Join the Occupation

On Thursday UK Members of Parliament will vote on a proposal to raise tuition fees for higher education study to a maximum of £9000, a steep rise from the current maximum of £3000. This will be accompanied by a marked decline in public funding for teaching in universities, particularly for arts and humanities courses. There has been widespread disatisfaction about the proposals from within higher education (staff and students), and from parents and young people who are seeing a future of debt lined up for them.

Last night students at the University of Bradford, where I work, became the latest to extend their protest to an occupation of university premises. You'll find their blog at: http://bradfordstudentsagainstcuts.wordpress.com/

Our Vice-Chancellor has also issued a strong statement today expressing concern about the impacts of the fees rise, which you can see on his blog: http://blogs.brad.ac.uk/from-the-vc/

I'm happy to work at a university where the students are active, empowered and willing to take a stand. I'm happy to work at a university where our VC is so strongly committed to our core Bradford value of an inclusive Higher Education.

So today's blip captures some of that moment, and highlights the room that is at the core of the occupation, overlooking the university's atrium. In this sense it is a reporting image, more than an artistic one.

I'm still feeling my way regarding the voice of this journal/blog; but in bringing this entry forward I suppose I'm highlighting that it will deal with events in and around my life, as well as nice pictures. And as I've said from the beginning, the words will be as important to me as the image. I'm not sure how this blend sits within Blipfoto culture, but I expect you'll let me know :)