Rewind to our origin story
Four years ago, Alkhemy was born from a simple but disruptive question: what if the systems meant to support, empower and engage students were designed with them, not just for them? Since then, my partner Amy and I have grown Alkhemy into a strategic “kind of consultancy” and delivery partner that challenges stale assumptions in higher education - not by suggesting we burn it all down, but by reshaping it from within.
We call it polite disruption. And we think it’s working.
We’re four years in. Still independent. Still values-led. Still here.
From strategic reviews, advice support to providing innovative out-of-hours student advice services and alternative talent models, we’ve worked with nearly 50 partners to reimagine how capacity is delivered in an under-pressure sector. We’re not interested in being just another consultancy. We’re building a different kind of partner for the sector: one that leads with care, listens with intention, and creates space for change that lasts. My wife and partner in crime (and business) have 2 main aims; make a living for our family and create a lasting impact on the student experience.
To achieve this, Alkhemy offers agile capacity; experienced professionals (either myself, Amy or our wonderful Associates) who can step in at pace, adapt to the context, and help carry the weight without long-term commitments or bloated contracts. Whether it’s holding a service while you rethink it, delivering specialist advice during peak periods, or leading reviews with political sensitivity - we bring care and capability in equal measure.
Alkhemy is ready to partner with your institution. Not as saviours. Not as consultants who breeze in and write the obvious. But as strategic collaborators who get our hands dirty, care about the outcome, and aren’t afraid to challenge with compassion.
Let’s build something better, together.
Who We Are (and Who We Aren’t)
Alkhemy is a values-led organisation that exists to centre student voice, enhance organisational culture, and make the sector more accessible, more accountable, and more human. We are a deliberately small team with a growing network of trusted associates who share a common mission: to build a sector that works with people, not just policies.
My background, and Amy’s too, is rooted in the student movement. Between us we’ve been sabbatical officers, senior SU staff, charity leaders, wellbeing practitioners and student engagement specialists. We’ve worked in institutions large and small, as well as alongside them. We’ve navigated the internal politics, the budget pressures, the revolving doors of strategy documents.
So we decided to build something different. A place where challenge shouldn’t come with ego. Where service delivery is designed for the realities of students’ lives. Where staff are praised for their resilience, sure, but are given the support they need, when they need it.
Politely Disrupting Procurement and Recruitment
If there’s one phrase that gets raised in many institutional partnerships, it’s this: "we don’t have the capacity."
And yet, the routes for building capacity in HE can be painfully rigid. You either:
- Hire (which can take months)
- Restructure (which often takes longer)
- Or outsource (which often removes the human centre of the work)
We believe there’s another way. And we’ve been quietly proving it.
Last summer, at the University of Surrey, we supported a review of their Resident Life function during a time of staff churn - addressing challenges around out-of-hours support, student visibility, and interdepartmental communication. Our recommendations, grounded in staff and student insights, informed a longer-term transformation of how student communities are supported.
At UA92, we embedded Alkhemy advisers into the institution to deliver a new advice service. It wasn’t a traditional consultancy relationship. It was a partnership. One that ensured continuity, built internal confidence, and helped design something sustainable beyond our involvement - which they now lead on
At Arden University, we are working with their wonderful Students’ Association to deliver an independent academic advice service that runs five evenings a week. This is not only providing access, but it develops trust, trust between Alkhemy, the Institution, Students’ Association and their students. Within the first six weeks, over 40 students had received in-depth, empathetic advice on everything from academic misconduct to appeals. The feedback so far? Clarity. Calm. Care.
This is what polite disruption looks like. Not doing more of the same. But building smarter, more responsive services around the actual ways students live, learn, and ask for help.
Four Years In: What We’ve Learned
- People want change, but they don’t want chaos. Our role is often to bridge that gap: helping teams and leaders move forward without feeling like everything is falling apart.
- Procurement doesn’t have to kill innovation. By building trust, being responsive, and offering flexible delivery models, we’ve worked within tight systems without becoming constrained by them.
- Small can be scalable. Some of our most transformative work has come not from big reports, but from light-touch partnerships that grow and evolve over time.
- Kindness is a strategy. We treat our associates and partners with radical warmth. That doesn’t mean avoiding hard conversations. It means approaching them with humanity.
Want to talk to us?
We can work with you on three core fronts:
1. Embedded Capacity & Delivery
Whether you need short-term leadership, external capacity to stabilise a service, or flexible resource while a team is restructured, Alkhemy places experienced, sector-aware professionals who can deliver from day one. Our associates work as part of your team, not as outsiders. This includes roles in student advice, wellbeing, academic engagement, representative structures and many other functions - if you’re unsure just ask us. We are also adept at embedding fully operational functions into your service design without the added labour of recruitment, employment, equipment and training - such as the advice service we are delivering in partnership with Arden University. More information on this service here: https://alkhemy.org.uk/independent-advice-services/
2. Service Reviews & Strategic Insight
We’ve led deep-dive reviews and collaborative redesigns across a range of services; from student support to residential life. Our reviews are evidence-led and co-designed with those closest to the work. We don’t just diagnose problems. We help institutions take practical steps toward better culture, systems, and outcomes - and we’ll stay to help deliver if you’ll have us.
3. Learning & Development
We provide professional development that builds confidence and skill across staff teams. Whether through training on working with your SU, Wellbeing and EDI, or leadership development, our delivery is adaptive, engaging, and grounded in the lived realities of sector professionals. We do coaching, mentoring, supervision, facilitation and training.
For example, we are innovating a unique development programme for Student Advisers in Higher Education. One that develops the knowledge, skills and confidence to advise students in today's HE landscape. You can find out more information here: https://alkhemy.org.uk/4807-2/
→ Learn more: https://alkhemy.org.uk/support-for-universities/
→ Contact us: hey@alkhemy.org.uk
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