Duncan Exley

@duncanexley

Not-for-profits struggle to recruit & get the most out of people from non-middle class backgrounds. I can help: Analysis-&-recommendation &/or training.

2.301 Folgt1.971 Follower610 Posts

Bluesky

Ist das dein Profil?Übernimm es — dann gehört dir duncanexley.dirty.social.Profil übernehmen

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· 1d

Pastafarian plot?

Picture of man wearing colander as a hat

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· 19d

India’s Gen Z revolt - which today forced the education minister’s resignation - is in reaction to the same delusional approach to #SocialMobility we see here: If the number of good jobs doesn’t increase, no amount of education will increase the number of people who get them.

An excerpt from the story to which this post links, it reads “Government skill development initiatives aren’t helping — of the 16mn trained, only 15 per cent got jobs in the last decade. Even India’s famed information technology companies are laying off engineers and freezing recruitment. The sector’s Big Five hired a net 17 employees in the first nine months of the 2025-26 financial year.
As a result, many young people are forced to work jobs they are grossly overqualified for”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· 25d

Our incoming Prime Minister has a greater knowledge of English literature than his predecessor: Would Starmer have been able to name any of the key locations in Macbeth? Burnham would.

A screenshot of a !story on the Cambridge University website” Andy Burnham and his Cambridge English degree”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· 29d

“See what you could have won”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jul 10

Something unscripted is happening on the A503

A street scene Including a roadwork sign saying there will be “improv works”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jun 2

Universities *can be* engines of social mobility. They can also enhance opportunities for the privileged. Admissions too often reflect privilege rather than potential, & people from ordinary backgrounds rarely get as much benefit from the experience. www.ft.com/content/8fc1...

An excerpt from the piece I’ve linked to. It reads:
“Universities are not just education institutions, they are engines of social mobility and economic growth, and play a vital role in defining Britain’s cultural role on the world stage,” he added.

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· May 27

In case you wanted it, here’s a goose having a shower

A graylag goose stood beneath a fountain

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Apr 17

Are they *intentionally* going for a dystopian vibe? Strong resonance with John Carpenter’s “They Live” (1988)

A large electronic billboard advert for KFC, most of which is the word “BELIEVE” in block capitals

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Mar 18

Today I witnessed one of nature’s great migrations, in which Archie relocates from his winter perch next to the radiator to his chair in the sunny spot. #Nature #Springwatch

A black and white cat, sat on an oversized cushion on an armchair, in a sunny spot

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Mar 1

More Trumpian ‘stop the steal’ disinformation again today 👇

Headline o Mail On Sunday 01mar26:
“Foreign-born voters stole by-election blasts Farage’

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Mar 1

Happy ‘bring your moody teenager to work day’

President Trump, looking petulant, wearing a USA baseball cap, surrounded by men in suits in (?) a briefing room

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Feb 27

Farage using the Trump playbook: de-legitimise any election you don’t win, fuel conspiracy theories.

A screenshot from the Daily Mail website “Farage condemns ‘cheating’ in by election”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Feb 15

Happy half-price flowers day, to those who celebrate.

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jan 31

Could you lead an organisation that supports campaigners to be more effective? If so… #CharityJobs

A screenshot of SMK’s website: “Campaigning is vital to a healthy society. We help campaigners to thrive.

In a free and hopeful society, people need to know they have the power to make a difference: that they are able to envisage change and can push for that change to happen.

For over two decades, we have helped all sorts of individuals, causes and charities to find their power as changemakers – as campaigners.”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jan 26

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jan 8

Our internet has been a bit dodgy lately. In other news, here’s Archie on his nice warm WiFi router.

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jan 7

Privately-educated students are more than 6x more likely to get into @trinityhallcamb.bsky.social than are their state-schooled peers, but the college claims the former are the ones being discriminated against. Sheer classism.

An excerpt from the article that the quoted post refers to:
“Lee Elliot Major, a professor of social mobility at the University of Exeter, said: “What is truly shocking is the implication that widening participation students are academically inferior. The evidence is clear: when talented students who have faced greater barriers gain access to elite universities, they flourish precisely because opportunity, not ability, was the binding constraint.

“At a time when the educational playing field is more unequal than ever, universities should be identifying academic potential wherever it exists, not mistaking polished performance, so often shaped by privilege, for greater raw talent.”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Nov 30

A picture of the street in York called The Shambles

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Oct 29

Apropos of nothing in particular, here's a picture of Pugsley, as seen in the popular Netflix series 'Wednesday':

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Oct 10

No bushes were beaten around in the naming of this publication @camraofficial.bsky.social

A picture of the front cover of the CAMRA London’s bimonthly magazine “London Drinker”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Sep 6

Attention middle-class cafés: Please stop trying to justify the price you charge for a cuppa by using fancypants tea bags. The reason they’re not the bestselling brand isn’t just because they cost more. Yorkshire Tea is fine, ta. Who’s with me on this?

A cup of tea with a Teapigs teabag dangling above it

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Aug 17

Local transport improvements (e.g. more frequent buses) favoured by low-middle income households. Airport expansion advocates are overwhelmingly confined to the economic elites

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Aug 17

In all 7 areas: (“overall sense of belonging…, peer relationships, experiences in teaching & learning, college events & activities… staff relationships…. clubs & societies, & financial”) students from ‘lower’ socioeconomic backgrounds faced the strongest barriers to belonging.

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Aug 14

Reminder that today is BTech results day & T-level results day. Not everyone does A-Levels.

A screenshot of the Guardian’s front page. 3 stories about a levels

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Aug 3

This all reminds me of the scene from the 1985 film Real Genius in which a reel-to-reel tape machine lectures to a room full of tape recorders.

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Aug 1

I just got an Email from the NHS Blood & Transplant service… cc @antonytiernan.bsky.social

A screenshot from an email headed “The Donor Summer 2025”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jul 27

Spain’s manager looks familiar #lionesses #moomins

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jul 27

Preparing to support my national team, looking for tips in @sundersays.bsky.social’s “How to be a Patriot” #Lionesses

Duncan Exley in a pub holding a pint, with a copy of “ how to be a patriot”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jul 6

My favourite feedback so far this year

A LinkedIn message that says “Eres un caballero y un escolar”

Duncan Exley@duncanexley· Jun 29

#AI