Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · 19d

Reminded of @stephenkb.bsky.social's excellent column on AI and the curriculum.

"It is knowledge that allows you to deploy and use your skills."

www.ft.com/content/1369...

Ben Schneider @benmschneider.bsky.social · 19d

Technological change means that workers will probably need to retrain multiple times during a career. Better to use uni years to develop general skills because the immediately marketable ones will depreciate quickly.

2 2 17

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · 20d

And on housing and academia: "But we have had Oxford University academics seeking our help simply to eat... The cost-of-living crisis is an obvious factor, but housing, particularly the complex rental market, is also a big driver."
www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news...

Academics at prestigious university 'rely on charities for food and showers'

Unprecedented demand on income is leaving lecturers at Oxford University on the brink - those in need seek support, food and even a shower from charity Oxford Gatehouse

www.mirror.co.uk

1 1

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · 20d

1 2 4

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · 21d

Desperate to see an updated chart for Shania please

1 6

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · 29d

'Because Black women are overrepresented in public sector jobs, the Trump Administration’s massive cuts to the federal workforce have likely contributed towards over 300,000 Black women leaving the labor force between February and July.'

time.com/7315624/risi...

Rising Unemployment Among Black Women Is a Bad Economic Sign

"Black women are the canary in the coal mine on the health of the economy," write Cooper and Opoku-Agyeman.

time.com

2

Reposted by Beth Kitson

PBE @pbe.co.uk · Sep 4

Civil society has reached a milestone: we estimate that for the first time, paid hours now exceed volunteer hours.

Do we need to slow the tide and re-emphasise volunteering, or do we accept the sector is becoming more professional?

Explore these questions in our new blog: pbe.co.uk/insights/the...

The rise of paid work: Are we really still the “Voluntary Sector”? | PBE

We recently published a new paper on the true economic contribution of civil society to the UK economy. (Spoiler alert: it’s big! At least £40 billion.) Among the many new stats in that report, there’...

pbe.co.uk

3 1

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Sep 2

www.bigissue.com/opinion/asyl...

If the energy of 'protecting women and girls' was truly channelled into something meaningful: investing in refuges or shelters, support services, therapeutic mental health services, prevention programmes, legal protections and culture change - real work of safety and justice could happen.

8 24

Reposted by Beth Kitson

Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · Sep 1

‘Let us not risk getting trapped in the last war.’ My piece for @pbe.co.uk on why the wellbeing v GDP framing has run out of road
pbe.co.uk/insights/bey...

Beyond ‘beyond GDP’ | PBE

By Hetan Shah I was involved in some of the calls for improved measurement of wellbeing in the early 2000s. Two decades on, sometimes the debate feels like it has not moved on sufficiently from those ...

pbe.co.uk

9 23 48

Reposted by Beth Kitson

Jon Featonby @jonfeatonby.bsky.social · Sep 1

In the year to June 2025, 92% of refugee family reunion visas were given to women and children. More than half went to children. Two thirds to people from Syria, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Iran and Sudan. It helps integration and provides a safe route. Family reunion should be easier, not harder.

The Guardian @theguardian.com · Aug 31

UK to make it harder for refugees to bring family members to country

Home secretary to announce overhaul of family reunion policy in attempt to quell fractious immigration debate Ministers are planning to make it harder for refugees to bring family members to the UK as part of a package of measures that Yvette Cooper will announce on Monday as she looks to get a grip on the fractious debate over irregular migration. The home secretary will tell MPs she plans to make a number of changes to the way asylum cases are treated, including to the family reunion policy, which officials believe is acting as a magnet for people crossing the Channel. Continue reading...

www.theguardian.com

2 45 98

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 28

"As the basis of their analysis, the authors relied on a 1932 book by French historian"

Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · Aug 28

Historians may have words to say about this.

An abiding mystery of the French Revolution is solved — by epidemiology

The period of panic and unrest called the Great Fear was triggered by deliberately spread rumours, according to methods borrowed from pandemic playbooks.

www.nature.com

1

Reposted by Beth Kitson

Becci F @beccitate.bsky.social · Aug 27

🌈The lack of accurate data on LGBTQ+ folks is pervasive

We're often invisible. Historic exclusion, categorisation challenges, and the potential harm of data collection have all played a part, hindering policy, research, and support services.

This report looks to fill in part of that data gap ⬇️

PBE @pbe.co.uk · Aug 27

LGBTQ+ young people in the UK face a severe, unequal mental health crisis.

Services like Free2Talk offer life-changing, cost-effective help, but they need greater support. 1/7

pbe.co.uk/publications...

A square tile with a photograph of a young person wearing a rainbow flag as a cape. It shows two of the key stats from the report: Higher mental health risks, 3x the rate of their non-LGBTQ+ peers. and £15,600 per participant of annual wellbeing benefits from the Free2Talk programme.

1 2

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 27

Parkrun is by far the largest charity - by volunteer numbers - in England and Wales.

Nations of joggers.
register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/sector-da...

2

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 23

"Imagine a football team which measures its success only on the basis of the goals it scores and doesn't count the goals it concedes. That football team could be losing right through without recognising it."

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ggo0...

2

Reposted by Beth Kitson

Jon Franklin @jonfranklin.bsky.social · Aug 19

Great new evidence from Rachel Gomez on the longterm impacts of children’s mental health.

For the geeks among us…it goes beyond looking at correlations and shows that improvements in mental health as a child lead to better outcomes, even after controlling for a host of other factors.

PBE @pbe.co.uk · Aug 19

📢 The £51bn case for improving children’s mental health

1 in 5 UK children aged 8–16 likely have a probable mental health condition (NHS Digital, 2023). Yet only 36% referred to NHS services are seen within 4 weeks. Thousands wait over 2 years. 1/5

New report: pbe.co.uk/publications...

A line chart of the average SDQ of children in the UK between 2011/12 and 2021/22, according to Understanding Society data. It shows that, for selected ages 5, 8, 11 and 14, average SDQ levels have increased over this time, meaning worse children's mental health.

3 5

Reposted by Beth Kitson

will o’the wisp pooley @willpooley.bsky.social · Aug 20

we invite expressions of indifference

1 4 30

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 19

In 2023/24, over thirty thousand children had been left waiting for mental health support for over two years.

Important new @pbe.co.uk report from Rachel Gomez and @jonfranklin.bsky.social, showing the huge costs of failing to meet growing need, and the opportunity that comes with acting earlier.

PBE @pbe.co.uk · Aug 19

📢 The £51bn case for improving children’s mental health

1 in 5 UK children aged 8–16 likely have a probable mental health condition (NHS Digital, 2023). Yet only 36% referred to NHS services are seen within 4 weeks. Thousands wait over 2 years. 1/5

New report: pbe.co.uk/publications...

4 8

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 18

'This display of craft "brings the Palestinians, it almost puts breath into their lives. We’ve existed for a really long time as a people and we had a place and we had a country and a land and that’s all been taken away. But this history shows that not only did we exist, but we still exist".'

Photograph: Grant Anderson. Nadia El-Nakla looking at the dress she lent to the exhibition (a 2021 black and red embroidered dress.)

1

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 15

"Our data finds the US out of step with the rest of the world in many respects, from the role the state is expected to play in addressing societal issues through to how important these issues are perceived to be."

From the new Ipsos Equalities index: www.ipsos.com/sites/defaul...

www.ipsos.com

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 14

not a resource per se, but found this brilliant on those kind of questions! lithub.com/what-happene...

What Happened When I Tried to Replace Myself with ChatGPT in My English Classroom

My students call it “Chat,” a cute nickname they all seem to have agreed on at some point. They use it to make study guides, interpret essay prompts, and register for classes, turning it loose on t…

lithub.com

1 1

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 13

"School streets, pedestrianised town centres, targeting SUVs for higher parking charges, clean air zones, lower speed limits in residential areas and more severe penalties for breaking them all receive public support, despite placing new limits or charges on car use."

Institute for Public Policy Research @ippr.org · Aug 13

🚘 NEW RESEARCH | What do people in Britain really want from transport? From safer streets to better buses, the public’s priorities are clear and they’re ready for change. Read our new research with @moreincommonuk.bsky.social ippr.org/articles/everyday-concerns-what-people-want-from-transport

10 30

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 13

'Where to find a housekeeper with a view to marriage.'

'How to obtain a holiday for a tired mother'

@citizensadvice.bsky.social has shared some of the questions they were asked in the 1950s...

6

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 12

'“Our temperatures haven’t gone below 27C inside the house in the past two months,” she said. Her thermometer peaked at 33C this summer.

She bought a 25% share of the home with her husband for £121,000. On top of this, she pays £1,264 per month in rent.'

The Guardian @theguardian.com · Aug 12

‘Do not buy these flats’: residents warn about unbearable heat inside London new-builds

Experts say many new homes being built in the UK not designed to withstand extreme summer temperatures

www.theguardian.com

5

Reposted by Beth Kitson

Al Jazeera English @aljazeera.com · Aug 11

Israel claimed responsibility for killing five Al Jazeera staff in Gaza, including Anas al-Sharif, in a strike on their media tent outside al-Shifa Hospital, bringing the total journalists killed to 237 since the war began.

🔴 Follow our LIVE coverage: aje.io/1490et

30 460 610

Beth Kitson @drbethkitson.bsky.social · Aug 6

'Any meaningful description of which arguments and debates are legitimate in a democracy depends on rejecting arguments rooted in violence, xenophobia and racial prejudice.'

Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · Aug 6

Tomorrow, 7th August, is the anniversary of the counter-protests that ended the 2024 riots. Asylum is back in the headlines - but has the need to challenge racism gone missing? My Eastern Eye column this week on the need to rebalance the poliitical conversation

www.easterneye.biz/british-ethn...

Are the legitimate concerns of ethnic minorities about racism being ignored?

'Politicians must not ignore threats to racial equality today'

www.easterneye.biz

1