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Board Development Sessions

A board development session, which can be conducted on-site or remotely, can provide much-needed time and space to develop an institution’s vision, nurture relationships between members and encourage new approaches.

We can provide tailored, in-house induction or facilitate development sessions to suit the needs of your board drawing on our extensive work. This might be particularly helpful if you have had a significant number of new appointees or are wanting to develop the board’s collective thinking around a new strategic future for the institution perhaps with a new vice-chancellor or chair, bringing insights from across the HE sector. We are very happy to discuss your requirements and to develop a solution to suit you. Examples recently delivered include:

  • group inductions to higher education governance
  • understanding HE governance effectiveness and practices
  • understanding academic governance and assurance
  • understanding and assuring equality, diversity and inclusion
  • facilitating a shared understanding of the board’s vision and the institution's strategy
  • navigating the regulatory environment and understanding the regulator (e.g. Office for Students).

Want to find out more?

If you would like to know more about board development sessions, complete the form below to download the information sheet and one of our team will be in touch to discuss this further with you.

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Advance HE facilitated the Board’s development day on the imprecise subject of culture. They provided structure and space (not an easy task) to navigate this nebulous topic. Advance HE was flexible in their approach and use of different media. This work which has led to open and deep discussions across the institution and is now bearing fruit.”

Rashi Jain, University Secretary and General Counsel, Cardiff University

Our approach

Working with Advance HE to facilitate your board development session will ensure that your institution gets the best possible value from the experience. We can support you with developing the agenda, producing materials and resources for use on the day, and contributing to action planning to drive real change at your institution. We offer sessions that align with the various challenges HE governance faces today. All sessions are tailored to your institution’s context and are aligned to your values and goals.

Some examples of sessions are below:

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Understanding academic governance and assurance

Effective academic governance is key to giving students, staff and wider stakeholders confidence in the system, and innovating well. Using our Framework for Academic Governance as a central resource, our sessions can cover areas such as culture; the maintenance of academic standards, defining and monitoring academic quality and continuous improvement in quality of provision.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

We often find that board members individually and collectively lack the understanding and confidence to challenge on and assure progress on EDI matters. We can provide an introduction across all protected characteristics, an overview of practices in the sector, and some tailored steps for your institutions to take, working with you in a safe yet developmental way.

Value and integrated thinking and reporting

We can support your institution by providing a tailored board development sessions exploring the board’s understanding of its stakeholders and operating environment.

Monthly Governance Bulletin

Every month we send out a newsletter that collates the latest news from the month and our most recent resources, including blogs and Advance HE reports. If you’re interested in development opportunities for yourself or your team, the newsletter also highlights upcoming dates for key events and programmes within the Advance HE portfolio.

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Governance News Alerts

Our News Alerts provide regular updates from across the sector on the latest policy changes or introductions, updated guidance and news. We provide an at-a-glance view of the piece along with the implications for boards and governors.

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Governance Guidance

Advance HE is committed to producing and sharing news, guidance, research, publications, resources and toolkits to support good governance.

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