Stephen Corbett began his career in education working as a Learning Support Assistant in a further education college supporting students with special educational needs. Stephen then trained as a teacher of business and finance, teaching across a range of programmes including higher education courses delivered in a further education setting (HE in FE).
In 2014, Stephen moved to the University of Portsmouth to lead the further education initial teacher education programmes. This included working with five partner colleges, each of whom delivers the University’s courses. Under his leadership, this provision was recognised as Outstanding by Ofsted.
Stephen is committed to working with the further education sector to provide unique and tailored solutions to the challenges faced by the sector. He has focused on how to utilise the expertise of both HE and FE to co-develop enhancements in teaching and learning. A paradigm where both HE and FE sectors benefit from one another. This has resulted in Stephen leading and consulting on a range of projects.
In 2015, Stephen led a national project commissioned by the Education and Training Foundation which developed a research-informed solution to changes in educational policy in the further education sector. Currently, Stephen is leading the South of England hub for the Further Forces Project, a national programme designed to recruit, retrain and source employment for service personnel leaving the military. This programme is featured as part of the UK’s first Veterans Strategy.