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May 2026 Bulletin

1 May 2026
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See in Microsoft Sway

  1. Upcoming Dates and Deadlines
  2. Processes in May
  3. Durham University Board of Examiners (Overarching)
  4. Annual Conference for Theological Educators 2026
  5. Publicity/Website Guidance
  6. Common Awards Student Survey (CASS)
  7. Common Awards Webinar
  8. Concessions for Programme Changes (within a TEI)
  9. TEI Forum: Election of Chairperson
  10. Further Information

1. Upcoming Deadlines and Key Dates

7th May - Common Awards Management Board 

22nd May - Deadline: TEIs to submit Curriculum Development requests for programme and module changes 

29th May - Common Awards Student Survey closes

2. Processes in May

Curriculum Development requests for programme and module changes 

Please could we ask TEIs to note the following:

  • Please ensure your documentation is on time so the CA team can work through the requests in a timely manner. With multiple queries to be resolved with each TEI, having the documents by the deadline means there will be time to liaise with TEIs to ensure accuracy of documentation.  
  • Ahead of the deadline for submission of CDRs in May, please could we remind all TEIs to check, and make sure that tracked changes is turned on before making any changes to T3 documents. We can only review and approve CDRs where changes have been made with tracked changes ON.
  • T4s and T5s: Please make any changes clear. Please highlight cells/rows where changes have been made and add comments in the comments column at the end of each row.
  • Please ensure all T3’s are submitted, even if there are no changes to be made to the content; the date will need changing and the document sent to us. 
  • Please cross check your documentation before it is sent to the CA team. All changes made to T3s, T4s and T5s must match the information provided in the Curriculum Development Request Form. 

3. Durham University Board of Examiners (Overarching)

The Overarching Board of Examiners are due to be held on September 3rd (Summer) and December 1st (Winter), 2026. We therefore ask that TEIs hold their own Board of Examiners no later than 5th August 2026 (Summer) and 2nd November 2026 (Winter). This allows the Common Awards Team enough time to process the data received from TEIs, and resolve any queries, before the Overarching Board of Examiners. However, please do let us know if these dates present any problems for your TEI. We would be grateful if you could let us know you Exam Board dates once they have been scheduled.

TEIs are reminded that they are very welcome to send a representative from their TEI Board of Examiners (normally the Chair) to the meetings of the overarching Board. Up to three TEI BoE representatives may attend each board. This can be a good way for TEIs to discover more about how the overarching Board works, and to see how we handle decisions about their students. The next meeting of the Board is due to be held online, on 3rd September 2026. Please contact the team if a representative from your TEI Board of Examiners wishes to attend this meeting.

Exam Board Training/Information Sessions

We will be holding some Exam Board training/information sessions in advance of the 2025/26 Boards, in collaboration with Dr Ken Farrimond of the Ministry Development Team. There will be two sessions, primarily aimed at TEI staff involved in the preparation for Exam Boards at Common Awards TEIs, and the sessions will take place online. The dates/times are as follows; please complete the online registration form if you would like to attend:

Tuesday 5th May: 10:00-12:00

Thursday 14th May: 14:00-16:00

4. The Annual Conference of Theological Educators 2026

The 2026 Annual Conference for Theological Educators will be taking place on July 15th – 17th, at Durham University.

For more information, please visit the Common Awards website conference page

5. Publicity/Website Guidance

TEIs are reminded that all published information for and associated with validated Common Awards programmes and the partnership with the University must be approved in advance by the Common Awards Management Board, on behalf of the University. TEIs are contractually obliged to share all publicity materials that reference Durham University, the Common Awards partnership and/or the Common Awards programmes. 

We would kindly ask that TEIs check all published information of this nature to ensure that it takes into account the following, and that any new material is submitted to the University for approval:

  • That references to ‘Durham’ are in context. i.e. that it is clear that is it the ‘University of Durham’ or ‘Durham University’
  • That it is clear to students that they will receive a Durham University award.
  • The programmes (and modules) listed are accurate:
    • that you have approval to deliver the programmes listed;
    • that the name of the programmes are recognisable (e.g. CertHE in Theology, Ministry and Mission would be fine);
    • that any programmes that have not yet been approved are listed as “subject to approval” or “subject to validation”
  • The correct terminology is used about the University and Common Awards
    • the University offers avalidation arrangement rather than an accreditation
    • the awards are validated or awarded by Durham University, rather than Common Awards.
  • TEIs cannot advertise a Graduation or Congregation ceremony as students officially graduate from the University. Celebration events are fine.
  • Check any links to the University web pages are correct.

6. Common Awards Student Survey (CASS)

The Common Awards Student Survey (CASS) was launched on 17 April 2026. Eligible students received a direct link to participate in the survey. We encourage TEI staff and student representatives to promote the survey and motivate students to take part, as this will help ensure the collection of valuable and representative data.

The closing date is 29th May 2026.

7. Common Awards Webinar

Wednesday 6th May, 2pm – 3.30pm:

Class in Theological Education, with Dr Sharon Jagger, Dr Alex Fry and Rebecca Tyndall with the Revd Rachel Simons

A chance to explore a recent report on the experience of working-class students in theological education, and its suggestions of ways forward for Theological Education Institutions deconstructing classed environments and making theological education an arena for working-class voices.

Microsoft Teams meeting

Join: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/33162272804925?p=xB4gHXgDF1oMjkICgx

Meeting ID: 331 622 728 049 25Passcode: XH6e5mQ6

8. Concessions for Programme Changes (within a TEI)

As we approach the final term, please could TEIs wishing to transfer their students on to different programmes follow the process below for concessions/exam board progression:

Programme transfer (within a TEI)

This concession is required if a student wishes to transfer to a different programme offered by the TEI.

This type of concession does not include students wishing to move onto a different programme after the award of a programme (e.g. a student moving from the Diploma to the BA - this is a decision of the TEI’s Board of Examiners based on satisfactory progress). Students should not be transferred between programmes during the final term of study in any academic year; programme transfers at this point should be managed through the Board of Examiners. See our page on TEI Boards of Examiners: Progression for more information. A concessions request can be used in exceptional circumstances if the meeting of the Board of Examiners is scheduled after the start of teaching for the destination programme.   

If a student is:

  • leaving with a lower award (eg BA to Diploma), they should remain on the original programme and exit at the exam board.
  • transferring to a programme offered by another TEI then the receiving TEI is required to submit a concession for approval.

9. TEI Forum: Election of Chairperson

As a vacancy has arisen for the position of Chair of the TEI Forum for the 2026/27 academic year, the Common Awards team will convene a formal election to appoint a new Chair in advance of the next TEI Forum meeting. The appointment will be made for a fixed term of three years.

We would therefore like to invite forum members who are interested in becoming Chair to complete a nomination form by close of play on Friday 5th June. Nominations are also welcome from current non-members who are core staff at Common Awards TEIs.

The Chairperson may, but is not required to be, one of the two TEI Forum representatives to the Management Board.

If you are interested in the position, and would like a copy of the nomination form, please contact the Common Awards team (common.awards@durham.ac.uk).

The proposed timeline for the election process is as follows:

05.06.26 Candidates nominate themselves by this date

12.06.26 Candidate information is published on Durham’s Common Awards website and the election opens (the election will be run through the Common Awards website)

30.06.26: The election closes

03.07.26: Durham’s Common Awards team announces the results of the election

10. Further Information

The full 2025/2026 academic calendar is available here.

With thanks,   

Common Awards Team