Julie Messenger

Julie provides academic and business leadership to the School of Health, Wellbeing and Social Care as Senior Lecturer, Nursing fulfilling the roles of Official Correspondent to the NMC and as Assessment Lead. In addition, Julie has recently taken on the role of school Strategic Lead (Projects). At present there are three foci to this role. Firstly, to work with the university Business Development Unit to provide academic leadership for new business initiatives, Secondly to lead on the school submission for Athena Swan, and finally to work with Associate Heads of School to increase our offer of CPD resources. Julie therefore exercises academic leadership at School, Faculty and University level, as an extended member of the School of Health, Wellbeing and Social Care senior management team and is active in contributing to developments across the school.

Julie was a reviewer for Mott MacDonald, an organisation contracted by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) to approve and monitor nursing provision from educational and service perspectives - ensuring compliance with standards set by professional statutory bodies. This role also entails the consideration for approval of programmes in Nursing where professional acknowledgement/accreditation by the NMC is sought. Julie has bought that experience and insight to the school and is central to the external monitoring and NMC approval processes that the school is required to engage with.

Since 2011 Julie has contributed to many of the reviews for internal quality assurance by regularly chairing internal Programme Periodic Reviews for the university. This has enabled Julie to demonstrate effective leadership and influence over many subject areas of the university. 

Since joining the Open University, Julie has held the role of Assistant Head of Department (up to June 2015); a role that enabled her to lead and steer curriculum innovation. She has chaired module development, authored materials for learning online and led module delivery for students. Through authoring, Julie has been able to integrate innovative developments including more recently the use of Enquiry-based learning in the Future Nurse curriculum.  

Julie has led numerous approval events including the 2012 & 2019 pre-registration nursing NMC approvals seeking ways to deliver learning to students that promotes practices to increase the sense of true learning communities through a shared curriculum. This has enabled pre-registration students to have full exposure to the needs of multiple service users and through this added insight, provide the tools and expertise to respond in a sensitive and appropriate manner when providing care.

Julie's practice background reflects Adult Nursing Care with special areas of interest in the field of wound care being driven by her clinical experience in surgical nursing and leadership. Since moving into education, Julie has developed a particular interest in promoting effective leadership and management and this reflects Julie's post graduate studies and work experience in education. Her scholarship has focused on areas related to academic skill development for widening participation students and more recently in reviewing the experience of higher education students who are also carers.