PRAN NEWSLETTER ISSUE 26: April 2026
Dear PRAN MEMBERS
Welcome to the April edition of the PRAN newsletter. We’re delighted to share recent highlights, upcoming events, and opportunities to get involved. Thank you, as always, for being part of our community.
Blog
The Precariat grows in the Education Industry
Read our latest blog, where Guy Standing argues that over the past half-century, education has become a vast, commercialised industry marked by rising spending yet declining investment in teaching, shrinking humanities, and worsening teacher conditions. He highlights in the piece how a deepening class divide has produced administrative dominance and widespread precarity among educators, undermining teaching quality, professional stability, and the social purpose of education.
Picture This: A Visual Perspective on Poverty and Inequality in the UK Exhibition Launch
At our Picture This exhibition last week, some incredibly important conversations took place. A big thank you to Cllr Jane Corbett (Everton West), Deb Nolan (Citizens Advice Liverpool), Martyn Hall (Joseph Rowntree Foundation), and Becky Bryson (Local Artist) for their valuable contributions. It was wonderful to see such a strong turnout and to interact with an audience that asked thoughtful questions and shared insightful observations.
The 15 images are designed to highlight recurring and universal themes in the lived experiences of poverty and inequality, as well as in related policy, practice, and research. These images - both physical and digital - are now a public resource and can be freely accessed by anyone. If you would like to access the electronic images or exhibit physical copies in your space, please get in touch via info@pran.org.uk.
Save the Date: 13th of May
Join us at Against All Odds, a dynamic and thought-provoking event that delves into the intersections of class, creativity, and resilience within the arts. Bringing together a powerhouse panel of artists and writers, the event discusses the struggles and triumphs of working-class creatives who have fought to make their voices heard in an often exclusive cultural landscape.
For the second year, PRAN is partnering with Writing on the Wall (WoW), a Liverpool-based organisation that champions creative writing, social justice and community empowerment through literature, festivals and arts projects, to deliver this event. This session will be part of WoWFEST, Liverpool’s annual literary festival, taking place in May.
Our line up includes:
Joelle Taylor is a T.S. Eliot Prize-winning poet, playwright, and author whose work tackles themes of identity, power, and resistance. Her acclaimed poetry collection C+nto & Othered Poems exemplifies her bold and fearless voice.
Oliver James Lomax is a poet, educator, and trustee of the Working-Class Movement Library in Salford. A champion of cultural equality, he is a visiting poet with The Poetry Society and an Ambassador and Judge for Poetry By Heart.
Bea Freeman is an award-winning filmmaker, producer, and community organiser based in Liverpool, with a career spanning over five decades.
Host: Roger Hill is a freelance director, performer, writer, broadcaster, and arts and education consultant, best known for presenting BBC Radio Merseyside’s long-running alternative music programme and for his influential work in youth theatre, including serving as Chair and now Honorary President of the National Association of Youth Theatres.
You can see the festival programme here (the event details will be posted on the website in the coming days.) : https://writingonthewall.org.uk/wowfest-26/
We can offer free tickets to members who need them. Please get in touch if you’d like to request one: info@pran.org.uk
Call for Research Participants (The University of Sheffield)
Young Voices Against Socioeconomic Inequality Research Project
I am looking for young people (aged 16-25) who were born in or currently live in the North of England and participate in any form of anti-poverty activism to take part in a research study. The research forms part of my PhD project, where I am looking to understand and highlight the actions young people in the North of England are taking to tackle socioeconomic inequalities. The study aims to explore the issues your activism focuses on, the actions you are taking, and the changes you want to see, as well as the impact you think participating in activism has had on you. Participating involves taking part in a semi-structured interview and an optional participant pack. There is a range of accessible options, and participant packs can be done in a group format if any groups are interested. All participants will receive a voucher at the end of the project. This research is being conducted by me (Teagan), a 24-year-old PhD student at the University of Sheffield. If you are interested in taking part, please contact me at tmriches1@sheffield.ac.uk or fill out this EOI form https://lnkd.in/eDt-_6YE
We hope you find something here that sparks your interest or inspires you to get involved. We appreciate your continued support and look forward to staying connected in the months ahead. As always, we value your involvement and welcome your ideas, feedback, and participation- please get in touch with us at info@pran.org.uk.
In solidarity
PRAN Team
