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2024-12-31-accounts

HEDG Chair’s Report

AGM 7 March 2025

This report covers March 2024 to February 2025.

Meetings

Three main meetings were held this year on Zoom and, for the first time we experimented with a Hybrid event: Spring Meeting, 8 March 2024 (with AGM); Summer Meeting, London & Manchester, 6 June 2024; Autumn Meeting, 15 November 2024.

Thanks to the Executive Committee and contributing members for all their hard work delivering this programme of events as well as the other areas of work outlined in this report.

HEDG Administration

HEDG administrative support is provided by Kirsten Guindi and Flora Hancsicsak, based at the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU). Both Kirsten & Flora can be contacted via the email address, info@hedg.ac.uk.

This year Kirsten & Flora have continued to offer support HEDG in the following: Delivering the main meetings for all members. Servicing the meetings of the Executive Committee. Support with our accounts, member fees and charitable status.

On behalf of all the Executive Committee we are grateful to Kirsten and her colleagues for their work, often unseen, across the year.

Charitable Status

HEDG successfully submitted its annual report for 2023 to the Charities Commission (on 10/10/2024).

Invitations to Speak to HEDG

Lynda Brady, Pro Vice-Chancellor, Edge Hill University; Prof Claire Taylor , ViceChancellor Plymouth Marjon University & Prof Prof Shân Wareing , Vice-Chancellor, Middlesex University were the Guest Speaker Panel on Leading Education in the Now and Beyond at the Summer Meeting.

Debbie McVitty , WonkHE spoke on The State of Play in UK HE at the Autumn Meeting

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Professor Laura Kilby , University of West of Scotland spoke about What does it mean to be an Imposter?: Identity, belonging and representation at the Autumn Meeting.

Professor Leti Gramaglia , from HEDG Executive kindly spoke about her secondment to Australia - Australian Magic: A shot of restritto to expand our horizons

Hot topics’ for HEDG members

HEDG members had several hot topics, raised at the regular “what’s on top” sessions at our Autumn, Spring and Summer events, but also as items of discussion on the HEDG JISC list. The hottest topics this year were:

HEDG projects

There have been 4 main projects in the reporting period:

1. Peer Mentoring led by Executive Member Sue Mathieson. HEDG Peer Mentoring is in its 4th year, and a number of groups continue to meet for mutual support and development. As Sue leaves us this year, I want to thank Sue for this initiative which has provided some much needed support, guidance and ‘therapy’ for so many members of our HEDG community.

2. HEDG Growth instigated by Chair Isabel Lucas but which is largely member-led sessions aimed at sharing effective practice, debating challenges and ways forward and sharing sector-wide news. Over the course of the reporting period 7 sessions took place which is a reduction from the 17 the year before. Under the leadership of Leti Gramaglia we are considering a different approach to peer development for the coming year, namely working groups / special interest groups aimed at consistently common themes among members.

Date Session title Speaker(s)
09/02/2024 Using systems-thinking to facilitate our roles as educatonal
(and change) leaders		 Sarah Wilson-
Medhurst
23/02/2024 Leading Academic Development in the age of Gen AI Jenny Lawrence
24/02/2024 Leading Academic Development in the age of Gen AI Jenny Lawrence
19/04/2024 Using systems-thinking to facilitate our roles as educatonal
(and change) leaders		 Sarah Wilson-
Medhurst
24/05/2024 Leading Academic Development in the age of Gen AI Jenny Lawrence
12/07/2024 Beyond Excellence Awards: supportng, promotng, 'winning'
at teaching		 Sarah Wilson-
Medhurst
29/11/2024 Gen AI SIG ‘Digital Innovaton and Learning: The case of
formatve assessment feedback’		 Dr Isabel Fischer

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3. Collaborative Writing Group led by Jackie Potter. There have been 3 groups this year which have convened to support the development of publications with 2 articles published in 2024 in the Educational Development SEDA publication issue 25.3:

4. Academic Development for the Age of AI led by Jenny Lawrence continues to run and is a thriving special interest group.

Looking Forward

The March 2025 event will focus on Facing the Future of Academic Development in HE and we aim to create time and space for colleagues to reflect on the role Academic Development has played in advancing the sector over HEDG’s 30 year history, and the role we have to play in securing the future of transformational HE and the professional and personal well-being of our learning community. We’ll consider how we can strategise for greater engagement in Academic Development within our institutions, evidence the value we add and lobby our Governors and SMTs to invest in our teams. We’ll consider what we need as senior leaders to fortify ourselves to lead with vigour, and love, when we may be ourselves depleted.

Following on from earlier conversations in the year, the HEDG Executive will use our 30[th] Anniversary year to re-engage the wider membership with what we want to HEDG to be going forward and what tactics we will use to ensure the new direction embeds. We will also seek to broaden our membership to FE Colleges who work in our space at levels 4-8 and with Educational Developers at international providers who feel they would benefit from and be able to support the work of our community. Finall, work continues to develop the HEDG website to make it more user-friendly and interactive as well as providing an inviting platform to attract new members.

The June 2025 event will be held in person at the Burlington Hotel, Birmingham and within that day we will start the celebrations of our 30[th] Anniversary.

HEDG Executive Committee

The Executive Committee was led by Isabel Lucas (Chair) with Paul Chin agreeing to act up as Vice Chair in the absence of this being agreed at the 2024 AGM. Juliet Eve (Executive member) agreed to remain as Treasurer for the second year for which we are grateful. Janei Pritchard stepped down as an Executive member following a number of years of service and remains and active member of the HEDG family. Leti Gramaglia spent some months out of the Executive committee while on secondment to Australia. Sue Mathieson had a change of role and will sadly be leaving HEDG in March 2025 – Sue will be a huge loss to the wider HEDG community and leaves behind her legacy of the Peer Mentoring which has fostered support and collaboration among members since 2020. Alison Nimmo also left HEDG sdue to changes at her institution and we extend our gratitude to her for being the voice of Scotland on the group. Sarah Wolfenden was co-opted to Executive following Alison and Jane’s departures to ensure choracy. Emily McIntosh continued on the Executive Committee and we welcomed Claire Gorden and Jenny Lawrence as new members.

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Isabel Lucas Chair, HEDG March 2025

HEDG Treasurer’s Report

AGM March 2025

This report covers January – December 2024

Summary

The HEDG end of calendar year accounts for 2024 (see table 1, below) showing an operating surplus and a year-on-year increase in net assets held. The in-year surplus (£5877) was down from 2023 (largely due to no income being generated from conferences, as was the case in past years). This surplus has increased our reserves to £29,619.

Update

As with previous years, our member subscriptions are the main source of income to pay for the group’s operating costs; although slightly down from 2023 (by £157), subscriptions remain relatively stable, generating an income of £23,226. Our total expenditure for the year was £17,784, with the majority of that being spent on administration costs (£15,806). Other costs include money spent on conferences (£503) and our website (£780).

The membership fee for 2025 has been held at the same level as last year - £235. This continues to include attendance at the Spring meeting and AGM, participation in peer mentoring groups, and the HEDG growth seminars.

Administration costs continue to be our biggest outlay, and usually attract a small increase each year. Costs for 2025 have been subject to an increase of 3% and will be £16,280 for the period 1st of January to 31 December 2025.

Forward Look

Any significant future expenditure is likely to be in supporting major work on our website. Discussions are happening around the suitable amount of reserves to hold back in a reserves policy, were our income to dramatically decrease in any given year. A reserves policy is under development and will be finalised and approved by the Executive Committee later this year, and forwarded to members for information.

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As this is the group’s 30[th] anniversary year, we are proposing to offer a limited number of bursaries to support colleagues to attend the summer in person celebration event, which will have an impact on cash reserves held. We are aiming this year to make the summer conference cost neutral (i.e. not income generating), in order to make the event as accessible as possible for our membership.

Table 1: HEDG 12 Months to 31 December 2024 Accounts Summary

4100
4110
4500
5600
6510		 HEDG 12 months to 31 December 2024 Accounts Summary HEDG 12 months to 31 December 2024 Accounts Summary HEDG 12 months to 31 December 2024 Accounts Summary HEDG 12 months to 31 December 2024 Accounts Summary
2024 2023 Movement
Income £ £ £
Subscriptions 23,226 23,383 (157)
Conferences 0 4,759 (4,759)
Interest 436 272 164
Total Income 23,661 28,413 (4,751)
Expenditure
Conferences 503 3,827 3,324
Administration 15,806 15,198 (608)
Website 780 216 (564)
Other 695 371 (324)
Total expenditure 17,784 19,612 1,828
Surplus 5,877 8,800 (2,923)
debtors 470 930
creditors (59) 0
cash 29,208 22,812
Net Assets 29,619 23,742
Reserves 29,619 23,742

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