In the news this week: 25 September 2015

UCU says new Prevent guidance is confused as students and pupils are wrongly quizzed about terror activities

The government's Prevent guidance became law this week amid stories of students and pupils being questioned about their views on terrorism. The Guardian reported how a Staffordshire University student was falsely accused of being a terrorist after an official had spotted him reading a textbook entitled Terrorism Studies in the college library. The postgraduate student is enrolled in the terrorism, crime and global security master's programme.

UCU general secretary, Sally Hunt told the Guardian that the government plans were baffling and fostered mistrust between lecturers and students. Earlier in the week the paper reported how a 14-year-old school pupil in north London was questioned without his parents present after a discussion on eco terrorism in a French class.

Further criticism for Open University cuts

Author and TV presenter Dr Miriam Stoppard has criticised controversial plans by the Open University to axe almost 500 jobs and seven regional centres. Stoppard said she believed it was everyone's right to have access to higher education and that she was horrified to learn that the Gateshead regional centre was one of seven earmarked for closure.

There were also protests in the Times Higher this week. One letter writer warned that vital local services would be lost along with the irreplaceable experience of front-line staff. A petition against the cuts already has 3,500 signatures. You can sign the petition here.

Poorest students and women will be hit hardest by government tuition fee reforms

Women and students from the poorest backgrounds will be hit hardest by planned government changes to the way tuition fees are paid back, warned a report released yesterday by the Sutton Trust. UCU said the findings strengthened the case for a proper review of university funding and particularly how the loans system would impact on different groups of graduates.

Sally Hunt told the Mirror that the report was a timely example of how the government's reforms to university fees would hit the poorest hardest. She said that we should finding ways to encourage the brightest people into university, not putting up ever greater financial barriers. She told the BBC that the findings strengthened the case for a proper review of university funding and particularly how the loans system would affect different groups of graduates.

Jobs threat at Bradford College as funding for English courses axed

Bradford College has announced proposals to axe nine full-time teaching jobs after losing funding for courses to help jobseekers improve their English. The college told staff the job losses are in response to the loss of its £700,000 budget to run English courses for foreign language speakers who are looking for work though Jobcentre Plus.

UCU has vowed to work with the college to avoid any compulsory job losses by redeploying staff across its portfolio of other English courses. Speaking to the Bradford Telegraph and Argus, regional official Julie Kelley said: 'It doesn't make sense for the college to lose qualified staff who teach vital language and life skills that improve their chances of finding work, and settling into the community.'

UCU says Swansea University's reputation 'tarnished' by management school controversy

The reputation of Swansea University has been 'tarnished' by controversy surrounding its management school, warned UCU this week. The local branch said staff in the institution's School of Management (SoM) had endured a hellish two years under the leadership of former dean Professor Nigel Piercy, who described trade unionists as'unpleasant and grubby little people' and even insulted his students.

In a letter to members UCU described Prof Piercy's criticism of trade unionists as 'highly offensive' and said the school had been 'bruised and wounded' by a steady stream of negative publicity.