Interview conducted by Sean McMahon Academic staff do the work that defines a university: teaching, scholarship and research. But too often in British universities the voices of academics are marginalised by undemocratic forms of governance. Top-down, unaccountable, corporate-style management has increasingly replaced collegial decision-making, stifling the autonomy of academics and impeding rather than facilitating academic...Read More

Words by G.R Evans, Emeritus Professor of Medieval Theology, University of Cambridge and author of discussions of university governance and Histories of Oxford and Cambridge. Unvisited information? Staff and students may not ask themselves how their university or other provider of their higher education is run until they encounter a difficulty.  In many years of...Read More

Questions concerning what should be believed, what should be done, and why, are unavoidable dimensions of a recognisably human life; and the arts and humanities in particular illuminate the conduct and predicaments of such a life […] to study the humanities, then, is to gather resources for learning how to live well, and – more...Read More

The Council for the Defence of British Universities is pleased to announce the launch of a new blog series on the topic of university governance. We are currently seeking contributors who can offer insights from all aspects of the university. If you would like to contribute to this series, please get in touch at cdbupress@gmail.com...Read More

Words by Matthew Smith,  joint runner up in the CDBU Essay Prize Competition 2022. I am a historian, but I’ve been spending the last few months playing the lottery.  Not a lottery that can put money in my bank account, but a lottery that can put money in my research account.  That’s right, the funding...Read More

In September this year, The Council for the Defence of British Universities (CDBU) and Professor Paul Baines (University of Leicester) co-organised a cross-party policy workshop to discuss and debate the role of universities in building the society and economy of the future.  After two years of global political, social and financial instability due to the consequences...Read More

Words by Lydia Dye-Stonebridge, joint runner up in the CDBU Essay Prize Competition 2022. I once worked for a large corporate, and they saw it fit to test my personality. The assessment plotted me against the Randian axes of dominance and compliance, influence and steadiness. My line of best fit demonstrated that while in work,...Read More

NEW ON THE CDBU BLOG IN PURSUIT OF PREVENT – Words by John Holmwood, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Nottingham John Holmwood considers how the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill intersects with the government’s counter-extremism policy, in the light of recent leaks about the recommendations to be expected from the Shawcross...Read More

Introducing a blog by John Holmwood A lot of attention within the Higher Education sector is currently directed at the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill going through Parliament. Concocted during Gavin Williamson’s period as Secretary of State for Education, it was widely lobbied for by right-wing think tanks, such as Policy Exchange. Their report...Read More

On the tenth anniversary of its formation The Council for the Defence of British Universities invites submissions of essays on key challenges facing Higher Education in the UK today and possible solutions to them. Authors may take a creative, research-based or autobiographical approach, drawing on international experience where appropriate. Up to three prizes of £1000 each...Read More