Blog

Six degrees of separation
Universities are often accused of not moving with the times. I don’t necessarily disagree with that criticism – it can be challenging being nimble when you’re very big and tied […]

Design: a long view
Design is a historically and culturally situated practice. It has meant different things, to different people throughout history, and so when questioning what role design plays in the educational d...

Christmas Card Competition 2012
Following the success of last year’s contest we are once again running a design competition for the cover of our Christmas card to be sent to our key stakeholders. If […]

Party Conferences: an opportunity to set out our vision for universities
I have recently returned from my first ever Party Conference season and I wanted to share with you the points I made at the events we ran there. More about […]

Collaboration by design
Trans-disciplinary learning at the new University of Salford MediaCityUK campus In October 2012, the University of Salford opened its new MediaCityUK campus to 1 500 students across the broad area ...

The value of design in solving business and industrial problems
My views on design stem from my personal experience. My background is of a visual arts practitioner, who ran a small business for many years, but who now conducts research […]

The sector’s long-term health has to be at the forefront of our thinking
As I start my term of office as Chair of University Alliance, we see the initial impact of the reforms to higher education begin to work their way through. Students […]

Cabinet reshuffle: continuity at a time of great change
Writing in the Guardian Higher Education Network blog, Libby Hackett writes about the welcome news that David Willetts is to stay on as university minister. A cabinet reshuffle can always be count...

University research is answering today’s challenges
When it comes to solving some of the world’s biggest challenges, our universities play a critical role. Today we launch Problem Solved: university research answering today’s challenges, which shows...

Solid blocks versus blurred lines
We humans like putting things in order. From an early age we are taught that all things have a place. When we are faced with complex problems, we seek to […]