BA History and Sociology

Left-wing ideas saw an upsurge in popularity amongst the young in the wake of the 2008 financial crash, with the rise of the 2010s student movement, Corbynism, a growing left-wing alternative media ecology and the popularisation of online activism and discussion. This course provides students with a longer intellectual history of post-war British socialism. It will examine how socialist thinkers tackled issues including affluence, the end of empire, globalisation, the dissolution of the ‘traditional’ working class and the rise of New Right. It will assess how they engaged with theoretical frameworks such as class, culture, gender, race and the self. Through analysis of primary and secondary material, students will attain a detailed understanding of the intellectual history of British socialism, and the changing cultural, social and political context of late twentieth-century Britain.

• To develop foundational knowledge of the intellectual history of the post-war British Left.
• To situate left-wing arguments within historical context, and understand their relationship to social change.
• To explore established historical themes in Modern British History such as race, gender, class and the rise of neo-liberalism through the lens of left-wing activism and ideology, using published primary texts.
• To engage with a range of methodologies for writing the intellectual history of the recent past.

• Demonstrate a broad understanding of some of the main debates in post-war British intellectual life.
• Develop a nuanced, detailed understanding of key themes and concepts in post-war British left-wing thought.
• Understand the defining features and concerns of the post-war British Left, and how these changed over the period.

• Critically assess the ways in which ideas are generated in particular historical contexts, and for a range of purposes.
• Analyse online primary source material from a variety of perspectives and genres in seminar activities and through written assessments.
• Investigate and synthesise secondary scholarship on post-war Britain, and deliver persuasive independent interpretations orally and in written work.

• Confidently navigate relevant digital humanities resources.
• Independently synthesise and organise primary and secondary source material.
• Communicate findings and interpretations in oral and written formats.
• Contribute to group discussions.

• Articulate complex ideas to groups through seminar contribution as well as in written work.
• Critical thinking and analytical skills.
• Completion of independent research on an identified problem or question.
• Engage collaboratively as part of a team.
• Confidence in navigating of online research tools.

Essay	Summative	65%
Primary Source Analysis	Summative	35%

Oral feedback on group discussions	Formative
Written feedback on coursework submissions via turnitin	Summative
Additional one-to-one feedback (during office hour or by making an appointment)	Formative

Lawrence Black, The political culture of the left in Britain, 1951-1964: old Labour, New Britain? (2003).

Lise Butler, Michael Young, Social Science, and the British Left, 1945-1970 (2020).

Ben Jackson, Equality and the British Left: a study in progressive political thought (2007).

Kennetta Hammond Perry, London is the Place for Me: Black Britons, Citizenship and the Politics of Race (2018).

Celia Hughes, Young Lives on the Left: Sixties activism and the liberation of the self (2015).

Margaretta Jolly, Sisterhood and After: An Oral History of the U.K. Women’s Liberation Movement (2020).

Wade Matthews, The New Left, National Identity, and the Break-up of Britain (2013).

Florence Sutcliffe-Braithwaite, Class, Politics and the Decline of Deference in England 1968-2000 (2018).

Rob Waters, Thinking Black: Britain, 1964-1985 (2018).

Tuition fees for home students commencing their studies in September 2027 will be £10,050 per annum. Tuition fees for international students will be £29,200 per annum.

For general information please see the undergraduate finance pages.

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

We know that student finance can be complicated. The links below provide further information to help guide you.

Learn more about student finance options for UK students .

Learn more about f ees and finance for international students .

As an international student you may be eligible for our Global Futures Scholarships . This is open to students starting their studies in September 2026.