Very pleased to announce that today was my first day at the University of Leeds. I am joining as Lecturer in Inclusion, Childhood & Youth and will be teaching across UG and PG Childhood Studies and serving as programme leader for the BA Education. Looking forward to working with my new colleagues.

Fines for term-time holidays are at record levels – this will further erode trust between parents and schools Fines for parents whose children take unauthorised holiday have risen from £60 to £80.

Half a million fines were sent to parents last year. The system costs us money and clogs up the courts. It is deeply problematic as I write here. #edusky

theconversation.com/fines-for-te...

Parental activism in education Parent Engagement Webinar Dec 2024 YouTube video by UofG Education

For anyone who missed my talk before Xmas, you can find a recording of it here - Parental activism in education Parent Engagement Webinar Dec 2024 youtu.be/z5NQqzkB5Qw?si… via @YouTube

Really enjoyed this event and keen to tune into more in 2025!

Claudette Williams obituary

My new article on parental activism, which looks at the caring emotions driving parents' campaign work has now been assigned a volume/issue number @BJSocEd: doi.org/10.1080/014256…

There is still time to register for our Dec 11 webinar with @nathanfretwell.bsky.social talking about parental activism at 11am ET/4pm GMT t.co/Z72aQz7bew

Fara Dabhoiwala · A Man of Parts and Learning: Francis Williams Gets His Due The only certainty about the picture is that it shows Francis Williams. No one has ever been able to discover who...

Here is a fascinating article by Fara Dabhoiwala in the LRB about the 18c Afro-Jamaica polymath Francis Williams (c, 1690-c. 1770). Brilliant detective work on the level of Carlo Ginsburg. And it has a Benjamin Lay connection!

www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

And 90% of states…

For BSA members - I’ll be speaking on parental activism at the Pedagogies of Hope seminar series next Wednesday. Come along 👇🏽 www.britsoc.co.uk/events/key-b...

Next Wednesday afternoon I’ll be delivering a webinar on parental activism in education. Come along! 👇🏽

Why do parents become activists? Are all parent activists the same in their goals and approaches? Register for our Dec 11 parent engagement webinar with @nathanfretwell.bsky.social
to know more bit.ly/ParentalActi...

Yeah, just made me reflect on the mark we make on other people’s memories

A friend died today. We weren’t massively close, but it made me reflect that when we go, our legacy is often the stories we leave in other people’s lives x

Back in the day I remember an institution wanting to pay 12 an hour for someone to design, write, lead and teach a module on Nietzsche. That was never right then and it’s not now.

Key contributed to the creep as well whereby requirements and expectations for securing junior permanent posts are much higher than they used to be.

Oxford relying on ‘Deliveroo-style’ contracts with most tutorials not taught by full-time staff Leading university accused of relying on young academics employed on gig-economy terms

This has been going on for decades across a whole host of institutions and needs to stop. Unfair and wrong on many levels. www.theguardian.com/education/20...

The boat feels like it’s definitely sinking

Come join us to discuss all things parental activism/campaign work

New article on parental activism in education out now open access with @BJSocEd. In it we explore how parents' activism is linked to care for their children, schools and communities.

First post Bluesky peeps. Just about to embark on this. I’m pretty sure that most good sci-fi is either feminist or anarchist or a combination of both. Not exclusively mind as I’m partial to the odd space opera every now and again 😁