Margaret Casely-Hayford, CBE, until recently was Chancellor of Coventry University, a role she held for close to 7 years.  She has had an extensive career having been a partner at Dentons in legal practice for close to 20 years, and has held roles as NED of the NHS, as a Special Trustee at Great Ormond Street Hospital Childrens’ Charity, Chair at Shakespeares’ Globe, and as a Board Member of Co-op, to name just a few. We featured her on our podcast in February 2021, where we discussed her role as a champion for diversity in the law and are delighted to now welcome her back to discuss her candidacy for the Chancellorship at Oxford University, an institution of which she is herself an alumna.

In order to look forward we first briefly look back – at her legacy from Chancellor of Coventry University – at her vision for educational institutions in terms of growth, access and relevance in the decades to come. We speak about her initiatives there, and her vision for leadership as well as enriching the student body. We move then to some of the issues at stake in the coming election and cycle through them in terms of the unique nature of Oxford given its   Oxford specific college/hall identity/symbolism, how it can blend this with a robust research agenda and the other expectations of a modern institution. We return to the topic of value for money of a university degree and the fundraising agenda that must accompany any such role.  We move then to Margaret’s unique style of leadership and advocacy and her stance on freedom of expression, academic freedoms and other freedoms within the university setting.

Margaret’s career has been characterized by taking a stand, grit, advocacy, transparency and winning trust through partnership and collaboration. Tune in to hear her unique vision for the Chancellorship role at Oxford University.