Commissioner for Fair Access: annual report 2025/26

Annex 2: Keynotes, panels and presentations since January 2024

2025

• December 3^rd - Scottish Community of Access and Participation Practitioners (SCAPP). Invitation to an In-Conversation ‘Meet the Commissioner’ event.
• December 3^rd - Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) . Recognition of Prior Learning Working Group. Invited to present to Working Group on fair access priorities.
• December 3^rd - University of the West of Scotland. Panellist. Supporting our learners: collaborating for success in tertiary transitions across Scotland.
• November 28^th - Boys Impact Hub, Scottish branch. Invited presentation to Hub meeting. Boys, attainment and access to higher education in Scotland.
• November 26^th - Service Children’s Progression Alliance (SCiP). Panellist. Annual Conference - Whole person, whole journey.
• November 13^th - Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) and the Crichton Foundation. Panellist for session on ‘Achieving parity of esteem, elevating rural careers’. Delivering Scotland’s future skills: innovation and opportunity.
• November 10^th - Colleges Scotland / Universities Scotland Joint Articulation Group. Invited presentation to JAG meeting. Articulation: definitions and priority actions.
• November 1^st - Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland: Citizens Jury on Higher Education Funding. Invited presentation to People’s Panel. Perspectives of the Commissioner for Fair Access.
• September 25^th - Disabling Barriers Scotland. Invited presentation to Scotland seminar at the Faculty of Advocates. Reflections on equality, law and social justice.
• October 7^th - Scottish Community of Access and Participation Practitioners (SCAPP). Invited presentation to the Insight Webinar on Maths Matters: Perceptions, Barriers and Bridges to HE webinar. The relationship between poverty and attainment/maths attainment.
• September 1^st - Education Scotland. Invited presentation to Scottish Attainment Challenge Ten Year Anniversary Event. Ten years on: so what and what next.
• August 13^th - Larkhall Academy. Invited presentation to In-service day. Chewing the fat with kindred spirits.
• July 5^th - National Medical Schools Widening Participation Forum. Keynote presentation to the Annual Conference – Breaking barriers and building bridges. What the doctor ordered? Widening participation in HE: past, present and future.
• June 27^th - Forum for Access and Continuing Education (FACE). Panellist for session on ‘Social mobility across the UK nations’ at the Annual Conference on Social Mobility.
• May 27^th - SCAPP. Keynote presentation to the Annual Conference. Access and participation to higher education in Scotland: 2025 and beyond.
• May 21^st - Education Scotland. Keynote presentation to Scottish Attainment Challenge Network Meeting with Local Authority Leads. The time is right for a ‘back to basics’ approach to education.
• April 30^th - Russell Group Student Success Network. Panellist for session on Evaluating perspectives for student success at the Network event.
• April 15^th - Abertay University. Invited presentation to the seminar series on teaching and learning. Fair access and Abertay University: today and tomorrow.
• March 14^th - Association of Directors of Education (ADES) Curriculum and Qualifications Network & Performance and Improvement Network. Invited presentation to the joint meeting. Fair access to tertiary education: what works for schools in Scotland?
• February 26^th - Education, Children and Young People Committee, Scottish Parliament. Invitation to provide evidence to the Committee. Enquiry into Widening Access.
• February 17^th - Education Scotland. Invited presentation at Share, Learn, Inspire – Annual Conference for Attainment Advisors. This morning Matthew, I’m going to be Donald Trump.

2024

• December 12^th - Borders College. Invited presentation to the Board. Fair access and the inclusive college in Scotland: what relevance to the Borders?
• December 12^th - World Access to HE Network. Panellist for session on Equitable Access and Success in Higher Education across the UK at the Launch Conference of the Network.
• December 4^th - Scottish Community of Access and Participation Practitioners (SCAPP). Invitation to an In-Conversation ‘Meet the Commissioner’ event.
• November 26^th - Scottish Government. Invited presentation to the Policy in Action Webinar Series. Fair access to higher education in Scotland: the road travelled, the road ahead, and lessons to learn.
• November 18^th - Advance HE. Invitation to an In-Conversation ‘Meet the Commissioner’ event focused on Establishing the conditions for student success.
• November 7^th - Universities UK. Panellist for session on Widening participation, what next? session at the Access, Participation and Student Success Conference 2024.
• November 4^th - Universities Scotland/Colleges Scotland – Joint Articulation Group. Invited presentation to JAG meeting. Articulation: current and emerging issues.
• October 17^th - Grand Valley State University. Participation and presentation in Landscapes of Student Debt Symposium. Student debt for the common good? Paradoxes of ‘progressive’ student-funding policies in Scotland (UK).
• October 8^th - SFC Pathfinder Developing Demand-led, Sustainable Pathways Project. Invited presentation to the Promoting Positive Pathways Conference. Fair access to higher education in Scotland: Reflections for city and shire schools in north east Scotland.
• October 1^st - Scottish Funding Council. Invited presentation session on ‘Deep dive on fair access’ to the SEAL Committee. Reflections on fair access.
• September 24^th - Universities Scotland. Invited presentation at the Launch of 40 Faces. Reflections on fair access.
• September 16^th - Colleges Scotland. Invited presentation to the third roundtable on the College sector's role in widening access. Towards a tertiary perspective for fair access.
• September 12^th - Quality Assurance Agency Scotland and College Development Network. Invited keynote to the Annual Conference on Our Tertiary Futures. Parity of pathways … out of step?
• September 9^th - Colleges Scotland. Invited presentation to the second roundtable on the College sector's role in widening access. Towards a tertiary perspective for fair access.
• September 2^nd - Colleges Scotland. Invited presentation to the opening roundtable on the College sector's role in widening access. Towards a tertiary perspective for fair access.
• August 19^th - Equity Practitioners in Higher Education Australasia . Invited webinar presentation. Fair access to higher education in Scotland: lessons to learn, lessons to share.
• August 13^th - National Conference for Rural, Regional and Remote Education. Invited keynote to the Annual Conference on Growth Through Equity. Fair access to higher education in Scotland: lessons to learn, lessons to share.
• June 14^th - Scotland Student Sport. Invited keynote to the Annual Conference. Fair access and student sport in Scotland.
• June 12^th - Education, Children and Young People Committee, Scottish Parliament. Invitation to provide evidence to the Committee’s Pre-budget Scrutiny 2025-26.
• June 11^th - European Access Network Conference. Invited to deliver the Maggie Woodrow Memorial Lecture. Bums on seats and beyond: the critical role of the first year in widening access to higher education.
• June 5^th - Focus West. Invited keynote to the Annual Conference. All in it together: working toward fair access.
• June 5^th - Evaluation Collective. Invited presentation to the webinar on ‘How to talk to senior leaders about evaluation’. Working with the converted: promoting fair access in Scotland.
• April 24^th - Colleges Scotland. Panellist for the session on ‘Education, Equality and the Economy – Where do we now Go’ at the Annual Conference on ‘When Colleges Thrive, Scotland Thrive’.
• March 28^th - National Union of Students Scotland. Invited presentation at the Annual Conference. Fair access for/with/against students in Scotland.
• January 23^rd - City of Glasgow College. Invited keynote at ‘The inclusive College: Learning and Teaching Conference’. Fair access and the inclusive college in Scotland.
• January 15^th - Universities Scotland/Colleges Scotland – Joint Articulation Group. Invited presentation to JAG meeting. Articulation: current and emerging issues.
• January 9^th - Education Scotland. Invited presentation to the Scottish Attainment Challenge National Day. Social research and ‘widening participation work’ in schools and their relevance to attainment.