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Glynis Breakwell

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Dame Glynis Marie Breakwell DBE DL FRSA FAcSS (born West Bromwich, 26 July 1952) is a British social psychologist, researcher and former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Bath. In January 2014 she was listed in the Science Council's list of '100 leading UK practising scientists'.[1] Her tenure as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Bath was marred by controversy over her remuneration, culminating in her dismissal.[2]

Breakwell has been a Fellow of the British Psychological Society since 1987 and an Honorary Fellow since 2006. She is a chartered health psychologist and in 2002 was elected an Academician of the Academy of Social Sciences.[3]

Breakwell was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2012 New Year Honours for services to higher education.[4] She is also a Deputy Lieutenant of the County of Somerset.[5]

Early life and education

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Breakwell was born on 26 July 1952 in West Bromwich, England. She graduated from the University of Leicester with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 1973, the University of Strathclyde with a Master of Science (MSc) degree in 1974, the University of Bristol with a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in 1976.[6] Her doctoral thesis was titled "The mechanisms of social identity".[7] Later, in 1995, she was awarded a Doctor of Science (DSc) degree, a higher doctorate, by Nuffield College, Oxford.[6]

In 2002, she lived in a five-bedroom house at Lansdown Crescent. After her dismissal from the Vice-Chancellorship, the house was then up for sale for £3,000,000.[8]

Academic career

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  • 1976–1978 Lecturer in social psychology, University of Bradford
  • 1978–1982 Prize Fellow in social psychology, Nuffield College, Oxford
  • 1978 BPS Young Social Psychologist Award
  • 1984 Associate Fellow
  • 1987 Fellow
  • 1993 Myers Award
  • 1995–1999 Member Social Psychology Section Committee (Chair 1997–1999)
  • 1978 MA (by special resolution) University of Oxford
  • 2006 Honorary Fellow of the British Psychological Society
  • 2014 Science Council list of 100 leading UK practising Scientists
University of Surrey
  • 1981–1987 Lecturer in social psychology
  • 1987–1988 Reader
  • 1991–2001 Professor of Psychology
  • 1990–1995 Head of Department of Psychology
  • 1994–1995 Pro Vice-Chancellor (Staff Development and Continuing Education)
  • 1995–2001 Head of School of Human Sciences
University of Bath
  • 2001–2019 Vice-Chancellor, University of Bath
Shandong University, China
  • Honorary Professor

Current appointments

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Criticism of excessive pay

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In 2016, former education minister Lord Adonis called for an inquiry in the House of Lords as he criticised the "serious controversy" of salary increases awarded to Breakwell as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Bath. A pay rise of 11%, well above the 1.1% cap on pay for non-managerial staff across the higher education sector, took her yearly earnings to £451,000. "Put all that together, and Glynis Breakwell is paid almost exactly half a million pounds, more than three times the prime minister's salary" said Lord Adonis.[11]

It was also reported around the same time by a freedom of information request submitted by Bath councillor Joe Rayment that Breakwell claimed an extra £20,000 in domestic expenses despite living in a grace-and-favour property owned by the university.[12][13][14]

In protest against Breakwell's pay package, four MPs resigned from the university court (advisory board) for the University of Bath: Darren Jones, Kerry McCarthy, David Drew, and Andrew Murrison.[15] Critics speculated that the controversy surrounding Breakwell's salary had led to a decline in applications; the university suffered an 18.5% drop in applications from non-EU applicants for the 2018 entry, and an overall 6% drop against an 11.5% jump in applications for Bath's six closest competitors.[16]

A freedom of information request by the Bath Chronicle revealed Breakwell secured a further 3.9% pay rise in the 2016–2017 academic year, raising her total wages and benefits to more than £468,000.[17] This led Adonis to refer to her pay rise – awarded whilst she herself was a member of the remuneration committee that set her salary – as a "disgrace" and to call for her to resign. In response, Breakwell issued a statement saying "The university is committed to the highest standards of governance and treats very seriously any complaint made."[17] Breakwell stepped down from the remuneration committee in October 2017 during a series of reforms described as "largely worthless" in a joint statement from unions.[18] One month later, University of Bath students overwhelmingly passed a motion of no confidence in the university's governance in relation to Council and Remuneration committee.[19][20]

Addressing the issue of her salary in a 2015 interview, Breakwell stated: "I'm worth it...I've been in the job a long time and you do tend to get increases over time in most jobs. Frankly, I don't think that there is anything I could say that would stop people saying that I earn too much and vice-chancellors earn too much, so I cannot engage in a conversation because I don't think there is a way through."[21]

Response

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On 28 November 2017 Breakwell announced that she would step down as vice-chancellor on 31 August 2018, at the end of the 2017–18 academic year, and take a fully paid sabbatical semester before formally retiring on 28 February 2019.[22][23] As part of the terms of her resignation, the university wrote off the interest-free loan for her £31,000 car which she kept.[24]

Andrew Adonis called the terms of her resignation "outrageous" and that she was the worst case of "fat-cat pay", saying the sabbatical meant that she would be paid £700,000 to go.[25] A joint statement from trade unions representing staff at the University of Bath urged for Breakwell's resignation to be effective immediately, citing concerns over Breakwell continuing to exercise authority which generated a "climate of fear" on campus.[26] On 16 January 2018, the university court voted in favour for the immediate dismissal of Breakwell.[27]

Publications

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  • Breakwell, Glynis; Rowett, Colin (1982). Social Work: The Social Psychological Approach. Van Nostrand Reinhold. ISBN 0442305192.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (1985). The Quiet Rebel. Century. ISBN 071260717X.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (1986). Coping with Threatened Identities. Sydney: Law Book Co of Australasia. ISBN 0416371205.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (1989). Facing Physical Violence. Routledge. ISBN 0901715956.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (1990). Interviewing (Problems in Practice). BPS Blackwell. ISBN 978-1854330000.
  • Banks, Michael; Bates, Inge; Breakwell, Glynis; Bynner, John M.; Emler, Nicholas; Jamieson, Lynn; Roberts, Kenneth B. (1991). Careers and Identities. Open University Press. ISBN 978-0335097142.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (1991). Social Psychology of Political and Economic Cognition. Academic Press Inc. ISBN 978-0121286804.
  • Rowett, Colin; Breakwell, Glynis (1992). Managing Violence at Work. NFER-Nelson. ASIN B0018LSXWM.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (1992). Social Psychology of Identity and the Self Concept. Academic Press Inc. ISBN 978-0121286859.
  • Breakwell, Glynis; Canter, David (1993). Empirical Approaches to Social Representations. Clarendon Press. ISBN 978-0198521815.
  • Breakwell, Glynis; Millard, L. (1995). Basic Evaluation Methods: Analysing Performance, Practice and Procedure. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1854331618.
  • Breakwell, Glynis; Lyons, Evanthia (1996). Changing European Identities: Social Psychological Analyses of Social Change. Garland Science. ISBN 978-0750630085.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (1997). Coping with Aggressive Behaviour (Personal and Professional Development). John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1854332059.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (2003). Doing Social Psychology Research. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 978-1405108126.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (2003). Doing Social Psychology Research. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 978-1405108126.
  • Breakwell, Glynis; Smith, Jonathan A.; Wright, Daniel B. (2012). Research Methods in Psychology (4 ed.). SAGE Publications Ltd. ISBN 978-0857022646.
  • Breakwell, Glynis (2014). The Psychology of Risk (2 ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1107602700.
  • Jaspal, Rusi; Breakwell, Glynis (2014). Identity Process Theory: Identity, Social Action and Social Change. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1107022706.

References

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  1. ^ "2014 list of leading UK practising scientists". The Science Council. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
  2. ^ "Bath University panel says vice-chancellor must leave post now". the Guardian. 16 January 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  3. ^ "Professor Dame Glynis M. Breakwell DBE, DL". University of Bath. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
  4. ^ "No. 60009". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2011. p. 6.
  5. ^ "Vice-Chancellor appointed as Deputy Lieutenant of Somerset". University of Bath. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
  6. ^ a b "Breakwell, Prof. Dame Glynis (Marie), (born 26 July 1952), President and Vice Chancellor (formerly Vice Chancellor), University of Bath, 2001–18, Emeritus Professor, 2019; Visiting Professor, Imperial College London, since 2020". Who's Who 2021. Oxford University Press. 1 December 2020.
  7. ^ Breakwell, Glynis M. (1976). The mechanisms of social identity. E-Thesis Online Service (Ph.D). The British Library. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  8. ^ "University of Bath vice-chancellor's luxury home for sale". BBC News. 16 March 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  9. ^ "NHS Improvement board members announced". www.nationalhealthexecutive.com.
  10. ^ "Honours committees". 28 April 2023.
  11. ^ Adams, Richard (13 July 2017). "University vice-chancellors are paid too much, says Lord Adonis". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  12. ^ "Inequality cry over £18,953 home expenses of University of Bath Vice-Chancellor Professor Dame Glynis Breakwell". Bath Chronicle. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  13. ^ "University boss paid £400,000 claims £20,000 domestic expenses despite living for free". The Express. Retrieved 13 July 2016.
  14. ^ Glaister, Dan (26 November 2017). "Why genteel Bath is now leading the fight against sky-high executive pay". The Observer. London. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  15. ^ "Fourth MP quits Bath University role over vice-chancellor's pay". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  16. ^ Bennett, Rosemary. "Vice-chancellor Dame Glynis Breakwell salary row deters Bath university applicants". The Times. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
  17. ^ a b Adams, Richard (19 November 2017). "Calls for Bath University vice-chancellor to resign over further pay rise". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  18. ^ Petherick, Sam (26 October 2017). "'Largely worthless': Trio of unions slam University of Bath's governance reforms". Bath Chronicle. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  19. ^ "Bath rocked by ongoing VC pay scandal". The SU University of Bath. 21 September 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  20. ^ Baber, Andrew (28 November 2017). "The University of Bath Students' Union call referendum vote on vice-chancellor". Bath Chronicle. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  21. ^ Ashton, James. "Vice Chancellor of Bath University says £9,000 tuition fees and maintenance grant cuts are not insurmountable problems". Independent.
  22. ^ web-support@bath.ac.uk. "University announces retirement of Professor Dame Glynis Breakwell DBE". www.bath.ac.uk. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  23. ^ Coughlan, Sean (28 November 2017). "Bath university head quits in pay row". BBC News. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  24. ^ "Bath University chief Dame Glynis Breakwell quits with six-figure golden goodbye". The Times. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
  25. ^ "Highest-paid university vice-chancellor in UK resigns after pay pressure". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 11 December 2022. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  26. ^ "'Climate of fear' under University of Bath vice-chancellor must end now, say trade unions". Bath Chronicle.
  27. ^ "University of Bath vice-chancellor voted out in pay row". BBC News. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
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Academic offices
Preceded by Vice-Chancellor of the University of Bath
2001–2018
Succeeded by