James Flynn

Higher Education policy person. Policy Officer on Young Fabians Education Network. Currently doing an MA.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

That increase essentially amounts to a round in the bar.

[Andrew Jones @andrewtjones79]

Maintenance loans due to be increased by FORECAST inflation of 2.8% in 2023/24. Govt seemingly ignoring actual inflation of over 10%. Awaiting to see where hardship funding is directed. But some heavy lifting needed to address an ~8% real terms cut in the maintenance loan

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

The cut off date for committing is pre-Christmas. But the cut off date for income-based scholarships (for only two students) is April.

How they expect low income students, who would rely on that money to afford the fees and living costs abroad, to make do otherwise I don't know.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

The university I study at offers Double MAs (where you study for a year in the UK, and another abroad, and get two MAs).

They make it clear that - while you can pull out and only do the one year - it is very difficult to leave the Double programme if you commit to it.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

There are over half a million students in halls, and they have been left out of pretty much every flagship intervention on the cost of living.

And yet @jim_dickinson is pretty much the only person who seems to have noticed...

https://t.co/cxSoefKedV

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

The £400 Energy Bill Support doesn't help students in halls (because they don't have a direct relationship with an energy supplier).

So surely the alternative scheme - specifically for households without a direct relationship with an energy supplier - covers them, right?

Oh...

[Jim Dickinson @jim_dickinson]

So as surely almost everyone knows, a while back the government introduced something it called the Energy Bills Support Scheme 🧵

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

League tables measure different things.

Those which weight research and entry tariff highly (like The Times) will disadvantage institutions like Wolverhampton.

But Wolverhampton ranks 10th on this league table measuring social mobility. https://t.co/jB8gc9yN1O

[Express & Star @ExpressandStar]

The University of Wolverhampton has ranked 127th out of 132 universities in the UK.

https://t.co/o7Z8piXFVV

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

@JohnnySRich @livia_scott_ @SundayMargot Absolutely Johnny. "Go where you feel comfortable" is about as clear a message as it needs.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

This has rightly been shared widely. Clear that first in family students have many disadvantages compared to those with a family history of University.

Getting in, getting on and getting graduate work much harder without guidance and 'connections'.

[Livia Scott @livia_scott_]

One thing I don't think anyone talks seriously enough about is the absolute culture shock of coming to university. Particularly, as a student from a more working-class background.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

@livia_scott_ @SundayMargot From personal experience, feel non-RG institutions are better at incorporating working class students. But I don't feel the issue is exclusively confined to the RG either. Message shouldn't be "don't apply to the RG" because that just makes the problem of "where I belong" worse.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

@livia_scott_ @SundayMargot The Uni I went to (a former Poly) was slap next to a Russell Group. One of the societies I was involved with was across both institutions. The difference in attitude towards w/c students (from other students) at the two Unis was night and day.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

@nickhillman @AndyWWestwood @MarpleLeaf @ucu @Charlotte_E_M Fully agree Nick. The sheer number of people this affects (IE both students and their families) yet barely a mention of this outside of some very specific HE-sector publications.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

@keiranpedley @HEPI_news @LSBU Also agree RE: Bedfordshire. Just because it doesn't rank highly on what the ranking measures, doesn't make it "the worst university." It just focuses on different things to those who do rank highly - institutions focusing on teaching over research are always at a disadvantage.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

@keiranpedley One of the more interesting tables is @HEPI_news / @LSBU 's Social Mobility Index, which tries to measure the social mobility and the number of people such mobilised. Again, flawed (all league tables are), but it's not measuring the usual things. https://t.co/jB8gc9yN1O

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

@beckymontacute There are now some more 'selective' universities where the Postgrad fee is much more than what you can get in loans.

Agree it completely undermines the social mobility driver when all the support - which is supposed to also cover maintenance - is swallowed up by fees.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

Have said for a while that the only way Labour can implement its no up-front fees in a sustainable way would be a graduate tax.

I wrote about it for @FabianEducation (nearly a year ago!) here - https://t.co/MJOuGgDiKF

[Higher Education Policy Institute @HEPI_news]

Stephen Marston presses @MattWestern_ on tuition fees at the @UniversitiesUK Conference. Matt says the position remains for now as in the 2019 Labour manifesto (no fees) but there is lots of thinking in the party on how to make the financial position of institutions sustainable.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

@dan_chard Ahh Dan, huge congratulations to you both.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

@jim_dickinson @BethAbbitMEN Absolutely. And we both know MMU's marketing materials won't have mentioned anything about having to live in Huddersfield or Liverpool. Comes back to a lot of WonkHE coverage of consumer rights - the halls may be there but the library clearly isn't.

[James Flynn @JamesFlynnHE]

I know it's popular to knock "shiny building" investment but, as an MMU Alumni, the Grosvenor East replaced an awful 70s era block we used to hate having lectures and seminars in.

How people can suggest new learning environments do nothing for students and staff is beyond me.

[Manchester Metropolitan Uni @ManMetUni]

We’re proud to have been shortlisted for the prestigious @ArchitectsJrnal 2022 Architecture awards for our SODA and Grosvenor East buildings - flagship developments which provide state-of-the-art learning and research environments.

Read more here: https://t.co/Ov3G3T9d9Z