We bring together post-16 education-focused expertise in teaching and learning, equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI), leadership and management and governance, to help providers to deliver world-leading teaching, research and scholarship, their civic mission and student outcomes at their institution.
We do this through the provision of specialist knowledge and resource, externally recognised benchmarking and recognition schemes and a member-focused, collaborative approach.
We offer accreditation through the Fellowships and EDI charters: Athena SWAN and Race Equality Charter and development through open programmes, bespoke programmes, and consultancy.
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Working with Wales
In Wales, Advance HE works closely with Welsh Government, HEFCW, Universities Wales, Colegau Cymru, the nine Universities and the FE Colleges with HE provision. Advance HE has a Wales based Head of Membership, a dedicated Senior Advisor in teaching and learning and EDI, and Wales and UK based Associates with expertise leadership, governance, EDI, teaching and learning with a good understanding of the Wales context in these disciplines.
Our formal engagement with the Welsh HE sector is through the Advance HE stakeholder group, which is held biannually with representation from HEFCW, Universities Wales, UHR Wales, ChUW, Welsh Clerks and Secretaries, Pro Vice-Chancellors Learning and Teaching Group and Pro Vice-Chancellors Research . This group steers the focus of Advance HE activity in Wales, including determining any HEFCW/sector-wide funded initiatives.
Advance HE Membership in Wales
We are proud that all nine Welsh Universities, the Coleg Cymraeg Genedlaethol and seven Further Education Colleges continue to chose to be members of Advance HE.
Advance HE members receive a number of member benefits.
Connect Benefit Series
The Connect Benefit Series is open to all colleagues at Advance HE member institutions. The Series focusses on monthly themes designed to help our members develop resilience, to help institutions adapt to a new way of ‘business as usual’ within the transformed environment.
Each month there will be a suite of multiple benefit outputs including formats such as webinars, blogs/vlogs, Tweet chats, tool kits and guidance documents.
Tackling structural race inequality in higher education
Activities, discussions, tools and resources to support our members in understanding and addressing structural race inequalities in all aspects of higher education.
The activities in support of this member benefit have been divided into four strands:
- Understanding structural inequality: theory, evidence, data and storytelling
- Honest, brave and open conversations about race
- Decolonising identity
- Meeting the challenge: supporting senior leaders in conversation, change and accountability in addressing race
Collaborative Development Fund
Advance HE is dedicated to supporting the development of our members based on sector needs, and provides funding to help enable this. Previously, funding had been in the form of our Small Development Projects (SDPs), which were launched in 2004 and more recently, our Good Practice Grants.
For the 2020-21 member benefit year, funding will be available to our global membership base in the form of our Collaborative Development Fund, which aims to harness the knowledge, experience and innovative capabilities of our members in order to address current challenges within the HE sector.
We invite our colleagues at member institutions to apply for the funding to deliver these projects which will start in February 2021. The application deadline has been extended to 12:00 GMT 29 January 2021.
Advance HE Connect
Share. Connect. Collaborate
Advance HE Connect is an online network exclusively for the HE sector that has facilitated sector-wide engagement during the Covid-19 pandemic, with individual log-ins increasing by 80% since lockdown. Members have been connecting with more than 20,000 users from 100 countries around the globe. This community platform is open to all those who work in HE and provides a space where the sector can share, connect and collaborate in one place.
Publications and projects
Membership provides institutions with access to a wealth of exclusive reports, publications and resources across key HE themes, and the latest thinking in leadership development, governance, organisation development, education and EDI. Our priority in this next year is to provide our members with key practical, solution-focused toolkits, frameworks, research and resources informed directly from the outcomes of our Covid-19 collaborative projects.
Teaching Excellence Awards
At a time when teaching and teachers have to rapidly adapt, it’s important that we continue to celebrate the outstanding contribution to education that our colleagues make. The National Teaching Fellowship Scheme (NTFS), now in its 20th year, and the Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence (CATE) showcase the impact of individuals and teams who teach or support learning in UK higher education, recognising their success and providing a platform to share the learning from their practice. Advance HE member institutions benefit from free access to these awards.
Discounted access to key development and enhancement opportunities
All Advance HE member institutions benefit from:
- A discount on direct Fellowship application fees of 50%
- A discount of 25% on Development Programmes, Conferences and Events
- 10% discount on bespoke Consultancy and Enhancement services
- A reduction to just £2,500 for access to Student Surveys
Dedicated Advance HE membership contact
Your Head of Membership is a critical friend with strategic understanding of your context, stakeholders and institutional objectives. They will support you to engage with complex challenges and share good practice between member institutions with you and ensure you access the services that best support your institutional objectives and help you prepare for emerging challenges and opportunities.
Strategic Advisory Groups
Your member-led Strategic Advisory Groups will continue to ensure that we develop work in the areas that deliver the most value to your institution. This includes influence over the development of new knowledge and publications shaped to respond to your changing need and exclusive access to the outcomes of this work.
As members, institutions have a dedicated Advance HE Wales Head of Membership who engages with the sector more broadly through the following means to ensure a constructive dialogue of activities in Wales:
- Institutional visits (HE and FE delivering HE)
- Organising the:
- Advance HE Wales Institutional Group (L&T)
- Advance HE Wales EDI Liaison Group
- OSD Cymru (organisational & staff development)
- Attending, by invitation, meetings of:
- UHR Wales
- Welsh Clerks & Secretaries
- Joint ChUW and Welsh Clerks and Secretaries meetings
- PVC Learning and Teaching Group
- PVC Research
- Meetings, as required with:
- Welsh Government
- HEFCW
- Universities Wales
- Colegau Cymru
We also engage with organisations such as QAA, NUS Wales and Chwarae Teg to develop synergies and prevent duplication.
Working with the Welsh language
Advance HE is committed to providing a proportional response to need for resources in the medium of Welsh, and is engaging with the community to make key resources available bilingually.
We shall also explore establishing an annual review panel for Fellowship applications in Welsh, as well as working with the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol supporting the establishment of a Welsh language Advance HE Connect group for lecturers teaching in Welsh.
We will work with Welsh speaking communities in the sector to establish whether there is demand for provision of leadership development courses through the medium of Welsh.
Development programmes and events held in Wales
Below you will find the specific development programmes and events which take place in Wales.
Our open programmes, conferences and events are also available and can be found here.
Aurora - Cardiff
Aurora is Advance HE's leadership development initiative for women and those who identify as a woman. It is run as a unique partnership bringing together leadership experts and higher education institutions to take positive action to address the under-representation of women in leadership positions in the sector.
One cohort per year is run in Cardiff.
One cohort per year is run in Cardiff.
Support for Welsh institutions
As mentioned above, the Head of Membership in Wales will visit institutions and individuals to support maximisation of their membership, associated benefits, including Advance HE Connect for communities of practice, and offering off the shelf and bespoke product solutions to challenges and opportunities faced.
Specific support in Wales
We provide a Wales specific member benefit scheme of work, agreed in conjunction with HEFCW and the Chair of the PVC Learning and Teaching Group.
In 2019/20 the focus was a well received programme ‘Wales Higher Education Well-being Initiative’, which included embedding mental health and wellbeing in the curriculum.
Below is the general support Advance HE offers all institutions.
Services for All UK Advance HE Members
Consultancy and enhancement services
Our consultancy and enhancement services allow us to be a critical friend, bringing our deep and extensive expertise to your challenges and draw on the learnings from our cross-sector reach.
Bespoke in-house programmes
Our programmes develop leaders equipped to address the key challenges facing institutions, enhance the teaching and learning capability and tackle the methods by which your institution addresses equality, diversity and inclusivity at all levels.
Fellowship support
Fellowship related support such as bulk Fellowship application purchase, Fellowship application writing workshops and reviews of applications for Fellowships
Collaborative projects
Projects focused on key issues in higher education, bringing together institutions to tackle the challenges and opportunities faced.
Athena SWAN and Race Equality Charter support
Support in introducing the equality charters and then in applying for the Charters.
Support for individuals working in Wales
All staff and governors in Welsh Universities and the seven FE Colleges can access the full range of Advance HE member benefits. Individuals can also attend Advance HE paid for Events, Conference and Training and have open access to the Advance HE Connect networking platform. We can also work with individuals or their line managers to identify personal development opportunities.
We are exploring the establishment of a network of Principal Fellows through the Advance HE Wales Institutional Group and other communities through our Advance HE Connect platform.
Meet the team
Gary Reed
Pennaeth Aelodaeth (Cymru) / Head of Membership (Wales)
E: Gary.Reed@advance-he.ac.uk
T: +44 (0) 3300 416 201
M +44 (0) 7701 369 155
David Bass
Assistant Director of Membership (Scotland, Ireland, Wales)
E: David.Bass@advance-he.ac.uk
T: +44 (0) 131 322 3736
M: +44 (0) 7701 368 405
Joan O' Mahony
Senior Advisor (Student Retention and Success)
E: Joan.OMahony@advance-he.ac.uk
T: +44 (0) 1904 917 115
M: +44 (0) 7912 043 076
