Lincoln College Highly Commended for CoLRiC 2025 Innovative Practice Award

Lincoln College’s Library team are celebrating after their nomination for their Your Skills Programme for a CoLRiC award was highly commended. 

CoLRiC is an independent organisation representing librarians and learning resource professionals across the UK and holds an annual Innovative Practice Award (CIPA). 

The organisation is independent and represents a diverse group of college librarians and learning resource professionals nationwide, advocating for quality and exemplary practice across the educational sector. 

They also help their members to showcase the impact and value that they bring to teaching, learning and the overall student experience. 

The CIPA seeks to recognise knowledge, creativity, quality and the organisational impact of service provision on the teaching, learning and the student experience. 

The entry for Lincoln College put emphasis on the work done to address AI within learners’ work, as well as digital literacy, two constantly evolving topics.  

Head of Library and Careers Guidance at Lincoln College, Rachael Adair, said: “We are so pleased to receive Highly Commended for the Your Skills Programme. It is recognition of the library team's dedication to creating a programme which is engaging, clear and relevant.  

“We work closely with our curriculum teams to ensure the library is an integral part of the student experience at Lincoln supporting students to develop their digital skills.’  

Chief People Officer at Lincoln College Jacqui Varlow, added: “We’re delighted to have been awarded with a Highly Commended trophy for our innovative work on AI and digital/information literacy.  

“The rapid advancement of technology, particularly AI and automation, is fundamentally reshaping the future of work and learning. We are committed to strategically incorporating these innovations to adequately prepare our learners for the evolving landscape.”  

Rose Frith, Library Information Adviser was pleased to hear the news, saying: “The Your Skills programme has been a true team effort from planning and re-branding through to delivery, so it’s wonderful to see that recognised by CoLRiC. We’ll keep working to give students the digital and AI skills they need to succeed in study, work and life.” 

The judging panel was looking for commitment to students’ academic and personal development and lifelong learning alongside engagement with academic staff, curriculum colleagues, professional services and students. 

The judging panel at ColRiC was impressed by the team’s rebranding of its study skills programme, placing the library at the heart of AI and information literacy support.  

A key strength of the team’s nomination was the proactive engagement of teaching staff, successfully promoting the relevance and benefits of critical thinking and digital confidence across the College curriculum, alongside their importance to future employability. 

Judges comments included: 

• This initiative engages the learner in a sense of responsibility for ensuring their own skills are effective for the future. The rebranding is also important in keeping the focus fresh, modern and relevant. 

• I was impressed with the way the team has made the study skills sessions more engaging, and their efforts to get teaching staff on board has clearly paid off. The initiative is well organised, clearly explained and successfully promoted, due to the decision to focus on strong branding, which shouldn’t be underestimated.