thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-22--Partying In A Pandemic: Why The Rave Scene Is Experiencing A Resurgence

The perception is that more illegal raves are happening now than ever before.
These hoedowns in fields, on remote beaches and in dense forests have perhaps been a reaction to the stresses of lockdown: euphoric expressions of frustrations at a lost summer.
They have made numerous headlines over the last few months – not just because of the sheer number, but also because a small minority have got out of control: one man died at a Manchester rave in June, and a number of cases of sexual assault have been reported at illegal parties across the country.
Advertisement
Week on week, news about the “summer of the rave” spreads – in London alone, more than 500 illegal raves were recorded throughout July. And the government has started clamping down – new regulations could see rave organisers charged £10,000 for putting on illegal events.
After all, going to a rave in a pandemic is risky business, says Fiona Measham, Director of The Loop, the drugs awareness organisation.
“After a summer without festivals or nightclubs it’s understandable that some people will revert to putting on their own parties,” she says. “After all, if it’s socially distanced in open spaces, outdoor dancing potentially could be one of the safer social activities in terms of risk of infection.
“All the usual services that we take for granted in post millennial clubs and festivals are likely to be absent – toilets, handwashing facilities, drinking water, paramedics, welfare, drug checking, psychedelic support, and the presence of trained, badged security staff – so who do patrons turn to if things go wrong?”
Advertisement
Regardless of the health risks, for many older ravers that remember the birth of raving in the late 1980s and early 1990s with the dawn of electronic music, the summer of 2020 has undoubtedly been one of nostalgia. For younger ravers, they may be experiencing their first illegal rave under lockdown.
But is the surge of new illegal raves a proper rebirth of the rave scene from the 1990s, or is it just people expressing their frustration at the lack of social spaces in which to party?
Brits are raving either to protest or to escape the monotony of lockdown living Suzanne Bainton via Getty Images
Old-school, committed ravers say illegal events have always been here and this summer’s raves are nothing new – they’re just making the news now that clubs are closed.
“I’m at one now,” Matthew Smith tells HuffPost UK from an illegal party somewhere in the depths of the countryside. He doesn’t say where.
Advertisement
Matthew is the author of Exist to Resist, a social history book about rave culture, and designs T-shirts with his photography on in aid of CALM, the male mental health charity.
“Most people are camped in trucks and caravans in a couple of different fields under the trees...I’m here for a week but there’s an option of staying for two…” - Matthew Smith, raver and author of Exist to Resist
He was at his first rave since lockdown and described the scene: “It’s not the sensationalist kind the media love to hype so much,” he said, ”it’s on a beautiful bit of woodland near the coast in the south-west.
“There’s a dome in the woods with a lush rig and the trees are all decorated... Massive fire to sit around. Most people are camped in trucks and caravans in a couple of different fields under the trees. I’m here for a week but there’s an option of staying for two.”
Advertisement
“Free parties are just a lot more visible now, and without the festival industry working as usual people are taking other options to gather, socialise and celebrate community in these difficult times.”
For ravers such as Matthew, this summer may feel no different. But there’s those returning to the scene because of the pandemic, as well as newer ravers discovering it for the first time – whether that be either for joy, protest or a sense of physical community following a period where we have all felt so distant.
“It’s like a mini ’90s all over again,” Ian, founder of the Rave Events UK Facebook page says.
“When people feel oppressed by the system, the system will have pushback” - Ian, raver
“When people feel oppressed by the system, the system will have pushback, especially lately as there’s so many more rules now, but also illegal raves are a way of life too. They have never stopped since the late 1980s, it just went underground – but lately, as we’ve been in lockdown, the spotlight is once again on raves.”
Wendy, a newcomer, agrees that lockdown has birthed more raves. “[If] you can’t hold music and gatherings of like-minded souls for this length of time, music always seeps through the cracks and finds its way,” she explains. “You only need to look through history to see it’s repeating itself.
Advertisement
“Everyone has a little subconscious lawbreaker inside and that mischievous side of you draws you in.”
Wendy said she raves to relieve stresses.
“I felt alive dancing in the woods high with the love of my life,” she added of her first rave. “I felt content, the music was blaring and for a few hours it felt like I was in heaven.”
She finds events through social media and says the process can be quite lengthy. “There are ways in which the organisers try to filter out the wheat from the chaff,” she says. “No one wants the thing getting shut down by a do-gooder. I think it’s a bit hit and miss whether it’ll be a good venue, and the music style tends to be a good indicator of the type of vibe it’ll be.”
Whereas Wendy enjoys the thrill of the chase, for Ian raving is more of a direct form of protest.
“Going to an illegal rave is a statement of the person saying: ‘Hell to your rules and I am going to break them,’ and you get that extra buzz from doing it. It gives illegal raves that real edge over legals,” he says.
It’s similar for author and artist Matthew, whose work has documented the evolution of the rave scene. He has been partying illegally in outdoor spaces as a highly politicised act for 30 years, rather than a fresh response to lockdown life.
Advertisement
He sees increasing levels of surveillance and data capture as a threat against our freedoms. He points out that raves only became illegal after the government began imposing stricter laws around them.
“Raves became partly about protest when they created a culture so popular that the government stepped in to outlaw that culture” - Matthew, author of Exist to Resist
“Raves became partly about protest when they created a culture so popular that the government stepped in to outlaw that culture,” Matthew says, referring to the 1994 Justice Act which banned unlicensed rave parties, which he describes as the criminalisation of his culture.
“There were times when the purpose of our parties was to raise money for protest and to create protest using celebration as a positive tool for raising awareness, opposition and uniting people,” he added.
However, Ian feels the community is now more separated into groups, explaining: “There was a lot of love and unity back then and raving was a way of life, not just a party you went to with rave music. I find these days not so many live the life of a raver and instead it’s just about parties and music. It was like a religion to us back in the ’90s – even our dress codes, our hats, white gloves, whistles, horns and so on, was all part of the culture.”
Advertisement
For those who remember raves of the early '90s, 2020 is a summer of nostalgia Hinterhaus Productions via Getty Images
I ask how else the rave scene has changed and Matthew riffs: “The music is much more accessible. There are more people living in vans and caravans again – the vehicles are not as pretty and full of character but they’re faster and more reliable.
“There’s an industry to earn money from with licensed work; the police are more weaponised and have learnt a lot more about detection, prevention, disruption and PR. You can no longer count the genres of dance music on the fingers of your hands. Everyone’s got a smart phone with a camera.”
Of course, headlines around drugs, alcohol and litter dilute the cultural message about raves as a form of expression and protest. But that said, for those going to raves, it’s important to remember that kindness and inclusion were at the heart of the original rave culture, so things like littering and anti-social behaviour only give true ravers a bad name.
As summer draws out, events are likely to continue due to the spread of information across social media feeds. But if you do decide to head out – either as a form of protest, for the nostalgia or because you’ve just turned 18 and can’t go out clubbing – remember to be safe and treat others with respect.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-22--If You Think Calling Us 'Angry Black Women' Is An Insult, You'd Better Think Again

HuffPost is part of Verizon Media .
We and our partners will store and/or access information on your device through @ @ @ @ @ similar technologies , to display personalised ads and content , for ad and content measurement @ @ @ @ @ development .
Your personal data that may be used • Information about your device and @ @ @ @ @ IP address • Browsing and search activity while using Verizon Media websites and apps Find @ @ @ @ @ use your information in our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy .
To enable Verizon Media @ @ @ @ @ your personal data select ' I agree ' , or select 'Manage settings ' for @ @ @ @ @ your choices .
You can change your choices at any time by visiting Your Privacy @ @

Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) laughs during the presidential candidate forum at the annual convention of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in Detroit, Michigan, on July 24, 2019. Rebecca Cook / reuters
In the days since Sen. Kamala Harris was tapped to become Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s running mate, some not-so-typical political jabs have cannonballed their way into the media. While it’s normal for vice presidential candidates to be grilled and criticised, especially in the period directly after they’re thrust into the spotlight, Harris, a former presidential candidate herself, has already seen most of her dirty laundry aired out to dry. But now, her opponents on the right have turned to classic misogynoir — a term that refers to “the anti-Black racist misogyny that Black women experience” — to rebuke her.
Most notably, there were President Donald Trump’s initial remarks about Harris: “She left [the presidential race] angry. She left mad. There was nobody more insulting to Biden than she was.” While it’s a known fact that Harris was a staunch critic of Biden’s previous politics, the “angry Black woman” trope was clear throughout Trump’s attacks.
Advertisement
Though many politicians are often characterised as being “tough” or even “harsh” toward an opponent or topic, Harris was specifically pegged as “angry” in regards to the same behaviour, something that women of colour and Black women in particular are forced to combat daily.
Then, some media outlets started using misogynoir in a different way. In Australia, for example, a political ad in The Australian used misogynoir by portraying an ageing Biden offering to hand the nation over “to this little brown girl.” And in the United States, a sports reporter was fired for sharing a meme that referred to Harris as a “hoe.”
In an age when the concept of intersectionality is placing social issues in a newer, “woke” context, misogynoir artfully summarises the ways in which Black women are attacked on the basis of both gender and race. While the term is often used in discussions within the Black community, it also applies to mainstream situations like the ones mentioned above.
“By discounting our passions and creating a negative connotation around the subject of anger, Black women are pushed into a proverbial corner of silence and discouraged from expressing an 'aggressive' emotion.”
Advertisement
One of the many damaging effects of misogynoiristic profiles, such as the “angry Black woman,” is that they both demonise and invalidate righteous anger. By discounting our passions and creating a negative connotation around the subject of anger, Black women are pushed into a proverbial corner of silence and discouraged from expressing an “aggressive” emotion.
This stereotype has empowered white supremacy and misogyny to harness the anger of racial and ethnic minorities, and the result is the general belief that 1) their anger is unwarranted, and 2) their anger is unproductive at best and destructive at worst.
The truth is that anger is completely constructive and has long been the catalyst for reformation in modern society.
The soul of virtually every modern American protest was rooted in a form of anger, including the Boston Tea Party, the American Revolution, the women’s suffrage movement, the Vietnam War protests, ACT UP and Black Lives Matter, just to name a few.
When I wrote about being an angry Black woman myself just a few months ago, it was important to not only reclaim the phrase but also illuminate just how crucial anger can be to improve our society.
Advertisement
Anger gives birth to petitions, protests, demonstrations and other direct actions and social movements. It powers grassroots organisations and can inspire people to use and lift up their voices.
Demonising anger is a barrier to progress. Anger, after all, is a strong feeling of displeasure. To disrupt oppressive or inefficient systems, you must first be able to identify the problem and your dissatisfaction with it. And, my goodness, there certainly are a great deal of things to be displeased about, aren’t there?
More than 170,000 Covid-19 fatalities.
The active and intentional destruction of the U.S. Postal Service
The United States’ withdrawal from the World Health Organization and United Nations Human Rights Council
Struggling economies in small-town America
Voter suppression
Police brutality and social unrest
Systemic racism, sexism, homophobia and transphobia
Environmental changes
Violence against women and trans people
Mass shootings
The list goes on and on.
The incredible thing about anger is that it can be channeled into creating change and doing good. My anger led me to activism, as it has for so many other Black women, including Black Lives Matter founders Patrisse Cullors, Opal Tometi and Alicia Garza, and fellow activists Tarana Burke, Raquel Willis and Johnetta Elzie.
Anger is why I petitioned my state leadership in 2016 after they passed a bill seeking to conceal police body cameras. Anger is why millions of people around the world took to the streets during a pandemic to protest police brutality. Anger is why more than 130 Black women are congressional candidates for major parties this year.
Advertisement
As the election looms, I’ve thought a lot about voter suppression. I read Stacey Abrams’ book on suffrage, ”Our Time Is Now,” and was inspired by the way she took her anger following Georgia’s 2018 gubernatorial election catastrophe and turned it into Fair Fight, the nonprofit that promotes fair elections, voter participation and voter education in the United States.
“I know that our American freedoms come with the responsibility for us to be watchdogs of those in power ― and that anything falling short of our American ideals should indeed make us angry.”
I’ve been volunteering for North Carolina’s voter protection hotline and have heard about the personal obstacles that make voting difficult for many people — rural residents who can’t print their ballot requests because they don’t have internet access, essential workers who don’t trust mail-in voting but don’t get time off to wait in line to vote, a single dad who doesn’t have anyone over the age of 18 in his household to act as a witness for an absentee ballot and doesn’t know anyone who will meet with him due to Covid-19 concerns. None of these things should be an issue in the United States, and yet they are.
When dissatisfaction over injustice ― aka anger ― grows inside me, I know it’s a sign that I need to do more. I know it’s the same sign that guided women before me, such as Angela Davis and Fannie Lou Hamer, to make their voices heard so our nation could become better. I know anger is what made Michelle Obama’s fiery speech on Tuesday night at the Democratic National Convention so powerful and so widely praised. I know that our American freedoms come with the responsibility for us to be watchdogs of those in power ― and that anything falling short of our American ideals should indeed make us angry.
If we lack anger in the face of corruption, we flirt with ― or fall head first into ― a state of apathy, which is a direct threat to our future. People may call Kamala Harris or Michelle Obama “angry” as if they have no right to be dissatisfied, but we must ask ourselves: Are we satisfied? Are we satisfied with Donald Trump’s administration? Are we satisfied with our sheriffs and judges, our cabinet members and the Supreme Court, our foreign relations and infrastructure? Are we satisfied with representatives calling their female colleagues derogatory names? Are we satisfied with Jared Kushner’s promise that the economy would be “rocking” by July? Are we satisfied with Trump pardoning Susan B. Anthony (God rest her soul) while our nation’s children walk into coronavirus hotbeds at school? Or are you, no matter what race or gender, like so many of us, angry?
Advertisement
While you’re considering where you stand, know this: you may call me, a proud Black woman, “angry” any day of the week. Not matter how it is intended ― no matter how hurt or harmed anyone, from our president to a stranger on the street, may intend for me to be, it is not a slur to me. It is not something to be ashamed of or to work on getting over or giving up. Acknowledging and embracing my anger means that I am engaged, I care and I’m committed to doing something productive with this powerful emotion. Shoutout to all the angry Black women who are living, loving and still persisting despite the seemingly insurmountable challenges that stand in our way.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-22--Evanna Lynch: 'I Was Addicted To People Who Made Me Feel Bad'

Rodin Eckenroth via Getty Images
In What Works For Me – a series of articles considering how we can find balance in our lives – we talk to celebrities about wellbeing and self-care. “This year I started working with the moon – the new moon and the full moon,” says actor, podcaster and activist Evanna Lynch. “The new moon is about setting new intentions and putting out your wishes to the universe. The full moon is about surrendering and letting go of things that didn’t work out.”
It sounds like something her most famous character, Luna Lovegood, would say, but the Harry Potter alumna only got into astrology two years ago – among a growing number of millennials exploring the zodiac as a form of self-care.
Advertisement
Once a month, she marks the “new moon” by sitting down with relaxing music and a candle, then writing down five things she wants to achieve that month. She’ll meditate for about an hour – and on the full moon, she’ll perform the same ritual, this time focusing on gratitude and forgiveness – letting go any frustrations she may have with herself, or others.
“Being an actor or a writer or whatever I’m doing, I don’t have a set routine and in the past that has really stressed me out because it’s made me feel out of control,” she tells HuffPost UK. “Working with the moon, it helps me feel like I’m sort of in collaboration with the universe and more in step with it. Having set those intentions, I just feel more relaxed. I feel like I have some sort of structure to my life and the rest is kind of up to the universe.”
Since the final instalment of the Harry Potter film series was released in 2011, Lynch has busied herself with film and theatre roles, vegan activism, hosting a podcast and trying her hand as a writer. Last year, she made it to the final of Dancing With The Stars – the US version of Strictly Come Dancing.
But a clean break from the Wizarding World hasn’t been possible.
Advertisement
Warner Bros. Evanna Lynch as Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter series.
Like her child actor co-stars Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint, Lynch grew up as part of JK Rowling’s juggernaut. For some, she’ll always be Luna – you only have to look at the number of fan pages she has on Twitter. “I have to say, the whole mask thing has been really helpful for me. You put on a mask and some sunglasses and really nobody can tell who you are!” she says.
But there is pressure that comes with being the face of one of the franchise’s most-loved characters. “You kind of always have to know what to say and be informed,” says Lynch. “With all the political stuff going on lately and the Black Lives Matter movement, for example, people are always looking for you to know exactly what to say, for you to say something right. Or, they’re looking for you to say something wrong. Either way, they’re looking at you.”
This pressure came to a head in June when Lynch addressed controversial tweets posted by JK Rowling about biological sex and transgender people.
Rowling’s initial tweet questioned a headline that referred to “people who menstruate”, saying: “I’m sure there used to be a word for those people. Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?” The author later posted an essay stating she was a domestic abuse and sexual assault survivor, and was talking about trans issues for a number of reasons, including her “concerns around single-sex spaces”.
Advertisement
In a response to Rowling’s comments, Lynch echoed the sentiment of co-star Daniel Radcliffe, tweeting: “Trans women are women.” She also added that while she didn’t agree with the author’s comments, she’s a “friend and admirer of Jo” and that fans shouldn’t “bully or hate people on the other side of the debate”.
This last comment – suggesting there was a debate to be had – sparked its own controversy. Lynch vowed to evolve to be a “more intersectional activist” before disabling her Twitter account as the criticism continued to pour in.
“At the moment, I think the whole conversation has gotten so fractious and people on both sides are digging their heels in further and not listening to each other. So I’m trying to step back further and just educate myself,” Lynch tells HuffPost, reflecting on the issue. “It’s really, really complicated.”
Trans activists have offered JK Rowling an open discussion on the topic and Lynch says she’d like to see the author take up this opportunity.
“I don’t really understand where her fixation and her fear is coming from around this,” she says. “But I’m very biased, I absolutely love JK Rowling, I see her as a human being and so when I see her talking about her past and her experiences of domestic violence, I really feel for her. But I really want to understand why she is saying these things that are hurtful to many trans people.”
Twitter isn’t the place to have these discussions, suggests Lynch, as the nuance is lost. “I see that there are cis women and there are trans people who have suffered a lot of abuse for their sex. I don’t agree with the intolerance on either side for trying to shut down the discussion – I think trans activists and JK Rowling should have the freedom to speak about their experience.”
Advertisement
Lynch says she learned from the backlash, acknowledging “this is not my area of expertise”. She says she wants to encourage fans to listen to trans people with lived experience, and refocus her attention on her own activism.
Eric McCandless via Getty Images Evanna Lynch on Dancing With The Stars.
After years of vegetarianism, Lynch became vegan in 2014 and now encourages others to embrace the lifestyle. “It’s so abominable what people do to animals and what the agricultural industry does to animals,” she says. “But it’s not really about love for animals, it’s about respect for another sentient species.”
She transitioned to veganism gradually, she says, adding: “I had a lot of issues with food in the past, so I really wanted to do that gently.” The actor has long been open about her struggle with anorexia, which began in childhood and saw her hospitalised at the age of 11. She says becoming vegan has helped her mental health.
“I think veganism has actually helped me to recover,” she says. “It took the focus I had around food – about calories and statistics and aesthetics – and it switched it to be about a meaningful cause. It really changed the way I think about food.”
Advertisement
Does she consider herself recovered, or is recovery a life-long process? “That’s a question I’m always wondering about myself,” she says. ”I do think you can recover, I actually think that too many people with eating disorders hang onto it. They hang onto it as an identity, ‘I’m an eating disorder warrior,’ or whatever. If that’s helpful for you, that’s fine. But I just think there’s a point where you have to feel like that’s the past, let it go and move on and not define yourself by that.”
For anyone currently struggling with self-loathing or food issues, Lynch stresses that it’s vital to surround yourself with positive people. “I used to get addicted to people who made me feel bad because I thought they were improving me,” she says.
“Especially in relationships with boyfriends, I would go for people who would play up my insecurities. Or I would go to acting teachers who would tell me I was shit, just thinking: ‘They obviously know more than I do and they’re going to fix me.’”
That cycle of negativity “feeds eating disorders,” she says, but surrounding herself with positivity has interrupted the pattern. “With eating disorders, it’s about feeding the voice of positivity and creativity, rather than self-destruction,” she says. “You have to consciously curate an environment around you that’s going to feed the positive side.”
Now, Lynch says her mental health is in a better place. When she’s not kneeling beneath the moon, she is visualising what she calls “a tough queen energy”.
Advertisement
“She’s a queen who is doing good and is there for benevolent reasons. She’s kind, but she’s really, really fierce,” Lynch explains. “I’ve just noticed people slipping into my life and asking too many favours and asking too much of my time. So I’m having her in my mind, putting them back into place, kindly but very firmly.”
Evanna Lynch is supporting World Plant Milk Day and encouraging fans to take the 7-day dairy free details. You can sign up at worldplantmilkday.com.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-22--19 Funny Tweets That Sound All Too Familiar To Introverts

It can be tough to prefer being alone in a world that values sociability, even during a pandemic. But take heart, quiet types: Twitter has your back. Each month, we round up spot-on tweets that capture what it’s like to be an introvert. Scroll down for our latest batch.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-22--London Traffic Gridlocked After Tower Bridge Gets Stuck Open

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Traffic in central London was left gridlocked after Tower Bridge became stuck open for more than an hour due to a “mechanical fault”.
Photos from the scene showed the two arms of the bridge at different angles after it failed to close, having allowed a ship to pass through along the River Thames on Saturday afternoon.
Advertisement
Pictures showed queues of motorists and pedestrians waiting for at least an hour from both directions.
One social media user said: “I’ve been stuck here for nearly an hour now… #TowerBridge.”
So have been stood under a raised tower bridge for 15 mins now, hearing rumours it’s stuck! #towerbridge pic.twitter.com/mCmI1e8NyQ — Nicki Plews (@missnicki_p) August 22, 2020
On Twitter, the Tower Bridge account said the bridge had become locked in a “raised position”.
As of 7.30pm on Saturday, the bridge had reopened to pedestrians, but drivers were still being urged by police to find other routes.
City of London Police tweeted: “BRIDGE CLOSURE. Tower Bridge is currently closed to traffic but open to pedestrians.
Advertisement
“Mechanics are working to fix the bridge. Please find alternative routes.”
BRIDGE CLOSURE ⛔
Tower Bridge is currently closed to traffic but open to pedestrians. Mechanics are working to fix the bridge. Please find alternative routes. @Squarehighways @TfLTrafficNews — City of London Police (@CityPolice) August 22, 2020
The bridge connects the Square Mile financial district to Southwark.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-22--Driving Test Website Forced To Close Just A Day After Reopening For First Time Since March

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Get the latest on coronavirus. Sign up to the Daily Brief for news, explainers, how-tos, opinion and more.
The UK’s driving test booking website has crashed following “unprecedented demand” after it opened for the first time since March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Advertisement
Learner drivers will now have to wait until at least Wednesday to try and book a test while the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) carries out “essential work” on the website.
The DVSA said the site had been visited 7m times in just 12 hours after it reopened on Friday morning.
Following problems with the driving test booking service, it is currently unavailable so we can carry out essential work to deal with the unprecedented test booking demand.
The service will reopen on Wednesday 26 August at 8am.
We are sorry for any inconvenience caused — Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (@DVSAgovuk) August 22, 2020
In a tweet on Saturday afternoon, the agency said the service would be closed until 8am on Wednesday.
Advertisement
On social media, learner drivers described spending hours trying to book a test.
DVLA website: Oops! You went away and came back again... 😘
Me: I HAVEN’T LEFT SINCE HALF BLOODY 7!!! #DrivingTest pic.twitter.com/3NY1LWc1h4 — Kam (@HintofKam) August 21, 2020
Any hardcore 8am-ers about to go on to their 6th hour of trying to book a #drivingtest? — Louise Daisy ♡ (@LouisePoyning) August 21, 2020
Checklist time:
- 502 gateway error
- 504 gateway error
- type of test
- license details
- access denied
- problem with the service
- oops you went away
If you have got all of these, congratulations - you are the OG of trying to book your #drivingtest — Emma Whiteford (@EmmaWhiteford3) August 21, 2020
is it just me that finally managed to get the option to book my driving test but then instantly timed out and now can’t get it back? #drivingtests @DVSA_HelpMe — Lucas Somner 🌹 (@lucassomner) August 21, 2020
Gareth Llewellyn, the chief executive of the DVSA said: “Coronavirus has severely impacted our business as usual operations, including by stopping driving tests in March.”
Advertisement
For the past five months, the DVSA has only been taking applications for emergency driving tests for critical workers, he said.
“Following unprecedented demand for the driving test booking system with almost 7 million attempts to book a test when it opened, we need to carry out urgent maintenance so people can book tests.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-22--'Get Gav Gone': Protesting Students Demand Gavin Williamson's Resignation Over Exams Chaos

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Students furious about the government’s handling of exam results have gathered outside of the Department of Education in London to demand Gavin Williamson’s resignation.
The education secretary was forced to make a U-turn last week and give students their teacher-predicted grades, after an algorithm system saw tens of thousands given lower marks than expected.
Advertisement
Many students are still angry after losing university places that were handed to other candidates in the days after the algorithm-based results were announced.
Campaigners say there is evidence to suggest the algorithm method disproportionately affected schools in poorer areas.
Protesters chanted “Get Gav gone” and “We are the future”, and carried signs reading “Sack Tory exam cheats” and “Fair grades for all”.
Education secretary Gavin Williamson poses for a photo in his office at the Department of Education ASSOCIATED PRESS
Advertisement
Glen Morgan-Shaw, one of the organisers, said in a speech: “Education is dangerous, when we are educated we can see when the government has f***** up.
“We are going to call them out on their racism, we are going to call them out on their classism and we are going to call them out on the fact they are doing everything to protect themselves when they should be protecting the people.”
Morgan-Shaw, 18, saw his predicted Btec marks revised downwards by two grades, although still managed to get his place at university to study music.
He told the PA news agency: “I was one of the lucky ones but I know so many people who were screwed over.”
Students take part in a march from Marble Arch to the Department of Education in Westminster, London, calling for the resignation of Education Secretary Gavin Williamson PA
Advertisement
Naomi James-Mitchell, 18, said her A-level grades had been reduced from her predicted AABC to BCDD, meaning she lost her place to study chemical engineering at her first choice university.
Following the U-turn, she was offered a place at Aberdeen, but said many people she knew had been left struggling for a place.
“Even with the U-turn the government has shown they don’t care about students,” she said.
The protesters are now calling for leave to appeal against centre-assessed grades (CAG), which is their teachers’ judgment of the most likely grade a student would have achieved if exams had gone ahead.
James-Mitchell said many students believe CAGs are inherently biased because of teachers’ perceptions of the people they teach.
She added: “Teachers see me as black before they see me as a good student, and they see me as a woman before they see me as a science student.”
Advertisement
Announcing the government’s U-turn over grades, Williamson said he was “sorry for the distress this has caused young people and their parents” and that he hoped the move would “provide the certainty and reassurance they deserve.”
However, the decision to revert to teachers’ grades has caused its own problems, with many universities. now oversubscribed for courses beginning in the autumn.
On Thursday, the government announced it had agreed to lift the cap on the number of places on medicine, dentistry, veterinary science and teaching courses following the U-turn on A-level grades.
It came after HuffPost UK spoke to a number of aspiring doctors who were left without a place at medical school following the exam results fiasco.
A number of universities had already said they would have to give students places on courses in 2021 just to honour all their offers to study.
Advertisement
Durham University has promised a bursary and guarantee of accommodation for everyone who defers until 2021 due to “capacity issues”, the BBC reported.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-22--In Pictures: Thousands Of Residents Urged To Flee As Wildfires Rage In California

Tens-of-thousands of residents have been urged to flee their homes as hundreds of wildfires blaze out of control in northern and central California.
Six people have been killed as the fires – which doubled in size on Friday to become some of the largest in state history – spread across huge areas of land and threatened to consume small towns.
Advertisement
The fires, which broke out over a period of days, have blackened an area larger than the US state of Rhode Island and destroyed more than 500 homes and other structures. In addition to the fatalities, 43 firefighters and civilians have been hurt.
Pam, who declined to give a last name, examines the remains of her partner's Vacaville, California. ASSOCIATED PRESS
California governor Gavin Newsom said crews were fighting 560 fires across the state, many of them sparked by lightning storms, straining resources to the breaking point as he seeks reinforcements from as far away as Canada and Australia.
“We are not naive by any stretch about how deadly this moment is and why it is essential ... that you heed evacuation orders and that you take them seriously,” Newsom, a Democrat, told Californians at a news briefing.
Advertisement
Firefighters watch flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in the Berryessa Estates neighbourhood of unincorporated Napa County, California. ASSOCIATED PRESS
The state has been hit by its worst dry-lightning storms in nearly two decades as close to 12,000 strikes have sent flames racing through lands left parched by a recent heat wave. Some 175,000 people have been told to leave their homes.
In Santa Cruz, a city of around 65,000 people on California’s central coast, residents were told to prepare “go bags” as bulldozers cut fire lines and flames came within a mile of the University of California Santa Cruz campus.
Volunteer firefighters for the Boulder Creek Fire District are joined by reinforcements from other California fire departments in Boulder Creek. MediaNews Group/The Mercury News via Getty Images via Getty Images
Video footage posted on social media showed giant Redwood trees, some more than 2,000 years old, standing largely unscathed among the torched ruins of buildings in and around Big Basin Redwoods State Park.
Advertisement
A complex of blazes east of Palo Alto and another in wine country south of Sacramento are the seventh and tenth largest wildfires in state history, respectively, according to CalFire, and the agency warned that more dry-lightning storms were expected as early as Sunday.
With up to 20 separate blazes burning in some lightning fire complexes, firefighters and locals pleaded for more support.
A billy goat wanders under a charred tree after surviving a fire on Pleasants Valley Road in Vacaville, California. MediaNews Group/East Bay Times via Getty Images via Getty Images
“We’re still understaffed for a fire of this size,” said Daniel Potter, a CalFire spokesman, in reference to the Santa Cruz blaze where crews are working 72-hour shifts to save homes.
“We need HELP in the Santa Cruz mountains. SEND IN THE NATIONAL GUARD NOW!” San Jose State University professor Scott Myers-Lipton said on Twitter.
Advertisement
Firefighters protect a home in the Berryessa Estates neighborhood of unincorporated Napa County. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Four people died in the so-called LNU Complex fire in the North Bay area that has destroyed more than 480 homes and structures, including a winery as it burned over 219,000 acres in five counties. All evacuees were allowed to return to their homes in Vacaville on Friday.
Thomas Henney, left, and Charles Chavira watch a plume spread over Healdsburg, California. ASSOCIATED PRESS
A utility crewman died on Wednesday while on duty helping clear electrical hazards for first-responders at the same fire. Earlier that day, the pilot of a firefighting helicopter was killed in a crash in Fresno County.
“All our first responders are working to the ragged edge of everything they have,” state lawmaker Jim Wood said.
Advertisement
A firefighter rubs his head while watching the LNU Lightning Complex fires spread through the Berryessa Estates. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Plumes of smoke and ash fouled air quality for hundreds of miles around fire zones, adding to the misery and health risks of residents forced to flee or those stuck inside sweltering homes that lacked air conditioning.
Hank Hanson, 81, gestures to the kitchen of his home, destroyed by the LNU Lightning Complex fires, in Vacaville, California. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Medical experts warned that the coronavirus pandemic has considerably heightened the health hazards posed by smoky air and extreme heat, especially for older adults and those already suffering from respiratory illnesses.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--TikTok Launches Legal Action Against Donald Trump To Overturn Ban

LOADING ERROR LOADING
TikTok has announced it will launch a legal challenge against Donald Trump’s executive order to ban it.
The US president signed the order earlier this month ordering sweeping but vague bans on dealings with the Chinese owners of TikTok and the messaging app WeChat, saying they are a threat to national security, foreign policy and the economy
Advertisement
He has given Chinese company ByteDance 90 days to divest itself of any assets used to support TikTok in the United States.
TikTok said on Saturday it plans to begin legal action against the order this week.
It comes as US-based users of WeChat also began suing Trump on the basis his order will effectively bar access in the country to the app.
The complaint, filed on Friday in San Francisco, is being brought by the non-profit US WeChat Users Alliance and several people who say they rely on the app for work, worship and staying in touch with relatives in China.
The plaintiffs said they are not affiliated with WeChat, nor its parent company, Tencent Holdings.
Trump’s order states there is “credible evidence that leads me to believe that ByteDance … might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States”.
Advertisement
It remains unclear what the TikTok orders mean for the app’s 100m users in the US, many of them teenagers or young adults who use it to post and watch short form videos.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--Holly Willoughby Responds To Rumours She's Preparing To Quit This Morning

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Holly Willoughby has shut down reports she is preparing to leave This Morning.
The presenter was the subject of a piece in The Sun on Sunday, claiming she has “paved the way” to exit the daytime show and focus more on primetime series.
The report came after it was revealed Holly has walked away from the company who managed her career – and also look after This Morning co-host Phillip Schofield’s – to set up a firm of her own.
Advertisement
Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield on This Morning Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock
However, a representative for the star has insisted she still has a future with the ITV daytime show, telling The Mirror: “Holly loves This Morning and working with Phil.
“She is the happiest that she’s ever been on the show and has no plans to leave.”
Holly has co-hosted This Morning with Phillip from Monday to Thursday since 2009.
Phil and Holly's relationship is characterised by good humour and giggling Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock
The pair – who also front Dancing On Ice together – are currently on their annual summer break from This Morning.
Advertisement
As well as her roles on This Morning and Dancing On Ice, Holly also works as a brand ambassador for Marks & Spencer and Garnier. She is also teaming up with Bradley Walsh for a full series of Take Off With Bradley & Holly on the BBC, which was commissioned after a one-off Christmas special last year.
Holly surprised fans earlier this year when she announced her departure from Celebrity Juice, after 12 years as a captain on the Keith Lemon-fronted panel show.
Holly is currently isolating with her husband Dan Baldwin and their three children after returning to the UK from their family getaway, prior to her return to This Morning on 1 September.
Advertisement
On her last day on the show in July, Holly spoke of her hopes to be reunited with her glam squad when she returns to work in September.
Posting a video of her pre-show routine on Instagram, she wrote: “Here’s hoping this is the final time I do this.”
This Morning airs weekdays at 10am on ITV.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--Kate Price Rushed Back To Hospital After Surgery On Both Broken Feet

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Katie Price was rushed back to hospital after experiencing agonising pain, days after surgery on her broken feet.
Advertisement
A spokesperson for Katie confirmed The Sun’s report that she had been admitted to hospital with a suspected infection.
Katie Price has broken both her feet YouTube
“After an extremely restless night in pain I can confirm that Katie was taken to at Epsom Hospital A&E, she was later transferred to Chelsea and Westminster where she has been seen by her consultant,” a rep told the paper.
It’s reported Katie has since been discharged from hospital.
The reality star had been complaining of not being able to sleep due to the pain on her Instagram Story on Thursday night.
Advertisement
She posted: “Struggling tonight to sleep again despite my feet repairing from my operation. No matter what I do and no matter what painkillers my doctors have given me, I’m still in pain.”
Katie recently revealed doctors have warned her it could take as long as two years for her to heal properly.
She has also said she will have arthritis and feel pain in her feet “for the rest of my life”.
After undergoing surgery, Katie wrote on Instagram that “more procedures was needed when they entered my feet than thought”.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--Schools Reopening Could Increase Covid Cases But 'Missing Lessons Worse For Children'

Children are more at risk of long-term harm if they do not attend school than if they return to the classroom despite coronavirus, the UK’s chief medical officers have warned.
In a joint statement issued ahead of the reopening of schools next month, the advisers said children have an “exceptionally low risk of dying” from Covid-19.
They said “very few, if any” children and teenagers would come to long-term harm from the virus solely by attending school, while there was a “certainty” of harm from not returning.
The chief and deputy chief medical officers said schools were not a “common route of transmission”, and that teachers were not at any increased risk of dying compared to the general working-age population.
However, they noted that data from UK and international studies suggested transmission in schools may be largely staff to staff rather than pupils to staff.
“This reinforces the need to maintain social distancing and good infection control inside and outside classroom settings, particularly between staff members and between older children and adults,” they said.
The advisers noted that reopening schools has not been usually followed by a surge in Covid-19 transmission but it could push the reproduction rate – the so-called R rate – above one.
If this happened it would require “local action and could mean societal choices” of imposing limitations on different parts of the community, they added.
Signatories to the consensus statement included England’s Professor Chris Whitty, Scotland’s Dr Gregor Smith, Wales’ Dr Frank Atherton and Northern Ireland’s Dr Michael McBride.
Whitty told reporters the joint statement was not guidance to parents but a laying out of the evidence of “things we know with confidence, the things that we think are probable and also some of the things we don’t know and making clear there is always some residual risk”.
He said that there was “clear” evidence that the chances of children dying from Covid were “incredibly small” and they were less likely to get severe illness and end up in hospital due to the virus.
He said: “So the reason that is important to lay out is the chances of children catching Covid and then getting long-term serious problems as a result of it, solely due to going to school are incredibly small.
“They’re not zero, but they’re incredibly small. The chances of many children being damaged by not going to school are incredibly clear and therefore the balance of risk is very strongly in favour of children going to school because many more are likely to be harmed by not going than harmed by going, even during this pandemic.”
The warning came as Labour leader Keir Starmer said Boris Johnson’s commitment to get all children back to school was at “serious risk” after a “week of chaos” over exam results.
He said the last two weeks have been “wasted clearing up a mess of the government’s own making”, telling The Observer: “I want to see children back at school next month, and I expect the prime minister to deliver on that commitment.
“However, the commitment is now at serious risk after a week of chaos, confusion and incompetence from the government,” he added.
“Ministers should have spent the summer implementing a national plan to get all children back to school. Instead, the last two weeks have been wasted clearing up a mess of the government’s own making over exam results.”
Johnson said earlier this month that getting all children back to school full-time in England in September is the “right thing for everybody”, insisting they are “safe” and “Covid secure”.
However, teachers, scientists, opposition politicians and the children’s commissioner for England Anne Longfield have previously called for improvements to testing before pupils return.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--Britain's Got Talent: Ashley Banjo To Step In For Simon Cowell After Judge's Back-Breaking Accident

LOADING ERROR LOADING
The show’s creator and judge will have to sit out some of the next stage of the competition after breaking his back in a bike accident earlier this month.
Advertisement
Ashley, who won the show in 2009 as part of dance troupe Diversity, will keep Simon’s seat warm when filming of the first semi-final takes place next week.
Simon Cowell NBC via Getty Images
In a statement, Ashley said: “As if 2020 couldn’t get any crazier!
“Walking on that stage as a 20-year-old street dancer from East London and now I am walking out there and stepping in for the big man.
“It feels really nice, almost poetic.”
Simon added: “Ashley will be a fantastic addition to the panel. He knows the power of the show and the responsibility of it.
Advertisement
“I couldn’t think of a better person to sit in my seat whilst I follow doctor’s orders. I hate that stupid bike.”
Ashley Banjo Ian West - PA Images via Getty Images
The semi-finals of Britain’s Got Talent were due to take place live over a week in May after the pre-recorded audition stages finished airing, but were postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The shows will now be pre-recorded and air in a Saturday night slot in the autumn, with the final taking place live in October.
Advertisement
The Britain's Got Talent judges David Walliams, Alesha Dixon, Amanda Holden and Simon Cowell ITV
For the first time in BGT history, there is also set to be no studio audience, with producers currently on the hunt for people to appear from home as part of a ‘virtual audience’.
This format change was recently used on the US version of BGT, where Kelly Clarkson also stepped in to cover for Simon, who usually judges the show there too.
The TV mogul was rushed to hospital with a broken back, after falling from an electric bike he was riding at his home in California earlier this month.
He has since undergone surgery and is now recovering at home, with his America’s Got Talent co-star Heidi Klum revealing he has managed to get back on his feet.
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--£10,000 Fines For Rave Organisers Introduced Ahead Of Bank Holiday

The Metropolitan Police received information on more than 200 events across London in a single weekend, responding to more than 1,000 illegal events in the capital since the end of June.
Home secretary Priti Patel said: “These gatherings are dangerous and those who organise them show a blatant disregard for the safety of others.
“I am pleased the police have already stepped up their response and I am giving them the tools they need to continue to keep us safe.
“We will continue to crack down on the small minority who think they are above the law.”
Fines for not wearing face coverings where it is mandated are also set to double for repeat offenders from Friday, starting at £100 and doubling to a maximum of £3,200 for each repeat offence.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council has warned that forces in England and Wales will continue to increase patrols heading into the bank holiday weekend.
Areas of concern, such as Leicester and Greater Manchester, have seen deployments larger than on New Year’s Eve, it said.
Commander Ade Adelekan, lead for unlicensed music events, said: “These events are hosted without regard for the safety of those attending, and police have observed cases of anti-social behaviour, sales of drugs and gang activity.
“To the organisers of this sort of activity, I strongly advise that you seriously consider the risks you’re creating for everyone in attendance and the wider community.
“There is a risk of prosecution for those who organise these events and equipment will be seized.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--Trump's Sister Reportedly Recorded Saying President 'Has No Principles' And 'You Can't Trust Him'

“What has he read?” Mary Trump asked her aunt. Barry responded: “He doesn’t read.”
At one point, an exasperated Barry said: “It’s the phoniness of it all. It’s the phoniness and this cruelty. Donald is cruel.”
Barry also noted: “Donald is out for Donald, period.” When her niece asked Barry what her brother had accomplished on his own, she responded: “Well, he has five bankruptcies,” adding: “You can’t trust him.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--The Batman Teaser Reveals Robert Pattinson's Very Emo-Looking Bruce Wayne

LOADING ERROR LOADING
Who needs a Batmobile when you’ve got a Death Cab for Cutie?
The first footage of director Matt Reeves’ The Batman premiered at the DC Fandome online event Saturday, revealing actor Robert Pattinson’s transformation from Twilight vampire to ... a bat man.
See it here:
Advertisement
And while the internet may have a lot of feelings about it, it’s doubtful anyone has more feelings than Pattinson’s very emo-looking Bruce Wayne.
If you're excited about these, wait till you see what we have for you in #TheBatman panel at #DCFanDome starting at 5:30 PST. pic.twitter.com/hzSm4zV7i0 — Warner Bros. Pictures (@wbpictures) August 22, 2020
Early reactions to photos of Robert’s Batman online had fans drawing comparisons to Tobey Maguire’s infamous “evil” Spider-Man in Spider-Man 3 and My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way.
Who wore it better - Pattinson in The Batman or Maguire in Spider-Man pic.twitter.com/tPpm4zz4Q8 — JR Ward🦖 (@AnnoyedRaptor) August 22, 2020
Advertisement
In the teaser, Robert also says lines such as, “I’m vengeance,” which is definitely something you shouted at your parents when they told you to turn down the Dashboard Confessional.
Though this isn’t an origin story for Batman, the movie will apparently explore the early days of the villains.
Ahead of the newly released footage, Reeves raved about the all-star cast, which includes Zoë Kravitz putting her spin on Catwoman/Selina Kyle, Paul Dano doing something fans haven’t seen before as The Riddler/Edward Nashton, Jeffrey Wright showcasing his version of James Gordon, Andy Serkis bringing Alfred to life and Colin Farrell’s Oswald Cobblepot becoming The Penguin.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--Ban On Prison Visits Is A Breach Of Children's Rights, Lawyers Argue

A file image of Pentonville Prison in London. Visits to all prisons were banned on March 24 due to the coronavirus lockdown. PA
Children of prisoners are having their human rights breached by the ban on jail visits and lack of video calls, lawyers have argued in a letter threatening legal action.
The government suspended prison visitations on March 24 as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Families were forced to rely on phone calls to make contact with loved ones in prison.
Advertisement
However, experts claim this will have a damaging long-term impact on children’s attachment and relationship to their parents.
Lawyers Jake Richards and Jonathan Metzer are representing three families and have written to the Ministry of Justice with a letter before action over a failure to enable meaningful contact between the children and their parents during lockdown.
Since that move, one family has been granted one video call a month lasting half-an-hour. The mother says this is not sufficient for her or her eight children, especially with a child who has a life-threatening condition and struggles to communicate over the phone.
Speaking to HuffPost UK, Jane (not her real name), who has been in lockdown with her children in Manchester, said: “It’s been five months since my children have seen their dad. We have finally been given video visits. But in the video meetings, only three of my children will be able to be there. So I have to pick three out of my eight children?
Advertisement
“The damage has already been done – we have been left to pick up the pieces.”
Jane said there is a lack of consideration, by the prisons, for large families of prisoners when making visitation arrangements.
She added: “It makes me angry – we have been going through this for five months and have had no contact apart from telephone calls.
“I have a disabled child with a life threatening condition – he can’t understand what his dad is saying on the phone. So at the moment he feels like his dad has left him.
“My children have done nothing wrong – they are the one’s being punished. The government are now punishing the children for something their parents have done and I don’t think that’s fair.
“I also have a one-year-old. Before lockdown I was taking her to see her dad and contact was regular – I made sure she knew dad. When he is released – she will not have a clue who he is – it’s going to be a stranger walking into our home.”
Advertisement
The lawyers say the prison visits ban breaches article 8 of the European convention on human rights and are a failure to properly safeguard the best interests of children under the Children Act 2004.
Richards, one of the barristers representing the families, told HuffPost UK: “There’s a long term issue here about sentencing which doesn’t take into account, sufficiently, the rights of children to see their parents.
“This issue is more pertinent during the lockdown where children haven’t seen their parents for a matter of months and we are concerned about the psychological impact this will have, especially on young children and children with certain disabilities.
“We would immediately like the government to put in place a safe mechanism by which direct contact visits can take place with reasonable frequency.
“It seems absurd, the government are encouraging people to go to pubs and restaurants but yet they are not allowing young children to see their parents for many months.
Advertisement
“Some prisons are allowing visitations, but we have found that there remain restrictions that mean the visits are not fit for purpose.
“They need to have a more flexible approach considering the varying degree of need children have for direct contact.”
HuffPost UK has heard of another case where a mother and her two children, aged two and four, have not made meaningful contact with their incarcerated father for 20 weeks. They have not been offered remote visual contact since March 24 and the father has been showing symptoms of depression while in prison.
Jodie Beck, is the co-founder of Our Empty Chair, a grassroots collective dedicated to sharing stories about families being kept apart by prisons during the pandemic. She put the lawyers in touch with the families, and told HuffPost UK the project stemmed from her own experiences.
Jodie Beck, co-founder of Our Empty Chair Jodie Beck
Advertisement
“I’ve experienced the imprisonment of my dad periodically throughout my life so I am coming to this issue with a lived experience,” she said.
“I set up this campaign because having a parent in prison is so shamed and stigmatised.”
Barnardo’s chief executive Javed Khan told HuffPost UK: “It’s understandable that face-to-face visits were halted to help stop the spread of Covid-19. But it’s worrying that not all prisoners have access to video links, as this is denying children basic contact with their parents.
“Video calls have been a lifeline since lockdown began in March, especially for those of us separated from our loved ones. They must urgently be made available to all prisoners so they can stay in touch with their families.
“Maintaining family ties is essential for children’s emotional development and affects their future life chances. Children with a parent in prison must always have contact with their parents – at the very least through video calls, and also through in-person visits, as soon as these can be achieved safely.”
A Prison Service spokesperson from the Ministry of Justice, told HuffPost UK: “Secure video calls, mobile phone handsets and extra phone credit have helped maintain important family ties, and we are reintroducing visits at a number of prisons in line with public health advice.”
Advertisement


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--University To Universal Credit: How Class Of 2020 Is Graduating Straight Onto The Dole

“Sitting at home applying for dead-end jobs every day and getting no response is a really difficult situation to be in,” said Craig Brown, a business graduate who has just left Loughborough University and is now relying on Universal Credit.
“I’m worried how I’ll get through the next few months financially.”
Craig, 23, is part of the class of 2020 – a group of graduates who have been thrust into the working world amid not only the worst global pandemic in a century, but the UK’s second recession in 12 years.
Advertisement
A number of graduates told HuffPost UK how this “perfect storm” in the employment market had not only forced them to give up dreams of finding their ideal job straight out of the university – but struggling to find any kind of job at all.
Instead, they have been forced to apply for Universal Credit – a situation many of them could not have imagined before the coronavirus crisis gripped the global economy.
Analysts have warned that the class of 2020 – the 800,000 young people leaving school, college and university this summer – face “huge unemployment risks”, as well as long-term damage to their careers.
Figures from the Department of Work and Pensions reveal that in July there were 71,208 16- to 24-year-olds receiving their first Universal Credit payment – 80% higher than the 39,655 starting on UC in July 2019.
Advertisement
All in all, there were 725,000 people aged 20 to 24 receiving Universal Credit – a year-on-year increase of almost 420,000.
“It’s really demoralising,” said Craig, who is relying on benefit payments to survive while he applies for “dozens of jobs a day”.
Craig Brown, a business graduate, has been applying for 'dozens of jobs a day' Supplied: Craig Brown
“Most of them aren’t jobs I would ever want to take under normal conditions. But despite all of my efforts to go above and beyond studying during the pandemic, I’m not even getting responses.
“What makes it harder to swallow is that I invested so much energy into setting up a business at university and doing internships in parliament to qualify myself for when I left university.”
Advertisement
He added: “I’m not the best candidate out there, but if somebody with a CV like mine, at my age, can’t even get an interview for low-skilled jobs, then how can anybody feel motivated after graduating?
“The few responses I have had called me overqualified, which really doesn’t help when there are almost zero jobs available in the graduate market.”
Craig, who helped set up the volunteer group Students Against Corona, said leaving university during a pandemic and being out of work had left him struggling with his mental health.
“I’m generally really motivated – I don’t like making excuses and my attitude is always to make the best out of a situation and carve out opportunities wherever I can.
“However, I have been brought to the point of tears because I feel as though everything is now out of my control. [...] I don’t know what graduates are expected to do.”
Advertisement
It’s a question that is also being asked by Heather Swain, who is currently finishing a Master’s degree in public history at the University of York.
But her attempts to line up a job – any kind of job – for when she leaves university next month have proved fruitless.
As a working class student, it’s a situation that means she’s almost guaranteed to have to rely on Universal Credit, the 22-year-old said. “Realistically it’s probably the first thing that I’ll be doing when my course officially ends and I’m permitted to apply,” she said.
“I’ve been applying for jobs in the heritage sector, but it’s been very clear that the sector is really struggling with closures and redundancies.”
Heather Swain said she will be forced to apply for Universal Credit 'as soon as her course finishes' Supplied: Heather Swain
Advertisement
Entry-level roles that would usually be reserved for graduates like Heather are now being snapped up by people with years of experience who have lost their jobs during the pandemic, she said.
“I’ve now taken to applying for whatever job I can get in my hometown – everything from admin to McDonalds – but I rarely hear back from anyone and, if I do, it’s a rejection.
“At this point, I’d be happy to get a job that didn’t even require basic qualifications and was as far removed from my degree subject as possible as long as it meant I had an income.”
Heather added: “I’ve been trying not to look back with hindsight. But there’s no way I would have been applying for a higher degree right now if I had taken a year out between my BA and MA because it would have been too much of a financial waste.”
Other students have taken a different approach. Matt, who did not want to share his last name, has recently finished a degree in politics and sociology at the University of Manchester.
Advertisement
He chose to study the subject because he wanted to work for refugee and housing charities, focusing on research and lobbying.
But the pandemic and subsequent recession have “completely changed” his expectations.
“Pretty much every entry-level position and graduate job scheme have stopped hiring,” the 21-year-old said. “Other places have been so flooded with applications that the chance of getting anything is incredibly slim.”
Currently relying on benefits to get by and worried about the state of the jobs market, Matt has now signed up to do a Master’s degree in political science.
Prostock-Studio via Getty Images
“I could only do that because of a substantial bursary and fee reduction I got from the University of Manchester,” he said.
Advertisement
He’s worried that he could find himself in the same dilemma in a year’s time when his degree is finished. “But it gives me security for the next year and I guess that’s a problem to worry about when I come to it.
“I just know that if I am facing that situation again, I’ll theoretically be more likely to find something because of the additional qualifications.”
Matt added: “The most frustrating thing is seeing the difference in stress that working-class graduates have experienced compared to middle-class ones.
“Some more financially secure students were more upset about the loss of graduation ceremonies than the economic insecurity and unemployment.”
It feels like university leavers have been “thrown in the deep end”, said 21-year-old Niamh Claydon-Mullins.
Advertisement
She graduated with a degree in film studies from De Montfort University in July and had to claim Universal Credit “straight away”.
“There needs to be more support to deal with the crisis that 2020 graduates are facing,” Niamh said.
“This situation does make me think back to the recession in the late 2000s and how long it took for things to recover. I just don’t want the same thing happening when so many graduates want to start earning.”
A report from the think tank the Resolution Foundation in May warned that, without support from the government, the impact of the pandemic and recession on the class of 2020 could be “larger and longer-lasting” than those felt by graduates who left university during the economic crash of the late 2000s.
Although those leaving education with fewer qualifications were hardest hit, researchers found that unemployment among recent graduates jumped from 10% to 14% between 2008 and 2011.
Advertisement
Meanwhile, previous research showed that “for at least five to six years, average levels of pay remained lower for those who left during 2009 than for those who left during 2013”.
According to the report, one in five graduates usually find their first job out of university in sectors hardest hit by the pandemic – including bars, restaurants and retail.
Research and policy analyst Kathleen Henehan, who wrote the Resolution Foundation’s “Class of 2020” report said: “800,000 young people are leaving education this year amid an unprecedented economic crisis and a newly-confirmed recession.
“As well as huge immediate unemployment risks, these young people are also facing longer-term damage to their careers, with the prospect of years of reduced pay and limited job opportunities.”
Graduation ceremonies being cancelled is the least of many people's concerns spukkato via Getty Images
Advertisement
The report called for a new package of support for under-25s, including a job guarantee scheme, which would see employers offer temporary paid jobs to unemployed young people.
The government would cover the cost of their wages, while the programme would offer “critical employment experience,” Henehan added.
The call for specialised support for graduates has been echoed by the National Union of Students (NUS) and poverty charity Turn2us.
Led by president Larissa Kennedy, the NUS has urged ministers to “step up and support young people and graduates right now”.
“They should look at creating long term, well-paid jobs for young people, and training grants to allow people to reskill,” Kennedy said.
Advertisement
Meanwhile, Turn2us campaigns officer Liam Evans added: “The Covid cohort who have graduated this summer face a perilous start to their adult life. High housing costs and a decade of austerity have been compounded by mass unemployment stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.
“To make matters worse, we don’t currently have a social security system that will allow these young adults to thrive. Instead Universal Credit will give them an inadequate sum of money while waving the threat of sanctions over their heads.
“We urge the DWP to be ultra flexible with recent graduates and make decisions based on principles of justice, compassion and fairness.”
A government spokesperson told HuffPost UK that its new £2bn Kickstart scheme would help unemployed graduates from the autumn.
Ministers have promised that the programme will create hundreds of thousands of “high quality” six-month work placements for young people aged 16 to 24 on Universal Credit who are deemed to be “at risk of long-term unemployment”.
Advertisement
A government spokesperson told HuffPost UK: “We know this is a tough time for everyone, not least graduates who are looking to move into work.
“Starting this autumn, young people will be able to apply to our brand new £2bn Kickstart scheme, which will offer thousands of new, fully-subsidised, high-quality roles right across the UK.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--What Kids Hear When You Criticise Your Body In Front Of Them

AleksandarNakic via Getty Images Parents play a very influential role in the development of their children's body image.
Fostering a healthy sense of body image is an important way to set up children for success in life. Research shows that positive body image is linked to higher self-esteem and healthy behaviours, while negative body image is associated with behaviours and feelings such as lower self-esteem, depression and disordered eating.
Although peers and the media shape how kids feel about their appearance as they get older, parents also play a major role in the development of their children’s sense of body image, and it starts from a very early age.
Advertisement
“We know that children learn by listening and watching ― think about the times you have seen your children copying something you have said or done! It is no different for messages about bodies,” said Amy Slater, an associate professor and co-director of the Centre for Appearance Research at the University of the West of England, Bristol.
“Parents influence how their children come to think about their bodies in a number of ways,” she added. “These include the feelings, attitudes and conversations that parents have about their own bodies and appearance.”
Criticising your own body in front of your little one — i.e., engaging in “negative body talk” — may seem harmless because it’s not directed at the child, but kids often translate and internalise some pretty toxic messages from these sorts of comments. They can also start to think and say similar negative things about themselves.
“Negative body talk in the family environment can lead to less mindful eating, more disordered eating, less body appreciation, and increased body dissatisfaction in children, which can persist into adulthood,” noted Claire Mysko, CEO of the National Eating Disorders Association.
Advertisement
HuffPost asked Mysko, Slater and other experts to break down the kinds of negative body image messages kids absorb when they hear their caregivers criticise their own appearances ― and to share types of comments parents should try to make instead. Read on for their insights.
Message: ‘Appearance is more important than character’
“Avoid constantly criticising your own body — e.g., ‘I’m so fat, I’ve got to lose weight’ ― as this type of self-criticism sends the message that appearance is more important than character,” Mysko advised.
It takes effort and may feel unnatural, but parents can help their children develop healthy body attitudes by putting in the work to unlearn many of their own attitudes, beliefs, biases and behaviours when it comes to food, weight, body image, health and exercise.
“Parents should try to encourage their children to value aspects of self that are not related to appearance, like being a good friend,” Slater said.
Instead of focusing on looks, try to point out and compliment people’s positive behaviours and values — including your own and your children’s. Make it clear that weight and physical attractiveness are not the most important aspects of identity and self-worth.
Advertisement
This helps children develop stronger self-esteem and shows that you respect people based on their character, rather than their appearance.
10'000 Hours via Getty Images Instead of criticising their bodies, parents can promote self-esteem by pointing out the amazing things bodies do for us.
Message: ‘The value of bodies lies in what they look like’
Negative body talk sends the message to children that the value in bodies lies in the way they look, rather than the amazing things they can do for us.
“Even comments that seem minor, such as ‘I look fat in these jeans,’ made in front of children open the door for children to start seeing themselves in similar manners,” said Ashley Kroon Van Diest, a paediatric psychologist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. “This is otherwise known as objectification, when bodies are seen as a set of parts to be criticised rather than celebrated for their awesome functionality that helps us be who we are and do what we do every day.”
To counter this harmful message, parents should make positive comments that show appreciation for what their bodies do, such as “My legs are so strong, they allow me to ride my bike,” “I’m grateful for my arms because they allow me to give you hugs,” or “My nose lets me smell such amazing scents; I’m so happy it helps me enjoy the world around me.”
Advertisement
“When you really think about it, the body is an incredible, magical machine,” said Laura Hart, senior research fellow at the Melbourne School of Population & Global Health’s Centre for Mental Health. “It heals cuts and bruises, turns food into energy, can hug and laugh and dance and sing. Or quietly watch a sunset. These abilities are truly incredible. As parents, we want to engender a sense of pride and amazement in our bodies, to help children take care of them, appreciate them, for all the things they can do, without focusing on the numbers on the scale.”
“There is convincing research to show that when parents say negative things about their own weight, shape or appearance in front of children, this increases body dissatisfaction in the child.” - Laura Hart, senior research fellow at the Melbourne School of Population & Global Health’s Centre for Mental Health
If parents hear their kids making negative comments about their own bodies, follow up with a discussion emphasising the functional value of bodies, Kroon Van Diest suggested.
“Encourage children to think about non-appearance-based features they like and appreciate,” she said. “You may even write some of these down for kids to look at if they are feeling down about themselves.”
Message: ‘Bodies are something to be ashamed of’
“There is convincing research to show that when parents say negative things about their own weight, shape or appearance in front of children, this increases body dissatisfaction in the child,” Hart noted, adding that this says to the child that bodies are something to be ashamed of or worried about.
Advertisement
If your kids frequently express a sense of shame and negativity about their bodies, it may be helpful for them to see a professional therapist to have further discussions and develop strategies for improving body image and self-esteem. It’s worth noting that this issue can affect boys as well as girls.
“Despite popular opinion that feeling ashamed of your body motivates you to lose weight, eat well and exercise, we know that in fact the opposite is true,” she continued. “People who can appreciate their bodies for all the amazing things they can do, eat more fruit and vegetables, engage in healthy exercise and have a more stable body weight than people who have high body dissatisfaction or body shame.”
Hart believes the best way to help children develop positive health behaviours is to encourage them to feel good about their bodies and be proud of them, rather than sending messages of shame or negativity.
Mysko echoed this, suggesting parents share positive messages like “Treat your body with respect” and highlight the ways our bodies can help us achieve our goals and dreams.
Message: ‘You should want to change your body’
In addition to breeding shame, frequent negative body talk can also promote the idea that it’s normal to constantly want your body to look different.
Advertisement
“When parents criticise their own bodies, our children learn that bodies are something to be displeased with/disliked,” Slater noted. “If our children hear us talking negatively about our bodies, they will learn to normalise these thoughts and feelings and can become dissatisfied with their own bodies, or preoccupied with changing their body — e.g., with becoming thinner or more muscular.”
SDI Productions via Getty Images Many offhand comments about physical appearance send the message that bodies that don't conform to a specific standard of thinness or muscularity aren't "good" bodies and should be changed.
Making comments about wanting to attain a certain level of attractiveness, muscularity or weight does not help foster positive body image in kids, but instead furthers the idea that your body is never good enough the way it is.
“Likewise, stop comparing your body with the bodies of people you know or the images you see in the media,” said Mysko.
Again, parents should focus on positive comments that show body love and acceptance.
Message: ‘Bodies that don’t look a certain way are bad bodies’
Implicit in comments about wanting your body to look different is the idea that only bodies that conform to certain standards of beauty are “good” bodies, and the rest are “bad” bodies.
Advertisement
“Parents should try to avoid making any negative judgments or comments about their own bodies (e.g., ‘I’m so fat,’ ‘I don’t have the right body to wear X’) and the bodies of others (e.g., ‘She shouldn’t be wearing that’),” Slater noted. “Comments such as these teach children that bodies are only of value if they meet certain narrow criteria and that bodies that don’t meet this standard are ‘not worthy’ or need to be changed.”
“It is important for parents to promote body acceptance and celebrate body diversity. Say, ‘EveryBODY is beautiful, not just one shape or size.’” - Claire Mysko, CEO of the National Eating Disorders Association
“Try not to greet others with comments about their appearance ― even if you think these are positive statements (e.g., ‘You look so great ― have you lost weight?‘),” she continued. “Again, this teaches our children that only certain types of bodies are of value, or that there is such a thing as ‘good bodies.’”
Parents can instead try to teach their children to value and appreciate the diversity of looks in our society. Positive comments include “Bodies come in all different shapes, sizes and colours” and “All bodies are good bodies.” Slater also suggested modelling this concept by treating everyone with respect, regardless of their appearance.
“It is important for parents to promote body acceptance and celebrate body diversity,” Mysko added. “Say, ‘EveryBODY is beautiful, not just one shape or size.’”
Advertisement
Message: ‘Being fat is morally wrong’
Young children are learning values like “you shouldn’t lie” or “you should be kind to others.” Similar comments in the context of food or body image therefore can lead to a warped perception of what it means to have a larger body.
“Comments about why you or someone else shouldn’t eat something because ‘it will make you fat,’ children internalise the message that being fat is morally wrong,” Mysko noted.
Removing “should” and “shouldn’t” from the conversations about bodies and thinness or fatness can help counteract the notion that a certain look is morally right or wrong.
Message: ‘Physical activity is just for weight loss’
“Parents can also encourage a positive body image in their children by thinking about the ways they talk about food, health and physical activity in their household,” Slater noted. “For example, parents can ensure they find ways to be physically active with their children without mentioning weight.”
If kids only hear discussions of physical activity in the context of weight and body image, they may associate exercise strictly with achieving a certain appearance, rather than the amazing health benefits and joy of movement. Parents should try to separate exercise from how a person looks when discussing physical activity.
Advertisement
Mysko advised including physical activity in discussions of body appreciation, with comments like “I appreciate my body and I will respect it with love, nourishment, and joyful movement.”
Message: ‘Avoiding food is good’
“When parents make comments about how they were being ‘good’ because they didn’t ‘eat X, Y, or Z,’ it teaches children that avoiding (certain) food is good,” Mysko said.
This can lead to an unhealthy fixation on dieting and similarly ties food and body image to morality in a harmful way. Mysko suggested removing any sense of shame from discussions of eating.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-23--Fresh Air And Freedom: Why We Value Time Outside Like Never Before

LOADING ERROR LOADING
You’re reading Summer’s Not Cancelled, our series celebrating summer in this new normal. From rediscovering nature and cherishing time with loved ones, to virtual festivals and unforgettable staycations – summer’s still here, it’s just different.
It’s a paradox of lockdown that while we’ve stayed indoors more than ever, many of us have spent more time outside that we usually would, too.
Advertisement
That began back in March, when everyone sought to stay sane by leaving the house once a day for our government-allotted hour – keeping our distance, touching as little as possible, doused in sanitiser – before heading home again.
Our daily walk matured into the phenomenon of the lockdown picnic – once we were allowed to sit on the grass – as more of us began using outdoor spaces and parks in a way we hadn’t done since we were teenagers: how nostalgic, innocent and playful does it feel to sit in the park with a friend and a tinnie?
We’d say very.
kokoroyuki via Getty Images landscape of the clear sky
Under lockdown, the outdoors has meant survival: freedom from the rigours of a life on pause indoors, passively worrying about, even fearing, the virus. Science also reassured us that we were less likely to catch Covid-19 in the open air.
Advertisement
Perhaps you were a fan of the great outdoors already. Whether city dwellers, country types or suburbanites, most of us are aware of its benefits without the need for hard stats – and that goes for our mental health, too. Just a month into lockdown, came the timely publication of Isabel Hardman’s pre-Covid penned case for the defence, The Natural Health Service, subtitled, ‘What the Great Outdoors Can Do for Your Mind’.
But like many missed opportunities, how many of us were actively spending enough time outside until we were forced to with the closure of pubs, bars, restaurants and cinemas?
These indoor venues have now reopened – but parks are still full of thousands of revellers every weekend, from families to young people dragging trestle tables on to commons to set up games of beer pong with friends.
All the while, pubs are half-empty.
imamember via Getty Images
We no longer need to be outdoors, but we’re still choosing to spend time there. Sure, some of us are playing it safe by swerving indoor venues to minimise our chances of catching the virus, but there’s also a sense of a quiet cultural revolution. What does all this increased outdoors time mean for our future lifestyles? Can we expect Brits to sustain socialising outdoors? Are parks really the new pubs, and if so, what are more of the specific health benefits?
Advertisement
“The more time people spend outdoors, the more they’ll notice how good it makes them feel, and that there really is no such thing as bad weather – only inappropriate clothing!” says Linda Geddes, author of Chasing The Sun: The New Science Of Sunlight And How It Shapes Our Bodies And Minds.
Geddes has researched the benefits of being outside for our physical and mental health – and believes the best legacy of lockdown may be the newfound relationship we’ve forged with the outdoors.
“I hope these are habits which will stick,” she says. “Not only is it a great way of reducing the risk of coronavirus transmission but spending time outdoors can help to improve your sleep and reduce stress.
“There’s a reason why spas and yoga studios project images of moving leaves or water on to their walls and pipe in natural sounds.”
Sun and light positively impact our health in various ways, she says – of course, vitamin D is generated when the UVB rays in sunlight hit our skin. ”There is also growing evidence for the release of a substance called nitric oxide in response to sunlight, which causes our blood vessels to relax, resulting in a drop in blood pressure. Spending time in nature also seems to lower heart rate and blood pressure, probably by reducing stress.”
Advertisement
It’s important to go for a walk every day if you can.Exposure to sunlight also improves our circadian rhythms, helping us sleep. Even on an overcast day, it is approximately 25 times brighter outdoors than it is indoors with artificial lighting. As our circadian rhythms improve, we may start associating the outside world with a higher quality of life and health – whether consciously or subconsciously.
“There’s a reason why spas and yoga studios project images of moving leaves or water on to their walls and pipe in natural sounds, live breaking waves or chirping insects: we find them relaxing,” she adds. “Some scientists have proposed that natural patterns and movement effortlessly engage our attention, providing our busy brains with an opportunity to rest and recover.”
daverhead via Getty Images
Ecotherapist Helen Edwards has experienced a surge in bookings since lockdown. “I think it’s really clear at the moment that people are really wanting to connect with nature,” she reflects of her work. She describes the relatively new practice of ecotherapy as a “personal experience of reconnecting with nature, reflecting... and then through really developing that sense of kinship, that sense of belonging. What comes with that is a feeling of wanting to nurture the earth, and wanting to nurture oneself.”
A typical session may involve “walking with somebody in a nature park and something draws their attention: a bird, a tree, a leaf falling, a particular colour, a flower and takes them outside of themselves,” she says.
Advertisement
“Their senses engage and I will really encourage them to invest further, look at more detail, really take some time to slow down and allow that experience to come in. Maybe help them to focus: is it about the shade of colour or the shape of the flower or the colour of the stalk, or is it a lichen on a tree? Then maybe some feeling will come up that connects to allowing that experience in.”
Geddes believes the intersection of lockdown and the ongoing climate crisis has also reinforced our relationship with nature – and will help us sustain it.
Janetta McCoy, an academic specialising in our relationship with buildings and the outdoors, sees it the other way round: nature as the backdrop for strengthening our human relationships, rather than as the focal point.
Our access to the outside world has been relatively limited in recent months to our nearest surroundings, McCoy points out – and in 90°F Texas, where she lives. outdoor swimming pools have become the social hubs of lockdown.
“Indoor games can be mesmerising, but outdoor activities are invigorating,” she says. “The teens have all developed significant swim skills, new games to play, and many new social relationships. Parents do get in the water but not necessarily for exercise, mostly just relaxing and enjoying a beverage. Is this a new relationship to the outdoors? Perhaps it is using the limited [access to] the outdoors to develop and enjoy new social relationships.”
Advertisement
Daniel Balakov via Getty Images
And will it last? “It will – in some evolutionised state,” says McCoy, citing US writer and naturalist Diane Ackerman’s book A Natural History of the Senses.
″[Ackerman] suggests that stimulation and invigoration comes from nature’s air movement, smells, and colours – perhaps even our inability to totally control them,” she says. ”Inside, our world is static, totally controlled; outdoors gives us variety and perhaps serendipity.”
McCoy notes that it’s “human nature to want what is scarce and unavailable,” – and this was the outdoors during a period that was defined by having to stay inside. “Perhaps because indoor time is now mandated in many places, access to the outdoors and its activities are more enticing,” she says.
Ultimately we may associate being outdoors with the relationships we’ve formed – or cemented – under lockdown. Either way, there’s little doubt it’s provided an antidote to the oppressive repetition of the ‘stay at home’ rule. That feeling of freedom, of experiencing the “scarce and unavailable” breeze, of delighting in the wildflower or mossy tree stump, of lying in the grass listening to birdsong, has formed lasting memories, which in turn creates nostalgia.
Advertisement