Collaboration and co-construction: Developing Meaningful Student Partnerships

Accessibility and Inclusion: Whose Voices Are Missing? 

Accessibility and inclusion are central to meaningful student partnership. Opportunities to contribute should not be limited to students who are already confident, highly visible, or familiar with university processes. Instead, partnership activities should be designed to minimise barriers, value diverse perspectives, and offer multiple ways for students to engage and contribute. 

 Although opportunities to get involved may be available, not all students are equally able or willing to participate. Factors such as confidence, time pressures, caring responsibilities, disability, employment commitments, commuting, language differences, and previous educational experiences can all influence how students engage. 

 As a result, students who participate in feedback and representation activities may not fully reflect the diversity of the wider student community.

↑ Back to top

What is Student Partnership? 

Traditionally, higher education institutions have positioned students as recipients of education or as passive sources of feedback. Contemporary educational development, however, recognises students as active contributors who bring valuable expertise through their lived experience of learning. 

Healey, Flint and Harrington (2014) describe partnership as “…a collaborative, reciprocal process through which students and staff work together to shape, enhance, and improve learning and teaching.” 

The Power of Complementary Expertise

Partnership succeeds because it brings together two distinct, equally valuable forms of expertise: 

Research demonstrates that student–staff partnership strengthens student engagement, belonging, confidence and agency. It also supports more responsive and inclusive educational practices by ensuring that decisions are informed directly by those they affect most. 

↑ Back to top

Collaboration, Partnership and Enhancement 

Collaboration and co-construction are closely connected to enhancement. While student feedback can help identify areas for improvement, understanding the underlying causes of issues and determining appropriate responses often requires dialogue and shared interpretation. 

 For example, data from the NSS, Module Enhancement Questionnaires, or other feedback mechanisms may highlight concerns relating to assessment, communication or programme organisation. However, quantitative data alone rarely explains why these issues exist. Collaborative approaches enable students and staff to explore evidence together, develop a shared understanding of the student experience, and identify priorities for improvement. 

This approach shifts enhancement:

• From responding to individual comments towards identifying broader themes and patterns.

• From staff-led interpretation towards shared understanding.

• From staff-designed solutions towards jointly informed action.

By bringing together institutional evidence and student experience, collaboration supports enhancement that is more transparent, evidence-informed and responsive to the needs of learners. 

↑ Back to top

From Consultation to Co-construction

Consultation 

Consultation is often the starting point for student voice and engagement activity. It involves gathering student perspectives through surveys, module evaluations, focus groups, feedback forms and informal conversations. Consultation provides valuable insight into student experiences and can help identify areas for improvement. However, students are typically responding to existing practices rather than helping to shape them. 

Questions to consider: 

1. What opportunities exist for students to share their views? 
2. How is feedback collected, analysed and acted upon? 
3. How are outcomes communicated to students? 
4. Do students understand how their feedback contributes to change? 

Collaboration

Collaboration involves students and staff working together to explore issues and inform decision-making. Students contribute their perspectives and experiences throughout the process, helping to build a more comprehensive understanding of the student experience. Examples may include Cardiff 100 activities, focus groups, Student–Staff Panels, student workshops and enhancement projects. By involving students in discussion and exploration, collaboration supports more informed, inclusive and evidence-based decisions. 

 Questions to consider: 

1. How are students involved in exploring and understanding issues? 
2. Where do student perspectives influence decision-making? 
3. How are outcomes communicated and shared? 
4. How are students engaged throughout the process? 

Co-construction

Co-construction represents a deeper form of partnership in which students and staff work together to develop shared understanding and identify solutions. Students not only contribute their experiences but also help interpret evidence, identify priorities and shape future action. 

Examples include joint analysis of NSS results, collaborative interpretation of survey findings, shared Review and Enhancement discussions, and co-development of enhancement plans. Co-construction promotes meaningful dialogue, shared ownership and a stronger sense of partnership between students and staff. 

 Questions to consider: 

1. How are students involved in interpreting evidence and identifying priorities? 
2. Are students contributing to solutions as well as highlighting issues? 
3. Where do students have opportunities to influence enhancement activity? 
4. How are decisions and actions shared and communicated? 

↑ Back to top

---

Actively seeking, listening and responding to all voices 

Co-creating learning experiences with students increases ownership and belonging. Collaborative teaching and learning approaches allow students to contribute their unique backgrounds and perspectives, enriching our academic community. To build an inclusive environment we need to apply culturally responsive teaching strategies, such as recognising and valuing students’ unique backgrounds and experiences, and the impact of this on their learning. 

The Student Perspective

It's important to clearly explain to students that academic staff are not just teaching them but working with them in partnership. When I personally understood this ( when it was made clear that my input was genuinely valued, it completely changed how I engaged). I didn't just give generic answers to surveys or keep quiet in class discussions; I gave thoughtful responses because I knew they mattered. I felt like my voice had weight, and that encouraged me to participate more actively, both academically and in shaping the learning experience. This kind of honest, open collaboration helps staff too. When students feel safe and respected enough to give meaningful feedback, staff gain real insight into what's working and what could improve. It creates a shared sense of ownership, which leads to stronger learning communities and better outcomes for everyone involved.

Cardiff University Student, 2025

Advance HE’s values of partnership are particularly helpful when considering drawing on the diversity of the community: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 2: Advance HE’s values of partnership (Advance HE 2019)

It can be helpful to think of Student Engagement in terms of increasing levels of student control, as indicated by Healey and Healey (2019): 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 3: Levels of Agency in Student Engagement Activities (Healey and Healey 2019, from Student Voice Australia) 

Working in partnership with students enables staff to use a range of methods, working with individuals with particular needs, or groups of students who experience particular barriers to learning, or whole cohorts of students, to develop practice. The figure below provides examples of different types of student-staff partnerships in relation to designing, teaching and assessing the curriculum. 

↑ Back to top

---

Collaboration and Co-construction within the Student Voice Enhancement Model

Collaboration and co-construction are core pillars of Cardiff University’s Student Voice Enhancement Model. Rather than limiting student voice to surveys and evaluation metrics, the Model promotes a culture of dialogue, partnership and shared responsibility via: 

• Student representation and participation. 

• Student–Staff Panels. 

• Review and Enhancement processes. 

• The interpretation and evaluation of student feedback. 

• Partnership-led enhancement initiatives. 

By embedding these approaches, we shift enhancement activities:

• From reacting to individual complaints to identifying systemic themes and patterns.

• From staff-led interpretation to shared, collaborative understanding.

• From staff-designed fixes to jointly created sustainable solutions. 

Student Voice in Action: Cardiff Case Studies

Case Study 1: Using Cardiff 100 to Explore Student Experiences

"Student engagement with End of Module Enhancement (EME) surveys varies considerably across modules. I partnered with the students from Cardiff 100 to better understand the reasons for this inconsistency and to gather feedback from those who have first-hand experience of the EME process at Cardiff.

The benefit of using the voice of the Cardiff 100 students was that they challenged some staff assumptions, highlighted key barriers and motivators for completing EME, and identified practical opportunities for improvement. These insights informed pilot enhancements, including changes to survey timing, communications, and visibility of how student feedback is acted upon."

— Meryl Stone, Student Voice Officer

 

Case Study 2: Student Co-production Model

"Together, we don’t just plan the future. We co-create it."

— Raven Hope & Yaseen Rehman, Senior Student Experience Partners

This project proposes a Student Co-production Model for Cardiff University projects, ensuring that students are involved as active partners rather than just consultees throughout the entire project lifecycle. Aligned with the Our Future, Together strategy, the framework embeds student voice across three key stages:

1. Pre-Project: Involving students in early planning, recruitment and defining priorities.

2. Project Delivery: Engaging students in active decision-making and ongoing feedback.

3. Post-Project: Evaluating impact, capturing lessons learnt and using student feedback to improve future initiatives.

 

Reflection: Moving towards Partnership

Think about a module, programme, project, or enhancement activity that you are currently leading. Reflect on how students are engaged within the process:

• Mapping the Continuum: Where does your activity currently sit (Consultation, Collaboration, or Co-construction)? Could students be brought in earlier to help co-construct solutions? 

• Evaluating Inclusion: Whose voices are dominant in this space? Whose perspectives are missing, and how can you lower the barriers to participation? 

• Leveraging Resources: Could Student Experience Partners (SEPs) or Cardiff 100 be utilised to co-create these improvements with you? 

Remember: Partnership does not mean students must be involved in every single micro-decision. Rather, it is about being intentional, transparent and respectful of the shared expertise both parties bring to the table.

↑ Back to top

---

Where next?

Links to Other Toolkit Pages 

Find out more on the Student Engagement: Creating Meaningful Opportunities for Students to Participate, Belong and Succeed page. This page explores the foundational relationship between belonging, student success and the dimensions of engagement.  Explore how to embed student voice in Learning Design, Teaching Approaches, Assessment and Feedback and Review and Enhancement practices.

 Additional Resources and References 

Healey, M., Flint, A. and Harrington, K. (2014) Engagement through Partnership: Students as Partners in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education. York: Higher Education Academy. [Available Online]. 

Cardiff University Resources  

• Student Voice Enhancement Model 

• Student Voice Framework 

• Student Experience Partners (SEPs) 

• Cardiff 100