@article{62dbf851be1b475db515e3aa567d985e,
title = "Education, Work and Social Mobility in Britain{\textquoteright}s Former Coalfield Communities: Reflections from an Oral History Project",
abstract = "This paper draws on an oral history project which focuses on former coalminers{\textquoteright} experiences of education and training. It presents the stories of five participants, all of whom undertook significant programmes of post-compulsory education during or immediately after leaving the coal industry and achieved a degree of social mobility over the course of their working lives. The paper compares and contrasts their experiences with those which now exist in Britain{\textquoteright}s former coalmining communities which, it is argued, have been substantively attenuated over time, especially for young men. Whilst it is evident that individual choice and motivation can play an important role in helping (or hindering) young people{\textquoteright}s journeys through education and employment, the central argument of the paper is that individual labour market success lies at the intersection of structure and agency – although the data presented also demonstrate the extent to which opportunities available to young men in the former coalfields have been diminished by de-industrialisation. ",
keywords = "Education, social mobility, coalfield communities, oral history",
author = "Robin Simmons and Martyn Walker",
note = "Funding Information: Jack grew up in a pit village in the North-East of England in the 1930s where his father was a coalface worker and trade unionist. Young Jack passed the 11-plus examination and then went to the local grammar school where he got good O-Levels and A-Levels before going to university, supported by a scholarship from the National Coal Board (NCB). Superficially at least, his story is an example of the positive relationship between education and social mobility inasmuch as it basically entails a linear journey from Jack being a \u2018bright\u2019 working-class pupil who did well in education before rising to a senior position in industry. There are, however, numerous complexities which lurk beneath the surface. Initially, Jack planned to read medicine at university, which delighted his parents. But his ideas changed following a school trip to Ashbury Colliery which was then one of Europe\u2019s largest and most advanced coal mines: Funding Information: It is also important to recognise the role and function of other institutions related to coal: trade unions, the Miners\u2019 Welfare Fund (MWF), miners\u2019 welfare institutes, and voluntary organisations such as the Workers\u2019 Educational Association were all active learning providers in coalfield communities. Whilst the NUM was perhaps most well-known for industrial muscle, it was also a considerable provider of education and training and often sponsored miners to take external courses of further and higher education. The NUM also helped establish Northern College as a residential college to provide education and training for education for trade unionists, voluntary and community groups, and adults without formal qualifications (H. Jackson ). NACODS (the National Association of Colliery Overmen, Deputies and Shotfirers) also ran numerous training programmes for its members, including colliery managers, pit deputies, and other aspirant workers. The Miners\u2019 Welfare Fund spent extensively on improving working conditions, education, and welfare for mineworkers \u2013 including facilities for education, sport, and other forms of recreation; research into mines safety; and scholarships for aspiring college and university students from mining families (Miners\u2019 Welfare Committee and Commission ). It also provided substantial funding to help technical colleges provide accommodation and equipment for mining education and other forms of FE (Walker ). Miners\u2019 institutes, financed in part by the MWF, often had reading rooms and libraries intended to promote social and political awareness. They also provided informal learning in terms of sport and leisure (angling, bowls, cricket, football, rugby); music (brass bands, choirs); and creative activities (literature, painting, poetry, and other classes). Much of this was lost with the demise of the coal industry. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.",
year = "2024",
month = may,
day = "5",
doi = "10.1080/13596748.2024.2330781",
language = "English",
volume = "29",
pages = "262--280",
journal = "Research in Post-Compulsory Education",
issn = "1359-6748",
publisher = "Taylor & Francis",
number = "2",
}
