History UK AGM - final › ... › 2015 › 06 › History-UK-AGM-fin… · Plenary Speaker Two: ... • skills our graduates develop ... personal tutoring, employability and innovative

Timetable

10.30-11.00Coffeeandregistration

11.00-11.15-Welcomeandco-convenorsreportbyLucindaMatthews-JonesandJamieWood

11.15-12.00-Plenarypaperone

StefanCollini(Cambridge),‘Inthevalleyofitssaying:onnot“justifying”thehumanities’

12.00-12.45-Plenarypapertwo

KarenSalt(Nottingham),‘Equity,JusticeandtheNecessityofRadicalThought’

12.45-1.30-Lunch

1.30-1.45-ConferringnewdelegatestotheSteeringCommittee

1.45-3.15-Roundtableanddelegatediscussion

SaraBarker(Leeds)‘ThinkingaboutthePastfortheFuture:studentsandthestudyofhis-tory’

JamesBaker(Sussex)‘BornDigitalArchives’

SihongLin(Manchester)'DiversifyingPublicHistory:AMedievalist'sPerspective'

3.15-3.30Coffee

3.30-5.00AGMmeetingandSCmeeting.

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SpeakerBiographies

Plenary Speaker One: Stefan Collini, ‘In the valley of its saying: on not “justifying” thehumanities’ A short summary: 'Attempts to "justify" thehumanitiesare toooften simultaneouslydefensiveand over-ambitious. In this lecture, Stefan Collini argues that we need to adopt different

strategiesfordifferentaudiences,andthatbyfocussingonthemeritsofgoodworkinindividualdisciplineswecanhitanotethatisatoncemoremodestbutalsomoreconfident.'Stefan Collini is Professor Emeritus of Intellectual History and EnglishLiteratureatCambridgeUniversity,andaFellowoftheBritishAcademy.Heistheauthorof,amongotherbooks,PublicMoralists(1991),MatthewArnold:aCritical Portrait (1994), English Pasts: Essays in History and Culture (1999),Absent Minds: Intellectuals in Britain (2006), Common Reading: Critics,Historians, Publics (2008),and Common Writing: Literary Culture and Public

Debate (2016), as well as a frequent contributor to The London Review of Books, The TimesLiterarySupplement,TheGuardian,TheNation,andotherpublications.His2012bookWhatAreUniversities For? and its sequel Speaking of Universities (2017), have becomemajor points ofreferenceininternationaldebatesabouthighereducation. PlenarySpeakerTwo:KarenSalt,‘Equity,JusticeandtheNecessityofRadicalThought’

A short summary: Inorder to create just, equitable futures,wemust re-visionourworldusingtools(andcreatingnewones)thatembraceradicalhopeandcriticalreflection.

DrKarenSalthasover26years’worthofexperienceworkinginandwithcommunities,organisa-tions,charitiesandgovernmentalbodies,includingrunningnon-profitsandengagingincommu-nity developmentwork. Based at theUniversity of Nottingham, she directs the Centre for Re-search inRaceandRightsandleadstheuniversity’sBlackStudiesPhDprogramme—thefirst in-terdisciplinaryprogrammeofitskindinEurope.Anexpertonsovereignty,power,collectiveactiv-ismandsystemsofgovernance,sheleadsandcollaboratesonanumberofresearchprojects,in-cludingtheAHRC-funded“GeographiesofBlackProtest”thatformedpartofthelargernetworksfundedaspartoftheUNDecadeforPeopleofAfri-canDescent.

She is a member of the Arts & Humanities Research Council AdvisoryBoard where she advises on the development and implementation ofstrategicapproachestofundingwhichreflectthechallengesandopportu-nitiesarisingforartsandhumanitiesresearchandthosethatengagewithit. She is also Deputy Chair of the UKRI’s External Advisory Group forEquality,DiversityandInclusion.Sheisasoughtafternationalspeakerand

frequentlyworkswithartsandculturalorganisationsontransformationalsocialjusticeandinsti-tutionalchange.Hermonograph,TheUnfinishedRevolution:Haiti,BlackSovereigntyandPowerinthe Nineteenth-Century Atlantic World, will be published by Liverpool University Press in Nov2018.Sheisalsoworkingonnewprojects, including,StatesofBlackness:Debt,NationhoodandPowerinHaiti,LiberiaandAbyssinia.

Roundtableanddelegatediscussion

SaraBarker(Leeds),‘ThinkingaboutthePastfortheFuture–studentsandthestudyofhistory’

AShortsummary:Forthepaperthethemesare:• whystudentscontinuestudyhistory,seeminglyinthefaceofpopularmisconceptionsof

whathistoriansdoandwhotheyare.Shewillalsotakeintoaccountsomeoftheconcern-ingissuesraisedbytherecentRHSreportintoRaceEthnicityandEquality

• skillsourgraduatesdevelop • wayswecanbothencouragestudentstoarticulatethoseskills

andgetthoseoutsidetheacademytorecognisethevalueofahistorydegree. SaraBarkerishistorianofearlymodernprintculture,particularlynews,translationandpamphlets.Veryslowlywritingabookaboutthis.Depu-tyDirectorofStudentEducationat theUniversityofLeeds,whereshehasparticular interest in the transitionbetweenschoolanduniversity,personal tutoring, employability and innovative assessments. Sheco-authorsablogonStudentEducationthingswithDrClaireMcCallum

(Exeter)–HEHistoryHub.Sheisalsointerestedincraftingandsewing,asyoumighthaveseenfromTwitter–veryproudofthecraftgroup Ico-runwithDrJessicaMeyeratLeeds,calledTheHistoriansCraft. JamesBaker(Sussex),‘BornDigitalArchives’

Ashort summary:Mytalkisonthefundamentalchangestoourprimarysourcesthathavebeencausedbycomputers,thefactthatoursourceshavebecome'borndigital’.JamesBakerisaSeniorLecturerinDigitalHistoryandArchivesattheUniversityofSussex and at theSussex Humanities Lab. He is aSoftware Sustainability InstituteFellow,aFellowoftheRoyalHistoricalSociety,andholdsdegreesfromtheUniver-sityofSouthamptonandlatterlytheUniversityofKent,wherein2010hecompletedhisdoctoralresearchonthelate-Georgianartist-engraverIsaacCruikshank.Jamescaresabouthowpeopleinthepastinteractedwiththings.Hispublishedre-searchhasfocusedontopicsasdiverseaslongeighteenthcenturyBritishsatiricalartandnear contemporary information technologies.He is an expert in thehistory of theprintedimageandhismonographTheBusinessofSatiricalPrintsinLate-GeorgianEnglandwaspublished

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in2017.Hiscuratorialpracticefocusesonborn-digitalobjects,personaldigitalarchives,anddigi-talforensics.Currentfundedresearchprojectsfocusondigitalforensicsinthehistoricalhumanities(EuropeanCommission),thepreservationofintangibleculturalheritage(BritishCouncilandBritishAcademy),curatorial voice indescriptionsof artobjects (BritishAcademy), anddecolonial futures formu-seumcollections(ArtsandHumanitiesResearchCouncil).PriortojoiningSussex,JamesheldpositionsofDigitalCuratorattheBritishLibraryandPostdoc-toralFellowwiththePaulMellonCentreforStudiesinBritishArt.HeisamemberoftheArtsandHumanities Research CouncilPeer Review College, a convenor of theInstitute of Historical Re-searchDigital History seminar, amember ofThe ProgrammingHistorian Editorial Board, and acommitteememberoftheArchivesandRecordsAssociation(UK)SectionforArchivesandTech-nology.

SihongLin(Manchester),'DiversifyingPublicHistory:AMedievalist'sPerspective'

A short summary:IwilldiscusswhatIthinkarethechallengesandopportunitiesofdoingpublicmedievalhistory,drawinguponmyexperiencesinengagingwiththewiderpublicthroughvariousplatforms.Sihong is a PhD student at theUniversity ofManchesterworking in cross-cultural connectionsbetweenWesternEuropeandtheeasternMediterraneanintheseventhcentury.I completed aBA in History and a MSc in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies at the University of Oxford(2011-2015),witha special focusoncross-culturalexchanges in lateantiquity.This remainsmyfocusduringmyPhDandIaminterestedinallaspectsofmovementandtransnationalexchange,particularlyinintegratingconceptsfromthesocialsciencesintohistoricalstudies.

Co-Convenors’Reports

WelcometoourAGMevent‘TheFutureoftheHumanities’.Thisexpandsonlastyear’splenaryoncollaboration,historyandsocialjustice.

Wearepleasedtoreportthatwehavehadabusyyear.Wecontinuetodiversifyourprogrammeandtothinkfurtherabouthowwecanexpandourreach.MoredetailsofindividualactivitieswillbeheardattheAGMandSCmeeting.

Firstly,wewouldliketothankPeterD’SenaandHeatherShorefortheirhardworkinputtingto-gether our teaching workshop on Transitioning in History from School to University. Here weheardstimulatingpapersfromBarbaraHibbertandDavidIngledew.Thiswasfollowedbyanin-troduction to A Level History from OCR’s history lead,Mike Goddard. Finally, a practical casestudyonstudent-ledinductionswasdeliveredfromOliviaSaunders.Onthistheme,LucindaMat-thews-JonesattendedonourbehalftheRHSNewtoSchoolCurriculumeventwherebothPeterD’SenaandJamieWoodwerespeakers.

TheintroductionofaresearchofficertotheSteeringCommitteemeantthatthisyearweranourfirst research workshop. Neil Fleming, together with LucindaMatthews-Jones, organised a re-searchgrantworkshopwithspeakersfromtheBritishAcademyandAHRC.WewerealsojoinedbyEmmaGriffin,KieranFenby-HulseandMartinJohnes.

WearepleasedtoseethattheAcademicJobBootcampcontinuestobeacornerstoneeventofourwork.TheAcademicJobBootcampprovidesECRacademicsandPhDstudentsfirst-handex-perience of the academic recruitment process. They submit a letter and CV to us before theevent.Ontheday itself theythenhavean interviewwithmembersof theSteeringCommittee,whoalsoprovidefeedback.Thisyearover15peopletookadvantageofthisopportunity.Oneoftheattendees,AmyKing,reported,‘It’snotoftenthattrainingallowsforone-to-onesessionsandadviceforeachandeveryattendee,buttheBootCampgaveusjustthat…I’mabsolutelysurethistraininghelpedmetogetthejob!’

WealsosupportedtheRoyalHistoricalSocietywiththeirNewtoTeachingEventinSeptemberattheIHR.ThiswasonceagainablyorganisedbyPeterD’Sena.

TheUniversityofLincolnhostedourco-sponsoredourevent ‘WorkingwiththeBritishLibrary’sDigital,DataandServicesforyourteachingandresearch’withtheBritishLibrary’sLabsscheme.Therewerewellover50attendeesacrossthecourseoftheday,withcontributions(inadditionto

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theBL) fromMelodeeBeals (Loughborough),BobNicholson (EdgeHill), EleniKotoula (Lincoln),JenniferBatt(Bristol)andHazelSadler(anMAstudentfromLincoln).

WeworkedinpartnarshipwithTheNationalArchivestoresearchandproduceaguidetocollab-orativeworkingbetweentheHEandarchivessector.ThiswaslaunchedataneventatTNAinthesummerandhasbeenpromotedwidely.WearecontinuingtoworkinpartnershipwithTNAand,as youwill seebelow,are contributing toa seriesofworkshops that theyareplanning for thecomingyeararoundtheissueofHE-archivalpartnership.

WewillcontinuetokeepaneyeonHEdevelopmentsin2019.WewerethefirsthistorysubjectorganisationtoreleaseastatementsupportingcolleaguesstrikingovertherestructureoftheUSSpension scheme. We co-signed, with other Art and Humanities Alliance members, a letter toAlistair Jarvis andUniversitiesUK.Wehave responded toREFandAHRC surveys. LucindaMat-thews-JonesrepresentedusattheOfqualALevelEvaluationworkshoponinDecember2017.

Wehaveanumberofplansfornextyear.Thisincludes

• Ateachingeventon ‘Empowering theHistoryClassroom’at Liverpool JohnMooresUni-versity

• ResearchEvent:Tobedecided(provisionally,September2019) • Aco-organised‘MeettheFunders’eventwithTheNationalArchivesandIndependentRe-

searchOrganisationConsortium(November5th2018) • SponsoringapanelondigitalheritageatHeritageDotconferenceinLincoln(June2019)• MentalHealthandWellbeingeventwithpartnersfromothersubjectareas • AcademicBootcamp(May2019)• NewtoTeachingeventwiththeRHS(September2019) • AnothercollaborativeeventwithBritishLibraryLabs • AseriesofeventsinpartnershipwithTNAoncollaborationsbetweenthearchivalandHE

sectors.

Wearepleasedatthiseventtoannounceournewfundingopportunities.HistoryUKiskeentosupporteventshostedbysubscribingmembersintheareaofhighereducationpolicyandissuesaffecting the subject areaofHistory and is thereforemaking grants of up to £500 available tosubscribing institutions.Pleasedo takea lookat amoredetailed call for fundingdocumentonpage8.

Inthemeantime,weaskyou–asourSCandAGMrepresentatives-toconsiderthefollowing:

• Wearelookingforpartnerstohostandhelporganiseeventsonourbehalf.Pleaseletusknow if you and your department would be interested in running (or contributing to-wards):

a) BritishLibraryDigitalLabs b) AneventoncollaborationbetweenarchivesandHE

• WeareputtingtogetherapanelondigitalheritageforHeritage/dotconference3-4June2018?Canyouorsomeoneinyourdepartmentcontribute?

• Doyouwanttoapplyforeventfunding?

Iwould liketotakethisopportunitytosaythankyoutoallthehardworkoftheSteeringCom-mittee inattendingevents,partaking inourgrowingprogrammeandpatientlydealingwithourcorrespondence.

WewouldalsoliketoextendourthankstoHeatherShore,whowasco-convenorofHistoryUKforthepasttwoyears.Sheworkedtirelesslyonbehalfoftheorganisation.Manyofthereformsandexpansionofthesociety’sworkwasachievedunderherdiligentandwatchfuleye.

Wearepleased that JamieWoodhas takenover fromHeatheras co-convenor.Thiswillbe Ja-mie’sfirstAGMasco-convenor.Ihopeyouwilljoinmeinextendingawarmwelcometohim.Ja-miehasplayedafundamentalroleintheExecutiveCommitteeastheMediaOfficer,atitlethatdidnotdojusticetotheworkthatheputintopromotingtheorganisation.IthasbeenapleasuretoworkwithJamieasco-convenorforthepastcoupleofmonths.Iampleasedtoformallywel-comehimtothepositionatthismeeting.

Weare looking forward to thedayandhearingpapers fromProfessorStefanCollini,Dr.KarenSalt,DrJamesBaker,Dr.SaraBakerandSihongLin.Finally,thankyouforattendingourplenaryandAGMtoday.Wehopeyoufindthepapersstimulating.

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HistoryUKeventfunding

HistoryUKiskeentosupporteventshostedbysubscribingmembersintheareaofhighereducationpolicyandissuesaffectingthesubjectareaofHistoryandisthereforemakinggrantsofupto£500availabletosubscribinginstitutions.Wehaveopenedthisfundingcalltopromotegreaterdialogueover:

• TheprofileofHistoryinhighereducationandbeyond.• Thestateoftheprofession,particularlytherecruitmentandcareerdevelopmentofundergradu-

ates,postgraduates,researchersandstaff.• Research culture, including the research resources available to historians and the impact of the

REF.• Auditculture,toensurethatthedemandsofexternalauditandqualitymeasurementareappro-

priatetothediscipline.• Teachingcultureinuniversities. • Equalityanddiversity(BAME,disability,gender,sexualityandage).• ConnectionsbetweenHistoryandotherdisciplines. • LinksbetweenHistoryinHEandthebroaderdiscipline(inschools,collegesandsocieties).

WewillconsiderapplicationsforeventsthatexploreHigherEducationissuesinrelationtothedisciplineofHistory.Wewillalsoconsiderapplicationsthatrequestfundingtocovercostsofpanelsorspeakersatac-ademicevents,suchasconferences.(Note:wewillnotfundattendanceofindividualsatresearchconfer-ences or provide support for the organisation of such events, exceptwhere they explicitly address thethemesoutlinedabove).

Fundingrequirements

• Applicationsmustbemadebyasubscribinginstitution,andsignedoffbytherelevantheadofde-partment.

• Applicationsmust includeadescriptionoftheeventthat isbeingproposedandexplain itsalign-mentwithHistoryUKinterestsandactivities.Abudgetshouldalsobeincluded.

• Lengthofapplication:max.500words. • Amount:upto£500. • Successfulapplicationswillbeexpectedto(a)writeareportforourblogontheevent(thisshould

includeimages,linksandquotes;wewouldexpectaround500words)and(b)noteoursupportattheeventitself,andinpaperanddigitaleventmaterials(includingourlogoandwebaddress).

If you have any questions or queries, please contact Lucinda Matthews-Jones([email protected])orJamieWood([email protected]).

Deadlineforapplications:April30thandOctober31stat4.00pm.AllapplicationsshouldbesenttoSueDa-visonatSue.Davison@sas.ac.uk.

ApplicationswillbereviewedbyapanelcomposedofmembersoftheHUKSteeringCommittee.Outcomeswillbecommunicatedonemonthafterapplicationsubmission.HistoryUKreservestherightnottoawardfundinginanygivenyear.Wemightdecidetoawardpartoftherequestedmoneyandnotthefullamountifwefeelthattheamountisnotfullyjustified.Wemayalsoapproachapplicantsformoredetailsaftertheapplicationhasbeensubmitted.

AGENDA

TheAnnualGeneralMeetingofHistoryUKwilltakeplaceon3November2018attheInstituteofHistoricalResearch,SenateHouse,London.

1. Mattersarising

2. NominationofnewSteeringCommitteemembers

3. Treasurer’sreport

4. MediaOfficer’sreport

5. ResearchOfficer’sreport

6. AnyOtherBusiness/DateofNextMeeting

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ReportsfortheSteeringCommittee

ResearchOfficer’sreport

1.HistoryUKResearchGrantWorkshopTheone-dayResearchGrantWorkshopheldon4September2018wasaresoundingsuccess. ItwasaimedprincipallyatMCRs,thoughPhDstudents,ECRsandrepresentativesofuniversityre-searchschoolswereamongthe32registeredtoattend.Theyheardandquestionedrepresenta-tivesfromtheAHRCandBritishAcademy,andexpertcontributionsfromProfessorEmmaGriffin(EastAnglia),DrKieranFenby-Hulse(Coventry),andProfessorMartinJohnes(Swansea).HeldattheInstituteofHistoricalResearch,attendeeswerecharged£10tocovercateringexpenses.The success of theWorkshop suggests that there is demand amongMCRs for similar events. IwouldrecommendthereforethatHistoryUKhostsasimilareventinSeptember2019.Drawingonthefeedbackforthisevent,thefocuscouldbeonwritingandhandling‘Impact’inresearchgrantapplications,andagainincludeexpertcontributionsfromthefundersandawardees.2.ConsultationExerciseonREF2021DraftGuidanceandCriteriaHistoryUKwasunabletosubmitaresponsethatfocussedonthepositionofhistoriansasnooneontheSteeringCommitteewasinapositiontosubmitaresponsebythedeadline(28September2018).3.OpenAccessMonographsandtheREFAsdiscussed at a previousmeetingof the SteeringCommittee, there is a proposal thatmono-graphsenteredforREF2027mustbeOUcompliant.IcontinuetoliaisewiththeRoyalHistoricalSocietywhichhasexpressedanumberofconcernsaboutthepracticalimplicationsofsuchapol-icyonhistoriansandHEinstitutions.TheSociety’sbriefingpapercanbeaccessedviaitswebsite:https://royalhistsoc.org/oa-briefing-march2018/Universities UK has since published its own report:https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Pages/UUK-open-access-recommendations-and-guidelines-for-best-practice.aspx In contrast to theRHistS,UUK focusses on facili-tatingratherthancritiquingorscrutinisingthetransitiontoOUmonographs.ThisappearstobeborneoutbyUUK’seventon ‘OpenAccessandMonographs for LearnedSocietiesandSubjectAssociations’,heldattheBritishAcademyon11September2018.AsIwasunabletoattend,theTreasurer,DrRichardHawkins,kindlydidsoonbehalfofHistoryUK.Hisfullandcomprehensive

reportisfoundbelow.Thefollowingarethekeypointsraisedontheday:1. Itwouldappear thatonly limited institutional funding isavailable to support thepublicationcostsofOAmonographs.Theimplicationisthatifyoudonothavearesearchgrantwhichcoversthis cost youmight have to find perhaps £10,000 out of your own pocket to publish your OAmonograph.Thiswoulddisadvantagepost-1992academicsinparticular.ButitwouldappearthisisalsoanunresolvedissueateliteRussellGroupHEIstoo.2.ItwouldappearthatseveralRussellGroupuniversitiestogetherwithotherpre-1992universi-tieshaveestablisheduniversitypressestopublishtheiracademics’OAmonographs.Thesepress-eshavethesamestandardsastraditionalpresses–i.e.e.g.peerreview.ItwouldalsoappearthatthesenewOAmonographfocusseduniversitypressesarebeingsubsidisedbytheirHEIfounders.3. Several university librarian delegates pointed to the inconsistent university ofOA repositorypracticeacrossthesector;thereisaneedfortheestablishmentofanationalstandardforUniver-sityOArepositories.Having read Richard’s report, below, it is reassuring to see that the practical consequences ofmoving toOAmonographswere raised indiscussionat theUUKevent,not leastby theRHistSrepresentative.Itisclearthattheproposalhaspotentiallyfarreachingconsequences,foralltypesof HEI and career stage. I am particularly concerned with the potential financial impact onpost-doctoraljobseekers(orparttimeorzerohoursemployee)tryingtosecureabookcontractfortheultimatepurposeofsecuringemployment.

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HUKMediaOfficerreportforAGM

JamieWood,23rdOctober2018

• ThewebsiteisintheprocessofbeingupdatedasUniversityofLincolnhaschangeditsblogplatform.WearealsoswitchingoverthefinalelementsofhostingfromtheUniversityofLondontoLincoln.IhopethatthiswillberesolvedinthenextmonthbutatthemomentI’mnotabletoaccesstherelevantadminsectionofthewebsitetocheckstats,butGoogleAna-lyticssuggeststhatwe’regettingabout150-200visitspermonth,withahighofaround750inMay(bootcampetc.).

• We’vemanagedtogenerateasteadystreamofblogpostsfromparticipantsineventsoverthepastyear.Morearealwayswelcome.

• Wehavenearly2800followersonTwitter. • Allinall,we’veseensignificantgrowthinusageoverthepastyear.Oncethewebsiteisback

upandrunningI’dhopethatwecanbuildonthisfurther.

EducationOfficer’sreportfortheHistoryUKmeetingonSaturday3rdNovember2018

NewtoTeaching(NTT)Conference/Workshop,11thSeptember2018Twentyparticipantsattendedthisyear’sNTT. Therewastheusualvariedprogrammewithses-sionsaboutcurriculumdevelopmentanddecodingthedisciplines(PeterD’Sena);smallgroupteaching(JamieWood);usingSocialMedia(HelenRogers);DigitalHumanities(JamesBaker);thehistorylecture(MaxJones);andjobapplications(CatherineArmstrong). TheeventwasfundedbytheRHSandhosted(atnormalcost)bytheIHR. TherewillbeadiscussionatthenextRHSEducationPolicyCommitteeaboutaneventfornextyearanditmaybethatadifferentvenuewillbechosen. Thoughtswelcome. Usefultorememberis:staffvolunteertheirtimeforfreetoleadsessionsatthisevent(travelpaidonly);theproceedingsarenotfixedinstone–newper-sonnel/subjectsarealwaysconsideredandwelcomed;HistoryUKverygenerouslyallocatedupto£500tosupporttravelofparticipantswhocamefromfurtherthan100miles. Thatissomethingthathasbeendone,now,forthepasttwoyears.LaunchoftheRHSbooklet,Race,Ethnicity&EqualityinUKHistory:areportandresourceforchange(October2018)Thisabsolutelyexcellentreport,whichactuallymakesforreallygrimreading,waslaunchedonThursday18thOctober. Thetalksatthelaunchobviouslyfocusedonthehigh/lowlights. HereIpointtojustafewofthem.

1. Thereportcontainsanumberofusefulstatisticsaboutundergraduateandpostgraduateengagementwiththedisciplineandbreaksthemdownbyethnicity.

2. Additionaldataisgeneratedfrominterviewscarriedoutwithover700historians.3. Thereareanumberofrecommendations,sensibleandunsurprising,including:theneed

fortraining;theneedforimproveddatacollection;theuseofpositiveaction;andtheneedforcurriculumchangebecauseofawhite-centredandEurocentriccurriculumisara-cialproblemwithinthediscipline(p.23).

Racialandethnicprivilegearedifficulttoaddress. Basicfiguresfor2018giveanindicationofrepresentationas:93.7%ofstaffarewhite;6.3%areBME;0.5%areblack. All-in-all,staffandstudentpercentagesarefarlessthaninotherdisciplines(asaruleofthumb,abouthalf–seefiguresonp.22). Theoverallconclusionisthat‘HistoricalandPhilosophicalStudies’isoneofthewhitestsubjectsinUKHE;andisonewherethewidelypublicised‘whyismypro-fessornotblack’agendaworthdiscussing. Alsointhereportarebriefanalysesabouttheschoolcurriculum;theissuesassociatedwithfundingbodiesandconferencethemes;theintersectionalitywithgenderandclass;theim-pactofmicro-aggressionintheworkplace;andlegalobligationsandcontexts.

I’mreallyskimmingthesurfaceaboutthecontentsofthisreport,butthelongandshortofitisthatinmyviewasanorganisationweneedtodevelopandexpressapositionabouteverythingishasreportedoninordertomovethesectorforward. Forme,themosttellingsentenceinthe

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wholereportisaboutthemostfundamentalquestionofall:‘Whoreallywantstobealertedtoastructuralsystemthatbenefitsthemattheexpenseofothers?’(p.11). Insummary,thiswillbeausefulreportfordepartmentstouseindiscussion–infactitisrecom-mendedthatalldepartmentsshoulddothis. Perhapsweshouldplayaroleinensuringthatthishappens. Irecommendthateveryonereadsthisreport.

PeterD’Sena,Saturday3rdNovember2018

SimonPeplowECRRepresentativereportWhileIhaveunfortunatelyhadlesstimetodonatetothisrolerecentlythanIwouldhaveliked–duetorelocatingtoadifferentuniversityandmeetingabookfinaldeadline–overthepastfewmonthsIhavehaddiscussionswithSarahHollandregardingpotentialcollaborationbetweenHis-toryUKandHistoryLabPlus.Wewillcontinuetodiscussthis,andIhopetobeabletoreportfur-therdevelopmentssoon.Also,IhaveconfirmedanumberofECRandPhDcolleaguestocontrib-uteblogpostsforthewebsitetoaddressarangeofsubjects,suchasbalancingteachingandre-search, experiencesof postdocprojects, public impact, andoptions available toPhDgraduatesoutsideofacademia.Theseshouldbegintoappearwithinthenextmonth.