On 20 and 21 May, NMITE (New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering) hosted a group of 60 academics, recognised as the most outstanding Higher Education (HE) teachers from across the UK, who took part in the Association of National Teaching Fellows Symposium 2025.

The Symposium was run by the Association of National Teaching Fellows, with support from Advance HE, the member-led charity of and for the higher education sector, that worked with partners across the globe to improve higher education for staff, students, and society. At NMITE, the local host was Professor Gary Wood, who was himself a National Teaching Fellow and had been NMITE’s Academic Director since he joined in 2021.

“We were delighted to have been awarded this opportunity to host such a prestigious event at NMITE. It was an occasion for us to showcase our own attitude to innovation, promote our hometown of Hereford and, over the course of the gala dinner, share the flavours of Hereford through the choice of local produce. NMITE played an important role in the region, offered a new model of engineering education in the HE system, and we were pleased to be able to share this with a group of colleagues,” said Professor Wood.

“It was a tremendous opportunity for NMITE, as a positive disrupter in the higher education space, to raise awareness of our institution amongst these recognised outstanding teachers and leaders in the UK,” added James Newby, President and Chief Executive, NMITE. “With a welcome talk from Professor Wood explaining what made NMITE different, tours of the campus, and opportunities for delegates to engage with NMITE staff, we hoped everyone would go away understanding more about our achievements and ambitions.”

Professor Wood, along with NMITE colleague Emma Lewis (Head of Quality Assurance), also facilitated a workshop on the evolving quality assurance landscape in UK higher education, and the increasing scrutiny and regulation of universities. A consortium of HEI partners, led by NMITE, explored the interaction and relationship between quality assurance and innovation, particularly considering ‘bottom-up’, academic/practitioner-led innovation. This workshop provided an overview of the findings and support for attendees to consider how they could use the project’s resources and findings to support high-quality innovations to make an impact in their own institution and practice. 

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