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Identifying, developing and supporting Academic Leadership

Academic Governance Benchmarking Survey Collaborative Project

Creating a peer group for future self-organised action learning sets to improve their academic governance.

Introducing Advance HE’s new Benchmarking Survey for Academic Governance

Regulators across the UK have put an increased focus on academic governance and assurance recently. In England it is now a regulatory requirement to ensure effective student outcomes as part of Ongoing Condition of Registration – B3, including student continuation and graduate employment metrics. In Scotland, it is now a requirement, from SFC, to undertake an external academic governance review (bicameral review).

Following consultation with an external stakeholder group, Advance HE has developed a collaborative project for institutions to create a peer group for future self-organised action learning sets to improve their academic governance. The project invites up to six institutions to take part and includes the inaugural use of Advance HE’s new Benchmarking Survey for Academic Governance.

This cohort is now full

If you would like to register your interest in future projects please complete the form by clicking below.

 

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How will the project be delivered?

  • Three steering group meetings
  • Access to the Benchmarking Survey including administration and support
  • Institution’s personalised benchmarking report
  • Overall project report across all six institutions
  • One half-day online workshop on survey findings
Diverse group meeting around the table
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New Benchmarking Survey for Academic Governance

In response to a lack of available benchmarking data in the sector for academic governance, Advance HE has developed a survey allowing for comparisons between the Board and Senate/Academic Board. It asks key questions that educational boards should be benchmarked against. The themes of the survey are:

  • Commitment to effective governance
  • Academic governance and assurance
  • Structure and processes
  • Recruitment and membership
  • EDI
  • Working relationships and behaviours
  • Outcomes of Effective governance
  • The Committees
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Benefits of joining the project

By participating in the collaborative project, institutions will:

  • have an evidence base to provide governors with assurances over academic governance in line with regulatory requirements (B3 England, bicameral Review in Scotland and Wales)
  • have an evidence base to lay the foundations for further development work to be undertaken by in-house governance effectiveness teams
  • join a network of institutions with a joint aim of improving academic governance
  • benefit from a cost-effective approach to benchmarking the institution's academic governance and assurance.
group laughing in meeting
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Information webinar

28 September 2023, 10:30 - 11:15 (BST)

Dan Tinkler, Governance Development Manager, Advance HE hosted an information session to share more details about the project. 

Access the slides
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Delivery team

Dr Andrea Jane Blanchflower

Associate
,
Advance HE
Dr Andrea Jane Blanchflower
Andrea is an experienced and skilled leader and manager with a detailed understanding of the higher and further education sectors and expertise in student administration, governance, compliance and quality assurance. Andrea is process driven with a focus on supporting and developing staff, and service delivery for students.

Kay Renfrew

Associate
,
Advance HE
Kay Renfrew
Kay Renfrew is an experienced consultant and researcher who has delivered assignments for clients in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. She has a Masters degree in information management. Kay has expertise in data analysis and reporting, to assess project impact and performance.

Dan Tinkler

Governance Development Manager
,
Advance HE
Dan Tinkler
Dan joined Advance HE in January 2020 and has been in the post of Governance Development Manager since October 2021. Dan works on developing our approach to supporting Advance HE’s member needs across our governance portfolio of work.
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Academic Governance Reviews

Drawing upon our extensive pool of governance experts we work with you to review academic governance provision. Our approach is based on our Framework for Academic Governance and covers areas such as; the maintenance of academic standards, defining and monitoring academic quality and continuous improvement in quality of provision.

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