Member University Information

Background

The Health and Education Co-operative (HE Co-op) was originally established through the Strategic Health Authority, with the aim of encouraging partnership working between universities across the North West.

A key incentive at the time was a jointly funded project to develop an online learning resource for non-medical prescribing.
A company was established as part of the project funding. While not all North West HEIs chose to become part of the formal company, five HEIs made that commitment and remain members today. These are:

University of Greater Manchester – Michelle Powell
University of Lancashire – Andy Melling
University of Chester – Prof Angela Simpson
University of Cumbria – Prof Karen Stansfield
University of Salford – Dr Naomi Sharples

Board members meet quarterly with the Chief Officer, Jo Tate, to review performance and discuss future activities.

What does the HE-Co-op do?

The HE Co-op was initially established to develop a shared online resource to support non-medical prescribing (NMP) students. This resource continues to be available today. However, the HE Co-op has since evolved and now provides an extensive range of online resources, alongside collaborative contract management services.

SN@P Assessment and Education
Numeracy development resources and assessments designed for healthcare students, but suitable for use across a range of subjects. Academics can choose from more than 1,000 questions or upload their own questions for formative or summative assessments.

SN@P Invigilation Centre
Supporting the integrity of online student assessments while providing assurance and helping to reduce administrative workload. Developed following the COVID-19 pandemic, the online invigilation centre can support both live and recorded assessment sessions, including student screen sharing and a profile view of the student while completing their assessment.

HealthVLE for CPD online courses
An easy-to-access platform that removes the need for users to formally register as students through your HEI. We also provide technical support to users accessing the platform. Members provide the course content, and we support the delivery and administration of the online resource.

Medicines Management and Preparing to Prescribe
A progressive resource designed to support undergraduate students in becoming ‘prescriber ready’ by the point of registration. The resource includes a range of activities and is intended to complement classroom learning. Find out more about who has been involved from your organisation.

NMP Post Graduate Resource and DPP Course
Our original flagship resource, designed to support Level 6 and Level 7 students through their NMP qualification. Our DPP course is designed to support practice assessors who are working with NMP students.

All these resources are currently free for member universities to use*.

Our Ethos

We work on the Aristotle principle:  

The whole is greater than the sum of its parts

HE Co-op member universities contribute academic staff time towards the development of shared resources. In return, our member universities benefit from free access to the resources, while universities outside the membership are charged a licence fee for access.

Academics working collaboratively with colleagues from other universities have found the experience both beneficial and enjoyable. In most cases, time is allocated through the Board of Directors to enable academics to contribute to shared development projects and resources.

Why is my University involved in the HE Co-op?

  • Free access to collaborative resources, saving your HEI thousands of pounds each year.
  • Opportunities to work collaboratively with other HEIs to develop shared solutions to common challenges.
  • Increasing external expectations from regulatory bodies, government organisations, funders and research institutions for HEIs to work collaboratively.

Ideas for future collaborations?

The COVID-19 pandemic was a catalyst for the development of our online assessment tools. Maintaining the integrity of online student assessments was a shared challenge experienced by all of our member universities.

Similarly, new NMC guidance relating to undergraduate nurses created requirements that all members needed to address.

While we recognise that there is naturally an element of competition between member universities, the HE Co-op focuses on areas where we can work together for mutual benefit. This collaborative approach can be highly rewarding for the academics involved and provides access to a wider network of peers.

We are always open to exploring new projects and resources where there is a benefit to pooling expertise and developing a consistent approach. If you have an idea for a future collaboration, please contact Jo.

Jo is currently on secondment from the University of Cumbria.

Our Member Universities