University of Chester launches new student guide to strengthen staff and student partnerships

Co-authored by BSc Cybersecurity student Millie Leach and Professor Ruth Healey, the guide builds on the success of the University’s Guide to Working with Students as Partners, first published in November 2023. The development of both guides was undertaken while Ruth served as a University Innovation Fellow at the Centre for Academic Innovation and Development (CAID), reflecting the University’s commitment to strengthening student–staff collaboration as a core educational priority. 

The new guide provides practical insights to help students understand what partnership looks like, the benefits of working collaboratively, and how to initiate or participate in partnership opportunities. 

At the launch event, Millie who is the winner of the SEDA Partnership Impact Award, shared how her perspective as a student shaped the guide. She highlighted that the creation of the guide itself exemplified partnership in action, with staff and students working side by side. 

The event featured a series of talks that illustrated the diverse ways students and staff are collaborating at the University: Chantal Worsdell (Doctorate in Education) discussed co-production and Equality Impact Assessments, drawing on her role in an Advance HE project to develop a sector-wide Equality Impact Assessment Framework; Aless Sultana (BSc Games Development) shared his experience as a Student Learning Consultant in the University’s Centre for Academic Innovation and Development, working with staff to redesign and co-develop the University’s Virtual Learning Environment over five months and Hussna Waka (BA International Relations) reflected on her work as a Race Advocate, highlighting initiatives to promote racial equality, diversity, and inclusivity, inspired by her own experiences of moving to a new country. 

The talks reinforced the themes of the new guide, demonstrating the wide-ranging benefits of partnership in enhancing higher education. From co-designing digital learning platforms to advancing equality and inclusivity, the event showcased how collaboration between staff and students is shaping the University’s future. 

Professor Ruth Healey said: “It was really interesting to hear from all our student speakers and learn how they have benefited from working in partnership in a range of ways. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences and made this event so engaging.”