed on zero-hour contracts. Our new report, supported by @tuc.org.uk, shows that many workers are trapped in a cycle of unpredictable hours, financial insecurity and one-sided flexibility (1/3). Read➡️ www.lancaster.ac.uk/work-foundat... Video⬇️

There's been extensive research on floating bus stops, where cycle tracks pass bus stops on a main road. They need to be designed well - but the claims they're dangerous just don't match the evidence. Without them, cycling won't be inclusive & safe for everyone. www.standard.co.uk/news/london/...

Disability campaigners call on mayor to scrap floating bus stops

The stops, first introduced in 2013, involve a cycle lane running between a bus stop and the pavement

standard.co.uk

"The King's Highway" Protest, freedom of expression and the public-private law divide How the UK Supreme Court decided a fundamental rights case without using human rights law New, by me at @prospectmagazine.co.uk www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/law/th...

But this is important - England held up much better than other countries after the pandemic. Same applies to the NRT (which was showing improvement esp in maths pre-pandemic).

Foreign student slump forces A* universities to accept BBB grades www.thetimes.com The annual income of Oxford University exceeds £3bn, equivalent to the Apprenticeship Budget in England

Foreign student slump forces A* universities to accept BBB grades

Our analysis reveals just how much higher education has relied on international fees — and what happens when those students stop applying

thetimes.com

Attainment - yes, I agree. But need to start with accepting the facts, that England does well at this, not try and recreate an evil and reactionary system of gold, tin and clay children. SEN - yes, agree. The 2014 Act is a bad bit of legislation. Labour right to have sought to address this.

Ellie Harris@eleanorrrlouise.bsky.social · 5d ago

I think while some might have overstated the relative role of schools v wider economy- the debate on here massively undersells the huge role schools play. Attainment, engagement, SEN, mental health- all factors for becoming NEET & something schools can help with. It all feels a bit reactionary.

One of the long term weaknesses of the service has been the lack of attention paid to preserving tacit, as well as codified, knowledge. It would also help if ministers occasionally asked "have we done anything like this before, and what did we learn".

The now much derided Structural Funds programmes were very good at evaluation. Domestic programmes much less so. www.nao.org.uk/reports/supp... TLDR DLUHC hasn't learned any lessons because it didn't have a formal programme of evaluation.

Fairly sure UK’s productivity crisis entirely explained by the fact that any interaction (with public or private institution) requiring contact with actual human takes two hours. Everyone in the country is in the queue to resolve a problem with everyone else in the country.