Dr Kenneth Leitch

Post Nominals	PhD, BSc (Hons), FHEA
Biography	Kenny is Head of the Civil, Transportation and Environmental Engineering and is responsible for the leadership and ongoing development of the group. He currently holds a number of high profile positions relating to skills and training for careers in Construction and the Built Environment. In recognition of his expertise in learning, teaching and the development of upskilling opportunities, he was appointed Principal Investigator (PI) of the Housing Construction and Infrastructure (HCI) Skills Gateway. Part of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, this 8-year, £6 million initiative funded by the Scottish Government is tasked with the creation of strategic learning pathways that facilitate routes into careers in Construction and the Built Environment (https://www.hciskills.org/) Kenny is a leader Edinburgh Napier University’s Graduate Apprentice programme. He has actively sought new opportunities for the creation of new programs in line with the University strategy and has successfully secured funding from the Scottish Government (via Skills Development Scotland) to establish a Level 10 Graduate Apprentice programme in Civil Engineering. In recognition of his standing and expertise in the field of Graduate Apprenticeships and Work Based Learning, he became an invited member of the Joint Board of Moderators (JBM) - the professional body responsible for the accreditation of Civil Engineering degree's programmes offered by UK Higher Education Institutions. This role allows provides the opportunity to use experience to influence national policy on the accreditation of Civil Engineering degrees (https://www.jbm.org.uk/) Kenny is a member of the Edinburgh City Region Deal Integrated Regional Employability and Skills (IRES) Programme Board - an inter-disciplinary steering group for the Edinburgh City Region Deal. As a member, he contributes to the regional development of teaching, learning, training and upskilling activities related to Construction and the Built Environment and works to promote interdisciplinary collaborations and cross platform initiatives (https://esescityregiondeal.org.uk/ires). He is also a member of the Edinburgh HE/FE Strategy group, chaired by Peter Mathieson, the Principal of the University of Edinburgh. This group is comprised of members of Universities and colleges across the region and as such, is highly influential to training and upskilling across the region. In addition to these strategic positions, Kenny has also acts as external examiner on accreditation and validation events across the UK, an experiential learning review for the Institution of Civil Engineers, and as a grant reviewer for the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. He has extensive international links established through his involvement in transnational programmes with partner institutions in Shanghai and Myanmar as well as European partnerships developed through the highly successful International Civil Engineering Week. He is a fellow of the Higher Education Academy, an elected member of the Universities Academic board and has been voted “Best Lecturer” by the Edinburgh Napier Student Association.
Research Interests	Graduate Apprenticeships, Programme Development and Accreditation, Work Based Learning, Training and Upskilling, Timber Engineering, Offsite Construction,
Teaching and Learning	Kenny is leader of the following programmes offered by the School of Engineering and Built Environment; He also currently leads/delivers the following modules: - CTR07400 Professional Practice 1 (Work Based Learning) - CTR08400 Professional Practice 2 (Work Based Learning) - CTR09400 Professional Practice 3 (Work Based Learning) - CTR10400 Dissertation (Graduate Apprenticeship) - CTR09131 Construction Methods - CTR09631 Construction Methods (Myanmar) - CTR10100 Honours Project Dissertation - CTR11523 Dissertation and Integrated Engineering Design 2 Kenny is an organizer of International Civil Eningeering Week (ICEW) and International Project Week (IPW) a collaborative learning week jointly delivered by the following intuitions; Hogeschool van Amsterdam, DTU Technical University of Denmark, Fachhochschule Frankfurt am Main, University of Applied Sciences, I.U.T.A Lyon Hanzehogeschool Gronigen, University of Applied Sciences Universidad De Burgos, Fachhochshule Koln, Cologne University of Applied Sciences and CESI Enseignment Superieur et Formation Professionalle.