Neil Ford

Neil Ford serves as a Principal Teaching Fellow (Academic Development) in the Centre for Higher Education Practice (CHEP) at the University of Southampton since 2022, following prior roles as an education developer in Southampton Business School (2016-2022) and subject librarian at Bournemouth University (2009-2016). Driven by his experience as a first-generation student, he specializes in creating inclusive learning communities that foster identity, belonging, and knowledge sharing through peer-supported frameworks.

His research focuses on student peer support systems, collaborative student-staff partnerships, and digital pedagogy innovation, emphasizing how community-building and active learning principles transfer effectively from student development to academic staff professional growth. Current work explores peer support models for educational leadership roles including Programme Leads, extending his foundational work with Peer Assisted Learning schemes.

Ford has developed university-wide initiatives including co-created peer learning programs, redesigned active-induction frameworks, and near-peer dissertation support systems. His scholarship directly informs practical implementations across Southampton's academic infrastructure, particularly through Advance HE recognition programs for business academics and postgraduate researchers.

As CHEP's central academic developer, he now cultivates communities of practice that bridge student and staff development through shared principles of partnership, active engagement, and peer mentorship – demonstrating how educational leadership can be strengthened through collaborative network structures rather than top-down approaches.