This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the end of the Durham Miners’ Strike, and it is high time that the relationship between the Durham University and the strike is studied. Unfortunately, this connection was not always a positive one, but that is partly why it is so pressing in its need to be studied, therefore my research question will be: “how was Durham University involved in the Miners' Strike of 1984-85?”

The aim of this project is to explore the ways in which the students and staff at Durham university interacted with the Strike as a symbol, as well as on a personal level with the miners, and also how this affects the university today. Just under a decade ago, one of the university’s rugby teams was made to cancel a social due to its theme: miners and Thatcherites.[1] To this day, the relevance of the Miners’ Strike, and the way the university and its students interact with it, is part of Durham life. This was only more significant at the time of the Strike. Looking at the contemporaneous actions of Durham University members towards the miners on strike, and vice versa, is a vital area of sociological study, especially of society in the North East. Many different groups held different roles and partook in different ways in this period. The glaring class tension is an ever-present issue in culture, which still pervades the university today. However, beyond this, there is an avenue study the gender dynamic at the university. The oldest college of the university was still yet to admit women,[2] and many other colleges were either yet to open their doors to women, or had only done so recently (such as St. Chad’s).[3] It would be interesting, and beneficial to the female students who may still feel that they are a disadvantaged group at the university, to understand how gender played into the university’s response to the Miners’ Strike, if at all (though this section will only appear in the academic essay). I also want to look at the way the local women participated in the, largely male oriented, strike action and whether their contact with the university was affected by their gender.

This research has two output goals. The first is an article produced within a month of the Durham Miners’ gala that will hopefully be accessible to many members of the Durham community. To produce these, I will be looking at the special and local archives at the Palace Green Library, as well as conducting interviews of ex-students and staff that were directly involved in the university during the Miners’ Strike. I also plan to speak to those on strike in 1984 and 1985, especially those who had contact with the members of the university, looking at both positive and negative interactions. I am conscious that some of these interviewees may desire to stay anonymous, and I will work to ensure that nothing is included without the interviewees consent, or, where I may reproduce others' work from the archives, I will be sure to gain permission and work within academic and ethical guidelines. These research methods will produce a well-rounded, and personal, account of the atmosphere, animosities, and aid that took place throughout the strike relative to Durham University. The second is in the form of an academic essay. This will go deeper into the issues, and will be a more proactive piece in the sense that it will suggest ways that the university may be able to use the research to strengthen its place in the community and to help dissolve any barriers that may exist between the members of the institution and the members of the wider Durham community. This project would be able to be utilised to widen the participation of the university in the cause of the preservation of Durham’s mining history. Furthermore, in the cases of the students that may have harmed the mining community through opposition and speeches, a culpability can be brought to the fore, ensuring that the university and its current and future members are mindful of their impact on those around them.

This project is being supervised by members of the sociology department, but it is also entrenched in historical study. These two disciplines complement each other, enabling a deep and relevant study of the important topic at hand. In addition to this, with the added production of a newspaper article, these subjects not only interact directly with each other, but with academics and non-academics alike. 

References

[1] 'Durham students miners' strike-themed event 'disgraceful'', BBC News, 26 November, 2017 < https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-42128595> [accessed 6 February 2025].

[2] 'Women of Castle', Durham University < https://stories.durham.ac.uk/women-of-castle/> [accessed 6 February 2025].

[3] 'A History of St Chad’s College', St Chad's College Durham < https://www.stchads.ac.uk/> [accessed 6 February 2025].