Trains return to Cirencester after 60 years. (Well not exactly, but the station was open to visitors over the weekend and one of the old diesel railcars that used to work on the branch line to Kemble was parked outside, and started up.) Nice to see.

So I've been reading the Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper. There's some good things in there. But when it comes to universities there's very little to cheer. The situation is very tough and will get worse. The last chance to preserve what we've got has passed. Let me explain why. (1/?)

Somewhere in the Department for Education, a phone is ringing On October 20th at a bit after 5pm, the UK government introduced its Education and Skills white paper to Parliament, to absolutely no…

I wrote about the stupid white paper.

In summary, with these people in the driver's seat and apparently unbothered by consequences, we're so cooked.

Way past its prime: how did Amazon get so rubbish? Sick of scrolling through junk results, AI-generated ads and links to lookalike products? The author and activist behind the term ‘enshittification’ explains what’s gone wrong with the internet – and ...

Interesting critique of Amazon, the poster child of ‘enshittification’ www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

The Guardian University Guide 2026 – the rankings Find a course at one of the top universities in the country. Our league tables rank them all subject by subject, as well as by student satisfaction, staff numbers, spending and career prospects Continue reading...

The Guardian University Guide 2026 – the rankings

Lisbon’s funicular tragedy struck a city that is struggling to balance old and new | Larry Ryan Any large, historic city is a fragile thing – but Portugal’s property and tourism boom has intensified this sense of vulnerability, says writer Larry Ryan

Overtourism in Lisbon blamed for recent funicular disaster www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The reason I list these Higher Education futures in such stark terms is to tease out the gap between institutional incentives at the micro level and the macro-level interests of the state. (1/2)

‘It has echoes of happiness’: life for gen Z in the seaside town I once called home The Guardian’s former north of England editor returned to Morecambe after 25 years to discover the place where she grew up has even fewer amenities for young people – and the feeling of being ‘left be...

Life as a young person in a seaside town #Morecambe #tourism #regeneration www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Here's one of the main things we'll see from the government in the Post-16 Skills White Paper. Legal and competition rules will be changed to allow universities to merge and/ or be dissolved, while protecting creditors. So that's all good good good cool cool cool.

Britons booking later, closer, shorter UK breaks, travel firms say The trend is down to people trying to save money and make the most of hot weather, travel firms say.

Britons holiday booking habits are changing #later #closer #shorter www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

That’s right, ‘associated’. They had the London weekend franchise ‘til 1968, though this ident dates from the 70s when they broadcast to the Midlands all week (until Central took over in 1982). Think Crossroads

Latest batch of numbers, from recent trips to London and Derby #trainspotting

I’ve found my tribe! #ShatteredBritain

5 facts about how the world’s population is expected to change by 2100 The world's population is expected to peak at 10.3 billion in 2084 and then decline to 10.2 billion through the end of the century.

5 facts about how the world’s population is expected to change by 2100
www.pewresearch.org/...

OK, so the animation doesn't work on Bluesky. You can see it on my LinkedIn profile, if of interest

One thing I'm proud of from my time serving on the Bournemouth University Business School Executive Committee is the work that we put into embedding #foresight and #futures literacy in our undergraduate degrees. The brief presentation I use(d) to 'make the case' is included as a .gif with this post.

The state of the UK higher education sector’s finances - HEPI In recent years, financial pressures have mounted across the entirety of the UK higher education (HE) sector, and have left many institutions in an exceptionally vulnerable position. In England alone,...

Grim reading for anyone who cares about UK #highered www.hepi.ac.uk/2025/07/08/t...

The state of the UK higher education sector’s finances - HEPI In recent years, financial pressures have mounted across the entirety of the UK higher education (HE) sector, and have left many institutions in an exceptionally vulnerable position. In England alone,...

Dear Lord, university finance figures are bad. 40% of them have negative Net Cash Inflow; their assets to liabilities capacity is declining rapidly; 24 of them had fewer than 30 liquidity days on hand even in 2023/24. 😓😱 www.hepi.ac.uk/2025/07/08/t...

‘We’re told we won’t amount to anything’: is it possible to change the fortunes of young people living in England’s coastal towns? Young people living by the sea are often in some of the most deprived areas of the country, but they say they want the chance to thrive. The Guardian is embarking on a year-long series to tell their s...

Those of us who live, work or have relatives in seaside towns will be acutely aware of the consequences - and will have a view on the causes - of social exclusion, and how this affects the lives and life chances of young people in these #leftbehind places www.theguardian.com/environment/...

First spot of the Gromit Unleashed 3 trail and it’s a Norbot! #SweetandTidy

A bruising week and a reminder of the precariousness of working life, and of life itself. Time to be thankful and to be hopeful

‘My mind was shrieking: “What am I doing?”’ – when the digital nomad dream turns sour Working remotely from a beach in a far-off land sounds like bliss – and the number of people doing it has soared since 2019. But between bouts of illness, relentless admin and crushing loneliness, man...

Life as a digital nomad isn’t always sunshine and roses #work #tourism www.theguardian.com/money/2025/j...

A walk through Weymouth’s seaside history with Allan Brodie, arranged by the Seaside Heritage Network. A favourite holiday destination for the Gale family, back in the day #tourism

Spare a thought tonight for colleagues throughout UK #highered at risk of redundancy or who feel they have no choice but to leave voluntarily. A loss of talent and know-how to institutions and, for those exiting academia, the sector :(

Worst decision universities ever made was to sell themselves as building 'work-based practice' and 'real world skills'. That's not what a university does, and as soon as it claims that it loses all relevance. The sector has painted itself into the tiniest of corners.

How Lisbon made itself irresistible to tourists – and became the least affordable city in Europe | Agustín Cocola-Gant Tourists stay in short-term rentals and foreigners buy second homes, while residents of the city rent rooms, not apartments, says researcher Agustín Cocola-Gant

The root of the problem- neoliberalism #tourism www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Academics don't need vacations

Revealed: Thousands of UK university students caught cheating using AI Guardian investigation finds almost 7,000 proven cases of cheating – and experts says these are tip of the iceberg

A more nuanced article than the headline suggests #highered #GenAI #assessment www.theguardian.com/education/20...

The student experience is beyond breaking point Student numbers over the decade are up 15.5 per cent, but their term time hours in employment are up 79.6 per cent. Reviewing this year's Student Academic Experience Survey, Jim Dickinson works out wh...

“Unless the sector is prepared to be more radical… it will continue down a fatal path – of demanding more and more from staff and students while paying the former less and less and charging the latter… more and more.” #highered wonkhe.com/blogs/the-st...