Working-class people in UK Higher Education: Precarities, Perspectives and Progress. Book launch and interactive discussion

A BSA Social Class Study Group Event

17 November 2025 (13:00-16:00 GMT)
Online

About the Event

In recent years, UK higher education (HE) has sought to pursue more inclusive practices. However, we are yet to fully understand the experiences of a breadth of working-class people in HE. This edited collection uniquely brings together working-class reflections in the different roles and professions that exist in UK universities. Focusing on understudied groups including working-class academics, students, professional services, administrative staff, ancillary workers and parents, the chapters explore definitions of class, reflections of classism, class-based experiences, inequalities, and theory in conjunction with roles and professional experiences. Guided by a collaborative and community oriented editorial process which embodies the ethos of working-class communities, the collection focuses on five main section areas: academics, students and student journeys, pedagogy, teaching & learning, non-academic staff in HE, and a final section dedicated to practical steps for the future.

A first of its kind, observing the experiences of working-class people across the breadth of UK higher education, this is a breath of fresh air on this subject. It is compelling reading for sociological researchers of class and society, academics across disciplines who have shared lived experiences, those in higher education management and those who work with social class and social mobility in industry.

In this event, contributors from the book will discuss their chapters and invite the audience to discuss key intersectional topics in the field of social class studies. We hope to broaden the conversation around class and the intersectional elements included in the book to create an engaging and interesting discussion.

Programme

13:00-13:15	Introduction to the book and overview Jess Pilgrim-Brown, Teresa Crew, Eireann Attridge
13:15-13:45	Working-class academics Alison Wilde; The normative trajectory of academics and class-based disablism in Higher Education Claire Price; Breaking barriers: A working-class academic's journey towards a running a science festival Natalie Quinn Walker; Lasting legacy of imposter syndrome
13:45-14:00	Q&A/Discussion
14:00	Break
14:15-14:45	Working-class Students and Pedagogies, Teaching and Learning Nysha Givans; Educational narratives: Unravelling the experiences of mature students and working-class representation in lifelong education Carli Rowell; A ‘view from within’: The pedagogy, practice and possibilities of drawing from a working-class background Arlene Holmes-Henderson; Classics for all: From classism to representation for working-class classicists Sarah McLaughlin; The value of making explicit researcher positionality when researching working-class lives
14:45-15:00	Q&A/Discussion
15:00-15:30	Non-academic working-class staff in UK HE Rachael O’Connor; Becoming a ‘proper’ academic as a pracademic: Eating the imposterism trifle in an elite university Stacey Mottershaw; Bridging the gap: An autoethnographic reflection on working in both professional services and academic roles in UK HE Darren Flynn; In service to the academy: Exploring class and power hierarchies in the academic library
15:30-15:45	Q&A/Discussion
15:45-16:00	Wrap up: Looking to the future Liza Betts and Jo Pickering; Solidarity spaces and places of reflection: Working-class identity in higher education arts faculty Charlie Rumsby; Why we need working-class academics now more than ever

Registration

This event is free to attend but registration is required.