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Governance

Effective Governance

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

In today’s turbulent environment all providers need high performing boards that are equipped to determine the strategic course of the organisation. The effectiveness of a board depends on strong foundations; exhibiting the right behaviours; high-quality information, sound processes and skilled governance professionals.

Good governance is critical to delivering impactful HE and confidence and trust for stakeholders. Yet we know that understanding what is effective in your context is needed more than ever to navigate uncertainty and be fit for the future. We build on our unparalleled track record of supporting and developing governors, governance professionals, institutions and systems of governance across the world to support boards to lead successful institutions.

Want to find out more?

If you want to find out more about how Advance HE can support Boards and governors, complete the form by clicking below and we will send you our Evolving higher education governance brochure.

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We embarked on the review because we wanted to refine our governance in the context of a very different environment for higher education. Advance HE’s comprehensive understanding of the sector, the challenges facing governing bodies and best practice in the sector, meant that their work was extremely productive and their report insightful.”

University Registrar and Secretary

How we support governance

Advance HE Governance Wheel
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Resources and guidance

Advance HE has curated a number of resources and guidance document to support Boards and governors in tackling the challenges and opportunities they face. You can access these in the following areas:

What is good governance?

In today’s turbulent environment all HE providers need high performing boards that are equipped to determine the strategic course of the organisation, safeguard its sustainability and assure standards.

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Academic Governance in Higher Education

Providing assurance about academic governance – the oversight of teaching, learning and research -  is a core function of the governing body.

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The role of Governance in Equality in Higher Education

Governance should influence -  and drive progress in – equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) for students and staff, and wider society.

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Board Recruitment and Diversity in Higher Education

Diverse and inclusive boards support institutional success, with the confidence to assure equality, diversity and inclusion matters.

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Supporting Governor, Chair and Clerk Development in Higher Education

Effective governance can only happen when those involved in it – governors and staff – understand their roles and responsibilities and are supported to fulfil them.

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New to Higher Education Governance

Information and support for new governors and new governance professionals.

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Audit, Finance and Risk in Higher Education

Providing assurance for the sustainability of the institution – including financial health and risk management – is a core function of the governing body and its committees.

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Access other resources

Our Knowledge Hub contains several resources focusing on governance, as well as, Governance News Alerts which are published frequently.

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Services to support Boards and governors

Our portfolio of support aims to drive forward and evolve higher education governance. Our governance experts, from a wide range of backgrounds, stand ready to help and look forward to working with you.

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Governor Development Programme

Designed to help you to develop and refine your skills in response to a rapidly changing environment.
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Governance consultancy and enhancement

Supporting boards and governors within higher education to be effective and tackle the challenges faced in a highly turbulent sector.
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Advance HE Governance Team

To help us form and deliver our support our governance experts and associates are vital. Below you will find the profiles of the Advance HE staff who work on our governance portfolio. A full list including our associates can be found here.

Andy Shenstone

Executive Director of Consultancy and Commercial Solutions
,
Advance HE
Andy Shenstone
Andy offers a deep understanding and experience of UK and international HE policy, governance and management. He is Advance HE’s Director of Business Development and Delivery, and an experienced Higher Education (HE) consultant with 20 years’ track record of successfully working with Universities, sector agencies and Ministries in the UK and overseas.

Victoria Holbrook

Assistant Director, Governance
,
Advance HE
Victoria Holbrook
Victoria joined Advance HE in February 2019 from the Office for Students and after 11 years at its predecessor the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). As Assistant Director, Governance she leads the development and delivery of Advance HE’s approach and work to support good governance to ensure it meets the needs of its members and clients in their rapidly evolving operating environments.

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. He has also undertaken governance effectiveness reviews leading projects with students’ unions. Prior to this he worked with supporting leaders in college HE, independent providers and specialist institutions.

Aaron Porter

Associate Director (Governance)
,
Advance HE
AP
Aaron leads on Advance HE governance activity through the delivery of our national Governor Development Programme which engages with around 900 governors across the UK on an annual basis. He has extensive experience leading reviews of over 25 governing boards. Aaron was previously President of the National Union of Students (NUS) and also chair of trustees for the organisation.

Kim Ansell

Senior Consultant, Governance and Leadership
,
Advance HE
Kim Ansell
She has worked across higher and professional education providing support to groups at all levels including senior leadership teams and Boards, to facilitate change, strategic thinking, planning and performance improvement. Kim has recently led the Advance HE membership themed month on the topic of Transforming Organisations from student to board. 
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Who we've worked with

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