Back on the 1st May 2024 the House of Lords focused on a session called “Higher Education: Arts and Humanities – Question“. The Earl of Clancarty, Nicholas Trench, opened the discussion and several people contributed to it including The Bishop of Sheffield, Pete Wilcox. The Conservative Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education, Lords Spokesperson (Equalities), Baroness Barran, Diana Barran responded. The whole discussion is placed here

The initial comment from Nicholas Trench was:

Nicholas Trench: To ask His Majesty’s Government, following recent announcements of proposed university staff cuts, what steps they are taking to support the study of the arts and humanities in higher education.

Diana Barran: My Lords, we recognise the importance of the creative and performing arts to our economy. While some higher education providers have seen decreases in arts and humanities staff, academic staff numbers across England rose by 1.9% between 2019-20 and 2022-23 to 21,640.

A few moments later the Bishop of Sheffield contributed:

Pete Wilcox: My Lords, almost every armed conflict in the world at present has a religious dimension, making informed and respectful dialogue increasingly critical for international peace and security. In that context, the steady decline in the numbers of those studying religion, theology and ethics in our higher education institutions is a cause for real concern. Given the dearth of graduates in these subjects at present, can the Minister tell us how the Government will nurture the necessary religious literacy of our public life in the coming years?

Diana Barran: This is a very important subject and, I may say, goes wider in terms of critical thinking and understanding the information that we receive both in reality and online. I do not have the specific figures for religious studies on their own, but historical, philosophical and religious studies have declined over the last three years, as the right reverend Prelate said, but only by 5%. Multiple issues impact on that, but I think we also see young people seeking debate, and the moves that we have made as a Government on free speech within our universities are critical to underpinning that.