Yearly Archives / 2017

REF2021 – initial decisions finally published

Research assessment

On Friday there was an exciting update from the REF Team based at HEFCE – they published the initial decisions on REF 2021. Whilst this does not include decisions regarding submitting staff, output portability or the eligibility of institutions to participate in the REF, it does include key decisions regarding the UOA structure, institution-level assessment, and the assessment weightings.

The decisions published on Friday are summarised below:

 

OVERALL:

Assessment weightings:

  • Outputs 60% (down from 65%)
  • Impact 25% (up from 20%)
  • Environment 15% (same but now includes impact strategy)

The move of the impact template from the impact assessment to the environment assessment means impact will actually contribute to more than 25% of the weighting (see impact section).

Assessment will continue to use the five-point REF 2014 scale (1*-4* and Unclassified).

UOA structure:

  • Total UOAs reduced from 36 to 34
  • Engineering will be a single UOA – UOA 12
  • REF 2014 UOA 17 will be restructured to form UOA 14: Geography and Environmental Studies and UOA 15: Archaeology
  • ‘Film and Screen Studies’ will be located and included in the name of UOA 33: Music, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Film and Screen Studies
  • HEFCE will continue consulting with the subject communities for forensic science and criminology to consider concerns raised about visibility. A decision is expected this autumn.

HESA cost centres will not be used to allocate staff to UOAs. Responsibility for mapping staff into UOAs will therefore remain with institutions.

 

TIMETABLE:

Impact:

  • Underpinning research must have been produced between 1 Jan 2000 – 31 Dec 2020.
  • Impacts must have occurred between 1 Aug 2013 – 31 Jul 2020.

Environment:

  • Environment data (such as income and doctoral completions) will be considered for the period 1 Aug 2013 – 31 Jul 2020.

Outputs:

  • The assessment period for the publication of outputs will be 1 Jan 2014 – 31 Dec 2020.

The draft REF 2021 guidance will be published in summer/autumn 2018 and the final guidance will be published in winter 2018-19. The submission will be in autumn 2020.

 

OUTPUTS:

Interdisciplinary research:

  • Each sub-panel will have at least one appointed member to oversee and participate in the assessment of interdisciplinary research submitted in that UOA.
  • There will be an interdisciplinary research identifier for outputs in the REF submission system (not mandatory).
  • There will be a discrete section in the environment template for the unit’s structures in support of interdisciplinary research.

Outputs due for publication after the submission date:

A reserve output may be submitted in these cases.

Assessment metrics:

Quantitative metrics may be used to inform output assessment. This will be determined by the sub-panels. Data will be provided by HEFCE.

 

IMPACT:

  • Impact will have a greater weighting in REF 2021 (25% overall plus impact included in the environment template and therefore weighting).
  • Harmonised definitions of academic and wider impact will be developed between HEFCE and the UK Research Councils.
  • Academic impacts will be assessed as part of the ‘significance’ assessment of the outputs and therefore not in the impact assessment.
  • Further guidance will be provided on the criteria for reach and significance and impacts arising from public engagement.
  • The guidance on submitting impacts on teaching will be widened to include impacts within, and beyond, the submitting institution.
  • Impacts remain eligible for submission by the institution in which the associated research was conducted. They must be underpinned by excellent research (at least REF 2*).
  • Impact case study template will have mandatory fields for recording standardised information, such as research funder, etc.
  • The number of case studies required – still not confirmed – HEFCE are exploring this in relation to the rules on staff submission and the number of outputs.
  • Case studies submitted to REF 2014 can be resubmitted to REF 2021, providing they meet the REF 2021 eligibility requirements.
  • The relationship between the underpinning research and impact will be broadened from individual outputs to include a wider body of work or research activity.

 Institutional-level assessment (impact case studies):

  • HEFCE will pilot this assessment in 2018 but it will not be included in REF 2021.

 

ENVIRONMENT:

The UOA-level environment template will be more structured, including the use of more quantitative data to evidence narrative content:

  • It will include explicit sections on the unit’s approach to:
    • supporting collaboration with organisations beyond HE
    • enabling impact – akin to the impact template in REF 2014
    • supporting equality and diversity
    • structures to support interdisciplinary research
    • open research, including the unit’s open access strategy and where this goes beyond the REF open access policy requirements

Institutional-level assessment (environment):

  • Institution-level information will be included in the UOA-level environment template, assessed by the relevant sub-panel.
  • HEFCE will pilot the standalone assessment of institution-level environment information as part of REF 2021, but this will not form part of the REF 2021 assessment. The outcomes will inform post-REF 2021 assessment exercises.

 

PANEL RECRUITMENT:

  • The sub-panel chair application process is now open (details available via the link).
  • The document sets out the plan for the recruitment of panel members (a multi-stage approach)

 

OUTSTANDING DECISIONS:

The announcement does not include decisions regarding submitting staff, output portability or the eligibility of institutions to participate in the REF. There is ongoing dialogue between HEFCE (on behalf of the funding councils) and the sector regarding this. The letter (accessed via the link above) sets out HEFCE’s current thoughts on these points and invites the sector to feedback by 29 September 2017.  BU will be providing feedback so if you have a view on this then please email me (jnortham@bournemouth.ac.uk).

 

SUMMARIES AVAILABLE:

*Book now* Research Application Training with the Pre-Award Pathway

The Funding Development Team will be delivering a number of Pre-award sessions as part of the Research and Knowledge Exchange (RKE) Development Framework on Thursday 28th September.

The RKE Development Framework offers a range of opportunities for academics at all career stages to develop their skills, knowledge and capabilities in relation to research and knowledge exchange. The Framework gives the opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to take the next step in reaching your research goal and the professional development you need to get there. The pre-award pathway offers all of the starting information required by academics and researchers at BU to undertake research bidding.

The following Pre-Award sessions are on offer;

Getting started on applying for research funding

This session will explore how best to adapt research in response to the changing external environment. The workshop will provide information on the best routes to funding based upon career stages and also introduce how RKEO can help.

Thursday 28th September 2017 10.30 – 11.30      Lansdowne Campus

Pre-award finance

This session will introduce researchers to Full Economic Costs (fEC), transparent approaches to costing (TRAC) and the BU Financial Regulations. Guidance will be offered on how to cost projects in a way that funders will find acceptable. Training will be provided on producing the ‘Justification of Resources’ document required by many funders.

Thursday 28th September 2017 12.00 – 13.00      Lansdowne Campus

BU processes for applying for funding

This workshop will provide a short introduction/refresher on how to apply for external funding at BU. The latest update on the policies and processes will be introduced as part of this short session.

By the end of the session you will be familiar with the processes required to apply for funding at BU.

Thursday 28th September 2017 13.30 – 14.30      Lansdowne Campus

Quality approvals at BU

This course is aimed at those who are, or wish to be, a designated Faculty and UET Activity Quality/Peer reviewers. This session will provide an introduction/refresher of academic review policies at BU.

Thursday 28th September 2017 15.00 – 16.00      Lansdowne Campus

If you haven’t already booked and would like to attend, please click on the links above and book yourselves in. We look forward to seeing you there.

Last Spaces remaining- British Academy Bid Writing retreat 7/9/17

Funding opportunities

The BA/Leverhulme Small Research Grants scheme opens on the 6th of September 2017.

A workshop, the “Bid Writing retreat- British Academy small grant” will be held Thursday September 7th, 2017 (9:30-16:30). The workshop will offer helpful tips from past British Academy Small Grant winners as well as focused support from team members of the Research & Knowledge Exchange Office.  Participants are asked to have a draft application for the British Academy Small Grant in preparation in advance of this workshop that they can develop during the day.  Workshop places are limited so please book your place here.

Members of BU interested in discussing this workshop opportunity please contact Alexandra Pekalski, Research Facilitator (apekalski@bournemouth.ac.uk).

Research Professional – all you need to know

Funding opportunities

Research-Professional-logoEvery BU academic has a Research Professional account which delivers weekly emails detailing funding opportunities in their broad subject area. To really make the most of your Research Professional account, you should tailor it further by establishing additional alerts based on your specific area of expertise. The Funding Development Team Officers can assist you with this, if required.

Research Professional have created several guides to help introduce users to ResearchProfessional. These can be downloaded here.

Quick Start Guide: Explains to users their first steps with the website, from creating an account to searching for content and setting up email alerts, all in the space of a single page.

User Guide: More detailed information covering all the key aspects of using ResearchProfessional.

Administrator Guide: A detailed description of the administrator functionality.

In addition to the above, there are a set of 2-3 minute videos online, designed to take a user through all the key features of ResearchProfessional. To access the videos, please use the following link: http://www.youtube.com/researchprofessional

Research Professional are running a series of online training broadcasts aimed at introducing users to the basics of creating and configuring their accounts on ResearchProfessional. They are holding monthly sessions, covering everything you need to get started with ResearchProfessional. The broadcast sessions will run for no more than 60 minutes, with the opportunity to ask questions via text chat. Each session will cover:

  • Self registration and logging in
  • Building searches
  • Setting personalised alerts
  • Saving and bookmarking items
  • Subscribing to news alerts
  • Configuring your personal profile

Each session will run between 10.00am and 11.00am (UK) on the fourth Tuesday of each month. You can register here for your preferred date:

26th September 2017

24th October 2017

These are free and comprehensive training sessions and so this is a good opportunity to get to grips with how Research Professional can work for you.

Have you noticed a new box appear on the BU Research Blog homepage?

By clicking on this box, on the left of the Research Blog home page just under the text ‘Funding Opportunities‘, you access a Research Professional real-time search of the calls announced by the Major UK Funders. Use this feature to stay up to date with funding calls. Please note that you will have to be on campus or connecting to your desktop via our VPN to fully access this service.

NERC Industrial Innovation Fellowships

Funding opportunities

This call opens on Je-S 25 August 2017.  Closing on 19 September 2017

In response to the industrial strategy, Research Councils UK (RCUK) (UK Research & Innovation (UKRI)) has developed a fellowship programme to be supported through the National Productivity Investment Fund. Targeted at early career researchers (ECRs), RCUK / UKRI Industrial Innovation Fellowships will be a step change in the support provided by the research councils to the research leaders of the future, enabling some of the UK’s most talented researchers to undertake major new innovation oriented and intellectual endeavours.

For applicants within NERC’s science remit, NERC will be delivering these fellowships through Industrial Innovation Fellowships and Industrial Mobility Fellowships

RCUK (UKRI) 2017 Industrial Innovation Fellowships support the delivery of the industrial strategy by supporting early career researchers to explore interdisciplinary solutions as well as addressing focused sectoral needs to the economic benefit of the UK, both in the short term and long term. This scheme will ensure that the UK industrial sector has a supply of skilled researchers and will nurture future leaders in both industry and the research base.

Industrial Innovation Fellowships are three-and-a-half-year research fellowship awards where the award holder undertakes a programme of research clearly aligned with the objectives of the industrial strategy – and particularly the core challenge areas identified within the green paper – whilst maximising the impact of this research through working in collaboration with users of research.

It is anticipated that 24 Industrial Innovation Fellowships will be supported through this call and the successful applicants will commence their fellowships by 1 January 2018 at the latest.

Please see the Announcement of Opportunity document below for full details of the call including information concerning how to apply.

Announcement of Opportunity (PDF, 158KB)

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

NERC has prepared a FAQ document for this call – this document will be updated over the lifetime of the call so please check the latest edition before contacting NERC with your query.

Frequently asked questions (PDF, 102KB)

Contacts

For queries regarding the application process and administration of this opportunity, please contact:

David Roberts
01793 442644

If you are interested in applying, please contact your RKEO Funding Development Officer immediately (given the short deadline).

New Partner Search on Participant Portal

The European Commission’s Participant Portal new Partner Search is now ready to use. This search allows you to find potential partners for your research project, based on organisations already registered on the Portal and in receipt of funding. As part of this, there is a useful overview of the organisation and its interaction with European funding schemes. Access is also given to top level information about funded projects.

The Partner Search can be found under the How to Participate tab and can be used whether you are logged in or not.
 
The Partner Search allows you to search by organisation name, a key word or topic. There is also the option to filter by country, organisation type or programme. If you see a partner you would like to find out more about, you can click on the organisations name to go to their page.

On the organisation page you can find a blurb of the organisation and a full list of key words. Note that some of these have been entered manually and some are taken automatically from the European funded projects the organisation has.

To help see potential network opportunities, further down the page you can see information on who the main collaboration partners are for that organisation and the type of role it usually holds in a project. Finally there is a list of all the European Commission funded projects that the organisation has and a link to contact that project team direct.

This tool complements the other partner searches already available. Why not have a look and see who has funded projects in your field?

 

How did an archaeologist become a Research Assistant in the Faculty of Management?

Awarded & submitted bids, conferences

My name is Shannon Birch-Chapman and I am currently a Research Assistant in the Faculty of Management at Bournemouth University, working on a QR funded project titled Trust Repair in the Service Sector.

 

Our team is investigating how organisations can repair trust following trust erosion, focussing on three highly publicised cases: 1) the treatment of staff at the main Sports Direct Warehouse in Derbyshire; 2) the Alton Towers rollercoaster crash that caused two women to have leg amputations; and 3) the mis-selling of PPI by banks. These are diverse case studies with different causes and severities of trust erosion and as such, our team consists of people with diverse backgrounds: two in finance (Dr Julie Robson and Samreen Ashraf), two in leisure and hospitality (Dr Caroline Jackson and Dr Elvira Borat), two in retail (Prof Juliet Memery and Dr Jason Sit) and me: an archaeologist!

Figure 1. Excavating on the Bournemouth University Durotriges Project in 2013.

“How did an archaeologist become a Research Assistant in the Faculty of Management?” I hear you ask. Well, as any archaeology graduate knows, finding steady employment in archaeology following your degree (or in my case, an undergraduate degree, an honours degree, a masters and a PhD!) is almost impossible. The great thing about studying archaeology is that we learn a wide range of transferrable skills and are particularly good at sifting through large volumes of quantitative and qualitative evidence, and synthesising this to make informed conclusions. We are essentially the detectives of the past and, as such, make meticulous researchers.

Figure 2. Surveying the architectural remains at the Pre-Pottery Neolithic site of Ba’ja in Jordan in 2015.

In this project, I have put my previous skills to good use, conducting literature searches; compiling and writing background information for our case studies, conference presentations and journal articles; devising the conceptual framework and hypotheses for our project, and linking these to the current theories; analysing data; and writing and presenting results.

I have also developed several new qualitative research skills, particularly relating to the gathering of data through consumer focus groups, stakeholder interviews and questionnaires. As someone who had never done qualitative research of this kind, it was an interesting process working out how to devise the right questions to ask. I hadn’t ever given much thought to how much effort goes into constructing these and analysing the outputs.

One of the most challenging and rewarding aspects of the research to date has been learning how to use NVivo: a program for analysing qualitative data. Our team attended a two day workshop with Ben Meehan from QDA Training, which was tailored for our project. It was then my job to ‘code’ and analyse the data from the consumer focus groups and some of the stakeholder interviews. I used a combination of template and thematic approaches, whereby participant responses were ‘coded’ into pre-existing and emerging themes. The themes related to definitions of trust, the cause and severity of trust erosion, specific trust repair strategies and the success of these for trust repair. Running queries on the coded data, we were able to determine the trust repair strategies that were most successful for each of our three case studies.

The project started around February this year and we have already had the opportunity to present our research at the 3rd International Colloquium on Design, Brand and Marketing (ICDBM) in April and at Bournemouth University’s Festival of Learning in July. We are presenting at the 3rd International Colloquium on Corporate Branding, Identity, Image and Reputation (COBIIR): Current and Future Trends, Developments and Challenges in September and have two journal articles in preparation. We are hoping that our results will guide best practice in industry and the team will be looking to work more directly with practitioners in the next stage of the research.

Figure 3. Presenting at the ICDBM conference in 2017 (left to right: Shannon Birch-Chapman, Caroline Jackson, Julie Robson and Samreen Ashraf).

As for me, I am nearing the end of my contract at Bournemouth University. Being a research assistant here has enabled me to apply and develop even stronger research skills beyond my discipline that I am sure will help me in my search for future employment. I wonder what interesting things I will be researching next…

 

To follow Trust Repair project, tweet at @TrustRepairBU

 

Conference papers

Bolat, E., Robson, J., Ashraf, S., Birch-Chapman, S., Sit, J., Memery, J. and Jackson, C., 2017. Corporate brand rehab: Diagnosing trust repair mechanisms in the service sectors. Paper to be presented at the 3rd International Colloquium on Corporate Branding, Identity, Image and Reputation (COBIIR): Current and Future Trends, Developments and Challenges. 7th-8th September 2017.

Robson, J., Memery, J., Jackson, C., Sit, J., Bolat, E., Ashraf, S., Birch-Chapman, S., 2017. Trust Me: I’m no longer a damaged brand. Paper presented at the 3rd International Colloquium on Design, Brand and Marketing (ICDBM), Bournemouth University, 5th Apr 2017.

 

 

The importance of justifying yourself! Writing a Justification of Resources Session 12th October 2017

Funding opportunities

Many people see the ‘Justification of Resources’ document as another thing to quickly pull together and tick off the list, after having already completed a 70+ page funding application. As a result, it often doesn’t get the prior consideration needed to write a good one – even though applications are often rejected due to insufficient justification of resources.

As part of the Research and Knowledge Exchange Development Framework, RKEO are holding a session on ‘Writing a Justification of Resources’. The session will provide an overview of the Justification of Resources document, and will offer tips for writing this section of the application form. Examples of effective Justifications of Resources will be provided.

Date: Thursday 12th October

Time: 09:30-11:00

Venue: Lansdowne Campus

Book your space via the RKE Development Framework page for this event.

For further information, please contact Lisa Gale-Andrews, RKEO Research Facilitator.

Special Edition Policy Update: Sir John Bell report on Life Sciences and the Industrial Strategy

Funding opportunities, international, PG research

Following our Industrial Strategy update last week, as expected Sir John Bell has published his report for the government on Life Sciences and the Industrial Strategy. There are 7 main recommendations under 4 themes, which are summarised below.

Some interesting comments:

  • “The key UK attribute driving success in life sciences is the great strength in university-based research. Strong research-based universities underpin most of the public sector research success in the UK, as they do in the USA and in Scandinavia. National research systems based around institutes rather than universities, as seen in Germany, France and China, do not achieve the same productivity in life sciences as seen in university-focussed systems.” (p22)
  • “The decline in funding of indirect costs for charity research is coupled to an increasing tendency for Research Councils to construct approaches that avoid paying indirect Full Economic Costs (FEC). Together, these are having a significant impact on the viability of research in universities and have led to the institutions raising industrial overhead costs to fill the gap. This is unhelpful.” (p24 and see the recommendation about charitable contributions under “reinforcing the UK science offer” below)
  • “It is also recommended, that the funding agencies, in partnership with major charities, create a high-level recruitment fund that would pay the real cost of bringing successful scientists from abroad to work in major UK university institutions.” (see the proposal to attract international scientists below).
  • On clusters “Life sciences clusters are nearly always located around a university or other research institute and in the UK include elements of NHS infrastructure. However, evidence and experience suggests that governments cannot seed technology clusters28 and their success is usually driven by the underpinning assets of universities and companies, and also by the cultural features of networking and recycling of entrepreneurs and capital.” And “Regions should make the most of existing opportunities locally to grow clusters and build resilience by working in partnership across local Government, LEPs (in England), universities and research institutes, NHS, AHSNs, local businesses and support organisations, to identify and coalesce the local vision for life sciences. Science & Innovation Audits, Local Growth Funds and Growth Hubs (in England), Enterprise Zones and local rates and planning flexibilities can all be utilised to support a vision for life sciences. “ (see the proposal on clusters under “Growth and Infrastructure” – this was a big theme in the Industrial strategy and something we also covered in our Green Paper response)
  • On skills: “ The flow of multidisciplinary students at Masters and PhD level should be increased by providing incentives through the Higher Education Funding Council for England.2 and “Universities and research funders should embed core competencies at degree and PhD level, for example data, statistical and analytical skills, commercial acumen and translational skills, and management and entrepreneurship training (which could be delivered in partnership with business schools). They should support exposure to, and collaboration with, strategically important disciplines including computer and data science, engineering, chemistry, physics, mathematics and material science.”

Health Advanced Research Programme (HARP) proposal – with the goal to create 2-3 entirely new industries over the next 10 years.

  • Establish a coalition of funders to create the Health Advanced Research Programme to undertake large research infrastructure projects and high risk ‘moonshot programmes’, that will help create entirely new industries in healthcare
  • Create a platform for developing effective diagnostics for early, asymptomatic chronic disease.
  • Digitalisation and AI to transform pathology and imaging.
  • Support projects around healthy ageing.

Reinforcing the UK science offer

  • Sustain and increase funding for basic science to match our international competition – the goal is that the UK should attract 2000 new discovery scientists from around the globe
    • The UK should aim to be in the upper quartile of OECD R&D spending and sustain and increase the funding for basic science, to match our international competitors, particularly in university settings, encouraging discovery science to co-locate.
    • NIHR should be supported, with funding increases in line with Research Councils
    • Ensure the environment remains supportive of charitable contributions through enhancing the Charity Research Support Fund (see above for the context for this).
    • Capitalise on UKRI to increase interdisciplinary research, work more effectively with industry and support high-risk science.
    • Use Government and charitable funding to attract up to 100 world-class scientists to the UK, with support for their recruitment and their science over the next ten years.
  • Further improve UK clinical trial capabilities to support a 50% increase in the number of clinical trials over the next 5 years and a growing proportion of change of practice and trials with novel methodology over the next 5 years.
    • Establish a working group to evaluate the use of digital health care data and health systems; to evaluate the safety and efficacy of new interventions; and to help ICH modernise its GCP regulations.
    • Improve the UK’s clinical trial capabilities so that the UK can best compete globally in our support for industry and academic studies at all phases.
    • Design a translational fund to support the pre-commercial creation of clinically-useable molecules and devices.

Growth and infrastructure – the goal is to create four UK companies valued at >£20 billion market cap in the next ten years.

  • Ensure the tax environment supports growth and is internationally competitive in supporting long-term and deeper investment.
    • Address market failures through Social Impact Bonds and encourage AMR research.
    • Consider how UK-based public markets can be used more effectively in the sector.
  • Support the growth of Life Sciences clusters.
    • Government, local partners and industry should work together to ensure the right infrastructure is in place to support the growth of life sciences clusters and networks.
    • UK’s existing clusters should work together and with government to promote a ‘single front door’ to the UK for research collaboration, partnership and investment.
  • Attract substantial investment to manufacture and export high value life science products of the future. – the goal is to attract ten large (£50-250m capital investment) and 10 smaller (£10-50m capital investments) in life science manufacturing facilities in the next five years.
    • Accept in full the recommendations of the Advanced Therapies Manufacturing Action Plan and apply its principles to other life science manufacturing sectors.
    • A programme in partnership with industry to develop cutting-edge manufacturing technologies that will address scale-up challenges and drive up productivity.
    • Optimise the fiscal environment to drive investment in industrial buildings, equipment and infrastructure for manufacturing and late-stage R&D.
    • Consider nationally available financial incentives – grants and loans, or capital allowances combined with regional incentives – to support capital investment in scale-up, and prepare for manufacturing and related export activity.
    • Make support and incentives for manufacturing investment and exporting available to business through a single front door, provide a senior national account manager accountable for delivery and simplify the customer journey.

NHS collaboration – the Accelerated Access Review should be adopted with national routes to market streamlined and clarified, including for digital products. There are two stated goals:

  • The NHS should engage in fifty collaborative programmes in the next 5 years in late-stage clinical trials, real world data collection, or in the evaluation of diagnostics or devices.
  • The UK should be in the top quartile of comparator countries, both for the speed of adoption and the overall uptake of innovative, cost-effective products, to the benefit of all UK patients by the end of 2023.

The recommended actions are

  • Utilise and broaden the Accelerated Access Review to encourage UK investment in clinical and real-world studies. Deliver a conditional reimbursement approval, for implementation as soon as licensing and value milestones are delivered.
  • Create a forum for early engagement between industry, NHS and arms-length bodies (e.g. NICE, MHRA) to agree commercial access agreements.
  • Use the recommendations from the AAR to streamline the processes and methods of assessment for all new products.
  • Value assessments should be evolved in the long-term with improved patient outcome measures, affordability and cost management data beyond one year timeframes.
  • NICE’s funding model for technology evaluation should be set up in a way that does not stifle SME engagement

Data – Establish two to five Digital Innovation Hubs providing data across regions of three to five million people.

  • The health and care system should set out a vision and a plan to deliver a national approach with the capability to rapidly and effectively establish studies for the generation of real world data, which can be appropriately accessed by researchers.
  • ePrescribing should be mandatory for hospitals.
  • NHS Digital and NHS England should set out clear and consistent national approaches to data and interoperability standards and requirements for data access agreements.
  • Accelerate access to currently available national datasets by streamlining legal and ethical approvals.
  • Create a forum for researchers across academia, charities and industry to engage with all national health data programmes.
  • Establish a new regulatory, Health Technology Assessment and commercial framework to capture for the UK the value in algorithms generated using NHS data. A working group should be established to take this forward
  • Two to five digital innovation hubs providing data across regions of three to five million people should be set up as part of a national approach and building towards full population coverage, to rapidly enable researchers to engage with a meaningful dataset. These regional hubs should also have the capability to accelerate and streamline CTA and HRA approvals. One or more of these should focus on medtech.
  • The UK could host 4-6 centres of excellence that provide support for specific medtech themes, focussing on research capability in a single medtech domain such as orthopaedics, cardiac, digital health or molecular diagnostics.
  • National registries of therapy-area-specific data across the whole of the NHS in England should be created and aligned with the relevant charity.

Skills

  • A migration system should be established that allows recruitment and retention of highly skilled workers from the EU and beyond, and does not impede intra-company transfers.
  • Develop and deliver a reinforced skills action plan across the NHS, commercial and third sectors based on a gap analysis of key skills for science.
    • Create an apprenticeship scheme that focuses on data sciences, as well as skills across the life sciences sector, and trains an entirely new cadre of technologists, healthcare workers and scientists at the cutting-edge of digital health.
    • Establish Institutes of Technology that would provide opportunity for technical training, particularly in digital and advanced manufacturing areas.
    • There should be support for entrepreneur training at all levels, incentivising varied careers and migration of academic scientists into industry and back to academia.
    • A fund should be established supporting convergent science activities including cross-disciplinary sabbaticals, joint appointments, funding for cross-sectoral partnerships and exchanges across industry and the NHS, including for management trainees.
    • High quality STEM education should be provided for all, and the government should evaluate and implement additional steps to increase the number of students studying maths to level 3 and beyond

BU Briefing – It was only a mild concussion

Our BU briefing papers are designed to make our research outputs accessible and easily digestible so that our research findings can quickly be applied – whether to society, culture, public policy, services, the environment or to improve quality of life. They have been created to highlight research findings and their potential impact within their field.

Sports concussion has been the subject of much discourse in the scientific literature and mainstream media for many years. Major national and international sporting events are extensively covered by the media, with vast numbers of column inches and webpages dedicated to summarising these events. The frequency of concussion in some of the world’s biggest sports such as soccer, football, and rugby means that many of these concussive events which occur in high-profile competitions are also the focus of this reporting.

This paper analyses the descriptions of online sports concussion news on a global scale, using a search engine to retrieve news stories, and evaluates the media’s role in shaping public perception and misconception regarding concussion in sport. Further analysis sought to identify geographical patterns associated with different descriptions of sports concussion.

Click here to read the briefing paper.

For more information about the research, contact Dr Osman Ahmed at ahmedo@bournemouth.ac.uk.
To find out how your research output could be turned into a BU Briefing, contact research@bournemouth.ac.uk.

Bournemouth Air Festival: what have we got in store for you?

Bournemouth Air Festival this year is a brilliant opportunity for you to come along and get involved at our Science tent! You will find us on the promenade towards Boscombe pier. We have many different free activities happening, from 3D printing to the VR of past landscapes where students have been collaborating with the New Forest National Park Authority to create virtual reality visuals of past landscapes.

These activities will give you an insight into the research Bournemouth University are doing in technology, whilst giving you the opportunity to get involved and have a go with the tech they are using!

We will also have other activities for people to get involved with, ranging from learning everything about the brain and all of its amazing secrets, to making your own model lung and slimy snot. You will be able to learn all about the amazing aspects of the body whilst having fun doing it.

If the 3D printing is something you really want to have a go at, make sure to come down and join us on the Thursday! Oleg Fyrazinov will be joining us at the air festival for one day only so make sure you don’t miss out. We will also have the pleasure of working with the University of Southampton over the weekend at our stand so come and see what they will have in store… certainly not something to miss if you’re a learning fanatic.

We look forward to seeing you get involved with our jam packed schedule! Check out our Twitter and Facebook for more regular updates on what we are doing!

Read on below to see the full range of activities on offer throughout the weekend…

VR of Past Landscapes – Students on the Games Technology course at BU have been collaborating with the New Forest National Park Authority to create virtual reality visualisations of past landscapes. The New Forest want to engage the public and raise awareness of the heritage of the forest, and BU staff and students are able to perform research into issues related the virtual reality (immersion, navigation aids, comparison of presentation platforms, etc.). The students have created a number of different virtual reality environments of archaeological sites (including first and second world war airfields that may be of particular interest to the air festival visitors) that could be used as interactive exhibits. Users will be able to explore the environments by controlling their own path and interacting with objects in the environment.

Financial Scamming – Sally Lee will be helping the audience understand the risk of financial scamming and how to protect themselves through a ‘Scams and Ladders’ game to get people thinking whilst having fun. It is a way for the researchers to get the public aware of the risks of scamming (affecting more than 3.25 million people in the UK) whilst in a format that is readily accessible and will get people engaged at the Air Festival

3D Printing/SHIVA – BU’s SHIVA software was developed to assist disable children to use their artistic talents and create their own 3D models. New software allows children and young people to use touch screen and eye-tracking technology to create their own shapes, which are then brought to life by 3D printers. Stop by and see the 3D printer in action, giving you an idea of how the changes in technology are helping make all activities accessibly for all ages and abilities.

Brilliant Brain – Brains: your personality, your memories, your feelings and the words you speak – they’re all wrapped up in the squishy grey matter between your eyes. Come down and explore to model brain, ask your most baffling questions to a scientist and learn the brain’s amazing secrets.

Microbiology and Wildlife Conservation – Have you ever met a microbe? They are all around us as well as inside of us, but invisible to the naked eye! Stop by and try out our high definition microscopes and see if you can spot the creatures. You will be able to find out why microbiology is such an important part of our daily lives and vital for the functioning of our natural world. We have several different types of microbiology for you to explore; so far we have the following sections: 1 – Microbial life forms; 2 – Invertebrates 3 – Shells, fossils and skulls; 4 – African wildlife endangered species/ conservation; 5 – Conservation craft corner

Maths Games – BU researchers have developed two new and exciting computer games that get your brains ticking over to solve maths problems as part of the fun. Try your hand at the quick and easy Maths Run game and enter your high score on our leader board to be in with a chance of winning a prize at the end of the day!

Maritime Archaeology – There will be a small display on the aviation used during the First World War, as well as showing you the local marine archaeology around Bournemouth and how shipwrecks are attacked by the biology in the sea.

Heathland Management – Britain is home to around 20% of the world’s lowland heath, which humans created by clearing woodlands in the past. Our local heaths are popular for recreation and are home to many archaeological features. This activity will consider how these landscapes have changed over time, as well as what the best way to manage and preserve them is for future generations                                                       

Falls Prevention – Balance is the body’s ability to stay upright and in control of the movement. It is necessary for all daily activities, but over time, adults lose this ability. The interactive drop-in session will show the importance of falls prevention, testing your balance with simple by fun tests. Come and learn more about your balance and what you can do to avoid a fall.

Madagascan Mysteries – The rainforests of Madagascar are filled with Special species. Come to the tent to find out what we have learnt on a joint expedition between staff and students from BU and the Bournemouth Natural Science Society. See displays showcasing the images of some of the wonderful wildlife found and get involved with our exciting, hands-on, all ages interactive learning activities for the full experience!

Slimy Snot and Breathing lungs – This activity will be fun for all the ages! Come along and make your own model lung and unlock the mysteries of how they work and learn the secret life of your snot and how it helps keep your lungs healthy.

University of Southampton – The University of Southampton will be joining us to get the public engaged with what the researchers at their University have been working on and the benefits it will bring to society! These activities consist of: The Circular Bio economy who are looking at how to use living processes to turn our rubbish into energy and useful products; the Centre for Population Change who are discussing ‘migration through the nation’ via giant puzzles and connect4; Sustainable Infrastructure Systems who are showing how they are creating sustainable, clean resolutions to tackle and solve environmental issues. We’re also joined by Cancer Research UK who are doing  make a cell out of air dough and a targeted therapy game and the Barclays Digital Eagles who are bringing along their Raspberry Pi Game.

 

The 5 W: My experience as a Research Assistant explained

Fusion Investment Fund, Knowledge Exchange, Student Engagement, student research

My name is Teodora Tepavicharova and I will be in my second year in September 2017. I have always been interested in Digitalisation and when I found out about the opportunity to work as an assistant for ‘Investigating Forms of Leadership in the Digital Age’ research project, I couldn’t be happier and more excited to apply for it. I knew that working on something like this is a big responsibility but being able to be part of a team of professionals from the area you are passionate about is definitely worth it!  Let me explain you more about my experience as an Student Research Assistant.

What? The Student Research Assistant job role is a great opportunity no matter of the year of study. Every student who meets certain criteria can apply for it. My role for this project was to conduct literature reviews, collect data and make conclusions upon it. It was a challenge to find new information that hasn’t been researched before but working on the project, we found very interesting theories that may be a game changer for the way the Digital World has been looked up at until now. I found the foundation needed for the creation of an evaluative research paper on NVivo 11.

Why? The advantages of working this are many – make new contacts within the university and the environment where you are working, meeting new people, gaining new skills etc. In my opinion, one of the best things that you can learn is the information that you are looking for. I wanted to meet and work with tutors who will be teaching me in future and URA gave me this opportunity. Being able to dive so deep into a topic is a great way to learn new things, theory and real-life examples about something that you are passionate about. I found it very interesting to read and observe different papers, websites and get in touch with people who can give you inside of a brand-new topic is amazing experience for a student.

Where? The job is extremely flexible. Depending on you and the Project Leaders, you may choose to work from home, local web café, university or any other place where you can be productive. I worked from home and in the university depending on the amount of work I had. For me this was very useful because sometimes I needed much more time to work in the office rather than at home. Being able to choose makes the work pleasurable. I had my own desk, computer and needed materials for working productive.

Who? Every undergraduate and postgraduate taught student who is studying in the university and whose grades are 70 and above can apply for the position. At the end of my first year, I decided to work at least a month during the summer. The unique opportunity is great for everyone because no matter of your year of study, you always need experience in your CV. If you are curious, reliable, focused and enthusiastic, then definitely go for it!

When? I worked from the beginning to the end of June which again was my preferable time. This is another advantage of the job – you can spread the hours depending on your free time. Of course, it depends on the amount of work you have, the amount of time you spent working and the arrangements with your Project Leaders. The job was greater than my expectations as it was dynamic and I was able to learn how to work with NVivo 11.

I think that the most amazing thing about working as a SRA is that you are very welcomed to the team. My Project Leaders are wonderful, intelligent women who made me feel very calm, welcomed and helpful since day one. Being able to work in such cohesion, gives you the motivation and at the same time you are enjoying every moment of this journey. Working with NVivo 11 was a pleasure because it is easy to navigate and manage. I will certainly use the software again for my assignments and dissertation! So, if you are driven and ready to show what you are capable of, apply for Research Assistant!

What happens when things go wrong in medicine?

1-day BU conference/workshop examining what happens when things go wrong in surgery, Friday 8th September 2017 

Please make sure you book your place by Friday 1st September.

Every day we make mistakes; we pick up the wrong set of keys from the kitchen drawer, pick up the wrong identical suitcase from the airport carousel, or, in the case of the Oscars, we give the wrong near identical envelope to Warren Beatty.  What happens when things go wrong in surgery where the consequences can be much more serious?  While attention, quite rightly, focuses on patient need when things go wrong, the aim of this event is to examine how medical professionals can be better supported and trained to cope with these adverse events.

Eminent speakers from around the UK will present the latest research in the area and will consider the personal impact when complications and errors arise in surgery, dealing with stress and maintaining wellbeing, and what can be done when things go wrong.

While the focus is on surgeons, it is clear that those in other medical professions (e.g. nurses, midwives, GPs) face similar issues in the workplace. Anyone with an interest in the topic is welcome to attend.   Attendance is free for BU staff.   For further details please visit www.surgeonwellbeing.co.uk or contact Professor Siné McDougall (smcdougall@bournemouth.ac.uk; ext. 61722) with any queries.

JPICH Heritage in Changing Environments pre-call announcement

Funding opportunities

The Joint Programming Initiative in Cultural Heritage and Global Change is pleased to announce a new funding opportunity for transnational proposals. The Heritage in Changing Environments call will support the development of new, research-based ideas and knowledge in response to the rapidly and widely changing context with which heritage and heritage practice is faced. It invites research projects that help cultural heritage to meet societal challenges and contribute to the development of society. The call aims to fund excellent research that is collaborative, transnational, interdisciplinary and innovative. The total budget for the call for transnational projects is approximately 4.5 million Euros.

Detailed Eligibility Requirements for each country are published alongside the Heritage in Changing Environments Call for Proposals on the JPICH website.

The Call for Proposals will open on 4 September 2017 and the deadline for submission of proposals will be 30 November 2017, 14:00 CET.

Topics for the Changing Environment joint call

Three broad categories of the changing environments of heritage are addressed in this call:

  1. changing (physical) environments
  2. changing social and economic environments
  3. changing political and cultural environments.

Projects funded through this call will use cultural heritage to address global challenges such as:

  • the impacts of climate change
  • environmental deterioration
  • migration
  • demographic and social change
  • diasporic change
  • urbanisation and de-ruralisation
  • economic inequity
  • changing perceptions and sustainability.

Further details can be found in the JPICH Heritage in Changing Environments pre-call announcement. (PDF, 110KB) Full details of the call will be available through the AHRC funding pages and the JPICH website on the 4 September 2017.

New HERA funding Call ‘Public Spaces: Culture and Integration in Europe’

Funding opportunities

The Arts and Humanities Research Council, 23 humanities funding organisations and the European Commission are pleased to announce a new €20 Million Joint Research Programme (JRP) for arts and humanities researchers in Europe.

Organised by HERA (Humanities in the European Research Area), and facilitated in the UK by the AHRC, this joint research programme will fund innovative and exciting international research projects on ‘Public Spaces: Culture and Integration in Europe’.

The beneficiaries of this Call are eligible researchers located in the HERA JRP PS countries: Austria, Belgium (Wallonia), Czech Republic, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and United Kingdom, irrespective of their nationality.

The research programme will fund new and exciting humanities-centred projects involving researchers from four or more participating countries. Proposals can be up to €1 Million in value, and 24-36 months in duration. The deadline for the submission of Outline Proposals is Tuesday 24 October 2017, 14:00 CEST (Central European Summer Time).

If you are looking for partners, you can use the HERA partner search tool .

Further information on eligibility, call guidance and application process is available on the HERA website

The AHRC will be running a Webinar on the HERA application process and UK eligibility rules on Thursday 7th September 1.30 – 2.30 pm. To participate please follow this link.

If you are interested in applying, please contact your RKEO Funding Development Officer in the first instance.

Cafe Scientifique – Flashback to the past

In the run up to our next Café Scientifique event, we wanted to remind you of some of the brilliant speakers we have had in the past. Check out the video below to watch the fantastic Dr John McAlaney explaining our addiction to anything digital.

Our next event has Professor Jessica Teeling from the University of Southampton, sharing the impact of age on the immune system and how this damages tissue in our retinas, consequently making us lose our sight. It is an interactive Café Scientifique that definitely shouldn’t be missed!

We look forward to seeing you at Café Boscanova on the 5th September.

ARE YOU A DIGITAL ADDICT?

For more information on our Café Scientifique events –  check out our page, or find us on Facebook and Twitter to hear the latest news.

 

REF & TEF: the connections – 11th October 2017

BU Challenges, Centre for Excellence in Learning, conferences, Guidance, Info Days, Publishing, REF Subjects, Research assessment, Training

The outcomes of this year’s Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) and the direction for the Research Excellence Framework (REF) as set out in the 2017 consultation response are likely to have significant implications for the higher education sector.  The links between research and teaching are likely to become ever more important, but set against the context of increasing emphasis on student experience, how should the sector respond and where should it focus?

REF & TEF: the connections will be hosted at Bournemouth University and will bring together some of the leading experts in higher education in both research and teaching policy.  During the morning, attendees will have the opportunity hear from experts from across the higher education sector, as they share their insights into the importance of the links between teaching and research.  The afternoon will feature a number of case studies with speakers from universities with a particularly good record of linking research and  teaching.

Speakers confirmed to date include Kim Hackett, REF Manager and Head of Research Assessment, HEFCE and John Vinney Bournemouth University, William Locke University College London, Professor Sally Brown Higher Education Academy.

For more information or to book on visit: https://reftef.eventbrite.co.uk