About Lee
Hello
My name is Lee Davies.
I am the Deputy Chief Executive of the Institute for Learning (IfL), a professional body for teachers, trainers, tutors and others working in further education and other areas related to adult learning.
I have a real passion for membership organisations and professional identity, particularly what this means in the 21st century, where the internet, technology and the social media phenomenon are changing the way professionals connect with each other and share knowledge and experience.
I have worked in further education and adult learning since 1987, when I started my career as a part-time plumbing lecturer at Highbury College in Portsmouth. I enjoyed a fantastic 12 years at Highbury, progressing from lecturer to senior lecturer, principal lecturer in charge of mechanical and electrical services, Head of School of Construction and finally cross-college leadership responsibility for curriculum development. In 1999 I left Highbury to take up the position of District Secretary of the Thames and Solent District of the Workers’ Educational Association (WEA).
In 2004 I became a member of the newly established Institute for Learning, at that time a voluntary professional body for teachers and trainers in further education. I joined IfL as a member because I was supportive of its vision to create a new professional identity for teachers and trainers and, through that work, to enhance their status and professional standing. In 2005 I had the opportunity to apply for IfL’s first leadership role, becoming Deputy Chief Executive in 2007.
I led IfL through its transition from a voluntary professional body of several thousand members to become a mandatory organisation for teachers and trainers with a regulatory role. With 200,000+ members, IfL’s focus is on providing a world class membership experience through which teachers and trainers enjoy the highest professional status, are connected with peers and colleagues through the sharing of experience and learning and have an influence on policy across the sector.
I am a Fellow of the Royal Society for the encouragement of the Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), a Fellow of the Institute for Learning (IfL), a Fellow of the Institute for Leadership and Management (ILM) and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering (CIPHE). I am an honorary life member of the City & Guilds of London Institute (CGLI).
