Reposted by Val AstonGlen O'Hara @gsoh31.bsky.social · 17/08/2026The British university emergency will see around 25% to 30% of all posts closed and many unis 'merged'. They contain 100ks of employees who've often given everything, entire lives, to a single research field. Will anyone exercise a duty of care over their mental health? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukUniversity of Sussex staff vote in favour of strike over job cutsMember of the UCU union back a strike over proposals to cut 200 jobs at the University of Sussex. 37735
Reposted by Val AstonMargot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 14/08/2026What you're saying when you say "DEI" when universities say "EDI" (as happens here) and vice versa. And why it actually matters. The great majority of UK (esp. British) universities use "EDI" while US universities use "DEI". Is that "just" semantic, or does it matter? A thread. 🧵1/8ft.comHow Jason Arday’s appointment became a reckoning for CambridgeResignation of Black professor forces university to examine its approach to diversity, equality and inclusion 14286113
Reposted by Val AstonKatrina Navickas @katrinanavickas.bsky.social · 14/08/2026Read more about it in my article academic.oup.com/histres/arti...academic.oup.comThe development of political procession routes and policing the right to march in London, 1780–1915Abstract. Processions and marches were an integral part of popular politics, protest and urban life. This article maps the routes of 101 civic, political a 1169
Reposted by Val AstonDavid Mead @seethingmead.bsky.social · 12/08/2026@graemehayes.bsky.social @crwerren.bsky.social @storiesfromjack.bsky.social @suzmd.bsky.social @lawofprotest.bsky.social @valaston.bsky.social 061
Reposted by Val AstonLlafur: The Welsh People’s History Society @llafur.bsky.social · 13/07/2026Don't forget our next online event is this Saturday! Join us for '“Blaring defiant tunes”: relief, resilience and jazz' with a great line up of talks from Sir Deian Hopkin, Sue Bowyer and Dr Steve Thompson. Tickets: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1926-and-c... 079
Reposted by Val AstonPaul Bernal @paulbernal.bsky.social · 13/07/2026Schools and universities should be the vanguard of the resistance to AI… 0235
Val Aston @valaston.bsky.social · 26/06/2026Well its not continuing in Carmarthen - actually quite cold here today, and pretty windy! 010
Reposted by Val AstonPlashing Vole @plashingvole.bsky.social · 26/06/2026Certainly describes my situation: facing redundancy from a humanities job in weeks, no chance of another academic role, and at a university that went from teaching 15-20 languages to none. 1228295
Reposted by Val AstonCllr Dr Alex Powell @apowelllaw.bsky.social · 18/06/2026Tonight, in Oxford Tommy Robinson and Laurence Fox addressed an empty chamber at almost midnight. This happened because Oxford residents, ordinary residents, showed up in their thousands to make clear that Oxford rejects the racist and divisive bile that Robinson and his ilk spread. 7443137
Val Aston @valaston.bsky.social · 18/06/2026Perhaps its time we all engaged a little more in those long-standing philosophical debates about what it is to be human. And specifically in the HE context, what it is to 'learn'. 020
Reposted by Val AstonMike Masnick @masnick.com · 18/06/2026The conversation I have had with each of my kids: "if you *ever* run into a problem online and you think you're in trouble, you can *always* come talk to me about it, and if you think I will be upset about a choice you made just start out by saying 'I may need some help.'" And I will take that... 91440247
Reposted by Val AstonOxford Clarion @oxfordclarion.bsky.social · 17/06/2026Banning children from social media will disempower teenagers, according to a governance expert at the Oxford Internet Institute. Dr Victoria Nash warns that children will be denied positive social interactions online and cut off from online news and learning. www.ox.ac.uk/news/2026-06...ox.ac.ukExpert Comment: Is banning under-16s from social media protection or exclusion?Dr Victoria Nash, Associate Professor & Senior Policy Fellow, Oxford Internet Institute, warns that a social media ban risks leaving teenagers 'protected' but disempowered, cut off from news, learning... 914453
Reposted by Val AstonEsther @elhopkins.bsky.social · 13/06/2026France is still offering free vaccines for all and young children. If only our government were invested in caring about preventions. 🧵 16122
Reposted by Val AstonAlec Muffett @alecmuffett.bsky.social · 16/06/2026When I was maybe 13 years old (1981-ish) I got a box of Flowers of Sulphur BP from Boots and made allotropes of plastic sulphur. I then mixed some in proportion with ground charcoal & some pickling nitrate, packed it under a brick and blew the brick in half. Happy, safe days, before the internet! 23510
Val Aston @valaston.bsky.social · 15/06/2026Have just come out of two hours of academic integrity vivas to see this. Am not surprised by the decision, but it really is a depressing one. 010
Reposted by Val AstonNetpol @netpol.org · 15/06/2026Breaking: the Court of Appeal has accepted the government's appeal on both grounds against the decision that banning Palestine Action was unlawful. The group remains banned as a "future risk to national security" 13220
Reposted by Val AstonDr Duncan Robertson @duncanrobertson.bsky.social · 15/06/2026The Law of Laws. 0135
Reposted by Val AstonPaul Bernal @paulbernal.bsky.social · 14/06/2026It will drive kids into the darker areas of the net, make them easier prey for predators, cut them off from support networks, make them anxious, depressed and desperate. Well done, campaigners. 44816
Reposted by Val AstonPaul Bernal @paulbernal.bsky.social · 14/06/2026This will actively harm young people. A terrible idea, a political knee-jerk of the worst kind. 98231
Reposted by Val AstonJames O'Malley @jamesomalley.co.uk · 14/06/2026Oh my god. How did this get further than being laughed out of the room? www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026... 3429382
Reposted by Val AstonNetpol @netpol.org · 15/06/2026The judgement in "The King on the application of Ammori v Secretary of State for the Home Department" – the government's appeal against the High Court's decision that proscribing Palestine Action was unlawful – is at 11am today in Court 4, Royal Courts of Justice in London 1239
Reposted by Val AstonHeather Burns @heatherburnstech.bsky.social · 15/06/2026It's almost as if the whole point of the past seven years of law and policy on this issue was neither protecting children nor fixing social media nor curbing big tech, but building both a domestic surveillance tech sector and a captive market for it. internet.exchangepoint.tech/the-dog-that...internet.exchangepoint.techThe Dog that Caught the Car: Britain's 'World-Leading' InternetBilled as a “world-leading” child-protection law, the UK’s Online Safety Act has instead normalized surveillance and ID checks. “Tech policy wonk" Heather Burns writes that the model is spreading acro... 3307142
Reposted by Val AstonAlexander Clarkson @aphclarkson.bsky.social · 10/06/2026The issue here is that loyalist terror networks have always had tight relationships with the Far Right in England, Scotland and Wales. After the riots in Southport there are risks that these neo-Fascist networks in England in particular view loyalist terror structures as a source of inspiration 917055
Reposted by Val AstonJ Green @jgreen63.bsky.social · 10/06/2026This is excellent. Well done Baroness! And to the @libdems.org.uk in the HoC who are pressing on this. It should be @greenparty.org.uk too, given they have the Covid and Long Covid policy and @greensagainstcovid.bsky.social . Get involved with this cross party work. youtu.be/27cH_0E8HQQ?...youtu.beStatement on Schools' Air Quality in House of LordsYouTube video by Ruth Brooker 11410
Reposted by Val AstonNetpol @netpol.org · 30/05/2026Manchester cafe owner says police tried to recruit him to spy on Palestine Action www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...theguardian.comManchester cafe owner says police tried to recruit him to spy on Palestine ActionExclusive: Shams Sadiq says officers offered financial inducements and to turn a ‘blind eye’ to certain offences 02318
Reposted by Val AstonDavid Veevers @davidveevers.bsky.social · 19/05/2026Yeah well one of the country's major employment sectors is collapsing and no one seems to be TAKING ANY BLOODY NOTICE 36516
Reposted by Val AstonStanford University Press @stanfordpress.bsky.social · 08/07/2025As AI creeps into every aspect of our lives, the data grab required to power AI also expands. AI and Assembly analyzes how AI threatens free assembly by clustering people without consent, amplifying social biases, and empowering authoritarian surveillance. www.sup.org/books/sociol... 0158
Reposted by Val Astonabolishwestmin.bsky.social @abolishwestmin.bsky.social · 14/05/2026This is superb! 🏴 5298
Reposted by Val AstonMarcus Chown @marcuschown.bsky.social · 09/05/2026The great irony of the Welsh success of Reform, run by millionaire ex-public schoolboys, is that one the greatest Welshmen, & founder of the NHS, warned of this “How can wealth persuade poverty to use its political freedom to keep wealth in power? Here lies whole art of Tory politics” Aneurin Bevan 462073677
Reposted by Val AstonPlashing Vole @plashingvole.bsky.social · 24/04/2026My university hasn’t reached this level of clarity yet. Managers tell themselves it’s all going brilliantly *because* they’ve sacked so many people. 618957
Reposted by Val AstonWorking Class History @workingclasshistory.com · 22/04/2026#WorkingClassHistoryWednesday! Part 1 of our series on the UK's 1926 General Strike is now out for everyone: told with archive recordings of workers who were involved. Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts: workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e119... #GeneralStrike100 16823
Val Aston @valaston.bsky.social · 20/04/2026Well. So this is what UK universities are spending their money on. aje.news/30ic1paje.newsBritish universities paid security firm to ‘spy’ on pro-Palestine studentsInvestigation reveals how Horus, a company led by ex-military intelligence officials, was hired during protest movement. 000
Val Aston @valaston.bsky.social · 15/04/2026aje.news/wx3hywaje.newsFrench police arrest students protesting anti-Semitism lawPolice in France have arrested students in Paris during a sit-in against a controversial anti-Semitism bill. 000
Reposted by Val AstonHelen Salisbury @helensalisbury.bsky.social · 13/04/2026That's £1.6bn profit that went to investors and hedge funds, not to training more nurses and doctors, or investing in crumbling infrastructure, or sorting out corridor care. www.theguardian.com/society/2026...theguardian.comPrivate firms providing services to NHS made £1.6bn profit in two years, research findsExclusive: MPs say profit-making levels in England are ‘scandalous’ and call for cap on amount private companies can make from NHS 02918
Reposted by Val AstonDr Elisa Perego @elisaperego78.bsky.social · 09/04/2026Long Covid is costing billions in healthcare and lost productivity "Addressing the Costs and Care for Long COVID. The Long Shadow of the Pandemic" OECD report www.oecd.org/en/publicati...oecd.orgAddressing the Costs and Care for Long COVIDLong COVID is a post-acute infection syndrome characterised by the persistence of symptoms following a COVID-19 illness. This novel and complex condition has a debilitating and often disabling impact ... 14524
Reposted by Val AstonBilly Hanlon @bhanlon15.bsky.social · 08/04/2026Financial Times: 'Long Covid projected to cost OECD economies up to $135bn a year' 'New research forecasts hit to GDP from lower productivity and workers quitting because of long-term illness' www.ft.com/content/de44...ft.comLong Covid projected to cost OECD economies up to $135bn a yearNew research forecasts hit to GDP from lower productivity and workers quitting because of long-term illness 19162
Reposted by Val AstonPaul Bernal @paulbernal.bsky.social · 07/04/2026It’s not surprising that neither children nor parents understand online privacy when the government and the ICO tell them not to use the most important tools: encryption and anonymity. “Call for parents to teach online privacy like road safety” www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukCall for parents to teach their children online privacy like they would road safetyThree in four parents fear their child cannot make safe choices about personal data online, the data watchdog finds. 46820
Reposted by Val AstonAlasdair Mackenzie @alasdairmackenzie.bsky.social · 07/04/2026When I saw the headline referring to trafficking, I thought, well, that’s got to be exaggerated. And whilst trafficking isn’t quite the word, there’s undoubtedly a grim, exploitative system where there ought to be a positive, long-lasting relationship between the UK and people who come to study heretheguardian.com‘I see it as trafficking’: the brutal reality of life as a foreign student in the UKThe long read: Universities in Britain rely on overseas applicants paying full fees, which has given rise to some unscrupulous recruiters and left many hopefuls and their families deep in debt 1141
Val Aston @valaston.bsky.social · 07/04/2026Wouldn't it be nice if we could go back to viewing education as an investment in society, rather than a business opportunity and mechanism for fleecing students (international and domestic). 000
Reposted by Val AstonSunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 03/04/2026France has banned a large gathering - the Annual Encounter of Muslims of France - in northern France, with the Paris police saying the reason is that the Muslim participants could be the targets of an extreme terrorist attack by others (from the far right) - BBC www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukFrance bans Muslim gathering citing risk to participantsThe four-day Annual Encounter of Muslims of France was due to open Friday in Le Bourget. 2259
Reposted by Val AstonMikki Brock @mikkibrock.bsky.social · 01/04/2026I don't see this said enough: the widespread use of generative AI is not only making our jobs as educators harder logistically, but also emotionally. It is genuinely sad to be suspicious of students when you have spent so much time building a pedagogy based on trust and not being a cop. It sucks. 482019511
Reposted by Val AstonGreens Against Covid @greensagainstcovid.bsky.social · 15/03/2026What is the @greenparty.org.uk policy offering those with Long Covid that other parties aren’t? - research - access to better treatments - prevention - following the science - hope not abandonment #LongCovidAwarenessDay #LongCovid #EveryHeartbeatCounts #LongCovidStandUp #fundlongcovidresearch 43019
Reposted by Val AstonT. Ryan Gregory 🇨🇦 @tryangregory.bsky.social · 30/03/2026Everyone should. www.reuters.com/business/aer...reuters.comSpain closes airspace to US planes involved in Iran war, defence minister saysIt's a step beyond Spain's previous denial of use of jointly-operated military bases. 07620
Reposted by Val AstonModern Records Centre, University of Warwick @mrcwarwick.bsky.social · 30/03/2026New 1926 General Strike map online! Using early 20th century Ordnance Survey maps, the online resource shows strike events (through archive sources) in their contemporary landscape. Explore the map, digitised sources and more at warwick.ac.uk/services/lib... 414382
Reposted by Val AstonKatrina Navickas @katrinanavickas.bsky.social · 30/03/2026The removal of the cap has by contrast heavily impacted universities like mine and other ones not able to pay I to the Russell Group brand identity, and so we are facing extinction by spreadsheet logic 3298
Reposted by Val AstonKatrina Navickas @katrinanavickas.bsky.social · 30/03/2026Colleagues at the University of York tell me of increased mass recruitment in the hundreds to their programmes this year, with lecture halls unable to accommodate the number of students. Not sure that's the best "student experience". 23712
Reposted by Val AstonJason Hickel @jasonhickel.bsky.social · 30/03/2026Make no mistake, every major weapons manufacturer in the US is lobbying hard for the continuation of the illegal attacks against Iran, because they are making *enormous* profits out of this. Death and destruction is their business model. 922588
Reposted by Val AstonDeclassified UK @declassifieduk.org · 30/03/2026The Metropolitan Police arrested pro-Palestine activists against its own internal guidance, documents seen by Declassified suggest. www.declassifieduk.org/met-police-f...declassifieduk.orgMet police failed to follow internal guidelines on policing Palestine protestsInternal guidances also show the force cracking down on Arabic words in a way that ‘smacks’ of racism, say pro-Palestinian advocates 28751
