University governanceUniversity Court

The Court is the overall Governing Body of the University and is responsible for overseeing the management and administration of the whole of the revenue and property of the University.

Court is also responsible for academic governance but, on matters relating to the academic work of the University, Court will normally only act on the recommendation of the Senate.

The current membership of Court is drawn from the University’s external and internal communities, and includes co-opted lay members, academic and professional services staff, Students’ Association representatives, the Principal and Vice-Principal and representatives from local government.

Court currently has 24 members, the majority of whom are co-opted lay members (ie neither members of University staff nor students).

Find out more about joining the University Court.

Co-opted members

Dame Sue Bruce Convener of Court

Dame Sue Bruce (to 2025) - Convener

(co-opted and appointed Convener  in 2017)

Committees: Court Business Group, Court Membership Group, Remuneration

  • Electoral Commissioner - Scotland
  • Former Chief Executive of Edinburgh City Council (2011-2015)
  • Non-Executive Director of SSE Plc
  • Chair of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO)
  • Visiting Professor, Strathclyde Institute of Public Policy (non-staff)
  • Strathclyde alumna – MPhil, LLB 
Lay Court Member Paula Galloway

Paula Galloway (to 2025) - Vice-Convener

(appointed in 2017)

Committees: Audit & Risk (Convener), Court Business Group, Court Membership Group

Safeguarding Lead on Court

  • Former Partner and Head of Audit, French Duncan LLP
  • Former Audit Director, KPMG
  • Chartered Accountant with expertise in providing audit and related services to a diverse client portfolio
  • A trustee of the High School of Glasgow Educational Trust
Virginia Beckett, Lay Court Members

Virginia Beckett  (to 2025) - Deputy Convener (Estates)

 (appointed in 2020)

 Committees: Court Business Group, Estates, Court Membership Group

  • CEO at Regent Capital Plc
  • Director of New Resource Partners
  • Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
  • SPF Working Group Advisory - Section 63 of the Climate Change (Scotland) (2009)
  • Scottish Property Federation/British Property Federation
  • Investment Property Forum
  • Formerly Director CBRE Capital Markets
Stephen Ingledew Court Member

Stephen Ingledew (to 2028) - Deputy Convener (Enterprise & Investment)

(appointed 2019)

Committees: Court Business Group, Court Membership Group, Enterprise & Investment (Deputy Convener)

  • Chief Executive of FinTech Scotland
  • Previously held senior executive roles in financial services companies, including Standard Life and Barclays
  • Non-Executive Director, Marketing Edinburgh Ltd
  • Member of UK Department of International Trade FinTech Steering Board
  • Member of Edinburgh and South East Regional Enterprise Council
  • Member of Scottish Govt Digital Transformation Steering Board
  • Member of Scot Tech Board for Law Society of Scotland

Charles Berry (to 2028)

(appointed 2023)

 Committees: Enterprise and Investment Committee; Staff Committee

  • Former Chairman of The Weir Group PLC, Centrica PLC, Senior PLC and Drax Group PLC
  • Honorary Air Commodore of No.602 (City of Glasgow) Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force
  • Former Chairman o the £21m Brick by Brick Capital Appeal, Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice
  • Former member of the Steering Group of the Hampton-Alexander Review which increased the number of women in leadership positions in FTSE 350 companies
  • Honorary Doctorate in Engineering from both The University of Glasgow and Glasgow Caledonian University

Clyde Marwick (to 2028)

(appointed in 2023)

Committees: Staff Committee; Remuneration Committee

  • Group HR and Communications Director as well as Ethics Lead at Baxters
  • Currently sits on The Group Executive Board, Remuneration Committee, Baxters Group Risk Committee and has people governance responsibility across European, North American and Australian Business Units
  • Member of Baxters Environmental, Social and Governance Committee
  • Member of the Scottish HR Leadership Group
  • Global advisory Board member - TALiNT Partners
  • Postgraduate Diplomas in Executive Coaching from Strathclyde in 2006 and Leadership Communication from Napier University in 2013

Belinda Oldfield (to 2028)

 (appointed in 2023)

 Committees: Audit and Risk Committee

  • Non-Executive Director, Northern Ireland Water & Chair of Risk Committee
  • Non-Executive Director, Highlands & Islands Enterprise & Risk and Audit Committee member
  • Non-Executive Director, Scottish Government & Corporate Board member
  • Former Orkney Research & Innovation Campus (ORIC) LLP Board member
  • Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE)
  • Former ICE Scotland Public Voice Committee
  • Scottish Water Strategic Leader 1992 - 2022
  • Recipient of the inaugural UK Top 50 Women in Engineering Award
  • Former Institute of Water Scottish Area President
  • Former Chair of the Institute of Water Scotland Committee

Catriona Schmolke (to 2028)

(appointed in 2023)

Committees: SACSOH (Convener)

  • Non-Executive Director at National Physical Laboratory
  • Non-Executive Director at Scottish Water
  • Trustee and Vice President at the Royal Academy of Engineering
  • Visiting Professor in Sustainability, Risk and Resilience at Newcastle University
  • Former Global Senior Vice President JACOBS Inc (2015-2020)
  • Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (2016)
  • Recipient of the Outstanding Female Leadership in Safety award from the National Safety Council of America
  • Strathclyde Alumna: (1985) BSc Hons Applied Geology.  Also MPhil (2002), Newcastle

Michael Timar (to 2028)

 (appointed in 2023)

 Committees: Audit and Risk Committee

  • Former senior PwC Audit Partner with significant expertise in audit, financial reporting, governance and risk
  • Extensive experience working with large complex business including FTSE 100 and Scottish Higher Education Institutions
  • International experience from leading global teams and secondments in Zurich, Moscow and Portland
  • Other roles have included PwC Scotland Risk Management Partner and PwC Head of Power & Utilities
  • Strathclyde Alumnus (BA - 1990)
peter young court member

Peter Young (to 2028)

(appointed in 2019)

Committees: EIC

Neelam Bakshi (to 2026) - Deputy Convener (Staff)

 (appointed in 2021)

 Committees: CMG, Estates, Staff (Deputy Convener)

  • Self Employed Management Consultant (NB Associates)
  • Board Member of Judicial Appointments Board Scotland, Chair Audit & Risk Management Committee (2016-2019)
  • Tribunal Member, Social Entitlement Chamber 1st Tier
  • Tribunal Member Employment Tribunals Scotland (ETS)
  • Public Appointments Adviser, Ethical Standards Commissioner, Scotland
Melfort Campbell

Melfort Campbell  (to 2026)

 (appointed in 2021)

 Committees: Audit & Risk, Remuneration (Convener)

  • Member Scottish Energy advisory board
  • Co-Chair of the Energy Transition Strategic Leadership group
  • Former board member of Scottish Enterprise
  • Former chair of CBI Scotland
  • Scottish Government Expert Commission on maximizing the value from the UKCS
  • Chair Robert Gordon University Foundation
  • Board Member of Buffalo Energy Ltd, Fast 2 Fibre and Imes Group Holdings Ltd
  • Visiting Professor,  Faculty of Engineering (non-staff)
  • Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Fiona Salzen

Fiona Salzen (to 2027)

 (appointed in 2022)

 Committees: Court Business Group, Enterprise and Investment Committee, Court Membership Group, Remuneration Committee, Estates Committee

  • The British Council: Trustee, Member of the Audit & Risk committee and the Commercial Board.
  • JISC: Independent member of the Audit and Risk Management Committee
  • The Queen’s Hall (Edinburgh) Ltd: Non executive director and Chair of Finance & Governance Committee
  • Chartered Accountant & independent strategy consultant
  • Formerly Corporate Finance Partner, Deloitte LLC

Ex Officio members

Professor Sir Jim McDonald

Professor Sir Jim McDonald: Principal & Vice-Chancellor

(appointed Principal in 2008)

Committees: Court Business Group, Court Membership Group, Staff, Estates, Enterprise & Investment

  • Rolls-Royce Professor of Electrical Power Systems since 1994
  • Non-Executive Director and Deputy Chair, Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult; Non-Executive Director, Weir Group Plc; Co-Chair, Scottish Energy Advisory Board; Chair and Trustee, Glasgow Science Centre; Chair, Glasgow Economic Leadership Board
  • Formerly Deputy Principal and Head of Department of Electronic & Electrical Engineering
  • Knighthood, Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Honours (2012)
  • Strathclyde alumnus – undergraduate, MSc and PhD degrees in Engineering
Scott McGregor

Professor Scott MacGregor

(appointed Vice-Principal in 2014)

Committees: Court Business Group, Court Membership Group, Estates

  • Professor of High Voltage Engineering since 2001
  • Founder and co-Director of the Robertson Trust Laboratory for Electronic Sterilisation Technologies and Head of the High Voltage Technologies Group
  • Formerly Executive Dean of the Faculty of Engineering (2010-14)
  • Strathclyde alumnus – BSc and PhD degrees in Engineering

Members elected by the Senate

Yvonne Perrie (to 2026)

(appointed 2023)

  • Head of Institute, Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences

Zahra Rattray (to 2026)

(appointed 2024)

  • Senior Lecturer in Translational Pharmaceutics
  • Academic in Residence Laboratory of the Government Chemist
  • Director of the EPSRC Multiscale Metrology Suite
  • Member of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Young Academy of Scotland
  • Scottish Universities Life Sciences Alliance Executive Board Member
  • Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
  • Fellow of the Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences

 

Members elected by Academic Professional staff

Professor Tracy Morse 

(appointed in 2024)

  • Professor of Environmental Health
  • Head of Strathclyde Centre for Sustainable Development
  • Strathclyde Regional Lead Coordinator for Africa
  • Honorary Vice President of Royal Environmental Health Institute for Scotland
  • Fellow of the Royal Society of Public Health
  • Trustee of Scotland Malawi Partnership
  • Trustee of Famine Relief for Orphans in Malawi (Scotland)

Members elected by Professional Services staff

Chris McKenzie

(appointed in 2024)

  • Acting Head of Disability & Wellbeing, Student Experience
  • Non-Exec Director of LEAD Scotland
  • Strathclyde Alumnus – BA (hons) and M.Ed.

Members appointed by the University’s formally recognised Trade Unions

Chris Jones

(appointed in 2023)

  • Laboratory Manager, Chemical & Process Engineering

Dr David Pritchard

(appointed in 2023)

  • Senior Lecturer in Mathematics & Statistics
  • Postgraduate Research Director for Mathematics & Statistics
  • Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (Advance HE)
  • Former Strathclyde UCU Branch Negotiator
  • Former Trustee of the Edinburgh Mathematical Society, Scottish Mathematical Council, and Joint Mathematical Council of the UK

Members elected or appointed by the University of Strathclyde Students’ Association

Eva Curran

(appointed in 2023)

  • President, Strathclyde Students' Union
  • Area of study - BBA Marketing 

Charlie Wilson

(appointed in 2024)

  • VP Education, Strathclyde Students' Union
  • Trustee, Strath Union
  • MEng Product Design Engineering, Strathclyde
  • Member of the Quality Council for UK Higher Education
  • Member of the Tertiary Quality Student Expert Group

Members appointed by external organisations

Richard Bell, Court, Lay Member

Councillor Richard Bell

(appointed in 2022)

  • SNP Councillor for Govan
  • Convener for Financial Inclusion
  • Depute Leader of the Council
  • City Treasurer
  • Vice Convener, City Administration Committee

We meet 5 times a year