University of Portsmouth team wins national award for transforming Royal Air Force education

The Portsmouth Military Education Team (PMET) has been recognised by Advance HE for transforming professional military education through imaginative teaching, inclusive digital learning and an exceptional culture of collaboration.

The PMET is one of only 15 teams who have received the Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence (CATE) in recognition of their significant and lasting contributions to student success, innovation and educational practice. 

The PMET works across RAF College Cranwell and RAF Halton. Together, the team supports approximately 500 officer cadets and 3,000 non-commissioned officers each year.

Its work takes place in a uniquely demanding educational environment. Learners balance intensive academic study with physical training, inspections, exercises and leadership development, often leaving them with very limited time to prepare for classes.

Responding to these pressures, PMET developed its “two sites, one team” approach, bringing colleagues together across Cranwell and Halton to share expertise, maintain consistent academic standards and design learning around the realities of military life.  As Veronica Hinman reflected ‘The entire team is delighted to have won the award. It is wonderful to have our work recognised, and the award demonstrates that our hard work and commitment have paid off’.

The team has replaced lengthy and content-heavy online materials with shorter, more accessible resources in a choice of formats, including podcasts, videos and concise written materials. This allows learners to study in ways that fit around their training and operational commitments without reducing academic expectations. Classroom teaching was also redesigned to make greater use of discussion, simulation and the application of knowledge to realistic professional situations. Learners have described the resulting sessions as “the best part of the course”, “extremely useful and insightful” and “absolutely fantastic, very engaging”.

PMET has also strengthened the integrity and consistency of assessment. Through peer observation, shared review and collaborative moderation, the team has developed robust approaches to viva assessment that test learners’ understanding, reasoning and professional judgement. This work has become increasingly important as generative AI changes how learners prepare for assessment.

The team’s influence extends beyond its own programmes. In 2023, PMET organised the first Phase 1 Professional Military Education Symposium, bringing together educators from RAF College Cranwell, the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth. The event established a cross-service forum for addressing shared challenges in military education and has led to continuing dialogue, teaching observation and collaboration.

The Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence recognises teams whose work has had a demonstrable impact on teaching and learning. It is one of the most prestigious national awards available to Higher Education Teams in the UK.

Dr Veronika Hinman, Deputy Director of the Portsmouth Military Education Team, said: “The entire team is delighted to have won the award. It is wonderful to have our work recognised, and the award demonstrates that our hard work and commitment have paid off.”

PMET’s award also reflects the strength of the University’s partnership with the RAF, which began in 2012 and was renewed in 2020. Through this partnership, Portsmouth is helping to prepare intellectually agile military leaders who can think critically, communicate effectively and make sound decisions under pressure.

Associate Professor, Dr Andy Clegg, the University’s Teaching Excellence Award Lead and Head of Academic Innovation in the Centre for Academic and Digital Innovation (CADI) said: “This national award is richly deserved recognition for a team whose work combines educational ambition with a deep understanding of its learners and within a professional context. PMET has shown what can be achieved when collaboration becomes part of the everyday culture of a team. Their work strengthens our long-standing partnership with the Royal Air Force and demonstrates Portsmouth’s ability to deliver outstanding higher education in some of the most complex professional environments.”

Alistair Jarvis CBE, Chief Executive of Advance HE, added: “Congratulations to the recipients of the 2026 National Teaching Fellowships and Collaborative Awards for Teaching Excellence. They exemplify the dedication, creativity and leadership that underpin outstanding higher education. Through their commitment to students and continual enhancement of teaching and learning, they are making a significant contribution to their institutions and the wider sector.”

The award follows the University of Portsmouth becoming a founding member of the UK Defence Universities Alliance (DUA), which aims to create a thriving network of defence research expertise and drive a highly-skilled workforce across the UK. 

The alliance is a long-term collaboration between the MOD, the UK Armed Forces, the Office of the Chief Scientific Advisor for National Security, and the higher education sector. It will help defence and academia work together across research, skills and developing the future defence industry workforce.  

The 2026 National Teaching Fellows and CATE recipients will be formally recognised at an awards ceremony on 24 September 2026 in Edinburgh.