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Josh Sendall (he/him/his)

  • Position: Director of Library Services
  • Areas of expertise: Library services, open research, user experience, collections development, organisational culture, equity diversity and inclusion, workforce development, community engagement, continuous improvement.
  • Email: J.Sendall@leeds.ac.uk
  • Website: Twitter | LinkedIn

Profile

I promote open knowledge, freely accessible libraries, talent development and empowerment, and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) as essential elements of healthy, resilient cultures and communities. 

The core of my role involves providing executive leadership, management and oversight for our library services encompassing three large-scale associate directorates: Student Learning and Experience, Research and Digital Futures, and Content and Discovery. I work collaboratively with the Libraries’ Executive team to enable the strategic delivery of Knowledge for All: University of Leeds Libraries Vision for 2030 in alignment with the institutional strategy: Universal Values, Global Change. 

In addition to my substantive role, I hold several national and regional leadership roles for a range of organisations including but not limited to ALN (Academic Libraries North), Jisc (UK's HE & FE digital, data and technology agency & consortia), and SCONUL (Society of College, National and University Libraries). I am also a member of the Board of Trustees for UKSG, which connects the knowledge community, spanning the diverse interests and activities of academic librarians, publishers, intermediaries and technology vendors. 

My career in academic libraries started at Lancaster University, where I held roles including Library Aide, Learning Zone Student Advisor, Information Assistant, Research Data Manager, and Head of Open Research. I then joined the University of Nottingham as Associate Director for Research, prior to my current appointment at the University of Leeds. 

Responsibilities

  • Leadership and management of the University's Library Services.
  • Library Executive Team Sponsorship for our Forward Plan and Cultural Shift.
  • Promoting and enabling Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI).

Qualifications

  • CMI endorsed Post Graduate Diploma (PgDip) in Professional Practice (Senior Leadership)
  • ILM endorsed Post Graduate Certificate (PGCert) in Leadership and Management
  • Master of Laws (Research) degree (LL.M Res)
  • Law Degree (LL.B., Hons)