After holding interim positions following the departure of previous faculty leads in late 2019, Dr Louise Grant (HSS), Juliet Fern (E&S) and Chris Marshall (UBBS) have been successful in their applications to become Executive Deans full-time, after a positive 12 months in temporary post.

Professor Rebecca Bunting, Vice Chancellor of the University of Bedfordshire, announced the news and congratulated each on their successful candidacy:

Louise, Juliet and Chris have all demonstrated effective leadership and development in their respective areas as Interim Executive Deans, so I am pleased to announce their successful appointments. I very much look forward to working with them at permanent Executive level and seeing what plans they have for their Faculties, staff and students.

After a fulfilling career as a social worker and team manager in Children and Families Social Work, Dr Louise Grant became a social work academic with the University of Bedfordshire in 2008. In 2014 she left the University to work with Frontline First but returned to Bedfordshire in 2018 and was appointed as Interim Executive Dean of Health and Social Sciences in September 2019.

Since her interim appointment, Louise has overseen the opening of the new Aylesbury campus, the approval and launch of new facilities and healthcare courses, including Occupational Therapy and Midwifery, and has continued to manage and propel vital relationships between the University and regional organisations, health and social care charities and NHS Hospital Trusts. Louise said:

I am absolutely delighted to be appointed to the post of Executive Dean of the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences. We have a talented and committed staff group who are intent on creating the very best student experience and disseminating knowledge through their research to tackle health and social injustice.

Providing our graduates with the best possible student experience so they are equipped for the world of work to challenge health and social injustice will be one of our key continuing objectives. I am looking forward to building on our collaborative strategic vision internally and with our external partners to lead the Faculty to be the best it can be.

Juliet Fern joined the University of Bedfordshire in 2006 after a ten-year teaching career in Further Education at Bedford College. Before becoming Interim Executive Dean of Education and Sport in September 2019, Juliet previously held the position of Associate Dean and Head of Teacher Education, based at the University’s Bedford campus. She is also the University’s representative on the MillionPlus Deans of Education Network and is Chair of Luton’s Members of a Multi-Academy Trust (MAT). Juliet said:

I am delighted to have been appointed to the permanent post of Executive Dean. During 15 months as the Interim, I have seen the positive impact that I can have on the staff and student experience in this role.

I look forward to driving forward improvements, introducing a new vision for the Faculty, and working with our talented staff. I am committed to supporting the wider University through my work on the Access and Participation Plan (APP) and Student Voice.

Since joining the University in 2017, Chris Marshall has held a variety of key positions with the University of Bedfordshire’s Business School, including Director of Postgraduate Studies, Chair of Collaborative Programmes and Associate Dean of Recruitment, International and Partnerships, before becoming Interim Dean of UBBS in December 2019. Each year UBBS has seen a steady increase in course uptake at both undergraduate and postgraduate level and Chris has engaged heavily in the development of international recruitment strategies for the Business School.

Looking back at the last 12 months, Chris said:

I am delighted to be able to lead the Business School at this critical time as we formulate plans and strategies to support the University’s upcoming five year Strategic Plan.

The Faculty is embarking on a major staffing investment plan and we are establishing important goals for our students’ success, our teaching quality, a future-proofed curriculum and support for our business communities through research and enterprise, as the country emerges into a profound period of recovery and change.

I look forward to working in partnership with all of our staff, students and business leaders to fulfil an impactful mission in 2021.

The new Executive Deans now join Professor Jan Domin, Dean of the Faculty of Creative Arts, Technologies and Science (CATS), as permanent members of the Vice Chancellor’s Executive Group.

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