In our May 2026 news article we were delighted to announced that Douglas Blackstock had been appointed as the new Chair of the sparqs Trustee Board. Our September 2026 Trustee Board meeting marked the formal handover of the role, with Douglas taking up the mantle from Sir Andrew Cubie.
We are excited to welcome Douglas to the Board and look forward to working with him going forward. We are confident that he will be an excellent Chair for sparqs, bringing extensive leadership experience from across higher education quality assurance, regulation and governance.
We are very grateful to Sir Andrew for the induction and handover in the lead up to Douglas formally taking up the role. Once again, we thank Sir Andrew for his outstanding leadership of the Trustee Board over the past seven years. He will be missed both personally and professionally by the Trustees and the sparqs staff team.
We are also delighted to announce that Ann Baxter has been appointed as a new Trustee. Until her retirement as Deputy Principal from New College Lanarkshire in June 2025, Ann was a long-standing member of the sparqs College Advisory Group and latterly the Co-Chair of the Joint Advisory Group, now known as sparqs’ Tertiary Advisory Group (STAG). Ann was a much valued member of the advisory groups over the years and her knowledge and experience of the college sector are a welcome addition to the Board.
Ann was appointed at the September Trustee Board meeting, which she attended as an observer. We look forward to formally welcoming her as a Trustee at the December 2026 meeting.
We know that sector colleagues will join us is welcoming both Douglas and Ann to their roles.