My condolences @mesnilman.bsky.social

Some of the best money I've spent in the last few years, help be part not just of some of the best journalism around, but a reinvention of local news at a time when it is most needed.

Andreas Schleicher, OECD Director for Education and Skills, showing that the UK is bottom when it comes to the share of expenditure on HE coming from government sources.

Never worried.

It's just this incessant, unending story of constant Glamorgan white ball success, isn't it?

I would like the Lightning of Lancashire to win today's game

My colleague Sue Attewell leads our stream of work looking at staff and student perceptions of AI. In a new blog post the focus is with a group of pre-sessional international students. nationalcentreforai.jiscinvolve.org/wp/2025/09/0...

Thoughts with you at this difficult time @mesnilman.bsky.social

now to see how many words of a 1000 word piece I can get done whilst listening to an 18 minute version of Mogwai's My Father My King.

This whole thread demonstrates the consequences when a crucial and successful part of the UK social and economic fabric is the subject of incessant negative coverage.

who could possibly have guessed who would be Kent's matchwinner?

Just to say that Yorkshire have lost 2 players to the H*ndred whilst we've lost about 1,056 and are playing our youth team. Therefore I don't think it's unreasonable to suggest that if they don't batter us, they ought to be forced to give a public apology and forfeit their Division One status to us

Excellent start from Arav Shetty for Lancs and great to see young Luke Hands getting a wicket too. We actually got both Rews out! For less than 10 between them! Can't wait to see how we lose this one.

Imagine not liking Test cricket.

Today - as part of our look back at reports from our Pissarides Review, funded by the Nuffield Foundation - we're highlighting work from our firm-level research. We surveyed 1000 UK firms about tech adoption, and found how vital HR processes are to sustaining good work:

NEW on Wonkhe: There’s evidence that artificial intelligence is causing students and graduates to switch up career choices. Chris Rea and Kirstin Burke think about automation anxiety and how to move past it buff.ly/zI6sTlm

Just had an important message from my brother who is at a UKRi Q&A with their new Chief Exec Sir Ian Chapman. former head of the UK Atomic Energy Authority, and, it transpires, much more importantly, a Half Man Half Biscuit fan who is going up to see them play at the Devils Arse on Friday.

Last chance to register! ⌛ Join @jisc.bsky.social online to explore how organisations can deepen collaboration to tackle shared challenges in #OpenAccess 📅 21 July 2025 | 2-4pm BST 🔗 www.jisc.ac.uk/events/stren...

That's a shame. Better luck next season lads.

@jisc.bsky.social have the new Graduate Outcomes data out today, looking at the outcomes of graduates from the 2022/23 academic year, and where they were at the end of 2024, 15 months after graduating. www.hesa.ac.uk/news/17-07-2...

This isn't the greatest run chase I've ever seen from the West Indies.

Never worried

As usual, if you want a job doing, Sam Cook will do it.

Melanie is right, little evidence of this happening (NI increases seem to be more of a factor, especially for SMEs) and the premise that the grad jobs market is in crisis is hung on one outlier stat (tbf from a normally-reliable org). most data says it's simply slightly less good than last year.

Test cricket is the best.

Would you like to know what's *actually* happening in the UK graduate labour market right now? Would you like it with links to all the primary sources so you can make your own mind up? Would you like it all for free? Well, it's your lucky day! luminate.prospects.ac.uk/graduate-lab...

Joe Root is so good that never mind the all time England XI, he might even make the all time *Yorkshire* XI

Read more on our involvement and analysis here ⤵️

Given that COVID was in 2020, I find it very difficult to believe that it really is the worst graduate labour market since 2018, and I think a claim like that really ought to be scrutinised a bit more.

Dear The Insects When I said stuff like 'I'm worried in the decline in insect numbers' and 'it's nice to see insects this summer', I did not actually mean 'Hey, The Insects, why don't you all come into my house and fly around'. Just clearing that up.

Having had a first pass at the Industrial Strategy, my thought is that I am not sure how a strategy that is entirely reliant on a sustained large supply of graduates is wholly compatible with a relaxed attitude towards the financial distress of the institutions charged with producing that workforce.

Great conversation all about library systems and metadata work and how supporting each other and working together is vital to this work. Elly is one of our 2025 community champions and it's been great to have more library folk at #Digifest25 @ellycope.bsky.social soundcloud.com/jisc-communi...

Happy New Half Man Half Biscuit Album Day for all those who celebrate.

No way can you count that astonishing effort from Chris Green as a drop. btw I love Chris Green

New Skills England report on supply and demand just came out assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/683d69...

Just going to hammer home a point I keep making. In 2004, 60 per cent of the UK workforce were in jobs below professional level - they didn't usually need post-18 qualifications. In 2024 47 per cent are in jobs that don't need post-18 qualifications. The crossover happened during COVID.

Belting win for Lancs that.

Really nice to see that there are currently over 13,000 people watching the livestream between Lancashire Thunder and the Blaze

Any interest in an event/conference/day devoted entirely to unsuccessful research in careers/employability/skills and what we can learn from it? There is plenty (quite a bit of it by me!) and I'm a big fan of discussing stuff that goes wrong even it is only as a dreadful warning.

Great news for the mighty Manchester Museum, winning European Museum of the Year. Well deserved, love the place, it's partly responsible for my own love of science and is one of the most important buildings and institutions in my life. Go visit it!

New social science research anxiety dream unlocked.

Excellent from the Thunder - at least some Lancashire cricket is working very well indeed.

Have a slight cold with no major effects other than tinnitus in my left ear that sounds exactly like the introduction to 'Nag Nag Nag' by seminal Sheffield noisesmiths Cabaret Voltaire.

The absolutely key stat in this debate is Stephen's that employer training is down 26% per employee in the last 20 years. There has to be a credible and robust plan to address that, and acknowledging it is the first step.

Who fancies a new Standard Industrial Classification in 2026? I do. consultations.ons.gov.uk/external-aff...

Apropos of something, here's the ONS data on the proportion of the UK workforce with a degree or equivalent. Since COVID (and, annoyingly, a methodology change from NVQ to RFQ) most UK workers have a degree level qualification.

Make Dom (and the rest of us) happy and respond to this survey so Dom can do clever, helpful things with the data.

Happy County Championship Day for all those who celebrate. Image below probably shows The County Ground in Derby ahead of a May fixture.

It's that heady time before the world's premier sporting event (the County Championship, of course) begins and we can still have some optimism about our counties before the first calamitous middle order collapse of the new season. And I see The Cricketer have tipped Lancs for the CC2 title. Oh dear.

PSA for all my civilised followers - live domestic red ball cricket from the Windies here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnyy... The Internet, is, of course, terrible but free first class cricket is the pinnacle of technology in the service of humanity