Universities are dedicated to supporting graduate employability and employment, as well as broader student success as defined by students themselves.
Working on the links between education and employment at a regional level is important in order to address the geographic inequalities entrenched in the education system from an early age and in regional and local labour markets, as well as to support local and regional skills needs and broader economic development. There is already a lot of existing work across the region in this area but there remains an ongoing role for Yorkshire Universities (YU) to continue to improve coordination and collaboration.
Regional Inclusive Recruitment Guide
Supporting Graduate Employment and Employability in Yorkshire
In July 2024, Yorkshire Universities (YU) launched the refreshed Inclusive Recruitment Guide for Employers at the ‘Overcoming employer challenges and championing graduates across Yorkshire conference.
The guide offers practical recommendations for delivering an inclusive approach to the recruitment of students and graduates. This guide has been produced for SME businesses based within Yorkshire and the Humber, by the Yorkshire Universities Group, using a foundational resource initially developed by the University of Sheffield.
If you need to, you can still find the previous version of the guide here.
Convened by Yorkshire Universities (YU), the twelve member universities, local authorities, mayoral combined authorities, local enterprise partnerships and employers in Yorkshire came together as a Task and Finish Group to consider how best to support more students and graduates through the challenging times of the pandemic and beyond.
As a result of this work, in May 2022, YU published a collaborative report on Supporting Graduate Employment and Employability in Yorkshire. Take a look at both the Executive Summary and the Full Report.
Graduate Talent Related Groups
Since the publication of the collaborative stakeholder reports in 2022, the Graduate Implementation Group and related sub-groups have been working on operationalising the recommendations of the report to improve collaborative action to support graduate employment and employability across the HE sector and through working with external stakeholders. You can learn about these groups in more detail below.
Graduate Implementation Group
The Graduate Implementation Group (GIG) is an oversight and advisory group that was established to help operationalise the shared priorities and recommendations as agreed in the Supporting Graduate Employment and Employability in Yorkshire report. Where possible, the GIG aims to build on existing activity, amplify common messages and advocate for shared learning among the YU member institutions.
Professor Tim Thornton
Chair of the GIG and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, University of Huddersfield
Tim studied at New College, Oxford. In 1997 he was awarded the Royal Historical Society’s David Berry Prize for his work on the Isle of Man; in 1999 he was proxime accessit for the Society’s Alexander Prize for an essay on the palatinate of Durham. He was the first scholar based in a new University to win one of the Society’s prizes.
Appointed Head of the Department of History, English, Languages and Media in 2003, Tim was on secondment as Head of University Centre Barnsley during 2005-6 and became Dean of the School of Music, Humanities and Media in October 2006. He was appointed Pro Vice-chancellor (Teaching and Learning) in October 2008 and then became Deputy Vice-Chancellor in September 2015.
Group Members:
- Andrew Jones
Head of Careers, Employability and Enterprise, Leeds Arts University - Barrie Grey
Head of Student and Graduate Employability, York St John University - Claire Aydogan
Head of Careers and Employability, University of Huddersfield - Dan Lally
Director of Skills and Partnerships, Sheffield Hallam University - Emily Timson
Director of Graduate Outcomes and Enterprise, Leeds Trinity University - Esther Kent
Director, Employability & Student Futures, Sheffield Hallam University - Helen Smith
Head of Careers, University of Sheffield - James Warrender
Employability & Enterprise Manager, Leeds Conservatoire - Jane Campbell
Head of Student Careers, University of Leeds - Joanne Beaumont
Associate Director Student Services: Careers, Employability and Engagement, University of Bradford - John Harrison
Head of Student Futures, University of Hull - Louise Thurston
Associate Director of Careers and Employability, University of York - Mark Stow
Director of Careers and Employability, Leeds Beckett University
Creative Group
Representing the voice of the small and specialist institutions (and the creative programmes at the larger universities), reflecting the needs of those working directly with creative students, identifying solutions/outputs/content that support group members at an operational level. Current areas of focus:
- Task & finish approach to a practical output on creating a compendium of resources to complement the YU Inclusive Recruitment Guide on hiring creatives.
- Longer term ambition for a joint strategic communication for a ‘Creative Yorkshire – for a healthy, prosperous and sustainable creative sector in Yorkshire’ vision.
Group Members:
- Andrew Jones
Head of Careers, Employability and Enterprise, Leeds Arts University - Ben Robertson
School Careers and Employability Consultant, Leeds Beckett University - Chris Webb
Alumni Engagement Career Consultant, Careers and Employability, University of Huddersfield - Claire McMahon Harvey
Faculty Employability Manager: School of Arts and Creative Technologies, University of York - Dr Karen Thornton
Programme Leader BA Film and Television Production, University of Bradford - Elli Whitefoot
Assistant Careers, Employability and Enterprise Manager, Leeds Arts University - James Warrender
Head of Strategic Partnerships and Enterprise, Leeds Conservatoire - Karen Burland Clark
Professor of Applied Music Psychology, Director of Student Education, University of Leeds - Kirsty Mews
Careers Consultant, University of York - Laura Bird
Faculty Employability and Placements Manager, University of Leeds - Lauren Moriarty
Course Director: BA Product Design, Leeds Beckett University - Linda Horsburgh
Student Success and Careers Manager, York St John University - Nathan Kelly
Head of School: Digital and Screen Media, Leeds Trinity University - Nawaz Khan
Employer and Placement Services Consultant, University of Bradford - Roger Bateman
Head of Department, Art and Design, Sheffield Hallam University
Graduate Data Group
The main aim of the Graduate Data Group (GDG) is to support the work of the GIG in implementing the priorities and recommendations of the YU report through the sharing and analysis of data. The group’s work particularly supports the use of data for the development of effective strategy and action, as well as to help develop common messages around the value of graduates.
Group Members:
- Andrew Blunt, Student Opportunity Insights & Engagement Manager, SES Business Insights Lead, Graduate Outcomes Lead, Target Connect Lead, University of Leeds
- Daniel Penn, Careers Data and Planning Officer, University of Bradford
- Dr Keith McCabe, Head of Planning and Business Intelligence, University of Huddersfield
- Dr Rebecca Kendall, Team Leader, Performance, Evaluation & Monitoring, Student Futures, University of Hull
- Gemma Halliwell, Data, Insights and Engagement Manager, University of Sheffield
- Helen Armitage, Head of Student Futures, Sheffield Hallam University
- James Berry, Head of Data Visualisation Strategy, Planning and Insight, Sheffield Hallam University
- James Boyes, Strategic Planning & Reporting Analyst, Leeds Arts University
- Jack Carling, Data and Systems Manager (Graduate Outcomes Directorate), Leeds Trinity University
- James Warrender, Employability & Enterprise Manager, Leeds Conservatoire
- Jill Richards, Digital Content & Data Insights Coordinator, Leeds Beckett University
- William Jones, Data and Impact Analyst, Student Success and Employability, York St John University
Associate Members
- Dr Bob Gilworth, Senior Lecturer in Careers Guidance, University of Huddersfield
- Dr Charlie Ball, Head of Labour Market Intelligence, Jisc
- Helen Sykes, Head of Go Higher West Yorkshire, Go Higher West Yorkshire
EDI Oversight & Planning Group
The EDI Oversight & Planning Group (or EDI Group) is working on advancing work towards the recommendations of the report with a focus on the overarching theme of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. The EDI Group works closely with the Graduate Data Group and carries out activity in the following areas:
- Staff Training and Development,
- Universities as Employers of Graduates, and
- Employer Engagement.
The co-chairs of the EDI Group are Joanne Beaumont, Associate Director Student Services: Careers, Employability and Engagement at the University of Bradford, and Jane Campbell, Head of Student Careers at the University of Leeds. A key output from the EDI Group is the Yorkshire Universities Regional Inclusive Recruitment Guide for Employers.
