With over 20 years of professional experience in the sector, Helen is ideally placed to combine an operational perspective with the theoretical and conceptual approaches she has developed during her research and teaching in the field of HE Policy. This enables Helen to establish effective bridges between administration and academe while shaping ways of working that reflect and take advantage of developments in the wider environment in which institutions operate.

Helen’s previous work experience includes roles as a studio manager, producer, and editor at the BBC World Service. She was also a member of the Government Information Service, contributing to campaigns for police officer recruitment, energy efficiency, and National Savings. Helen has held prominent positions such as Head of Public Relations at the University of Brighton, Director of Public Relations at the University of Oxford, and Director of the Oxford Colleges’ Admissions Office. Additionally, she has taken on senior interim posts in various UK universities, specialising in marketing, recruitment, widening participation, and strategic planning.

How has Helen recently supported universities?

  • Royal College of Art: strategic review of student funding
  • University of Nottingham: development of a degree-pricing strategy
  • Keele University: creation of an Access and Participation Evaluation Framework
  • Trinity College Dublin: design of a curriculum hub

Outside of work, Helen’s preferred sport is croquet – a combination of maths, tactics and – hopefully – an excuse for an afternoon in the sun.
She has recently completed an MSt in History of Design, writing on topics as diverse as the creation, design and significance of biscuit tins and Lasdun’s design of UEA’s campus in the 1960s.

Helen is an Honorary Fellow in the Department of Education at the University of Oxford, has an MBA in Higher Education Management and her DPhil is in Higher Education Policy. She was Commissioning Editor of the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI)’s 20th anniversary publication; and as an expert in HE funding, she has given evidence to a Parliamentary Select Committee and contributed to BBC R4 programmes including The Briefing Room and The Bottom Line.