Susan J. Smith

UK ministers aim to speed up homebuying by four weeks

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

All good news (though the Scottish system has had some of this inbuilt for a while). However the biggest brake overall on housing market transactions is stamp duty… also worth an overhaul?

Matthew Pennycook MP @matthewpennycookmp.bsky.social · 2d

The current home buying and selling process in England is slow, costly and stressful.

Today, we announce further measures to make it quicker and cheaper.

www.theguardian.com/money/2025/o...

Proposed government overhaul of house purchase process looks at shifting some costs from buyers to sellers

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British Academy- CIFAR Global Scholars

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Just a reminder that the closing date for this fab 2-year opportunity @britishacademy.bsky.social to develop and lead high-risk, high-reward interdisciplinary research is 5 November (in partnership with CIFAR)

www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/funding/sche...

UK ministers aim to speed up homebuying by four weeks

Reposted by: Susan J. Smith

Matthew Pennycook MP

@matthewpennycookmp.bsky.social

The current home buying and selling process in England is slow, costly and stressful.

Today, we announce further measures to make it quicker and cheaper.

www.theguardian.com/money/2025/o...

Proposed government overhaul of house purchase process looks at shifting some costs from buyers to sellers

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What future for residential property taxation in Britain? - Economics Observatory

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Here’s the problem and a few potential solutions www.economicsobservatory.com/what-future-...

Council tax is unpopular, unfair and overdue for reform. An alternative would be to fund statutory services through central government, introduce a modest local service charge, and absorb stamp duty a...

www.economicsobservatory.com

MSPs vote to allow councils to hike tax on second homes – with no limit

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Oh dear… As well as assuming that Council Tax is fit for purpose, this leaves most under-occupation and the majority of housing wealth untouched. Why not try for something fairer and more effective across the entire #housing stock? www.thenational.scot/news/2550742...

MSPS have voted to allow councils to hike council tax on second and empty homes – without any cap.

www.thenational.scot

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Who climbs the income ladder? New evidence from tax records

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Excellent intervention. Tbh the erosion of social mobility (and John Goldthorpe’s game-changing exposé of it) is usually the first thing I think of when reflecting on long run trends in economic inequality; the second is the brake imposed on labour mobility by the way #housing systems work…

LSE Inequalities @lseinequalities.bsky.social · 3d

Traditional ways of tracking social mobility – how much people move up or down the income ladder – have several limitations.

Sebastian Königs and Javier Terrero Dávila (@oecdsocial.bsky.social) address these in our latest blog post.

#LSEInequalitiesBlog

Using surveys to track short-term social mobility – how much people move up or down the income ladder – has limitations. How can using administrative data help?

buff.ly

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Reposted by: Susan J. Smith

LSE Inequalities

@lseinequalities.bsky.social

Traditional ways of tracking social mobility – how much people move up or down the income ladder – have several limitations.

Sebastian Königs and Javier Terrero Dávila (@oecdsocial.bsky.social) address these in our latest blog post.

#LSEInequalitiesBlog

Who climbs the income ladder? New evidence from tax records

Using surveys to track short-term social mobility – how much people move up or down the income ladder – has limitations. How can using administrative data help?

buff.ly

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In exchange for 500 hours of work, the schemes can provide more than just a route to home ownership

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Hmm building societies… are there tax implications or does the developer just reduce the price?

The Guardian @theguardian.com · 4d

‘Sweat equity’: homebuyers turn builders for £10k off their mortgage

In exchange for 500 hours of work, the schemes can provide more than just a route to home ownership

by Susan J. Smith — Reposted by: Brett Christophers

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Exactly! Large corporates have their eyes on the huge value of ‘last time sales’ - part of a wider shift in the housing economy www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

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Reposted by: Susan J. Smith

The Guardian

@theguardian.com

‘Sweat equity’: homebuyers turn builders for £10k off their mortgage

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Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Important read!

Agenda Publishing @agendapub.bsky.social · 5d

“A chilling and eye-opening exposé... gives voice to those living at the sharpest edge of austerity and makes an irrefutable case for change.”

@graceblakeley.substack.com on 'Debt Trap Nation' by
@kbrickell.bsky.social & Mel Nowicki (out next week).

uk.bookshop.org/p/books/debt...

#housing #debt

Photo of a pile of books. The books are 'Debt Trap Nation' by Katherine Brickell and Mel Nowicki. Cover image features a woman and small child in a deep concrete basin or pit with no way of climbing out as the ladder is too short.

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Reposted by: Susan J. Smith, John Hogan, Katherine Brickell , and 1 more Susan J. Smith, John Hogan, Katherine Brickell, Ian Bruff

Agenda Publishing

@agendapub.bsky.social

“A chilling and eye-opening exposé... gives voice to those living at the sharpest edge of austerity and makes an irrefutable case for change.”

@graceblakeley.substack.com on 'Debt Trap Nation' by
@kbrickell.bsky.social & Mel Nowicki (out next week).

uk.bookshop.org/p/books/debt...

#housing #debt

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Building resilience in UK communities – final report from the British Academy and Nuffield Foundation

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Looking for inspiration? Six projects, four themes, two funders, over forty talented scholars and a bunch of innovative methods = a unique, collaborative, vision for strengthening the social and cultural fabric of our communities www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/news/buildin...

The British Academy and the Nuffield Foundation have today published the final report from their joint Understanding Communities programme, launched in 2022 to inform policy and practice on how commun...

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Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

These are really great awards for anyone who needs a break from teaching/administration to finish off a significant piece of research (closing date 12 November)

The British Academy @britishacademy.bsky.social · 6d

We invite applications for British Academy/Leverhulme Senior Research Fellowships 2025. The scheme supports established and senior researchers in the humanities and social sciences wishing to complete research through a sustained period of leave for one year. Apply now: https://bit.ly/3VMeTZ9

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Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Don’t miss this! A theatre company with a brilliant knack of engaging with the major political and practical issues of the day.

Cambridge Geography @camunigeography.bsky.social · 6d

If you’re in Cambridge on Oct the 4th/5th, delve into Menagerie Theatre’s public art project on
Democracy – “If You’re Not at the Table, You’re on the Menu” – plays, workshops, art installations, and talks exploring what democracy might mean.

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British Academy Book Prize

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

October = @britishacademy.bsky.social book prize season… Six of the best on my desk (well, one is in my hand on a train) (thank goodness I’m not a judge!) www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/british-acad...

The British Academy Book Prize rewards works of non-fiction, based on exceptional research and written for the general reader, that deepen our understanding of people, societies and cultures and their...

British Academy responds to government announcement on university maintenance grants

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Reposted by: Susan J. Smith

Cambridge Geography

@camunigeography.bsky.social

If you’re in Cambridge on Oct the 4th/5th, delve into Menagerie Theatre’s public art project on
Democracy – “If You’re Not at the Table, You’re on the Menu” – plays, workshops, art installations, and talks exploring what democracy might mean.

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Reposted by: Susan J. Smith, Anna Vignoles, Gillian Douglas

The British Academy

@britishacademy.bsky.social

We invite applications for British Academy/Leverhulme Senior Research Fellowships 2025. The scheme supports established and senior researchers in the humanities and social sciences wishing to complete research through a sustained period of leave for one year. Apply now: https://bit.ly/3VMeTZ9

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by Susan J. Smith — Reposted by: Holger Nehring

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

The missing link is an urgent review of higher education funding. So much to play for…

The British Academy @britishacademy.bsky.social · 7d

Read our response to the Government’s announcement that university maintenance grants will be reintroduced for certain courses, funded through a levy on international student fees
https://bit.ly/4gPz7uO

The British Academy has issued a response to the government's announcement on using a proposed levy on international students to fund maintenance grants.

British Academy responds to government announcement on university maintenance grants

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Reposted by: Susan J. Smith, Rebecca Sear, Holger Nehring , and 2 more Susan J. Smith, Rebecca Sear, Holger Nehring, Margot C. Finn, Michael H. Whitworth

The British Academy

@britishacademy.bsky.social

Read our response to the Government’s announcement that university maintenance grants will be reintroduced for certain courses, funded through a levy on international student fees
https://bit.ly/4gPz7uO

The British Academy has issued a response to the government's announcement on using a proposed levy on international students to fund maintenance grants.

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Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Too little demand in the under-invested old industrial North-east where you can still get a flat white for £2.05p?

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How derelict garages could ease Britain’s housing crisis

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Look what you can achieve when a ‘think and do’ tank embraces modern methods of #housing construction 👀

www.thetimes.com/article/c9f3...

The UK has hundreds of thousands of empty lock-ups. Fifteen were demolished in Bristol to make way for architect-designed ‘Gap Houses’

www.thetimes.com

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Housing secretary is set to announce initiative modelled on Clement Attlee’s postwar ‘housing boom’ The government is expected to announce on Sunday a programme to build 12 new towns across England in a bid to address the country’s housing crisis. The housing secretary, Steve Reed, will unveil the initiative at Labour’s annual conference as it begins in Liverpool. The prime minister, Keir Starmer, described the proposals as “national renewal in action”. Continue reading...

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Homes fit for families! Worth a try…

The Guardian @theguardian.com · 10d

Plan to build 12 new towns in England to be unveiled at Labour conference

Housing secretary is set to announce initiative modelled on Clement Attlee’s postwar ‘housing boom’ The government is expected to announce on Sunday a programme to build 12 new towns across England in a bid to address the country’s housing crisis. The housing secretary, Steve Reed, will unveil the initiative at Labour’s annual conference as it begins in Liverpool. The prime minister, Keir Starmer, described the proposals as “national renewal in action”. Continue reading...

Reposted by: Susan J. Smith

The Guardian

@theguardian.com

Plan to build 12 new towns in England to be unveiled at Labour conference

New Post: A Railway Memoir in Archipelago

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Reposted by: Susan J. Smith, Margot C. Finn, Claire Connolly , and 1 more Susan J. Smith, Margot C. Finn, Claire Connolly, James Connelly

Godwin_lives

@pamelaclemit.bsky.social

On the 200th anniversary of the opening of the Stockton & Darlington Railway (#OTD 1825), here’s my memoir of growing up on the East Coast Main Line, where I witnessed of the demise of the steam age. #Railway200

pamelaclemit.wordpress.com/2024/10/25/n...

This piece by Pamela Clemit was first published in Archipelago, 2.2 (Spring 2023), 152-61. The essay is a recollection of her early childhood years as a station master’s daughter, and an eleg…

pamelaclemit.wordpress.com

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Stockton to Darlington Railway 200th Celebration

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

Two hundred years ago today, Locomotion1 set off to Stockton with passengers, and… Yarm band… playing something a bit like this… youtu.be/Kz0P2SgP-lI?...

YouTube video by Queen Victoria's Consort

youtu.be

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Stockton to Darlington Railway 200th Celebration

Susan J. Smith

@sjs1869.bsky.social

This Saturday will be the 200th anniversary of the first passenger rail journey from Darlington to Stockton in NE England. Yarm band were in tow. Here’s a flavour of what they might have played… youtu.be/Kz0P2SgP-lI?...

YouTube video by Queen Victoria's Consort

youtu.be

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