Trustees
UALL Board of Trustees
Professor Jonathan Michie OBE
Pro-Vice-Chancellor, University of Oxford
President, Kellogg College, University of Oxford
UALL Chair
Jonathan Michie is Professor of Innovation and Knowledge Exchange, and Pro-Vice-Chancellor, at the University of Oxford, where he is also President of Kellogg College. Jonathan is Chair of the Universities Association for Lifelong Learning, a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences, Managing Editor of the International Review of Applied Economics, and was an Interdisciplinary Panel Member for REF2021. Jonathan was co-secretary to the Centenary Commission on Adult Education, and was awarded an OBE for services to education and lifelong learning.
Dr Mary Mahoney PhD, MSc, M.Ed
Deputy Chair, Wolverhampton Adult Education Service Board
UALL Secretary and Trustee
Dr Mahoney’s background is in public health policy and the vital role of learning as a key determinant of population health. She has expertise in leadership and management in departments of lifelong learning, adult community learning and employer-responsive provision and until late 2022 was the Director of Access and Lifelong Learning at the University of Wolverhampton. She is now a freelance consultant in adult and lifelong learning and innovation. Her recent work has focused on policies and practice that enable access to education and learning for adults across the lifespan for a range of reasons.
She has led on a range of strategic initiatives and have worked on both WHO Healthy City and UNESCO Learning City initiatives focusing on place-based developments and the role of learning in economic and social transformation. She has an extensive track record in leadership in teaching, research and knowledge exchange and have an extensive publication track record. She has worked in universities in Australia, England and Wales. She is a member of the Editorial Board of the Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning Journal, a Fellow of the RSA based on my contribution to Lifelong Learning, and on the Board of Walsall College and the Wolverhampton Adult Education Service
Professor Bonnie Slade, PhD, MA, BA, FHEA
University of Glasgow
UALL Treasurer
Professor Slade is interested in how adult education, across a variety of contexts (workplace, higher education, community) can work as a tool for social change and individual empowerment. Her interdisciplinary research draws on adult education, labour studies, migration studies, gender studies and arts-informed research traditions to explore issues related to informal learning, migration, STEM and the labour market. Since 2001 she has presented her research at more than eighty national and international conferences, and has published work in academic journals and edited books. She is the Co-Editor of the Journal of Adult and Continuing Education. She sits on the Editorial Boards of the International Journal of Lifelong Education, the European Journal for Research on the Education and Learning of Adults (RELA), and the Malta Review of Educational Research. She was also the Programme Leader for the International Master in Adult Education for Social Change (Erasmus Mundus).
Professor Graeme Atherton
Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Regional Engagement, University of West London
Vice-Principal, Ruskin College, Oxford
Professor Graeme Atherton is the Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University of West London, Vice-Principal of Ruskin College, Oxford and the Director of the World Access to Higher Education Network (WAHEN). He studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Trinity College Oxford and has been working in the field of education research and management since 1995. An international leader and researcher in access to higher education and social mobility, Graeme has produced over 200 conference papers and publications, led regional, national and international initiatives to increase opportunity in higher education and frequently comments on social mobility and education in the UK and internationally. He founded AccessHE and the National Education Opportunities Network (NEON) in the UK.
Professor Darryll Bravenboer, PhD, MA, BEd, PFHEA
The Centre for Apprenticeships and Skills, Middlesex University
Professor Darryll Bravenboer is Director of Apprenticeships at Middlesex University. His current responsibilities include developing and delivering the University’s strategy as a major provider of higher-level skills in the region and nationally. This includes supporting the development and delivery of higher and degree apprenticeships as well as other aspects of academic enterprise, such as the accreditation of in-company training, in order to provide comprehensive workforce development solutions for employers. In addition, he is a Principal Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy and has extensive experience of developing vocational and work-based higher education provision in response to the needs of a wide range of employment sectors in diverse professional contexts.
Dr Sharon Clancy, FHEA, BA Hons, MA, BSc, MA, PhD
Dr Sharon Clancy specialises in post-16 and adult education. Her writing focuses on class, culture and social justice issues with a socio-historical lens. She leads the Research Circle on Fostering Democracy, Debate and Dialogue which emerged from the Centenary Commission on Adult Education. Sharon was Head of Community Engagement at the University of Nottingham between 2007 and 2013. A voluntary sector/public engagement leader before entering academia, she was CEO of Mansfield Council for Voluntary Services between 2000 and 2007. Sharon is currently Chair of the Raymond Williams Foundation and Vice Chair of the Association for Research in the Voluntary and Community sector (ARVAC). She is also a commissioner for the Centenary Commission, Co-chair of SCUTREA and Co-editor of the Studies in the Education of Adults journal.
Professor Ang Davies
Ang Davies is a Professor in the Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester and also Director of Digital Transformation in Healthcare Education in the School of Health Sciences. Ang is Academic Theme Lead for Flexible Pathways and Lifelong Learning for the Flexible Learning Programme at The University of Manchester, including open access courses, micro-credentials and short courses.
Ang is also Academic Theme Lead for Flexible Pathways and Lifelong Learning for the Flexible Learning Programme at The University of Manchester, including open access courses, micro-credentials and short courses.
Ang is working with a number of the University’s strategic industry partners to co-design professional learning programmes, working closely with our Business Engagement teams, with a particular focus in the development of digital skills. Ang is also Co-lead for the Digital Skills theme within Digital Futures at the University. She is responsible for leading a strategic partnership with Manchester City Council on their UNESCO City of Lifelong Learning Programme, creating Manchester’s Digital Skills Framework.
She has launched innovative new online courses and open access programmes and works extensively to create programmes of education and professional development courses for healthcare professionals. Her subject specialisms include genomics, clinical bioinformatics and digital transformation and human factors.
Mrs Jenny Hoy, BPA, PGCE (PCET)
Dean of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion for the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Edinburgh
Jenny’s academic background is in Music performance (as a percussionist) and she started her teaching career at 17 whilst she was a student at Leeds Conservatoire. From here, Jenny balanced her teaching commitments as a Lecturer with leading and developing the conservatoire’s public Short Courses, Foundation Certificate and Saturday Music School provision for young musicians which was the first in a UK conservatoire to include music production with a focus on encouraging young female producers and improving accessibility to the Arts. Committed to inclusion and learning from the experience of others, Jenny is a firm believer in the transformative power of education. Throughout her career, Jenny has taught and developed community education and outreach projects across the UK, including a Paul Hamlyn funded research project into educational transitions which informed her postgraduate studies in education. Jenny continues to perform and record as a musician when she can (Corinne Bailey-Rae, Beccy Owen and The Refuge, La Banda Europa, Netflix’s Outlaw King).
Dr Liz Marr, BSc, MSc MBA PhD
Dr Liz Marr was Pro-Vice-Chancellor: Students at The Open University until April 2023. She has around thirty years of experience in teaching and learning in UK higher education with particular interest in social justice and social mobility.
She is passionate about opening opportunity for all who wish to participate in learning, both formally and informally, personally mentoring many people on their leadership journeys. She was a member of the Milton Keynes College board for over ten years, serving as Vice Chair for most of those. She was also, for 8 years, a member of the Supervisory Board of the European Association of Distance Teaching Universities, serving two terms as Vice President and one term as President. She received the 2023 Milton Keynes Women Leaders award for Skills Education and Training and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Universities Association for Lifelong Learning.
Mrs Lois McGrath, LLB, SFHEA
Professional Development Portfolio Manager, College of Medicine and Health, Bangor University
Lois chairs the Employability Group for the College of Medicine and Health at Bangor University and a Part-time Provision Working Group for the institution. She is a member of the QAA Micro-credentials Special Interest Group in Wales and is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
Steve Osborne, MBA, MA, PGCE, BA(Hons), FHEA, FCIMSPA (chartered)
Steven Osborne is a Principal Lecturer in Professional and Workforce Development at Cardiff Metropolitan University. Steven has led a large £350,000 pilot micro-credential project funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW), developing and approving a formal stackable micro-credential pathway to provide learners with flexible and industry-relevant qualifications in the sport and physical activity industry. Steven is working with the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) to produce technical briefings, online resources and webinars through the launch of a new national QAA micro-credential special interest group which he has chaired since its launch in 2024. Steven works to bridge the gap between academia and practice, contributing to developing innovative solutions to enhance graduate outcomes and career pathways, drawing on almost 30 years of experience working and volunteering in frontline and leadership roles. Steven has prioritised his work to focus on strategic workforce planning initiatives, working closely with national and international industry and academic agencies. He is the Interim Chairperson of the national Professional Development Board (UKPDB) for the UK Sport and Physical Activity sector, and is the Chairperson of the European Association of Sport Management (EASM) special interest group for employability and entrepreneurship. Steven has been a project coordinator on a large-scale ERASMUS+ €360,000 international collaborative research project in sport management workforce development and is leading a £212,000 UK Innovate Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) launching and chairing a new Workforce Research Observatory to support the UK sport and physical activity sector.
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