here is the latest update but first 

to celebrate the centenary of the women’s Library@ LSE

a brief Instagram reel based on resources from lse library  

in 1927 it described itself as a ‘feminist library’ (this amazed me)  and what it aimed to collect.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DTxRuk6DTLU/

LGBT History month is starting  get a head start with information on specialist archive collections at the lse 

https://www.lse.ac.uk/library/collection-highlights/lgbt-collections

Research Routes – Objects of emotion: Colonial legacies and stories of feeling

Research Routes – Objects of emotion: Colonial legacies and stories of feeling

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iF7E6Mw7pps

I attended this webinar recently and wanted to share its valuable contribution. It contains a presentation from Shereen Hunte (Engagement Manager, London Museum) and Reece Williams (Curator – Legacies of Enslavement, Manchester Science and Industry Museum) considering the emotiions evoked by material culture of archives relating to slavery. The National Archives consider the history of a textile and its links with the trade. The Museum of London focuses on difficult emotions and curating a gallery on sugar and slavery

The associated resources pack provides insights into how to research the history of slavery and enslavement using archival resources held at the National Archives. This focuses on British colonialism and UK government and empire records

https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/professional-guidance-and-services/our-research-and-academic-collaboration/research-events/research-routes/resource-pack-objects-of-emotion-colonial-legacies-and-stories-of-feeling/

 

Unlocking Ability: Stories of Inclusive Employment 

A new weekly podcast series from Trinty College Dublin.

https://www.tcd.ie/tcpid/unlocking-ability-podcast/

which aims to capture the lived experience of workers on inclusive workplaces, disability  and workplace experiences in order to provide insight into best practices. It focuses on Irish workers.

REAL Resource Bank: Race, Ethnicity and Antiracism Learning for the Social Sciences in Higher Education
https://blogs.brighton.ac.uk/realresourcebank/

Amazing website contributed by HE lecturers across the UK as part of a national research project led by the Universities of Brighton and Surrey. Comprises over 400 resources contributed by academic staff . these include links to articles, books and websites. Topics are clearly ordered into top tips, curriculum design, key theorists, documentaries, and interactive teaching resources. Descriptions are provided

Better politics index 2025
https://www.betterpolitics.foundation/better-politics-index-2025

A new Ranking produced by the

Better Politics Foundation which compares 10 nations  assessing political leadership systems across four dimensions:

(1) Formal Political Leadership Development; (2) Institutional Environment; (3) Political Leadership Ecosystem; and  (4)  Public Trust and Confidence. Methodology is provided on the website.

Co-design Toolkit for Early Years Services launched by the  – Policy Lab
https://openpolicy.blog.gov.uk/2026/01/06/launching-a-new-co-design-toolkit-for-early-years-services/

Its aim is to provide resources which will allow local authorities co design services for young children with local communities. Resources include activity cards for workshops as well as practical guidelines and tips.

Economists vs Technologists on AI

Oliver Hanney and Deena Mousa

Podcast from VoxDev
https://voxdev.org/topic/technology-innovation/economists-vs-technologists-ai

which focuses on AI in low- and middle-Income countries. VoxDev, launched in June 2017, is a collaboration between the Centre for Economic Policy Research, the International Growth Centre, and the Private Enterprise Development in Low Income Countries programme

they have also released

Economics Unpacked: New Video Series

Episode 1: Conditional cash transfers: Do they work?

Susan W. Parker & Joana Naritomi. https://voxdev.org/topic/week-development-economics-voxdev-30012026

70th anniversary of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award digital website

https://www.dofe.org/dofe-at-70

to celebrate the  anniversary the charity has created

The DofE Archive: including digitised letters from its founder Prince Phillip, publicity materials and a story section with oral histories and contributions from participants. These focus on youth schemes, young people and  youth organisations and volunteering.

The ‘Big Three’ of Scientific Information

A comparative bibliometric review of

Web of Science, Scopus, and OpenAlex

Daniel Torres-Salinas & Wenceslao Arroyo-Machado

https://arxiv.org/pdf/2601.21908

Really useful working paper which compares subject coverage, language coverage and geographic coverage of the content of 3 major academic indexing services commonly used for literature reviews. It provides recommendations for the future

See more on the higher education scoop.it page

https://www.scoop.it/topic/higher-education-news-for-libraries-and-librarians

“Il popolo d’Italia”,digital archive
https://fondazioneisec.it/sfogliabili/periodici/il-popolo-d-italia

the daily newspaper founded by Mussolini in 1914, has been digitised by the Fondazione ISEC (Institute for Contemporary History) and can be accessed for free on the website . The entire run covers 1914-1943. It provides a record of Italian right wing politics and political history at this time. Some text is searchable. Site is mainly in Italian only.

New additions and updates to AMSR archives

The Archive of Market and Social Research is a free resource which provides a wealth of information on  social history of consumption and market research in the Uk.

It includes online online surveys, polls and data which are fascinating to social and economic historians https://www.amsr.org.uk/ 

Attitudes to Convenience Food

Notes on Betty Crocker’s Egg – Page 1 – Papers and Offprints – The AMSR Online Archive

revealing insight into how marketers thought they could persuade women to use packet cake mixes.

Polls on working housewives. Fascinating attitudes towards working mothers from the early 1970s.

NOP Political Bulletin 1971 October/November – Page 1 – NOP Reports – The AMSR Online Archive, and NOP Political, Social, Economic Review Issue no.10 1977 May – Page 13 – NOP Reports – The AMSR Online Archive

 

 Best wishes