Entry name: Scott Farrow

Describe your entry, including why you should win:

Over the past decade in higher education, I’ve led transformative projects across teaching, assessment, and digital learning—rooted in an inclusive and collaborative philosophy shaped by my own journey as a first-generation student. As Head of Digital Learning, I lead multidisciplinary teams responsible for learning technologies, systems, digital curriculum development, classroom AV, and staff training. Our work supports every corner of the institution’s teaching and learning ecosystem.

Aligned to the University Strategic Plan and Teaching & Learning Strategy (2021–25), I’ve embedded a sustainable and student-informed approach to digital learning. In response to NSS data, Student Voice Surveys, and sector benchmarks, I developed a streamlined digital strategy focused on reducing complexity and cognitive load for both staff and students. By consolidating tools (e.g. single platforms for submissions, video delivery, and polling), we’ve created an intuitive and equitable experience across disciplines.

This has led to significant improvement in digital satisfaction. According to the 2023–24 JISC Digital Experience Insight Survey, 77% of staff rated our digital teaching environment as "good, excellent or best imaginable"—well above the sector benchmark of 59%. Our AV strategy has further enhanced in-room and blended delivery, with 90+ rooms now fully equipped with consistent, high-quality setups. These advances reflect not just technical upgrades, but a deeper shift toward inclusive, evidence-led pedagogy.

Nationally, I have been a sustained advocate for digital education leadership and professionalisation. Through the Association for Learning Technology (ALT), I’ve developed sector-wide networks and platforms to support practice sharing and professional growth. As Convenor of the ALT North West England group (2020–24), I led the delivery of 20 community events—half in person—during a period of major disruption. My leadership modelled distributed and transformational practices, offering committee members the opportunity to lead sessions and grow into leadership roles themselves. One member I mentored is now Chair, demonstrating the success of my succession and empowerment ethos.

In 2024, I chaired the ALT International Conference, where I reshaped the role of the committee to elevate diverse voices in planning, including student and accessibility advocates. Keynote sessions reflected this shift, featuring panels with lived experience, student voice, and inclusive practice. Feedback from delegates was overwhelmingly positive: 74% rated the keynotes as “satisfied” or “very satisfied,” and comments described sessions as “inspiring,” “thought-provoking,” and “directly applicable.”

Additionally, I serve on the Heads of eLearning Forum (HeLF) events subcommittee, coordinating 16 national webinars shaped directly by community feedback—reaching over 100 institutions. Across all roles, my impact has been defined by listening to stakeholder voice, championing inclusive leadership, and building platforms where others can grow.

I believe I should win as I lead with integrity, inclusion, and impact—empowering teams, elevating voices, and driving sector-wide change. I create platforms and communities where others can grow, share, and lead—embedding collaboration into everything I do. This award would recognise a decade of values-led leadership dedicated to advancing learning technology through co-creation, innovation, and meaningful community engagement.

Describe the impact of your work internally and externally, on your students, colleagues and peers, how it was developed, and what others could learn from your work?

The impact of my leadership is reflected in the growth, confidence, and success of others. I’ve created spaces where colleagues feel empowered to lead, share their expertise, and shape the future of digital education—both within their institutions and across the sector.

Through my leadership of the ALT North West Members Group, I’ve supported the development of new voices and future leaders. One committee member noted: “Through his mentorship and facilitative leadership, I progressed from a peripheral to a central role… Scott’s consultative approach and focus on succession planning helped cultivate new leaders.” Several members have since gone on to chair events, lead communities of practice, and contribute nationally to the learning technology conversation.

As Chair of the 2024 ALT International Conference, I worked to elevate underrepresented voices and create meaningful opportunities for inclusion. One committee member shared: “Scott’s leadership allowed me to raise the profile of underrepresented groups, address barriers for disabled individuals in tech and education, and bring my full self to the committee, sharing both my lived experience and expertise.” Her experience leading a keynote panel on lived experience was a direct result of the collaborative, values-driven leadership I model.

This approach—grounded in trust, coaching, and empowerment—has resulted in sustained, sector-wide influence. Whether through strategic policy, conference leadership, or local networks, the legacy of my work lies in the people I’ve supported and the inclusive communities I’ve helped build.

Please describe how your work is aligned with CMALT & FELT principles?

As a Digital Education Leader, my work is grounded in the CMALT core principles and guided by ALT’s Framework for Ethical Learning Technology (FELT). I am committed to critically exploring how digital tools enhance learning and teaching, ensuring decisions are evidence-informed and inclusive. This is exemplified in my coordination of CPD events for the Heads of eLearning Forum, where I create space for peer exchange and reflective practice across institutions.

In alignment with FELT’s Professionalism and CMALT’s commitment to currency, I maintain up-to-date knowledge and facilitate others’ development through national and regional engagement. My role as co-chair of the ALT Conference 2024 further reflects my dedication to communicating and disseminating effective practice, while also promoting inclusive, values-led dialogue at scale.

As a leader of a regional ALT Members Group, I foster collegiality and support professional growth through community-building and shared leadership, in line with FELT’s Care & Community principles. I embed student, staff, and stakeholder voice in digital strategy and policy development, ensuring decisions are shaped by diverse lived experiences and grounded in FELT’s values of inclusion and learner agency.

This approach also demonstrates CMALT’s principle of empathy and learning from others. Across all aspects of my work, I act with integrity, advocating for transparency, accessibility, and ethical innovation. Through critical reflection and open dialogue, I support a sector-wide shift toward more ethical, sustainable, and human-centred approaches to digital education.

Give one example of your leadership making a real difference

As a strategic leader in digital education, I have redefined the role of digital learning within my institution by embedding it at the heart of teaching and learning—shifting it from a peripheral add-on to a core pedagogic driver. Central to this has been my vision to build a digitally confident academic culture rooted in inclusivity, collaboration, and scholarly practice.

I empowered my team of digital learning technologists and training staff to become active contributors to educational development, aligning their work with teaching excellence. Over 80% now hold Postgraduate Certificates in Teaching in Higher Education, with many contributing as reviewers on our internal PSF scheme and members of Validation and Standards Panels. This positions them not just as technologists but as scholarly partners in curriculum design and programme enhancement.

My leadership draws on distributed models that prioritise co-creation and shared ownership, enabling the digital learning team to collaborate meaningfully with academics. This approach has fostered a pedagogy-first culture where innovation in digital education is informed by evidence and aligned with institutional priorities.

The impact is clear: staff benefit from expert, research-informed guidance on integrating digital tools, while students experience more inclusive, dynamic learning environments. By scaffolding the role of “third space” professionals through frameworks like the PSF, I’ve cultivated a team that bridges academic and professional spheres—contributing to a more forward-thinking, agile learning ecosystem.

This leadership has directly influenced policy, practice, and culture—demonstrating how strategic vision, when grounded in values and scholarship, can drive institutional transformation.

What approach do you take to creating good conditions for culture change?

Creating the conditions for meaningful culture change in digital education requires a leadership approach that is collaborative, values-driven, and grounded in trust.

As a Digital Education Leader, I prioritise building a shared vision with my team and colleagues across the institution by actively engaging stakeholders at all levels—from students and frontline teaching staff to senior leadership. This begins with listening: gathering insights through consultation, co-design workshops, and feedback loops to understand lived experiences and surface hidden challenges. By acknowledging diverse perspectives and working transparently, I model the kind of openness and inclusivity that are foundational to lasting change.

Within my team, I foster a psychologically safe environment where experimentation is encouraged, failure is seen as a learning opportunity, and professional development is embedded in everyday practice. Institutionally, I use communities of practice and cross-functional working groups to connect colleagues, enabling peer-led innovation and shared ownership of digital transformation. I advocate for change not as a top-down directive, but as a co-created journey—supported by clear values, evidence-informed practice, and visible leadership.

Through storytelling, showcasing exemplars, and celebrating incremental progress, I make change feel achievable and relevant. Ultimately, I work to align strategic goals with ethical and inclusive practice, ensuring that culture change is not only about adopting new technologies, but about embedding new ways of thinking, collaborating, and supporting one another to thrive in an evolving educational landscape.

Supporting evidence:

Collaborating for success: HeLF's Annual Report on Advancing Educational Technological Practice in 2023-2024:

https://figshare.com/articles/online_resource/Collaborating_for_Success_HeLF_s_Annual_Report_on_Advancing_Technology_Enhanced_Learning_in_2023-2024/28638662/1?file=53143097

ALT Conference Committee, Manchester 2024:

https://altc.alt.ac.uk/2024/conference-committee/

How Technology Helped Edge Hill University Create an Inclusive and Engaging Learning Environment for All Students -A holistic approach to inclusive learning supports students from all backgrounds:

https://www.anthology.com/story/how-technology-helped-edge-hill-university-create-an-inclusive-and-engaging-learning