This is a key question and an important one to answer. This is where a institution outsourced its educational development to a third party and that third party works in partnership to deliver a shared service. Depending on the arrangement, they will often 'feel' and operate like part of the institution.

We feel there are three reasons that an educational institution may wish to consider an outsourced EDU; either a full or part time solution to their educational development requirements. 

Our approach to delivering an outsourced EDU is based on three core principles: (1) partnership, (2) impact and (3) sustainability.

Hosting and running an Educational Development Unit (EDU) is not a cheap endeavour and depending on the size of the institution the costs can be disproportionate for the investment.

For example, an EDU comprising a team of four people and a team manager will most likely have operational costs of over £300,000 per year (see below)

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Additionally, this is most likely not a fixed cost, with annual changes, end-of-year budget targets as well as sector pressures linked to recruitment and subsequent budget availability.  With institutional requirements changing fast, budget is often slower to catch up.

An institutional team will comprise great people, but unless it is a particularly large team it will most likely not cover all the specialisms required for an educational institution. This will result in the need for additional external input to bridge any gaps - often a challenge to source and onboard in a short time frame.



Educational development, will have periods of intense work and then periods of lower sustained activity. Additionally, there will be periods when significantly intense activity are required, for example, launching a new course, responding to an external survey or preparing for a new academic year. 



The maximum possible work and therefore impact will be limited by the FTE and capacity of the internal team. Additionally, extra capacity may not need to be sustained and permanent recruitment may not be the best use of funds, or even preventative, if the funding is not available. The ability to pivot and respond is essential.

We believe for educational development to work, there needs to be a deep knowledge of the institution, its successes and pressures and its staff and students. As a business, we don’t guess, we ask, we learn and we then work in partnership to help meet the goals of the institution. If you choose to use our service, you’ll have access to our whole team and this is flexible to meet your requirements at a given part of the academic cycle. We have two approaches of working with clients and these are shown to the right (move the slider to see the two options).

As part of our on-boarding approach, and to inform our work, we ask clients to provide an institutional performance dataset, strategies, regulations and KPIs to help us contextualise our approach. All data is confidential and it is up to the institution as to which data they share. 

Performance and KPI Actions

Integrating, mixing and analysing module, course, and institutional data to help inform decisions and future activities. Reports, recommendations and action plan construction to inform decision-making and work.

Curriculum Design 


 Working with course teams, module leaders, departments and schools to design an impactful curriculum aligned to sector benchmarks and requirements. Providing support through validation processes.

Course Delivery


Working at the individual, module and course level to support the logistical and academic running of modules including timetabling, assessment and feedback, classroom engagement and the latest pedagogical theory and practice.

Digital Transformation

Leading and managing the introduction and use of digital technology including LMS/VLE implementation, e-Assessment and e-Portfolios as well as designing and delivering staff technological CPD and guidance.

Staff Development & CPD

Designing and delivering targeted and impactful staff development and CPD including 1:1 mentoring and team support. Activities spanning the breadth of academic practice to enhance the work of the individual and institution.

Pedagogical Research

Integrating innovative pedagogic research and practice into the work of educational academic practice including action research, writing for publication and the creation of a sustainable culture of pedagogic research and publication.

We have a five step approach for setting up, delivering and evaluating a virtual EDU and this is shown in the diagram on the right. Every client will have their own Dedicated EDU Manager who will work as the main point of contact and will be responsible for monitoring engagement and performance against the client’s requirements. 

We take a programme management approach to running a virtual EDU. All targets, budget and milestones are agreed in advance and so there are no surprises. Importantly, we are agile in our approach and if a change is required, a change control process is followed working with the client.

A core part of a virtual EDU’s success is the relationships it builds with the client and their team. The approach is adapted to meet the needs for the client. We use a client’s core institutional documentation to ensure we are on message and brand. Depending on the client’s requirements, our team may be given institutional specific email addresses and work completely within their digital infrastructure. All data is retained by the client and anything we create on their behalf is licensed indefinitely for their use.