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Becoming Brixton: the British Black Panthers, squatting, and community empowerment through histories of the present

Doctoral Training Grant Funding Information

This funding model includes a 36 month fully funded PhD Studentship, set in-line with the Research Council values. For 2025/6, this will be £20,780 per year. The tax-free stipend will be paid monthly. This PhD Studentship also includes a Full-Time Home Fee Scholarship for up to 3 years. The funding is subject to your continued registration on the research degree, making satisfactory progression within your PhD, as well as attendance on and successful completion of the Postgraduate Certificate in Research Practice. 

All applicants will receive the same stipend irrespective of fee status.

Application Closing Date:
Midday (UK Time) on Wednesday 16th April 2025 for a start date of the 1st September 2025.

How to Apply

To apply, please follow the below steps:

  1. Complete the BCU Online Application Form here: Social Sciences PhDs.
  2. Complete the Doctoral Studentship Proposal Form in full, ensuring that you quote the project ID. You will be required to upload your proposal in place of a personal statement on the BCU online application form.
  3. Upload two references to your online application form (at least one of which must be an academic reference).
  4. Upload your qualification(s) for entry onto the research degree programme. This will be Bachelor/Master’s certificate(s) and transcript(s).
  5. International applicants must also provide a valid English language qualification. Please see the list of English language qualifications accepted here. Please check the individual research degree course page for the required scores.

Frequently Asked Questions

To help support you to complete your application, please consult the frequently asked questions below:

If your question is not answered above and you need any further information, please use the contact details below: 

- For enquiries about the project content, please contact: sam.burgum@bcu.ac.uk 

- For enquiries about the application procedure, please contact: research.admissions@bcu.ac.uk

Project Title: Becoming Brixton: the British Black Panthers, squatting, and community empowerment through histories of the present 

Project lead: Dr Samuel Burgum

Project ID: 44060454 

Project description: 

Working alongside Dr Samuel Burgum (sociology) and Dr Shey Fyffe (sociology/black studies), this research project will explore the intersections of Black histories and squatting in Brixton through community archives, official archives, oral history interviews, and an innovative ethnographic lens that views streets, buildings, and city spaces themselves as archives. The project seeks to address significant gaps in the literature concerning the crossover of squatting histories and Black community activism, with two primary objectives: 

  1. Addressing historical gaps in the archive: the study will fill a void in existing literature by examining the interweaving narratives of Black community organisation and squatting in Brixton. Current research predominantly portrays squatting as a largely ‘white’ community, overlooking the presence and role of Black communities in shaping London’s urban landscape. 
  1. Mobilising historical knowledge for contemporary impact: building upon these historical insights, the project aims to destabilise conventional urban narratives. By leveraging archival knowledge, the research seeks to support ongoing campaigns and community organisation against gentrification, social cleansing, and racism that continue to affect marginalised communities in the city.  

Recently, there has emerged groundbreaking work on the intersection of racialised communities and squatting. Shabna Begum’s work on the Bengali squatting movement in Spitalfields has not only illuminated the Bengali community’s mobilisation against racism in the 1970s but has also underscored broader issues of structural racism that persist in the area today. Connections drawn by Begum, between the Bengali squatter movement and pivotal activist groups such as Race Today and OWAAD, emphasises the need for further comprehensive studies exploring similar dynamics in Brixton. 

The project aims to connect this historical knowledge to current struggles in Brixton and beyond, offering insights that could support ongoing community organisations fighting gentrification and social inequalities. Through partnerships with local organizations, like the Black Cultural Archives and 56a Infoshop, the research will involve local communities in uncovering these important histories. This project promises to shed light on untold stories and support present-day efforts for social justice in south London. 

Anticipated findings and contribution to knowledge:

This research will acknowledge the overlooked contribution of Black community activism to the squatter’s movement that took place between 1968-1981. By exploring archival materials, oral histories, and the physical spaces of the city, the research will reveal how Black communities in Brixton navigated housing discrimination and engaged in squatting as a form of resistance and activism. The findings will challenge dominant narrative that urban squatting in London is a predominantly white history, highlighting the role of Black activists in shaping the city’s social and political landscape.  

This research seeks to explore squatting as a means to actioning and sustaining anti-racist community activism, by shining a light on the ways in which ‘non-white’ Britain was uniquely affected by the housing crisis of this time period. The research will contribute to a deeper understanding of the long-term impact of racialized housing policies on Afro-Caribbean communities, particularly since the mass migration following World War II. By connecting these historical struggles to contemporary issues like gentrification and social inequality, the findings will offer valuable insights for ongoing social justice movements in the area. 

We intend for this project to be published as a joint-authored book, but we would also support the candidate to publish their own academic outputs, as well as dissemination through more accessible formats (e.g. journalism, websites, public-facing outputs) and to organise knowledge exchange events around the work. 

Person specification:

The ideal candidate will have completed, or be near-completion, of a relevant masters degree (e.g. sociology, human geography, history, urban studies, politics, or other related disciplines). Given the nature of the project, we are particularly interested in hearing from candidates from south London who have an existing connection to black histories and racial politics in Lambeth. The candidate should have experience (or be enthusiastic to develop new skills) in archival studies, oral history interviews, and ethnographic observation. 

International applicants must also provide a valid English language qualification, such as International English Language Test System (IELTS) or equivalent with an overall score of 6.5 with no band below 6.0.