Appointments

The Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS) at Lancaster University has appointed Michael Kraetke as its director. Currently professor of political economy at the University of Amsterdam, Professor Kraetke advises governments and the European Commission on economic and social policy issues. He will also take up a chair in political economy in the university's department of sociology, devoting half of his time to the IAS. The IAS has also confirmed Bob Jessop and Ngai-Ling Sum as co-directors of its new research centre, the Cultural Political Economy Research Centre.

Bob Heyman is to join the University of Huddersfield's School of Human and Health Sciences as professor of healthcare risk management. Formerly associate dean for research and professor of health research at City University London, he led a consortium for healthcare research that funded 21 doctoral and postdoctoral research fellowships in nursing, midwifery and the allied health professions. Professor Heyman has also published more than 60 academic papers and three books covering risk management in a range of health and social care settings.

John Denham, the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, has announced the appointment of three new members to the board of the Higher Education Funding Council for England (Hefce). They are: Malcolm Grant, president and provost of University College London; Paul Judge, president of the Chartered Institute of Marketing; and John Widdowson, principal of New College Durham. Mr Denham said: "These appointments will bring a wide range of business and public-sector experience to Hefce. These individuals will provide high-quality strategic advice and guidance to Hefce in taking forward our ambitious programme for higher education."

Terry Williams has been named director of the School of Management at the University of Southampton. Professor Williams specialises in project management, having previously worked in an engineering consultancy that dealt with logistics, modelling and simulation. Prior to joining Southampton, he headed the management science department at the University of Strathclyde. His research interests include examining how and why major projects fail and the lessons that can be learnt from well-known examples.

Daniel Rosbottom has joined Kingston University as head of the School of Architecture and Landscape. He joins from London Metropolitan University, where he was postgraduate academic director. Hilary Tompsett, the head of the School of Social Work at Kingston, has been appointed to the General Social Care Council, England's social care workforce regulator. Mrs Tompsett, who has worked in social work education since 1991, is chair of the joint university council and social work education group for Surrey and Sussex. Kingston has also appointed a new director of business and commercial development, Ejaz Qureshi, who joins the institution from the University of Derby.

John Gardner, professor of education at Queen's University Belfast, has become president-elect of the British Educational Research Association. Professor Gardner is the first educationist from Northern Ireland to be elected to the post, which he will hold until 2011. He succeeds Pamela Munn, professor of curriculum research at the University of Edinburgh.

Steve Woolgar of the Said Business School at the University of Oxford has been awarded the J.D. Bernal Prize by the Society for the Social Studies of Science. The prize is awarded annually to an individual who has been judged to have made a distinguished contribution to the field. Professor Woolgar received his nomination for the contribution he has made to science and technology studies, including ethnographic studies of laboratory science, and advancing the understanding of the social implications of electronic technologies. Colin Mayer, dean of the Said Business School, said: "Science and technology studies is increasingly influential throughout the social sciences, and central to our efforts here in Oxford to develop distinctive perspectives on business and management. We are delighted that Steve Woolgar has received this honour."

Designer and innovation consultant Simon Bolton has joined Cranfield University as professor of creative design and director of the Centre for Competitive Creative Design (C4D). C4D is a partnership between Cranfield and the University of the Arts London, which aims to encourage students, lecturers, researchers and industry partners to explore creativity and to use design to improve innovation and competitive practice in UK and global industries. Mr Bolton specialises in helping companies improve and develop their design capabilities. His work has been exhibited in the Design Museum, London, Tokyo's Axis Gallery and the Pompidou Centre in Paris, among others.

The University of Lincoln's chancellor Dame Elizabeth Esteve-Coll has stepped down after seven years in office. She was presented with an honorary doctorate of arts and the title chancellor emerita during her farewell ceremony at Lincoln Cathedral. Vice-chancellor David Chiddick led the tributes to Dame Elizabeth, saying: "She has been an outstanding role model and champion of this university. We are delighted that she will be associated with the university long term as chancellor emerita."

Barry Smith has been appointed director of the Institute of Philosophy at the University of London's School of Advanced Study. Professor Smith joins from the School of Philosophy at Birkbeck, University of London. His core interests are in the philosophy of language and mind, specialising in our knowledge of language and its relation to understanding our own minds.

The University of Plymouth has appointed John Scott professor of sociology. Formerly based at the University of Essex, Professor Scott's research interests lie in the areas of social stratification, business organisation and sociological theory and methods. He is editor of European Societies, the journal of the European Sociological Association, and is currently working on the early history of sociology in Britain. Professor Scott is also a fellow of the British Academy, the Royal Society of Arts, and an academician of the Academy of Social Sciences.

Correction: Last week we reported that Louise Morley, director of the Centre for Higher Education and Equity Research at the University of Sussex, had been made an academician by the Academy of Social Sciences, but her name was incorrectly given as Marley. Apologies.