A team of academics from the School of Social and Political Science, University of Edinburgh has received the 2025 Jacqui Briggs Prize from the Political Studies Association (PSA) for outstanding contributions to advancing teaching and learning in political studies, for a course developed in collaboration with the Centre on Constitutional Change.
The PSA is the UK’s leading professional association dedicated to supporting and promoting the study and public understanding of politics. The PSA celebrates the best of the discipline through its annual Academic Prizes, with the award categories recognising outstanding dissertations, professional contributions, teaching, and scholars across the profession.
This year’s Jacqui Briggs Prize was awarded to the Politics and International Relations subject area and the Centre on Constitutional Change at the University of Edinburgh for the undergraduate course ‘Contemporary Issues in Political Science’. The 2024/25 edition of the course, delivered in partnership with UK in a Changing Europe, focused on the 2024 UK General Election.
The course was led by convener Dr Davide Vampa, Senior Lecturer in Territorial Politics at SPS and Co-Director of the Centre on Constitutional Change. It consisted of a series of high-profile public talks, bringing together leading academics and experts to analyse key aspects of the election campaign, its outcomes, and wider implications.
While the series was a core component of the experience for students enrolled in the course, it was also open to the wider academic community. Over the 10-week period, hundreds of students and staff attended, making it a flagship initiative of the first semester of 2024/25.
Dr Vampa said: “Student feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Students valued the opportunity to engage directly with experts and to apply what they learned in seminars and through innovative forms of assessment that helped them critically evaluate both the lead-up to and the consequences of the General Election.”
Dr Vampa accepted the award on behalf of the team at the PSA25, the PSA's International Annual Conference in Birmingham on 14 April.
He said: “This award is a clear recognition of the excellence of research-led teaching in the School of Social and Political Science at the University of Edinburgh. Through the work of the Centre on Constitutional Change, in partnership with UK in a Changing Europe, we were able to offer students and colleagues a unique and engaging learning experience.
“I am particularly grateful to the leading scholars who contributed to the series. Each week, they shared their insights and expertise to help unpack one of the most significant political events of 2024 – not only covering the campaign and election itself, but also exploring its aftermath. Thanks are also due to the SPS Student Development Team, particularly to Rohanie Campbell-Thakoordin, who provided essential support for the course throughout the semester.”
The teaching team included the following academics and experts:
Dr. Davide Vampa, Prof. Sarah Childs, Prof. Meryl Kenny, Prof. Ailsa Henderson, Dr. Fraser McMillan, Prof. Anand Menon, Ms. Jill Rutter, Prof. Jonathan Portes, Prof. Sarah Hall, Mr. Michael Crick, Ms. Rachel Amery, Ms. Sophie Stowers, Prof. Paula Surridge, Mr. Jim Bladgen, Prof. John Curtice, Dr. Stefanie Reher, Dr. Jan Eichhorn, Dr. Hayley Bennett, Prof. John Garry, Prof. John Denham, Prof. Richard Wyn Jones, and Prof. Robert Ford.