Nicole Sykes
@nicolesykes.bsky.social
Charities, charts, cats.
Director of Policy, Communications and Research at Lloyds Bank Foundation. She/her🏳️🌈
Director of Policy, Communications and Research at Lloyds Bank Foundation. She/her🏳️🌈
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Obviously a heck of a lot to digest from the Covid inquiry but this one rings true with our experience at the time. Stronger multi disciplinary expertise might have helped show the interconnections and trade offs between health, economics, geography and societal impacts
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
November 20, 2025 at 8:25 PM
Obviously a heck of a lot to digest from the Covid inquiry but this one rings true with our experience at the time. Stronger multi disciplinary expertise might have helped show the interconnections and trade offs between health, economics, geography and societal impacts
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
This stuff is honestly so far gone now, it would take a political generation to rebuild. And none of the incentives in British politics are taking us that way.
At some point, for the love of God, will someone ANYONE at long last take the council funding crisis seriously?!?
Because THIS is what will break down a society, not some poor soul escaping incredible dangers, arriving on our shores.
Because THIS is what will break down a society, not some poor soul escaping incredible dangers, arriving on our shores.
English councils plan to sell off social clubs and sports centres to balance books
November 15, 2025 at 8:57 PM
This stuff is honestly so far gone now, it would take a political generation to rebuild. And none of the incentives in British politics are taking us that way.
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Research on this is clear: the uncertainty created by this policy will lead to people integrate less into British society. It is trading-off the reasonable policy goal of integration for the useless symbolism of immigration numbers. Bad policy to appease the far right.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
UK set to limit refugees to temporary stays
Shabana Mahmood is expected to say the era of permanent protection for refugees is over, in major changes to the UK's asylum and immigration system.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 15, 2025 at 1:09 PM
Research on this is clear: the uncertainty created by this policy will lead to people integrate less into British society. It is trading-off the reasonable policy goal of integration for the useless symbolism of immigration numbers. Bad policy to appease the far right.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Yes, I think this is what the “it’s smart not to do income tax” stuff is missing. If you remove salary sacrifice on someone’s pension contributions you are increasing their income tax! If you freeze thresholds you are increasing their income tax!
Issue for Labour now isn't whether they break their manifesto pledge on tax. It is whether they do so in a way which is blatant, honest but sustainable - or whether they do so by a myriad of complex and likely insufficient means whilst arguing they are not.
Imho, one seems more toxic than the other
Imho, one seems more toxic than the other
November 14, 2025 at 10:16 AM
Yes, I think this is what the “it’s smart not to do income tax” stuff is missing. If you remove salary sacrifice on someone’s pension contributions you are increasing their income tax! If you freeze thresholds you are increasing their income tax!
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
The fact that they got an extremely tense game of cat and mouse between the worlds most obvious flamboyant gay man and a giant monster man who has had 37 concussions....this is britain this is british pride
November 6, 2025 at 10:17 PM
The fact that they got an extremely tense game of cat and mouse between the worlds most obvious flamboyant gay man and a giant monster man who has had 37 concussions....this is britain this is british pride
They should have advertised who everyone was playing for, throughout. Popped it under their names everytime they were in the diary room.
The opportunity for tens and tens and tens of millions of pounds of free advertising for charities, totally wasted #CelebrityTraitors
The opportunity for tens and tens and tens of millions of pounds of free advertising for charities, totally wasted #CelebrityTraitors
I mean the BBC should do a nominal donation to all the charities tbf #CelebrityTraitors
November 6, 2025 at 10:12 PM
They should have advertised who everyone was playing for, throughout. Popped it under their names everytime they were in the diary room.
The opportunity for tens and tens and tens of millions of pounds of free advertising for charities, totally wasted #CelebrityTraitors
The opportunity for tens and tens and tens of millions of pounds of free advertising for charities, totally wasted #CelebrityTraitors
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Anyway, we need some joy, so here's the Egyptian foreign minister being given a Lego Pyramid by the Danish foreign minister.
November 3, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Anyway, we need some joy, so here's the Egyptian foreign minister being given a Lego Pyramid by the Danish foreign minister.
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Yes! This is much better than all the stupid "make November more miserable" initiatives
I am trying something in November. National novel-reading month, basically. It is the PERFECT month for reading (at least in the Western hemisphere).
naomialderman.substack.com/p/november-i...
naomialderman.substack.com/p/november-i...
November is for reading
or: a month of sheer luxurious intellectual pleasure
naomialderman.substack.com
November 2, 2025 at 7:12 AM
Yes! This is much better than all the stupid "make November more miserable" initiatives
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
We have progressed from data collection to data analysis.
November 1, 2025 at 12:31 AM
We have progressed from data collection to data analysis.
An email from Lewisham council, after four stabbings in Catford this week. Entitled “Mayor of Lewisham addresses serious incidents in Catford”
This is. Not how to comms. No. God no.
This is. Not how to comms. No. God no.
October 23, 2025 at 5:05 PM
An email from Lewisham council, after four stabbings in Catford this week. Entitled “Mayor of Lewisham addresses serious incidents in Catford”
This is. Not how to comms. No. God no.
This is. Not how to comms. No. God no.
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
If you can persevere through the ads this is worth a read. Wirral Council may have made a mistake with the leisure centre but lack of money will be the underlying reason. Goes back to the point oft made - it’s the lack of local government funding and provision which is creating the rifts in society
There are too many places in this country that feel completely left behind
'It's the forgotten estate. It's no wonder kids get in trouble'
Special report: With new powers coming in to tackle a surge in crime and anti-social behaviour in Wirral's Woodchurch Estate, local people say the authorities need to look at what has been taken away ...
liverpoolecho.co.uk
October 18, 2025 at 6:47 AM
If you can persevere through the ads this is worth a read. Wirral Council may have made a mistake with the leisure centre but lack of money will be the underlying reason. Goes back to the point oft made - it’s the lack of local government funding and provision which is creating the rifts in society
Well now I've planned a whole charity scandal-themed D&D one shot in my head.
playing D&D for the first time and I have been discouraged from naming my character Captain Tom
October 11, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Well now I've planned a whole charity scandal-themed D&D one shot in my head.
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
I write because I love writing. I love writing even when I'm struggling with a writing problem that is killing me. Finding a way through that problem is both intensely rewarding and also helps me become a better writer. There is no reason for me to ever outsource that.
there’s this weird idea a lot of people seem to have about how all of us writers and artists must secretly want to use AI and are merely resisting temptation for ethical reasons, and like, no, it’s not hard for me to resist drinking the bowl of Piss With Glass In It actually
October 9, 2025 at 9:45 PM
I write because I love writing. I love writing even when I'm struggling with a writing problem that is killing me. Finding a way through that problem is both intensely rewarding and also helps me become a better writer. There is no reason for me to ever outsource that.
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Today, we published a new @theifs.bsky.social Green Budget chapter on children with special educational needs & disability support, which is joint work with colleagues @eduinlatimer.bsky.social and Darcey Snape
I wanted to delve deeper into some of the key findings....[1/6]
I wanted to delve deeper into some of the key findings....[1/6]
NEW: The share of children receiving disability support and the share on high-level special educational support have both doubled since 2016.
THREAD on @eduinlatimer.bsky.social, @lukesibieta.bsky.social and Darcey Snape's IFS Green Budget chapter, funded by @nuffieldfoundation.org:
THREAD on @eduinlatimer.bsky.social, @lukesibieta.bsky.social and Darcey Snape's IFS Green Budget chapter, funded by @nuffieldfoundation.org:
October 3, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Today, we published a new @theifs.bsky.social Green Budget chapter on children with special educational needs & disability support, which is joint work with colleagues @eduinlatimer.bsky.social and Darcey Snape
I wanted to delve deeper into some of the key findings....[1/6]
I wanted to delve deeper into some of the key findings....[1/6]
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
As the Trump administration threatens them, liberal nonprofits have been quietly preparing to do everything from surrendering 501(c)(3) status to relocating outside the US.
The Trump Administration Is Coming for Nonprofits. They're Getting Ready
As the Trump administration threatens them, liberal nonprofits have been quietly preparing to do everything from surrendering 501(c)(3) status to relocating outside the US.
wrd.cm
October 2, 2025 at 10:01 AM
As the Trump administration threatens them, liberal nonprofits have been quietly preparing to do everything from surrendering 501(c)(3) status to relocating outside the US.
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
V interesting thread on something that could have been the headline going into conference if it hadn’t all been about ID cards & immigration; rebuilding communities, reclaiming ideas about roots & togetherness (the appealing bit of Blue Labour) from the ‘Maurice Glasman saying mad things’ bit of BL
Kirsty cites globalisation and tech as the two big drivers of dislocation.
And champions the importance of social clubs in helping to tackle this dislocation.
"We need a politics of joy and relationships"
And champions the importance of social clubs in helping to tackle this dislocation.
"We need a politics of joy and relationships"
September 28, 2025 at 12:57 PM
V interesting thread on something that could have been the headline going into conference if it hadn’t all been about ID cards & immigration; rebuilding communities, reclaiming ideas about roots & togetherness (the appealing bit of Blue Labour) from the ‘Maurice Glasman saying mad things’ bit of BL
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Kirsty cites globalisation and tech as the two big drivers of dislocation.
And champions the importance of social clubs in helping to tackle this dislocation.
"We need a politics of joy and relationships"
And champions the importance of social clubs in helping to tackle this dislocation.
"We need a politics of joy and relationships"
September 28, 2025 at 11:53 AM
Kirsty cites globalisation and tech as the two big drivers of dislocation.
And champions the importance of social clubs in helping to tackle this dislocation.
"We need a politics of joy and relationships"
And champions the importance of social clubs in helping to tackle this dislocation.
"We need a politics of joy and relationships"
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Consumer debt is down, but like air being squeezed around in a balloon some of it looks to have shifted shape into arrears on priority bills
The number of households behind on at least one priority bill has been creeping up over time.
While the poorest fifth are most likely to be affected, the prevalence of bill arrears crept up the income distribution during the cost of living crisis.
Read more: buff.ly/A8msGuU
While the poorest fifth are most likely to be affected, the prevalence of bill arrears crept up the income distribution during the cost of living crisis.
Read more: buff.ly/A8msGuU
September 24, 2025 at 8:02 PM
Consumer debt is down, but like air being squeezed around in a balloon some of it looks to have shifted shape into arrears on priority bills
Looking forward to speaking at the Lib Dem conference Carers Trust fringe at 11.30am today and hosting the Civil Society Reception at 8pm tonight, and otherwise enjoying the beachside mingling.
September 21, 2025 at 8:53 AM
Looking forward to speaking at the Lib Dem conference Carers Trust fringe at 11.30am today and hosting the Civil Society Reception at 8pm tonight, and otherwise enjoying the beachside mingling.
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
at the center of the efforts to destroy civil society in russia, hungary, georgia and elsewhere is the stigmatization, harassment, & criminalization of NGOs. that's what this is about, a full-on assault on democratic debate & freedoms.
this is not hyperbole. it's right here.
this is not hyperbole. it's right here.
Vance: "There's no unity with people who fund these articles, who pay the salaries of these terrorist sympathizers...Soros' OSF and the Ford Foundation...benefit from generous tax treatment...How do they reward us? By setting fire to the house built by the American family."
September 15, 2025 at 7:09 PM
at the center of the efforts to destroy civil society in russia, hungary, georgia and elsewhere is the stigmatization, harassment, & criminalization of NGOs. that's what this is about, a full-on assault on democratic debate & freedoms.
this is not hyperbole. it's right here.
this is not hyperbole. it's right here.
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
The reporting on Charlie Kirk’s killer in the UK & US highlights again how fundamentally ill equipped mainstream media is to report on political violence in the digital age.
They do not know anything about online far right meme culture & it’s starting to do real harm. #r4today
They do not know anything about online far right meme culture & it’s starting to do real harm. #r4today
September 13, 2025 at 5:30 AM
The reporting on Charlie Kirk’s killer in the UK & US highlights again how fundamentally ill equipped mainstream media is to report on political violence in the digital age.
They do not know anything about online far right meme culture & it’s starting to do real harm. #r4today
They do not know anything about online far right meme culture & it’s starting to do real harm. #r4today
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
This is not even a question at this point
People need to understand that Gamergate is the most important domestic political event of my lifetime
September 12, 2025 at 6:28 PM
This is not even a question at this point
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
Sometimes I think the real "peace dividend" since the end of the cold war was that a whole generation of analysts grew up underestimating the power of ideology, memory and emotion, and now they cannot recognize a huge cultural shift when it is staring them in the face.
The "soft stuff"matters.
The "soft stuff"matters.
September 11, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Sometimes I think the real "peace dividend" since the end of the cold war was that a whole generation of analysts grew up underestimating the power of ideology, memory and emotion, and now they cannot recognize a huge cultural shift when it is staring them in the face.
The "soft stuff"matters.
The "soft stuff"matters.
Reposted by Nicole Sykes
How young people relate to populism in a diverse & changing society may depend a lot on openness to Us v Them
Both socio-economic (education, socio-economic, geographic residential mixing/segregation) and identity (values, in + out group perceptions, relationships) which contribute to this
Both socio-economic (education, socio-economic, geographic residential mixing/segregation) and identity (values, in + out group perceptions, relationships) which contribute to this
September 6, 2025 at 9:01 PM
How young people relate to populism in a diverse & changing society may depend a lot on openness to Us v Them
Both socio-economic (education, socio-economic, geographic residential mixing/segregation) and identity (values, in + out group perceptions, relationships) which contribute to this
Both socio-economic (education, socio-economic, geographic residential mixing/segregation) and identity (values, in + out group perceptions, relationships) which contribute to this