The primary role of the Rector is to preside at the University Court. The Rector also chairs meetings of the General Council in absence of the Chancellor.They work closely with students and the Edinburgh University Students’ Association (EUSA). Current Rector: Simon Fanshawe Image Simon Fanshawe OBE is a diversity consultant, broadcaster and author. He is the co-founder of Diversity by Design which supports organisations to truly diversify their senior people. His latest book “The Power of Difference” was published in December 2021 by Kogan Page. It is the Chartered Institute Management’s Book of 2023. He was voted the second Most Influential Thinker in 2022 by HR Magazine and inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2023.He is currently on the Board of Powerful Women and is Chairman of Hexagon Housing Association. He was previously Chairman of Sussex University, a non-exec director of Housing & Care 21, a Governor of the Museum of London and on the Board of Brighton Dome and Festival.He has long been involved in campaigns for equality and positive social change and has served on the Board of companies and organisations in the private and charity sectors for over thirty-five years. He was a co-founder of Stonewall and of the Kaleidoscope Trust.He was awarded an OBE in 2013 for services to Higher Education and made an Honorary Doctor of the University of Sussex for services to diversity and human rights.Enquiries to the Rector can be made via email. Contact details Email: rector@ed.ac.uk Previous Rectors The position of Rector has a long and prestigious lineage. Originally created in the 19th century by the Universities Scotland Act 1858, the role has developed over time.The position of Rector was initially filled by eminent politicians and military figures in the 18th and 19th centuries, including Sir Winston Churchill and the Right Honourable W E Gladstone.In recent years rectors have come a broader range of Scotland’s public and cultural life, including television presenter Muriel Gray and the first Green politician Robin Harper MSP, all of whom have had some connection with Edinburgh. Photo galleryPhotographs of Rectors from as far back as 1920. HTML View our image gallery on Flickr. List of previous Rectors 2024 Simon Fanshawe (current)2021 Debora Kayembe2018 Ann Henderson2015 Steve Morrison 2012 Peter McColl2009 Iain Macwhirter2006 Mark Ballard2003 Tam Dalyell MP2000 Robin Harper MSP1997 John Colquhoun1994 Dr Malcolm Macleod1991 Donnie Munro1988 Muriel Gray1985 Archie MacPherson1982 David Steel (now Sir David Steel)1979 Dr Anthony Ross1975 Magnus Magnusson1972 Dr Gordon Brown1971 Jonathan Wills1968 Kenneth Allsop1966 Malcolm Muggeridge1963 James Robertson Justice1960 Joseph Grimond1957 James Robertson Justice1954 Sir Sydney A Smith1951 Sir Alexander Fleming1948 Alastair Sim1945 Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope1939 Sir J Donald Pollock, Baronet1936 Sir Herbert John Clifford Grierson1935 Viscount Allenby1932 General Sir Ian Hamilton1929 The Rt Hon. Sir Winston Churchill1926 The Rt Hon. Sir John Gilmour1923 The Rt Hon. Stanley Baldwin1920 The Rt Hon. David Lloyd George1917 Earl Beatty1914 Earl Kitchener of Khartoum1911 The Earl of Minto1908 The Rt Hon. Geo. Wyndham1905 The Rt Hon. Richard Burdon Haldane1902 Sir Robert Bannatyne Finlay1899 The Marquess of Dufferin & Ava1896 Lord Balfour of Burleigh1893 The Rt Hon. J P B Robertson1890 The Rt Hon. G J Goschen1887 The Marquess of Lothian1883 Earl of Iddlesleigh1880 Earl of Rosebery1877 The Marquess of Hartington1874 Earl of Derby1871 Sir W Stirling Maxwell1868 Lord Moncrieff1865 Thomas Carlyle1859 The Rt Hon. W E Gladstone Related link Membership of University Court This article was published on 2024-11-12
