First week of the year, the new Jisc year starts 1st August. There have been some organisational changes in my directorate, however, doesn’t impact me personally very much.

I have been planning for the next twelve months. My main priorities are focused on three key areas.

• First, I’m continuing to build on the work of NRENs (National Research and Education Networks) across Europe, particularly by focusing on the topic of student mobility within the education field.
• Second, I’m analysing the implications of the new Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) for higher education, with a specific focus on how it will impact Jisc’s work in the areas of digital technology and data.
• Finally, I’m continuing to work on initiatives that promote collaboration and knowledge sharing. This includes building on the findings of last year’s report, Collaboration for a Sustainable Future, and the work of Universities UK’s Transformation and Efficiency Taskforce. The goal for the coming year is to help the sector act on these recommendations and build a more collaborative future.

This is all subject to change as the priorities for the year ahead might flex and change.

I have also been looking at the possible conferences I might attend to support this work. Some I expect I may try and get a speaking slot; others will be more about my professional and personal development.

I have been reviewing a proposal which took a lot longer than I thought it would.

We have been working with UUK on releasing some of the outputs from the Transformation and Efficiency Taskforce that I both supported and helped to write.

Finally I have been writing up my forms for my Q4 review.

Final week of the year, the new Jisc year starts 1st August.

This time of year is somewhat quiet with both universities empty and a lot of colleagues in Jisc taking a summer break. I had a break earlier in July, but am planning to take some, more time off later in August.

Having finalised virtually everything that needed doing for the last year, I have started planning for the next twelve months.

I have three key things to work on. The first is continuing the work on E in NREN, working with colleagues across Europe on building on the work of NRENs in the education field, and in the main student mobility.

The second is looking at the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) and what this means for higher education in the realm of digital, data, and technology, and what are the implications for Jisc’s work.

The third focus is also a continuation piece, working on sharing and collaboration. Last year we published Collaboration for a Sustainable Future, and I also spent a lot of time working on strand 2 for UUK’s Transformation and Efficiency Taskforce. Next year is looking at how Jisc can support the sector on building on both the report, and the work of the taskforce.

I was on leave this week, so no weeknote this week.

Took some leave this week.

Was part of a panel session at the Higher Education Digital Experience Conference 2025. Our session title was Designing Next Generation Digital Experiences: What’s Next?

• Raising the bar: How do we match students’ expectations on the digital experience?
• Removing barriers: How do we advance digital literacies and capabilities?
• A driver for success: How can the digital environment act as an enabler for improved engagement and outcomes?
• What’s next? Embedding next generation AI and personalisation into the digital learning space
• The product of the future: What should platforms, digital spaces and content output look like in 2035?

I did make some notes, which I think I might write up as a blog post.

Had a meeting with our copyeditor about some prospective articles on collaboration and sharing.

Spent time working on NRENs 4 Education proposal to European Commission.

I also attended various UUK Collaboration project update meetings

Undertook the preparation for Networkshop next week, where I am presenting about collaboration.