College wins UK gold for its AI professional learning programme
Rather than offering technical training, it invites staff to explore how AI can enhance their existing roles, reduce workload, support creativity, and improve learner outcomes and experience. Bryony Evett-Hackfort
Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion have won a UK Gold Award in the SDF Developing Excellent Practice for its AI staff development programme, Enhancement not Replacement.
AI Enhancement Not Replacement is a staff-facing digital learning programme designed to build confidence, curiosity, and clarity around the use of AI in education. Developed in response to growing uncertainty and interest in generative AI tools, the programme avoids both hype and fear, focusing instead on practical, ethical, and thoughtful application.
The four-module, self-paced package is accessible to all staff, both teaching and business support, and uses real examples, reflective prompts, and straightforward design to encourage meaningful engagement.
Rather than offering technical training, it invites staff to explore how AI can enhance their existing roles, reduce workload, support creativity, and improve learner outcomes and experience.
What sets this programme apart is its tone and intent. It creates space for growth and agency, questions, experimentation, and professional conversation, not just answers. It reframes AI as a tool for growth, not a replacement for human knowledge and insight. Since launch, it has been completed by 123 staff and has already influenced practice across the college, from curriculum planning to administrative processes.
This is not just an online course. It represents a wider cultural shift that models how further education can lead the way in using digital tools to empower people, support innovation, and shape future-ready practice.
From a college survey, 89.2% of staff said that the training has had a positive impact on their day-to-day work, therefore the training was adapted and rolled out to students, with nearly 1,700 completing it to date.
The training has also been promoted to other public sector bodies, with around 400 NHS staff undertaking the programme.
Bryony Evett-Hackfort, director of teaching, learning and education at Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion leads the strategic development of AI generative technologies for students and staff. She is also a 2025 Jisc Community Champion and the chair of the voluntary-led organisation, Informal AI Network UK.
Her core philosophy is ‘enhancement not replacement’ and she piloted the training programme for staff feedback before rolling it out over the seven college campuses. “Staff feedback was absolutely vital for this training programme, as well as external guidance,” she said. “It was successful due to the staff and their openness to explore professional learning. The judges’ feedback was that the programme was very considered and well thought-out which was what we were hoping to achieve. Also, it was important to us to include all staff, not just teaching teams as we want to develop a confident culture around the use of AI in our organisation, so it was written for people regardless of job roles and previous interactions with AI.”
As the pace of AI developments continues, so will this programme. Due to it being created in-house, the college is in full control to regularly update and add and remove content as needed. The relevance and credibility of the programme content is reviewed termly so that it reflects the current AI ‘State of the Nation’.
This process has now allowed the college to make significant progress in the onboarding of learners to ensure that there is a transparent and clear culture around its use by learners as well as staff.
The Staff Development Forum (SDF), the organisation presenting the award, is a not-for-profit charitable organisation, representing and working with staff and organisational developers in higher education.
Also up for the award were successfully shortlisted candidates, University of Cambridge and Institute of Cancer Research.