John Tibbitt is Honorary Senior Research Fellow with the School of Education. He is experienced social researcher who has undertaken and managed programmes of research for policy in University, local government and central government settings. He was responsible for the establishment of the research function within a local government social services department, and in Lifelong Learning in the Scottish Executive. Since retirement he has been a major contributor to the European centre of the PASCAL Observatory.

He is experienced social researcher who has undertaken and managed programmes of research for policy in University, local government and central government settings. He was responsible for the establishment of the research function within a local government social services department, and in Lifelong Learning in the Scottish Executive. He has been invovled in the development and management of research programmes and the provision of research-based advice at all stages of the policy process in central government departments. He was a membership of programme committees for the ESRC Teaching and Learning programme and for Joseph Rowntree Foundation Immigration and Inclusion committee. He was a membership of the Advisory Committee for several University Research Centres including the Centre for Research on Lifelong Learning at Glasgow Caledonian / Stirling Universities. He has negotiated several initiatives for the development of knowledge transfer between the research and policy communities including research networks, publishing.

After retirement from the Scottish Government he subsequently became secretary general of the PASCAL Observatory. He has published many research reports, book chapters, articles in professional journals, and reviews in academic journals. He continues to publish a number of briefing papers for PASCAL.