The higher education landscape is changing rapidly
More institutions are actively considering mergers and strategic transformations to secure long-term sustainability. Boards and leadership teams need access to evidence, lived experience and strategic insights to make informed decisions and lead change effectively.
Whether your institution is exploring options, assessing risk or actively planning a merger, the critical questions remain the same: What does good governance of transformation look like? What have others learned? Where are the barriers – and how do you navigate them? These resources offer insights and approaches.
Join us for an expert-led session
Date: 22 April 2026
Participate in our expert-led session, exploring governance and leadership through merger and strategic transformation in higher education. This session will introduce our new resource and examine how institutions can govern and lead merger and strategic transformation effectively.
Our sector partners – UUK, AHUA, GuildHE, CUC, AHUA and Independent Higher Education (IHE).
Practical, evidence-based support for strategic decision-making
The insights reports share real accounts from recent mergers in the sector, so you can learn from those who have already navigated institutional transformation.
Understand what to prioritise at every stage, the risks involved, and what questions governors and leaders should be asking throughout the process.
Resources structured to support both governing bodies and senior leadership teams, helping Chairs and Vice-Chancellors to align their approach.
The sector resource takes a comprehensive view of merger and strategic transformation, covering governance, leadership, culture, financial scrutiny and risk.
Not just analysis — each resource points you towards examples, approaches and tools to help you move forward with clarity and confidence.
Advance HE and sector partners intend to continue adding insights and information to the resource over time, keeping it current as practice evolves.
Four resources, one member benefit
This member benefit brings together insights reports from three recent sector mergers alongside a new holistic resource for governing bodies and executive teams.
Built for those leading and governing institutional change, these resources are designed for the senior leaders and governors responsible for the most consequential decisions in their institution’s future.
Governing and Leading Merger and Strategic Transformation: Insights and Approaches in HE
Sector Resource
A comprehensive, navigable resource for governing bodies and leadership teams. Structured to support sense-making at every stage, it draws on recent sector examples to provide evidence-based insights, key decision points, questions to ask, and signposts for action – grounded in globally relevant governance principles.
Coming April 2026
Merger Insights Report: City St George’s, University of London
Insights Report
A detailed account of the merger experience at CSG, sharing lived experience, governance approaches and lessons learned for boards and leaders navigating similar journeys.
Merger Insights Report: the Health Sciences University (HSU)
Insights Report
Drawing on the experience of HSU, this report provides evidence-based perspectives on the strategic, financial and governance dimensions of institutional merger in higher education.
Merger Insights Report: Anglia Ruskin University
Insights Report
An insight report drawing on Anglia Ruskin University’s merger experience, offering lived experience, governance insights and practical lessons for boards and leaders leading similar processes.
Webinar – Governing and Leading Merger and Transformation: Insights from HE
22 April 2026 | 11:15 – 13:00 BST
This session brings together insights and experience from across the sector to explore what effective governance looks like when institutions combine, restructure or reinvent themselves.
Hear from colleagues across our sector partner organisations who have helped shape the new resource. They will share practical perspectives on navigating merger processes, leading boards through transformation and embedding strong governance from the outset. More information coming soon.
What to Expect
Welcome and Introduction – David Bass, Director of EDI, Advance HE, Advance HE
An opening reflection on the current higher education landscape and the growing importance of strategic transformation and mergers in governance.
Panel 1: Governing and Leading Merger and Transformation
Chair: Amanda Oliver, CUC Deputy Executive Secretary
University of Greenwich board members Tricia King and Murray Orr share practical insights and lessons from their recent institutional transformation, focusing on governance, decision-making and leadership in times of change.
Panel 1: Decision Making and Engagement of Experts and Stakeholders
Chair: Alex Proudfoot, Chief Executive, IHE (Independent Higher Education)
Ruth Talbot (DfE) and Mark Taylor (Shakespeare Martineau) discuss how boards can work effectively with expert advisers and stakeholders, exploring governance, legal considerations and informed decision-making.
Panel 3: Decision Taking and Enabling a New Culture
Chair: Mark Taylor, CFO, GuildHE
Helen Watson, Deputy President (Operations), City St George’s University, shares strategies for embedding shared values, building trust and fostering collaboration after transformation.
The session will conclude with Discussion Groups and Feedback, followed by a Final Reflection. More information to follow.
People
David Bass
Director of EDI, Advance HE
David is responsible for providing organisational leadership in Advance HE’s work on EDI, both internally and externally.
Ruth Talbot
Deputy Director in the Department for Education
Ruth Talbot is deputy director in the Department for Education with responsibility for Higher Education strategy and financial sustainability.
Tricia King
Chair of the People & Governance Committee, University of Greenwich
Tricia King has had a 30-year career in UK HE. Most recently, she was Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Strategic Engagement at Birkbeck College in the University of London for 11 years and Vice President Global Engagement at the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), where she worked with university leadership teams across the world to help build resilience and capacity.
Alex Proudfoot
Chief Executive – IHE (Independent Higher Education)
Alex oversees IHE’s strategic development, manages its day-to-day activities, and represents members at external meetings and committees. He was also a Trustee of UKCISA, the UK Council for International Student Affairs, for 10 years.
Mark Taylor
Chief Finance Officer, GuildHE
Mark Taylor has worked in senior management positions in higher education for over 28 years and has been involved in several mergers and structural collaborations over that period.
Helen Watson
Board member at AHUA and Deputy President (Operations), City, St George’s, University of London
Helen’s expertise spans senior governance, planning, and operations in UK higher education. Helen is an elected member of the Executive of the Association of Heads of University Administration (AHUA). She was previously on the Board of the Higher Education Strategic Planners Association (HESPA).
Mark Taylor
Partner, Shakespeare Martineau
Mark is a leading adviser to the UK’s higher and further education sectors, with extensive experience in institutional mergers, governance, and regulatory matters, having advised on over fifty university and college mergers.
Murray Orr
Non-executive roles include Chair of Trinity College London, Vice Chair of Greenwich University
Murray is an investment banker with 40 years of experience in financial services and a wide range of senior governance roles, including in the education sector. He served as Vice Chairman of the EMEA Mergers & Acquisitions group at JPMorgan, with a career focused on offering a wide range of corporate finance advice to clients across multiple countries and sectors.
The Merger Insights Reports offer lived experiences from recent sector mergers to learn from, while the insights and approaches sector resource provides key insights and signposts to guide through the thinking needed from governors and leaders.
Kim Ansell – Senior Consultant, Governance and Strategic Transformation – Advance HE
