Lee Sanders retires as Registrar and Secretary in September 2025 after 16 years at the University of Birmingham.
After 16 years as Registrar and Secretary of the University of Birmingham, Lee Sanders has announced that he will be retiring in September 2025.
Commenting on his retirement, Lee said: “After 16 years at Birmingham, I have decided that it is time to retire as Registrar and Secretary. I have worked in University Administration for 35 years at a number of universities, but my time at Birmingham has been the happiest and professionally most fulfilling.
“Birmingham is an exceptional university and I am proud to have played a part in its journey. It has been a privilege to work with so many wonderful colleagues, who have contributed to its success. University Administration is ultimately about stewardship, and I look forward to handing on the baton. For now, there is plenty still to do and the University can be assured of my full commitment and leadership over the next ten months.”
Lee has been one of the leading Registrars in the sector for many years and it is difficult to overstate the contribution he has made to the University and the wider higher education sector.
Commenting on Lee’s retirement, Mervyn Walker, Pro-Chancellor and Chair of Council, said: “Lee will be hugely missed. He has played a major role in the achievements of the University for many years and has provided outstanding support to Council and to me personally as Chair.
“I have always appreciated the clarity of his wise counsel, which is motivated by his unstinting commitment to good governance and to the University’s academic success. The longstanding strength and effectiveness of the University’s governance is in no small part due to the skilful steer Lee has provided to the University’s decision-making over many years, underpinned by the breadth and depth of his expertise.”
Professor Adam Tickell, Vice-Chancellor and Principal, said: “Lee has been one of the leading Registrars in the sector for many years and it is difficult to overstate the contribution he has made to the University and the wider higher education sector.
“He has an unwavering commitment to the University, and has often been the guiding hand ensuring the biggest initiatives of the University are successful, including many of the major campus developments of the last decade. He has built a very high-performing team in Professional Services and his leadership during the pandemic was instrumental to the University surviving and building back successfully.
“In the last year, Lee has led the development of the 2045 Campus Vision, which sets out a profoundly exciting future for the University’s estate, and over the next year he will be seeing through the first business cases for developments as part of this masterplan.
“Lee will leave us with a genuinely impressive legacy and we will feel his departure keenly. I know colleagues will join me in wishing him the very best, although I also know he has no intention of easing off until he finishes later next year!”
Council have approved the commencement of the search for Lee’s successor and the process is already underway with the aim of confirming an appointment in the spring.
For more information, please contact Press Office, University of Birmingham, tel: +44 (0)121 414 2772
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Profile of Mr Lee Sanders
