I have a lot of meetings in London - sometimes two a week. Most are not sessions where I am representing the University of Sheffield, although some are: most are in connection with various national groups of which I am a member - particularly for the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) or the Higher Education Academy (HEA), but also some of the working groups of the Russell Group. Today I had two London meetings - one at 0900 and the other at 1800. Rather than getting up at the crack of dawn and catching the first train, I travelled down after work yesterday and stayed in a hotel.
Three points have occurred to me during the day.
The first is about graduate destinations. Both yesterday evening as I went in search of a meal, and this morning as I walked from my hotel to the location of my 0900 meeting I observed many people in their 20s and early 30s who I strongly suspect were graduates. They were in (and outside) the pubs - it was a lovely evening yesterday; they were in small groups in the restaurants, often with a folder to hand suggesting they were on their way home from work; this morning they were hurrying through the streets of Covent Garden and Leicester Square and disappearing into offices, coffee and croissant in hand. A disciplinary colleague of mine has described London as an 'escalator region' for graduates. Whilst other regions have career stairways that graduates can climb one by one, London provides opportunities for much more rapid advance - an escalator rather than a staircase - but one where the individual can decide at what point they want to get off and move elsewhere. Every year I regret the negative attitudes that many of my students have to starting their careers in London - the attitude of 'anywhere but London' is rife and I think results in some of our graduates taking longer to fulfil their potential than they might. Perhaps introcuing our students to possible role models who have taken the plunge and moved to London might help.
My second point relates to the timing of my day's meetings. 0900 is not a good time for those from outside London to assemble (it's not good for many from the outer suburbs of London either - London generally works on a later daily schedule than other British cities). Many meetings convened by those who live and work in London do not take account of the travel arrangements of others. Colleagues at my 0900 meeting had travelled from Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales - all, like me, had arrived the previous evening. .And when London meetings are scheduled with good start times (1100 is suitable for people from most parts of the UK, either by train or plane) the pleasure taken by Londoners if the meeting finishes early is not shared by those who have come some distance. If the timing for a meeting is indicated in the agenda as 1100 to 1500 then those of us from outside London, in order to cut costs, buy advance purchase rail tickets tying us to a specific return train. A meeting that finishes an hour early results in us kicking our heels waiting for the clock to reach the original schedule.
But my third point is very personal. I am an urban geographer. I love the buzz of big European cities. I love the heterogeneity of the people, the variety of the buildings, the quirks of backstreets. Central London last night and early this morning was an absolute joy (to me at least). I don't really have any regrets about having to be there for an 0900 meeting today.
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