Ed Baines receives an Honorary Fellowship

Highly successful and influential Educationalist, Ed Baines has received an Honorary Fellowship from the University of Northampton at this year’s Summer Graduation.

Peter Wells, Deputy Dean of the School of Education, at the University presented Ed with the award at the Royal & Derngate during the ceremony on Thursday 18 July at 5:30pm.

Ed’s educational journey has been both intellectually and geographically diverse; his early life in South Shields saw the germination of his passion for education when he experienced the influence the 11+ examination had on the lives of young children.

He took up his first teaching post in Milton Keynes which rapidly led to a Vice Principal post in a Leicestershire secondary school. The next 10 years of leadership were characterised by a relentless focus on modernisation and innovation which led to year on year improvements in pupils’ learning.

After Ed’s ‘retirement’ in the early 1990s, his educational work continued to be driven by a desire to make a positive impact on the educational experiences of children and young people. This was achieved for a number of reasons, including his role as Chair of the Board of Governors at Tresham College and enabling a range of overseas international schools to improve their pupils’ attainment.

More recently, Ed has been directed towards the development of 14 University Technical Colleges across the breadth of the country, including two in Northamptonshire.

Peter commented: “Ed is one of those rare individuals who has enjoyed a very varied career, but has skilfully maintained a steadfast common thread throughout all that he has done: to make a positive and long-lasting impact on the educational experiences of children and young people.”

Ed commented, “I am absolutely delighted with this honour and it’s lovely to meet so many old friends at the University so it’s nice to be recognised by people you know.”

​Over 3,000 students will be graduating from the University of Northampton this summer, 2,000 of which will be celebrating with family members and friends at the annual Summer Graduation ceremonies over the course of the week: Tuesday 16 July to Friday 19 July.