Primary Geography Journal - Spring 2025

The theme for this issue, edited by Ben Ballin, is the Geography of Togetherness. 

I am very pleased to have an article in this issue on this theme. 

Thanks to Ben for asking me to contribute some time ago. 

Subscribers can now download the digital issue and print copies will be arriving shortly. There are some other excellent pieces in this issue too as always, including a lovely contribution by Sharon Witt and Helen Clarke and also a personal piece from Steve Rawlinson on the loss of the Sycamore Gap tree.

In my article I talk about rural and urban ex/inclusion of certain groups and offer some suggestions of projects that might be of interest to explore this topic with pupils.

Professor Alice Coleman - RIP

'Bad design does not determine anything, but it increases the odds against which people have to struggle to maintain civilised standards'

Alice Coleman

I recently heard that Alice Coleman had sadly passed away just short of her 100th birthday.

We had prepared a celebration of her work with the help of Peter Vujakovic. It was published in the Summer 2023 issue of GA Magazine.

GA Magazine is received three times a year by GA members.

There will be further comment later, but the piece can be seen below. Alice leaves a tremendous legacy of work and did a great deal to support and further the cause of the GA in several respects. I have a copy of the handbook for the Land Use Survey she coordinated. 

She was a teacher, as well as working at King's College, London - with which the GA has had many close connections over the years.

Alice Coleman from GeoBlogs

Update

An obituary of #geographer Prof Alice Coleman is included in the latest episode of @BBCRadio4
The Last Word by @Bannmatt

Listen belowhttps://t.co/y7uDYsOkZ0

— Steve Brace (@SteveBraceGeog) June 9, 2023

Telegraph obituary. 

Just hearing @LorettaCLees
talking of theory iflack of defensible space in modernist housing developed in #geographer Alice Coleman's work. & Coleman's advocacy her work to M. Thatcher & taking Prince Charles on field trip to the blocks too #thelastwordhttps://t.co/y7uDYsOkZ0

— Steve Brace (@SteveBraceGeog) June 11, 2023

Reading

Utopia on Trial - available from the Internet Archive. 

Update August 2023

Here's an image of Alice with a former GA President: W G V Balchin.

He was the guest speaker at the GA Thanet Branch in 1996

Alice wrote Balchin's Obituary for the GA.

Tribute to pioneering geography professor and former Broadstairs resident Alice Coleman - https://t.co/WXkdXKgaYq

— Isle of Thanet News (@IsleThanetNews) June 13, 2023

Tribute to pioneering geography professor and former Broadstairs resident Alice Coleman - https://t.co/WXkdXKgaYq

— Isle of Thanet News (@IsleThanetNews) June 13, 2023