Episodes

  • S6 Ep7: Stopping hate crime with Matthew Williams and Neil Chakraborti

    S6 Ep7: Stopping hate crime with Matthew Williams and Neil Chakraborti
    Aug 21 2024
    The recent riots in Britain, which emerged following the Southport stabbings, demonstrate how hate is bubbling just under the surface of our society, ready to erupt at any moment. Behind the violence and destruction are statistics. Between 2012 and 2023, hate crimes in England and Wales rose by 252%, according to research undertaken by the Home Office. But this is just the tip of the iceberg.

    Professor Neil Chakraborti and Professor Matthew Williams join host Will Hutton to discuss the impact of hate crimes on the victims, their communities and wider British society. And what can be done to lower the incidences of hate crime.

    Professor Chakraborti has been studying the impact of hate crimes on victims for the past two decades and is Director of the Centre for Hate Studies and the Director of the Institute for Policy at the University of Leicester.

    Professor Matthew Williams is a Professor of Criminology in the School of Social Sciences at Cardiff University. He leads the HateLab there, a global hub for data and insight into hate speech and crime. He's the author of the popular science book, The Science of Hate, which was published by Faber and Faber in 2021.


    Season 6 of the We Society Podcast from the Academy of Social Sciences continues to tackle the big questions through a social science lens. Throughout this series, you'll be hearing some of the best ideas to shape the way we live.

    Hosted by journalist and Academy President Will Hutton, we interview some of Britain’s top social scientists and public figures from across the globe to explore their evidence-led solutions to society’s most pressing problems.

    Don't want to miss an episode? Follow the We Society on your favourite podcast platform and you can email us on wesociety@acss.org.uk and tell us who we should be speaking to or follow us on X https://twitter.com/AcadSocSciences

    This is the final episode of Season 6, see you in the Autumn!

    Find out more about the Academy of Social Sciences here: https://AcSS.org.uk
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    38 mins
  • S6 Ep6: Why the war on drugs has failed with Alex Stevens

    S6 Ep6: Why the war on drugs has failed with Alex Stevens
    Aug 14 2024
    No war has been more of a failure than the war on drugs. Despite all the crackdowns, prison sentences and moral posturing, drug use in Britain is on an epic scale. Yet, drug debate and policy are full of moral declarations, with evidence often being made to take a backseat. Why is this?

    Alex Stevens is a professor of Criminology at the University of Sheffield (having recently moved from the University of Kent). He was a member of the UK Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs from 2014 to 2019, and President of the International Society for the Study of Drug Policy from 2015 to 2019. And he’s just published a book, Drug Policy Constellations: The Role of Power and Morality in the Making of Drug Policy in the UK.

    Season 6 of the We Society Podcast from the Academy of Social Sciences continues to tackle the big questions through a social science lens. Throughout this series, you'll be hearing some of the best ideas to shape the way we live.

    Hosted by journalist and Academy President Will Hutton, we interview some of Britain’s top social scientists and public figures from across the globe to explore their evidence-led solutions to society’s most pressing problems.

    Don't want to miss an episode? Follow the We Society on your favourite podcast platform and you can email us on wesociety@acss.org.uk and tell us who we should be speaking to or follow us on X https://twitter.com/AcadSocSciences

    Find out more about the Academy of Social Sciences here: https://AcSS.org.uk
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    30 mins
  • S6 Ep5: Improving adult education with Anna Vignoles

    S6 Ep5: Improving adult education with Anna Vignoles
    Aug 7 2024
    One in six people are said to have ‘very poor literacy skills’ according to the National Literacy Trust. As a country, we value Literature, high quality research skills and further education, yet our values are not reaching all sections of our society.

    Looking to challenge this is Professor Anna Vignoles, her past research focused on issues of equity and value in education, particularly the relationship between educational achievement and social mobility, and the role played by education and skills attainment in the economy and society.

    She was Professor of Education and Fellow of Jesus College at the University of Cambridge, Professor of Economics of Education at the UCL Institute of Education and Research Fellow at the London School of Economics Centre for Economic Performance.

    But now, Professor Vignoles is the Director of the Leverhulme Trust, one of the UK's most prestigious grant-making organisations.

    Season 6 of the We Society Podcast from the Academy of Social Sciences continues to tackle the big questions through a social science lens. Throughout this series, you'll be hearing some of the best ideas to shape the way we live.

    Hosted by journalist and Academy President Will Hutton, we interview some of Britain’s top social scientists and public figures from across the globe to explore their evidence-led solutions to society’s most pressing problems.

    Don't want to miss an episode? Follow the We Society on your favourite podcast platform and you can email us on wesociety@acss.org.uk and tell us who we should be speaking to or follow us on X https://twitter.com/AcadSocSciences

    Find out more about the Academy of Social Sciences here: https://AcSS.org.uk
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    28 mins
  • S6 Ep4: The hidden army of young carers with Saul Becker

    S6 Ep4: The hidden army of young carers with Saul Becker
    Jul 31 2024
    Professor Saul Becker has studied the hidden world of young carers for 30 years. Nearly 1 million children in the UK find themselves – some as young as five - having to look after sick or elderly family members.

    Saul Becker is the pro vice chancellor for the Faculty of Health and Education at Manchester Metropolitan University and is regarded as the world leader in young carers research, policy, and practice.

    Season 6 of the We Society Podcast from the Academy of Social Sciences continues to tackle the big questions through a social science lens. Throughout this series, you'll be hearing some of the best ideas to shape the way we live.

    Hosted by journalist and Academy President Will Hutton, we interview some of Britain’s top social scientists and public figures from across the globe to explore their evidence-led solutions to society’s most pressing problems.

    Don't want to miss an episode? Follow the We Society on your favourite podcast platform and you can email us on wesociety@acss.org.uk and tell us who we should be speaking to or follow us on X https://twitter.com/AcadSocSciences

    Find out more about the Academy of Social Sciences here: https://AcSS.org.uk
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    29 mins
  • S6 Ep3: How to make housing fair with Vicky Spratt and Auriol Miller

    S6 Ep3: How to make housing fair with Vicky Spratt and Auriol Miller
    Jul 24 2024
    Housing is one of the most pressing problems this new Government must fix. Will Hutton is joined by Vicky Spratt, the inewspaper's housing correspondent, and Auriol Miller, the CEO of Cynon Taf Community Housing Group, a major not-for-profit organisation providing affordable homes in Wales.

    Housing is an issue that has thwarted a long line of Governments, and it feels like we are no closer to solving the crisis. Latest figures show that almost 1.3 million people in England are on social housing waiting lists with a combined wait for council housing of 1844 years.

    Vicky's book Tenants, which examines the UK rental crisis, was named one of the best books of 2022 by the Times. Prior to joining Cynon Taf Community Housing Group, Auriol was Director of the Institute of Welsh Affairs (IWA), Wales’ leading think tank, where she focused on opening up the organisation beyond its traditional reach.

    Season 6 of the We Society Podcast from the Academy of Social Sciences continues to tackle the big questions through a social science lens. Throughout this series, you'll be hearing some of the best ideas to shape the way we live.

    Hosted by journalist and Academy President Will Hutton, we interview some of Britain’s top social scientists and public figures from across the globe to explore their evidence-led solutions to society’s most pressing problems.

    Don't want to miss an episode? Follow the We Society on your favourite podcast platform and you can email us on wesociety@acss.org.uk and tell us who we should be speaking to or follow us on X https://twitter.com/AcadSocSciences

    Find out more about the Academy of Social Sciences here: https://AcSS.org.uk
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    35 mins
  • S6 Ep2: Separating emotion from Brexit with Professor Sarah Hall

    S6 Ep2: Separating emotion from Brexit with Professor Sarah Hall
    Jul 17 2024
    Professor Sarah Hall’s job is to approach the emotive topic of Brexit with a cool head and focus only on the evidence.

    She is the 1931 Chair in Geography, a Fellow of St John’s College at the University of Cambridge, and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences.

    Professor Hall is an economic geographer who specialises in going out in the field to imbue data with conversations with those in the thick of the action. Her latest work has looked at how financial services around the UK have been affected by Brexit, including the sunshine and warts.

    Season 6 of the We Society Podcast from the Academy of Social Sciences continues to tackle the big questions through a social science lens. Throughout this series, you'll be hearing some of the best ideas to shape the way we live.

    Hosted by journalist and Academy President Will Hutton, we interview some of Britain’s top social scientists and public figures from across the globe to explore their evidence-led solutions to society’s most pressing problems.

    Don't want to miss an episode? Follow the We Society on your favourite podcast platform and you can email us on wesociety@acss.org.uk and tell us who we should be speaking to or follow us on X https://twitter.com/AcadSocSciences

    Find out more about the Academy of Social Sciences here: https://AcSS.org.uk
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    26 mins
  • S6 Ep1: Election 24 special with Will Hutton

    S6 Ep1: Election 24 special with Will Hutton
    Jul 10 2024
    Host Will Hutton hears from four leading social scientists on how the new UK government should tackle the country's most pressing challenges.

    In this special episode marking the end of the general election and the start of Season 6, we apply a social science lens to issues concerning the stagnating economy, the climate crisis, adult social care, and universities.

    We speak to Professor Jagjit S. Chadha, an economist who is the Director of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, Jo Johnson, who is chairman of FutureLearn and a former Conservative party minister, Catherine Needham who is Professor of Public Policy and Public Management at the Health Services Management Centre, University of Birmingham, and Professor Lorraine Whitmarsh, the Director of the UK Centre for Climate Change & Social Transformations (CAST), University of Bath.

    In the run-up to the UK election, the Academy of Social Sciences gathered over 100 social scientists to showcase their ideas on the policies the new government should prioritise based on robust evidence for our Academy of Social Sciences Campaign for Social Science Election 24 project.

    In this special episode of the We Society, we bring you just a few ideas from this project, which covered key policy areas, including the cost of living crisis, immigration, and healthcare, to name just a few. To learn more about the project and the Academy, visit our website, www.acss.org.uk.

    Season 6 of the We Society Podcast from the Academy of Social Sciences continues to tackle the big questions through a social science lens. Hosted by Academy president and acclaimed journalist Will Hutton, you'll hear some of the best ideas to shape the way we live.
    Don't want to miss an episode? Follow the We Society on your favourite podcast platform, and you can email us on wesociety@acss.org.uk and tell us who we should be speaking to or follow us on X https://twitter.com/AcadSocSciences
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    21 mins
  • S5 Ep7: A life of public service with Lord Chris Patten

    S5 Ep7: A life of public service with Lord Chris Patten
    May 1 2024
    Lord Chris Patten is one of Britain’s big political beasts – not only as a commentator, thinker and writer, but he has had a formidable career where he has put ideas into action.

    He has been a British cabinet minister, chair of the Conservative party, European Commissioner for External Relations, Governor of Hong Kong, Chair of the BBC and most recently Chancellor of Oxford University.

    Taken together - including a stint as chair of the independent commission on policing in Northern Ireland - it is one of Britain's most distinguished and successful records of public service.

    This is the final episode of Season 5 of the We Society Podcast from the Academy of Social Sciences which tackles the big questions through a social science lens. Throughout this series, you've heard some of the best ideas to shape the way we live.

    Hosted by journalist and Academy President Will Hutton, we interview some of Britain’s top social scientists and public figures from across the globe to explore their evidence-led solutions to society’s most pressing problems.

    Don't want to miss a future episode? Follow the We Society on your favourite podcast platform and you can email us on wesociety@acss.org.uk and tell us who we should be speaking to or follow us on X https://twitter.com/AcadSocSciences

    Find out more about the Academy of Social Sciences here: https://AcSS.org.uk
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    29 mins