Wednesday, May 7, 2025
Blog Page 484

Oriel to hold Coronavirus News solidarity dinner

David Alexander
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Oriel to hold Coronavirus News solidarity dinner

Oriel College is hosting a “solidarity dinner” on the evening of Friday 6th March, intended to act in solidarity with students from countries affected by the coronavirus. They have been invited to the dinner “as guests of the college”.

In an email announcing the dinner, Domestic Bursar Steven Marshall caused controversy by referring to affected countries as being in the “Far East” and saying that the dinner would feature an “Oriental-themed menu.”

A further email described the menu for the dinner. It promised “exotic fruits” and “fortune cookies”.

One Oriel student said of the dinner: “We recognise that Oriel means well, but the language used in the first email was really archaic and thoughtless, and has left a number of students worried that Oriel is substituting a nice black-tie formal with wine for actual meaningful help for struggling students.”

Another Oriel student echoed these sentiments when they commented: “The formal feels incredibly tone deaf on Oriel’s part, and geared towards boosting formal attendance above anything else. Had the college tried to use the event to raise money for vaccine research, then perhaps it would be more understandable. But right now, to many students, this whole dinner seems misguided.”

A spokesperson for Oriel College said: “The College recognises that the past few months have been especially worrying for some of our overseas students, particularly those from China and other regions in Asia who will be unable to travel home to see their families during the Easter vacation due to concerns over the rapid spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).

“In addition to providing practical support by ensuring that affected students have accommodation over the vacation, along with appropriate welfare provisions, the College has organised a formal din- ner to which affected students have been invited to dine as guests of the College.

“The event is intended to bring the College community together to show solidarity with all those impacted.

“The response to the event has been positive and many of our students and academic staff have signed up to attend the dinner and show their support. We are very proud of the community spirit that has been shown in response to this challenging situation.”

Oxford City Council releases annual performance statistics on gender pay gap

Trudy Ross
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Oxford City Council releases annual performance statistics on gender pay gap

The City Council report has revealed that, on average across the whole of the Council’s workforce, women earn 10.2% less than men.

This is the first year that the annual report has not included the ODS workforce (formerly Oxford Direct Services) in its statistics. This company is wholly owned by the Council and includes parks maintenance, refuse and recycling, and construction. ODS is now a separate company from the City Council and reports its gender pay gap data independently, under the terms of the Equalities Act.

This change has been clearly reflected in the Council’s gender pay statistics. In the last two years, the reports which included the ODS workforce showed that overall women actually earned slightly more than men.

The Council’s workforce is predominantly female, with women making up 401 members of staff or 58% of the workforce. However, many of these women work in lower-earning positions.

Men make up the vast majority of the ODS workforce, with 570 male members of staff making up 88% of the workforce, as of 31st March 2019.

Staff on the same salary point within each grade receive the same hourly pay, regardless of gender.

The Council claims that: “Success in closing the Council’s gender pay gap will be achieved through its employment policies and practices”. These practices include training and organisational development

initiatives to encourage participation by female colleagues within “higher graded” positions in the Council, as well as policies which facilitate greater flexibility in the time, place and manner by which work is performed. The Council also says it will enforce recruitment approaches and methods that “promote the Council as an employer of choice and place to build a great career, with access to a range of flexible working arrangements.”

Councillor Nigel Chapman, Cabinet Member for Safer Communities and Customer Focused Services, commented: “This year’s report reflects the change in the balance of the way women and men are employed within the City Council’s workforce after you have removed the ODS workforce data. Most importantly, it also shows that women are still not reaching the highest levels of the organisation in equal numbers as men.

“We have strong policies to support flexible working, parental leave and career development, which are shown to support women’s career progress. We are actively addressing the barriers through a planned programme to support more women and BAME candidates to progress internally, and to attract more diverse external candidates.

City Council to hold Conflict Awareness Training for Members

Madison Carroll
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City Council to hold Conflict Awareness Training for Members

On March 2nd, Oxford City Council approved a recommendation to hold conflict awareness training for its members.

This is meant to help ensure the safety of councillors ahead of the upcoming May elections.

In response to a Cherwell request for comment, the council said that the training was instituted for concerns of safety.

The council’s statement said: “Oxford City Council takes the safety of its councillors very seriously.”

“Guidance on conflict awareness will be offered to candidates in the forthcoming May elections to help minimise the possibility of anyone being put at risk during pre-election canvassing.”

The proposal that councillors undergo this training outlined the threat to safety councillors face during an election season.

The report states that personal safety is “a significant issue for members at present.” In past elections, councillors have faced threats to safety while canvassing and performing electoral activities.

Last year, a Conservative candidate who was passing out leaflets in Bristol was aggressively pushed against a wall.

In October, petrol bombs were thrown outside the home of a councillor in Dewsbury. In 2018, a councillor in Oxford had to have minor surgery after being bitten by a dog while passing out leaflets.

The conflict awareness training will occur in March in preparation for the May elections, when councillors will be canvassing.

All 48 Oxford City Council seats are going to be contested in the May election. The council’s report states that the offer for training will be open to all the candidates who are standing for election in May – approximately 200 candidates. The training sessions will be delivered to groups of up to 15 members and the cost of each session is £500.

The recommendation for conflict awareness training also states that further training should be completed after the 2020 elections and that it should continue to occur in March of each year prior to other city council elections.

In addition to holding training sessions, the council has also reissued its guidance form on personal safety.

This guidance form discusses how to spot the warning signs for a possible threat to personal safety and what steps should be taken to prepare to canvass.

This guidance also recommends members to consult the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, a nonprofit that specialises in safety training, and the government’s Health and Safety Executive for external resources.

Oxford awarded for anti-poverty work

Mark Robins
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Oxford awarded for anti-poverty work

Oxford has been awarded a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for its anti-poverty work. The award was presented to the university by Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace last month.

Oxford gained the accolade due to its development of a multidimensional measure for poverty. The multidimensional index offers a more comprehensive approach to poverty by measuring the various ways poor people suffer in their everyday, not just their income.

According to the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), “A person who is poor can suffer from multiple disadvantages at the same time – for example they may have poor health or malnutrition, a lack of clean water or electricity, poor quality of work or little schooling. Focusing on one factor alone, such as income, is not enough to capture the true reality of poverty.”

OPHI, a research centre in the Oxford Department of International Development, is headed by Dr Sabina Alkire, who developed the multidimensional approach alongside Professor James Foster.

Dr Alkire said: “When poor persons, who are the real experts on this subject, explain what poverty is, they articulate multiple disadvantages such as lack of good education, joblessness, poor health, insecurity, ramshackle housing or inadequate sanitation. A multidimensional measure of poverty reflects the lived experiences of impoverished people – and enables actions that redress multiple deprivations.” She also said OPHI was “delighted to receive this prize”.

Alkire and Foster’s method has been applied to both national and international poverty measures. An OPHI spokesperson said: “Whilst OPHI is interested in multidimensional poverty measurement in high-income countries such as the UK, OPHI’s focus to date has been on measuring multidimensional poverty in low- and middle-income countries around the world so that policymakers can tackle it efficiently and effectively.”

OPHI has used this method to help develop Bhutan’s Gross National Happiness Index, which measures non-traditional aspects of culture and well-being, and the Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index, which measures the agency and inclusion of women in the sector.

Speaking to Cherwell, the spokesperson added: “OPHI will continue to promote, develop and help implement official permanent national multidimensional poverty indices in countries around the world, and their use by high-level policy leaders, in order to harness both data and political will to tackle poverty in all its forms and dimensions.”

The Anniversary Prize is awarded every two years for outstanding research work. The award is managed by the Royal Anniversary Trust, which praised OPHI’s method as “a unique framework for tackling global poverty”.

International Women’s Festival begins in Oxford

Natasha Voase
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International Women’s Festival begins in Oxford

The 31st International Women’s Festival in Oxford began this term and will involve two weeks of events on the theme of “threads of Liberation.” The fortnight kicked off with the Women’s Liberation Conference which took place on Saturday 29th February.

The main event, “Threads of Liberation” will take place on the 6th of March at 7pm in the Oxford Town Hall. During the evening, a variety of mediums such as dance, music and poetry will be used to showcase the experience of women from a variety of different backgrounds. According to the Festival organisers contacted by Cherwell, Annelise Dodds, Oxford East MP, will be attending and speaking.

The Festival, which will end on the 14th of March, was inspired by the 50th anniversary of the first Women’s Liberation Conference which was held at Ruskin College, Oxford in February 1970. At the original event, women came together and demanded equal pay, improved education, twenty-four-hour nurseries, free contraception and abortion on demand, as well as a commitment to campaign on other issues as they arose. According to a Festival spokesperson, the event aims to “celebrate and support women’s struggles as well as their creativity.”

A spokesperson for the Oxford International Women’s Festival Collective told Cherwell that the event the Women’s Liberation Conference, which was held last Saturday, and according to a Festival spokesperson “encouraged many women to question women’s role in society and to campaign for women’s equality and equality of opportunity.” There was some controversy regarding the event as Oxford History Professor, Selena Todd, was allegedly asked by organisers not to speak.

Over the course of the next fortnight, events will aim to showcase the progress made by women as well as to highlight the different experiences of women from a variety of backgrounds. A diverse range of events, such as discussions, exhibitions, marches, action days, retreats and film nights, will celebrate the diversity of women.

A workshop on Saturday 7th March from 10am will educate people on FGM. The workshop, organised by Oxford Against Cutting, will according to a spokesperson “use creative arts projects and advocacy to raise awareness of FGM and other harmful practices.”

On Sunday 8th March, a walk from Oxford City Centre to Cowley Road has been organised to raise awareness about violence experienced by women. Starting at 6 pm, the event aims to “Walk aimed to reclaim spaces women may avoid for fear of violence, sexual harassment or rape, and to raise awareness about violence against women.” Although all are welcome at the celebration on Cowley Road, the walk is women- only.

An exhibition on Afrikan Amazon women will take place at the Fusion Arts & East Oxford, Community Centre from the 3rd March until the 14th March. The exhibition will feature “unsung heroes” as well as the women of the Windrush Generation.

Interview with Musician and Neuroscientist Izzy Frances

Eleanor Ruxton
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Interview with Musician and Neuroscientist Izzy Frances

Musician and neuroscientist Izzy Frances loves to play on your heartstrings. Propelled by a desire to understand herself and others, Izzy has burst onto the Oxford music scene with a dizzying combination of science and emotion. This approach to music is intensely refreshing. It isn’t an attempt to secure a flashy lifestyle, to get rich quick or to become a household name. No, this is a more intimate affair, an attempt to “capture emotions and share them in a way that anyone can understand”.

Communication drives this artist’s creativity, then. So too does her “deep love for carefully woven lyrics” which “change our perspectives and help us understand situations better”.

Our seemingly intrinsic enjoyment of music has captivated the scientific community. Some speculate that the articulation of feelings, needs and desires through music was important to the communication of early man. fMRI has revealed that whilst different communities prefer different styles, all experience the same neurological reaction to music. It really is the “universal language”, as Izzy says.

On the most basic level, it is understood that music triggers the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that functions as part of the brain’s reward system, which has ensured our survival. Whilst every day is not a case of fight or flight, Izzy explains we might use music routinely to decrease levels of cortisol, the stress hormone in our blood.

But is music an exact science? Despite her scientific background, Izzy prefers to write from a place of raw emotion. It is here that the divide between music as a science and music as an emotional outlet melts away. For Izzy, the best songs must “pour out” of her and into us. This is about building a close connection, a bond between musician and listener that is vital to the emotional experience of music.

Izzy’s account of co-writing reflects music’s ability to be simultaneously intimate and universal. Again, her emphasis is on communication and building trust: “it usually involves opening up about something personal to people you barely know.” This has clearly been a rewarding experience for her, a sweet-sounding emotional detox that the listener can enjoy.

Tone-deaf myself, I am fascinated by the power of musicians like Izzy who can capture my mood perfectly, or even change it. Yet despite the power she wields, Izzy has no intention of crossing over to the dark side. She explained to me the importance of positive “listening techniques” – that is, engaging with music in a way that makes an individual feel less alone or pulls them out of a negative emotional state. Careful not to be cornered into the label ‘dark-pop’, Izzy assures me that her next song will be upbeat. Above all, it is important to her that individuals develop a knowledge of music that will enable them to use it in a positive way.

This sense of creative altruism is precisely what has led other members of the scientific community to develop music therapy. The applications of this are numerous, ranging from treatment of dementia patients to bereavement counselling, and even the stabilisation of babies in intensive care. Dr Stephen Porges’ pioneering polyvagal theory explains that our body’s reactions to trauma often worsen the negative emotions associated with traumatic events – for example, when we perceive fear, blood flow to the brain is automatically reduced. Music therapy might go some way in restoring physiological and emotional balance. Science and emotional sensitivity thus go hand-in-hand.

More artists are discussing the mental health narratives that feed into their work. For Izzy, this is symptomatic of a growing urge to be true to oneself. She explained to me the role that her kind of music has in combating industry pressure. “I’d like to see the music industry backing people to be authentic and true to themselves more than anything else, as despite what they may say there is a lot of pressure to write, perform and appear in a certain way.” Izzy’s scientific background places her perfectly on the cusp of the next big trend.

Living with a Chronic Illness at University

Abigail Howe
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Living with a Chronic Illness at University

There are loads of forms before you arrive at Oxford. Room agreements and library contracts to fill in, induction timetables to flick through and bizarre (although upon arriving, incredibly necessary) safe cycling guides to peruse. One that I struggled with, though, was the medical form. It advised students to register with a local GP, pointing out one that was even linked directly with the college. I completely ignored it Medical treatment – regular MRIs, consultant’s appointments and blood tests – means that I need to stay registered with my (already overly crowded) GP at home. So, I just skipped that form and temporarily registered with a GP in Oxford instead. But, coming back in Hilary term, now those three months of temporary registration are over, it’s been hard to work out exactly what to do next.

Deregistering with my home GP just isn’t an option. But, after speaking to a doctor in Oxford, it became evident that, due to a lack of funding and medical history, treatment from a GP while unregistered would be very hard to obtain. I was told to go home if I felt unwell so I could receive treatment there. But, if I’m feeling rough enough that I need a GP, I shouldn’t be on a train for a couple of hours to get home, especially considering the likelihood that I could infect others or become more ill during the journey. It’s just not viable as a long-term solution.

So, why can’t students register at a GP both at home and at university? It would be convenient for everyone, disabled or not. Divide the funding proportionately by how many weeks the student is at university, share the medical records, keep an eye on prescriptions and you’re sorted – except it’s not that simple.

Sharing out funding is harder than basic division, intuitive though it is. There would be questions of necessity – should areas with comparatively high numbers of students be given more? Every clinic will claim that they have the largest burden of care – the high pressure university environment and specialist services mean that GPs in university towns can claim to have the higher burden. For Oxford though, home GPs are the standard service for twenty-eight weeks of the year – proportionally, then, they should do more work. Obviously, this will vary hugely on a case-by-case basis – should funding be given on a retrospective basis, then, looking at how GPs are actually used? This would ensure fairness but remove the vital financial buffer of funding from those who then don’t use the GP, leading to an overall worse standard of medical care for all.

There’s also the problem of exclusivity – should it be available only to those receiving treatment at home while also at university? It would help all students, so extend it to them. Then, you could also make a case for those who commute relatively long distances to work – why can’t they be registered at two GPs? It’s hard to decide for whom exactly dual registration would, and should, be put in place.

Bureaucratically, it’s tough too. Who handles referrals? To whom is hospital information sent? Lack of precedent but high interest from students in dual registration means that all of these questions would have to be addressed before any new system was rolled out. Many GPs don’t use the same system for electronic medical records. This lack of one universal scheme creates risk. It could lead to repeated testing, issues with prescribing medication or missing key symptoms. Fundamentally, patient care is limited under a system of dual registration.

Dr Dominique Thompson, while arguing against dual registration, claims that “students can be followed up by the university GP in the holidays by telephone, in person if they wish, and by secure email or even using technologies such as Skype, if the practice uses it”. The key words here are “if the practice uses it” – this creates a postcode lottery based on funding. In areas with high numbers of students, funding is likely to be lower per capita. There are also some services like WebGP or AskMyGP which would provide solutions to some non-urgent queries. However, these are only accessible if your GP surgery has registered to use it, continuing the geographical disparity. “In person if they wish” is also problematic. During the holidays, popping up to Oxford just for a GP appointment isn’t something sick people should “wish” to do. It might be prohibitively expensive or exhausting or there may be other constraints on time.

Furthermore, GPs are supposed to provide treatment to anyone (regardless of their registration status) if it is immediately necessary. But necessity is hard to define in practice. Considering issues of implicit bias means that pain isn’t seen on an objective basis. Marginalised groups who don’t appear in medical textbooks or who are seen as hysterical or having a naturally higher pain tolerance or of wanting drugs for the sake of it don’t receive the same treatment as the heterogenous average. Long term, this can lead to health conditions going untreated – painful for the people and expensive for the NHS.

There isn’t a simple solution to the need for dual registration. Providing it would need to be a long-term process, with questions of funding, filing and convenience. But temporary registration without funding is unfair to overwhelmed GPs, especially in student-dense locations. It’s not going to change any time soon, certainly not within my time at university, and a lack of clear guidance for treating unregistered students means that confusion is likely to continue regardless of dual registration. For now, I’m just going to not get ill – it might be easier than navigating the tangled web of the medical system!

Working-class, Oxford educated

Kiran Kang and Nell Ling
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Working-class, Oxford educated

Getting used to uni is hard enough. But things get complicated when you feel like you don’t fit in Oxford may be celebrating a record 69% intake from state schools, but this is often not much consolation for working-class students who feel they very much are in the minority. Within in a week of arrival, we had already become acquainted with the glaring gap of class difference. Now halfway through our first year, we would like to share our experiences as state school, first gen, working class students at the University of Oxford.

For Nell, being working class for me specifically means growing up having a household income that amounts to less that the termly Eton admission fee. It means relying completely on a maintenance loan that I know I have to pay back without any financial assistance. It means growing up in a council flat, on a council estate. It means being the first in my family to go to university. And it means attending an underfunded, Ofsted rated ‘requires improvement’ state school that never expected my admission to Oxford.

For Kiran, it means coming from a household which has always had one breadwinner, working daily 12 hour-shifts on minimum wage in order to provide for their family. Having one parent that works non-stop, and the other who doesn’t know English, it was unsurprising challenging to gain any insight or advice when applying to university, let alone the unique admissions process Oxford uses.

For us, not having a lot of money affects our daily lives. We budget our loans, being weary about spending it on luxuries like Solomon’s, when we know in the back of our minds we’ll have to pay it back. The pressure to buy ball tickets, union memberships, fancy dresses, and other expenses is felt ten-fold since we appreciate that this money is meant to be spent on rent, food and other living costs. We recognise that not everyone who is middle-class has parents willing to provide for them financially. We understand that middle-class students are not a homogenous group, but our experiences just appear to be very different from the majority of people around us. The lack of relatability we feel to other students here is disheartening.

However, for us the material differences are only the tip of the iceberg. The fundamental way in which our experiences differ is a cultural one. Unlike many of our peers, we don’t have multiple school friends attending Oxford, giving us an automatic connection and the comfort of seeing a familiar face. For us, we feel as if our admission here is anomalous. Similarly, being first generation university students, we didn’t have any guidance or insight into what to expect. Half the time spent reading for essays is spent looking through the dictionary, because we are unfamiliar with so much of the vocabulary used. And we still don’t know what the difference between black and white tie are.

One factor which makes our experience as working-class students at Oxford different is the role in which our parents play in our education. Frankly, they don’t. This is not and will never be the result of laziness. For some of us, throughout our whole experience within the education system, our families remained nothing but perplexed in such a way that any attempt to engage within it was met with intimidation and confusion. The whole notion of us attending university is something our parents are still becoming accustomed to. Their lack of knowledge surrounding the culture of university and the whole etiquette surrounding events such as formals and how one should interact has left our parents thinking it would simply be best not to attend events such as the Freshers’ Formal, explaining that “It isn’t our sort of thing.”

From the point of receiving an offer from Oxford to finally achieving the grades, working class students experience constant questioning by their parents as to why we did not apply to a university close to home. It is only now that we realise that this results from a lack of understanding on many parents’ part on the significance of the University of Oxford. Regardless of feeling like our experiences here are largely unrelatable, we know that there are many other working-class, first gen, state school students that can relate, who feel different and imposturous. But it is important to remember that we are not alone. We are not imposters; we are breaking barriers, adding flavour to Oxford and being nothing other than deserving of our places here.

Plush condemns SU LGBTQ+ campaign

Rachel Cordery
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Plush condemns SU LGBTQ+ campaign

Plush, Oxford’s LGBTQ+ bar and club, has announced it will no longer recognise the Student Union’s LGBTQ+ Campaign as an “authoritative voice of the queer community” in Oxford.

Plush is a safe space for the community and the decision comes after the SU campaign allegedly made threats to the venue that made the working relationship between the two challenging.

In a statement, Plush Oxford said: “this, regrettably the working relationship we have long enjoyed with Oxford SU LGBTQ+ Campaign has more recently proved challenging.

“Whilst Plush understands the value such a group could have for the queer community, its current executive committee has sought to bully and harass Plush in a way it no longer finds acceptable.

“Their threats have included proposing to issue statements they know to be factually incorrect, which would result in misleading the community they claim to represent, and threatening to boycott the venue if their demands are not met.

“This is neither professional nor respectful of the open and constructive relationship Plush shares with other representative groups, and which it has long demonstrated is both easily possible and productive.

“Plush would much rather spend time speaking with individuals who want to help it make positive change, rather than defending negative communications that seek only to damage its queer space, and not work to improve it.

“As a result, Plush Oxford is severing communication with Oxford SU LGBTQ+ campaign with immediate effect, until such time that they can demonstrate an approach that is in keeping with Plush’s values.

“Plush will continue, as it has for over a decade, to hold open and transparent discussions with any individuals or representative groups that raise concerns or feedback with us directly. Plush is not perfect; the venue accepts that.

“Whilst the number of incidents is much lower than other nightclubs, Plush accepts it can always do better, whilst also considering the unique requirements of running an LBGTQ+ venue. Plush will continue to work with any individuals or representative bodies or groups who respect the challenges and opportunities everyone must face in the ongoing improvement of Plush Oxford.”

Established over ten years ago, Plush Oxford has built a safe space for the queer community with over 72,000 visits in 2019 alone.

In response, the SU LGBTQ+ Campaign made a brief statement on their website. They said: “Oxford SU is yet to meet with or discuss any matters with Plush directly and is surprised by their statement. We will seek to ascertain if this is something we can assist them with and speak with any students involved to attempt to resolve matters. We will not be doing this publicly.”

In their statement, Plush Oxford emphasise their zero tolerance policy towards homophobia, transphobia, queerphobia, racism, xenophobia, among others.

They said: “Plush has, and always will be, committed to providing a safe atmosphere predominantly for the LGBTQ+ community, whilst welcoming all patrons who share its values and respect its culture.

“The venue always wants to ensure a good night out for everyone, and where this is not the case it has always encouraged people to speak to its staff.

“More recently this has included social media campaigns reinforcing this principle and invitation to its patrons and introducing a direct email address for anyone who has concerns.

“In January, Plush published an online Community Feedback Survey which invited its patrons and the community to comment anonymously on Plush, their experiences in the space, what they liked, and what the venue do better, all with the understanding that there is always room for improvement.

“That survey, which is still active, has received over 200 responses, and Plush’s management are thoroughly scrutinising the feedback in order to make the venue an even safer and more enjoyable experience for everyone.

“Plush has always welcomed feedback and constructive comments from both individual and various bodies that represent the queer community in Oxford, with whom it has forged strong relationships.

“Individuals and collective representatives alike, vested in positive and productive dialogue aimed at strengthening and safeguarding Oxford’s queer community and spaces, will know from long experience that Plush maintains an open-door policy in regards to feedback, listening to experiences, and helpful suggestions for improvement.

“Just in December, Plush’s management met with representatives of Oxford’s LGBTQ+ Society and together agreed upon a number of recommendations which were quickly implemented.

“Plush’s bar staff, door staff, and management are held to the venue’s high standard, and each complaint or concern is immediately and thoroughly investigated, aided by the venue’s extensive CCTV and body camera footage.

“No one is above Plush’s code of behaviour or the law, and this principle has remained unchanged since the club’s inception or its move to Frewin Court.

“Plush has and will forever continue to review any complaint or allegation promptly, and will always take appropriate action where necessary—including, where appropriate, dismissal of any staff found incompliant with the venue’s guidelines.”

Oxford LGBTQ+ Society told Cherwell: “We are incredibly sad to see how the communication and working relationship between Plush and the Oxford SU LGBTQ+ Campaign has developed.

“We would like to stress that whilst the Oxford SU LGBTQ+ Campaign and the Oxford University LGBTQ+ Society are separate bodies independent from one another, we appreciate the SU LGBTQ+ Campaign’s forefront contributions to Oxford’s LGBTQ+ student life. The Campaign engages in a broad range of events and works with the local community, and have, amongst other things, been invaluable in fighting transphobia and improving the living and working conditions of transgender students in Oxford.

“In a similar way we also appreciate the contributions Plush has made towards the LGBTQ+ community. Together we have succeeded in making Plush accessible, and implemented policies to guarantee it remains a clearly designated LGBTQ+ space after concerns were raised by members of the community last term. We welcome their willingness to work together constructively and implement changes where concerns arise, and we appreciate their acknowledgement that more can always be done to improve the venue.

“Just as the past committee has done, we too will set up a working group together with Plush that will continue to constantly improve Plush as a venue and take concerns brought by members of the community seriously when and where they arise. We have reached out to Plush to organise a meeting between members of their management team and representatives of our new committee to re-establish this working group. In addition to utilising Plush’s feedback form, we are always open to individuals contacting the LGBTQ+ Society directly via our own feedback form to direct us to look at specific issues together with the Plush management team (https://forms.gle/ooF6Ki3FRmCnfMY98).

“We would welcome it if the relationship between the Oxford SU LGBTQ+ Campaign and Plush can be restored. We strongly believe that ultimately we all have the same aim of improving LGBTQ+ life in Oxford, be it by providing welfare and support, engaging in activism and local outreach, or running events and providing designated LGBTQ+ spaces. We hope that Plush and the Oxford SU LGBTQ+ Campaign will, over time, manage to return to open dialogue, and that all representatives and advocates of the Oxford LGBTQ+ community can work together in the future.”

Record breaking performance for Oxford in QS World Ranking

Imogen Harter-Jones
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Record breaking performance for Oxford in QS World Ranking

Oxford has been named the world’s best university for the study of eight different subjects in the tenth edition of the QS World University Rankings by Subject. This is the university’s best-ever performance in this exercise.

The eight subjects that are listed as best for study of the subject are Anatomy & Physiology, Anthropology, Archaeology, Classics & Ancient History, English Language & Literature, Geography, Modern Languages, and Pharmacy & Pharmacology.

Additionally, seven subjects (Development Studies, History, Law, Medicine, Social Policy & Administration, Sociology and Theology, Divinity & Religious Studies) were ranked second best in the world to study at Oxford.

In total, 21 subjects were listed in positions between 1-5th place in the table. Of the 38 academic disciplines from University of Oxford that are in the 2020 subject rankings, 50% improved their positions in the rankings, 16% decreased, and 34% stayed the same. In Academic Reputation, University of Oxford’s best performance is in English Language & Literature, in which it scores 100.

QS note that “year-on-year, the number of UK departments achieving a global top-10 rank has increased from 137 to 139, while the number of UK programs achieving a top-50 rank has increased from 357 to 362.”

The rankings, compiled by global higher education analysts QS Quacquarelli Symonds, provide authoritative comparative analysis on the performance of 13,138 individual university programs, taken by students at 1368 universities which can be found in 83 locations across the world, across 48 academic disciplines and five broad Faculty Areas.

In order to compile the rankings list QS use four key metrics: Academic Reputation, Employer Reputation, Citations per Paper, H-Index which measures both the productivity and impact of the published work of a scientist or scholar. The index is based on the set of the academic’s most cited papers and the number of citations that they have received in other publications.

Professor Martin Williams, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Education at Oxford University, said: “I am thrilled to see that the University has been recognised at the top of the QS University World Rankings in so many disciplines.

“The University topping eight subject areas- up from five last year – is a recognition of the enduring excellence of an Oxford education and the calibre of our academic teaching staff. We pride ourselves on our international academic reputation and are committed to providing and supporting the best educational environment.”

For the fourth year in a row the University of Oxford remains the world’s leading institution for the study of Archaeology according to the QS rankings. Professor Amy Bogaard, Head of the School of Archaeology, said: “We are very proud to have retained our position at the top of the QS University World Rankings in our subject for the 4th year running, and amongst other excellent departments. Maintaining the top spot in such a dynamic global discipline is a testament to the creativity and dedication of our staff and students. We will continue to strive for innovation and impact in our research and teaching, and to prepare our talented graduates for a rapidly changing world and it’s new opportunities.”

The QS Spokesperson, Jack Moran, said: “Over the last five years, our results have illuminated the increasing competitiveness of the global higher education sector, with both the American and Australian systems seeing their share of top-ranked programs decrease sharply since 2016.

“Furthermore, the British higher education sector has also experienced no small amount of uncertainty since the 2016 referendum.

“It is therefore a testament to the University of Oxford’s enduring quality that it has not just kept pace with the rate of improvement enjoyed by highly-ambitious, well-funded peers abroad – but has actually managed to continue raising the bar in many areas.

“Not only do more of its departments enjoy world-leader status than ever before, but we observe nearly half of its 39 ranked departments improving their position: no mean feat, given their already lofty starting-point.

“A deeper delve into our dataset highlights the outstanding regard in which Oxford’s graduates are held, and the extraordinary impact of the academic inquiry taking place among the spires.”

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