Nearly 150 colleagues from UK higher education institutions celebrated at a special event to honour the 2025 National Teaching Fellows and winners of the Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence.
Sixty-one new National Teaching Fellows and 17 winning teams of the Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence are recognised in 2025 for their outstanding contribution to excellent teaching in higher education in the UK. Senior leaders from their institutions joined them at the awards ceremony in Bristol.
Opening the special ceremony in Bristol, Alistair Jarvis, Chief Executive of Advance HE said, “As the new Chief Executive of Avance HE, it really is a great privilege to be marking your achievements so early in my tenure.
“The unprecedented number of awards this year isn't just recognition of individual achievement – it's testament to the remarkable quality and resilience of our higher education community. Our expert panel found so many outstanding examples of teaching excellence that simply could not go unrecognised. This speaks volumes about the dedication and innovation flourishing across our sector.
“I would like to thank Professor Becky Huxley-Binns, as Chair of the UK Teaching Excellence Awards Advisory Panel, and all Advisory Panel members, for their time, commitment and expertise in supporting our awards and ensuring that our process for reviewing these highly competitive awards is rigorous and fair to all nominees.”
There are more than 20 National Teaching Fellows and three CATE teams at Ulster University. Professor Odette Hutchinson, Pro Vice Chancellor for Academic Quality and Student Experience, accompanied 2025 National Teaching Fellow Dr Denise MacDermott, Reader in Social Work. Professor Hutchinson was recognised with a National Teaching Fellowship herself in 2014.
She said, “For me, it was a pivotal point in my career. I transitioned to focusing much more on leading others to develop their own professional practice and leadership in learning and teaching and the student experience.
“Denise is really up for the challenge in terms of bringing others with her; really demonstrating how she can be an agent for positive change within her own professional practice. This is an individual who lives and breathes her practice and derives so much satisfaction from seeing her students thrive.”
Dr MacDermott said, "This is transformative in terms of the recognition of the impact that I'm making on students at Ulster University and beyond. It's the start of a new journey for me, I've signed up for the allyship programme so I'm really keen to support other educators to believe in themselves.
"This is National Teaching Fellowship is not only recognition of my work but for the communities, for the people and the students I've been working with over the last 13 years. It's a game changer in terms of my career and has given me the opportunity to join the Association for National Teaching Fellows and build on that network.
"It really means the world. I love what I do. I love my job. I love being around students and seeing them thrive and grow. I'm delighted; I'm honoured; I'm privileged. I'll never forget this moment."
The University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) Library Practitioners’ Group is recognised with a CATE for its high-quality and innovative approach to delivering library services across UHI’s multi-campus partnership.
Head Librarian Richard Hughes said, "We are delighted that the UHI Library Practitioner's Group has won a Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence. This achievement recognises our collaborative approach in working across a unique and geographically dispersed university partnership to deliver student-focused, inclusive services and support regardless of their location.”
National Teaching Fellow, Dr Iwi Ugiagbe-Green, Academic Director and Lead education innovation scholar at Manchester Metropolitan University
“I am truly humbled and grateful to Advance HE for this fantastic recognition of sustained excellence in equity work in education. I acknowledge the power, strength, influence, and care of the collective; my colleagues, peers, and students from whom I learn so much and am privileged to work with.
“This moment of joy represents a collective achievement. However, the work continues. I aim to use my National Teaching Fellowship to advance my equity work through new international collaborations and partnerships, whilst continuing to support under-represented groups of early career academics into fellowship and senior education leadership positions.”
President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Leicester Professor Nishan Canagarajah said: “I am proud that three outstanding examples of great teaching at the University of Leicester have been recognised with national teaching awards by Advance HE. This represents the University of Leicester’s joint best-ever result for these awards.
“I’m especially pleased we have secured our second only Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence for MedRACE (Raising Awareness, Celebrating Excellence), established at Leicester Medical School which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. MedRACE addresses racial inequality in medical education with students leading and shaping its direction and through partnerships with the wider University, NHS trusts, and national bodies. It is a powerful example of how successful partnerships deliver meaningful educational impact.”