Quality Council for UK HE terms of reference
Publication date: 05 Oct 2026
The Quality Council for UK Higher Education is a sector-owned forum bringing all four nations together on matters relating to quality and standards in higher education
The Quality Council for UK Higher Education is a key sector-owned higher education forum which brings together representatives from all four nations of the UK to discuss, promote and have oversight of matters relating to quality and standards in higher education and to provide a space for guidance, enquiry and the sharing of learning.
Originally established in 2016 as the UK Standing Committee for Quality Assessment, the Quality Council's role is to:
- Promote and robustly defend the quality of UK higher education and provide evidence to support this
- Act on behalf of the higher education sector, especially in times of challenge and change
- Build support for, and recognition of, UK higher education leadership in quality internationally
- Have oversight of the UK’s shared commitment to quality principles and take a UK-wide approach, celebrating our commonalities across nations and regulator systems
- Work in partnership with students, with regulators and across nations
- Represent the diversity of the sector.
The Quality Council's full terms of reference
The Quality Council for UK HE draws on expertise from across the higher education sector. QAA acts as Secretariat.
The council includes the UK higher education funding bodies, regulators, sector body representatives, academics and students. Universities Scotland and Universities Wales are core members of the council and are represented by their nominated sector representatives.
The current membership of the council is:
Chair
Professor Nic Beech, Vice-Chancellor, University of Salford
Deputy Chair
Professor Clare Peddie, Vice Principal Education (Proctor), University of St Andrews
Secretariat
Helena Vine, Head of Public Affairs, QAA
Association of Colleges (AoC) representative
Dr Arti Saraswat, Senior Policy Manager HE, AoC
GuildHE representative
Dr Kate Wicklow, Director of Policy and Strategy, GuildHE
Universities UK representative
Dr Charlotte Snelling, Policy Manager, UUK
Universities Scotland representative (observer)
Kirsty Conlon, Head of Learning and Teaching and Widening Access Policy, Universities Scotland
Universities Wales representative (observer)
Chris Laity, Policy Officer – Learning and Teaching, Universities Wales
Committee of University Chairs (CUC) representative
Amanda Oliver, Deputy Executive Secretary, CUC
Department for the Economy Northern Ireland (DfENI) representative
David Rooney, Head of Quality and Governance, Higher Education Division, Department for the Economy
Office for Students (OfS) representative
Nicholas Holland, Head of Quality and Standards, OfS
Medr representative
Dr Cliona O’Neill, Head of Quality and Continuous Improvement, Medr
Independent Higher Education (Independent HE) representative
Alexander Proudfoot, Chief Executive, Independent HE
Scottish Funding Council (SFC) representative
Karen Gray, Assistant Director (Teaching & Quality), SFC
National Union of Students (NUS) representative
Lewis Wilson, Vice-President (Higher Education), NUS
Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) representative
Ben Elger, Chief Executive, OIA
Professional Statutory and Regulatory Body (PSRB) member
Professor Mary Bishop, Director of Learning, Royal Society of Medicine
Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) representative
Tom Yates, Executive Director of Corporate Affairs, QAA
Association of Heads of University Administration (AHUA) representative
Jim Irving, Pro-Vice Chancellor Students and Governance, Southampton Solent University
Sector member
Professor Nichola Callow, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education), Bangor University
Sector member
Professor Judy Williams, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education and Students), Queen’s University Belfast
Sector member
Jon Renyard, University Secretary, Arts University Bournemouth
Sector member
Professor Edward Dimsdale, Head of the Graduate School, Cambridge School of Visual and Performing Arts
Sector member
James Perkins, Head of Quality Assurance and Enhancement, The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
Colleges Scotland representative
James McKean, Policy Officer, Colleges Scotland
Colleges Wales representative
Kelly Edwards, Director of Partnerships and Strategic Development, Colleges Wales
Student member
Morrigan McEvoy, Vice President Accessible Education, Queen’s Students’ Union
Student member
Lucy Hart, University of Leeds