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Academic Librarians – Parliament/research engagement training

Parliament’s Knowledge Exchange Unit have a (free) online training session for academic librarians exploring ways to engage with Parliament and support researcher engagement with Parliament on 20 May 10:00-11:00.

To register book here.  

The policy team tracks the usefulness of the information we share so it’d be great if you could email us at policy@bournemouth.ac.uk if you plan to attend this event.

Here’s the event blurb:

This training webinar is aimed at academic librarians, i.e. people whose role is focused on overseeing and sharing information and resources with academics and researchers in an academic community. This includes academic librarians supporting researchers, scholarly communications librarians and librarians involved in REF support.

Academic librarians can play a key role in supporting academics in their parliamentary engagement and enhancing the academic research flowing from their institution into UK Parliament.

In the session, we will explain the role of Parliament, the place of research evidence in parliamentary activity, the role of the House of Commons Library, and how academic librarians and researchers can get involved with the work of UK Parliament and the House of Commons Library.

This training session will be delivered by the Knowledge Exchange Unit with a speaker from the House of Commons Library. It will share insights for academic librarians and the researchers they work with around how to engage with UK Parliament, with a particular focus on the House of Commons Library.

The session is focused on practical information and advice, with opportunities for Q&A.

Please note there is a short pre-requisite activity for this session of no more than 15 minutes; you will receive details of this with your joining instructions.

As a result of the training, academic librarians will:

  • Understand the different parts of Parliament, the place of research evidence in parliamentary activity, and how expertise can be shared with Parliament
  • Understand the role of the House of Commons Library, the resources and services it provides, and how it uses academic research and expertise, and
  • Be aware of how they can support academics in their parliamentary engagement and enhance the flow of academic research from their institution into Parliament and the House of Commons Library
  • Know how to stay in touch with opportunities to engage with Parliament

The session will be recorded and available to watch on the UK Parliament website afterwards.

 

 

 

Space Strategy & Satellite Infrastructure

The Commons Science and Technology Committee has opened a new inquiry into UK space strategy and UK satellite infrastructure and has invited written evidence by 24 June.

Here are the terms of reference:

  1. What are the prospects for the UK’s global position as a space nation, individually and through international partnerships;
  2. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the current UK space sector and research and innovation base;
  3. What lessons can be learned from the successes and failures of previous space strategies for the UK and the space strategies of other countries;
  4. What should be the aims and focus of a new UK Space Strategy, including considerations of:
  • technology;
  • skills and diversity;
  • research funding, investment and economic growth;
  • industry;
  • civil and defence applications;
  • international considerations and partnerships;
  • place;
  • current regulatory and legislative frameworks and impact on UK launch potential; and
  • impacts of low Earth orbit satellites on research activities.

 

What needs to be done to ensure the UK has appropriate, resilient and future-proofed space and satellite infrastructure for applications including:

  • navigation systems;
  • weather forecasting;
  • earth observation including climate change; and
  • communication (including broadband).

Contact the policy team (policy@bournemouth.ac.uk) if you wish to provide written evidence to this inquiry.

Funding Development Briefing – Spotlight on British Academy Mid-Career Fellowships

The RDS Funding Development Briefings occur weekly, on a Wednesday at 12 noon.

Each session covers the latest major funding opportunities, followed by a brief Q&A session. Some sessions also include a spotlight on a particular funding opportunity of strategic importance to BU.

Next Wednesday 5th May, there will be a spotlight on British Academy Mid-Career Fellowships.

We will cover:

  • Overview of the programme
  • How to apply
  • Q & A

For those unable to attend, the session will be recorded and shared on Brightspace here.

Please email RKEDF@bournemouth.ac.uk to receive the Teams invite for these sessions.

 

Research impact at BU: reducing fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis & tackling audiovisual piracy

A series of posts highlighting BU’s impact case studies for REF 2021. (The full impact case studies will be published on the REF website summer 2022.)

Reducing the impact of fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis using a novel fatigue-management programme

Research areas: Health Care, Digital Health, Psychology & Computing

Staff conducting research: Professor Peter Thomas, Dr Sarah Thomas, Dr Andy Pulman, Dr Sarah Collard, Dr Huseyin Dogan, Dr Nan Jiang

Background: Drug treatments for fatigue for people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) are not always effective and, although cognitive behavioural therapy has proved helpful for other conditions, there was a lack of evidence supporting its use for managing MS fatigue. BU researchers conducted a scoping exercise (funded by the MS Society) and a Cochrane review, which confirmed the evidence gap in psychological treatments for MS fatigue. Thomas and her team worked with Poole Hospital to develop FACETS (Fatigue: Applying Cognitive behavioural and Energy effectiveness Techniques to LifeStyle), a group-based fatigue management programme, designed to be easily implemented in clinical practice. The MS Society also commissioned the team to explore the digital delivery of the programme and a protoype Android app was developed and tested.

The impact: An estimated 13,931 PwMS in the UK have participated in FACETS programmes, and the CEO of the MS Society confirms: “Our feedback from people with MS has shown the positive impact that the FACETS programme has on their lives, making a real difference”. The MS Society also supported the national roll-out of FACETS via delivery of a one-day facilitator training course developed by the research team, which has so far trained more than 300 healthcare professionals in the UK.  FACETS was included in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines for managing MS, and the MS Society website recommends its use. The impact of FACETS is global – it is being delivered in Ireland, Germany, Denmark, France and Australia, and the programme also been used or adapted for use in Spain, Argentina, New Zealand, Tasmania and New Jersey, USA.

Defeating the pirates: creating a technical guide to support EU law enforcement agencies in combatting audiovisual piracy

Research area: Computing & Informatics

Staff conducting research: Professor Vasilis Katos

Background: Cyber attribution involves processes in the tracking and identification of perpetrators using computer networks for hacking or conducting other crimes. In 2018, audiovisual (AV) piracy generated more than €940m in unlawful revenue in Europe alone. The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) commissioned a technical guide to combat illegal Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) – television content formatted for internet delivery. Three areas of research undertaken by BU and academic collaborators – malware forensics, open-source intelligence and digital forensics – provided the basis for the 217-page guide, which underwent a three-month review by industry experts such as Sky and BT, law enforcement agencies and the European Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation.

The impact: The final version of the guide was distributed to all EU law enforcement organisations, who now use it in IPTV investigations; it is also included in training material by the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Training. In 2019, the guide supported operations by six EU member states to dismantle an international criminal network responsible for IPTV crime, with estimated damages of €6.5m. Last year it helped in the closure of an illegal international service, with more than 2m subscribers, representing an estimated €15m in profits for the criminal network. The guide also demonstrates how to identify pirate services and, for the first time, maps the illegal online video streaming ecosystem. The UK Intellectual Property Office said: ‘research conducted by BU has been critically important in providing a credible and collective analysis of how the environment of online streaming is both used and abused’ and has already identified the potential for transferring the research to other areas of IP crime.

Next post: saving an iconic freshwater fish from extinction and improving wellbeing with multi-sensory art installations.

Launch of the revised Academic Study Leave Policy

For some staff, research activity has understandably taken a back seat over the past 12 months due to the change in education models, adaptation to online teaching and focus on supporting students during this difficult time. The BU Academic Study Leave Policy has been revised and relaunched to provide opportunities for staff to engage actively and intensely in research activities that enable research performance in line with BU2025. Study leave is an important part of BU’s plans to recover from the impact of the pandemic and could be used, for example, to re-establish strategically important research activities from 2021/22 onwards, particularly those that lead in increased research income, outputs and/or impact.

The three main changes are:

  • In line with the BU2025 Research Principles, the purpose of the Academic Study Leave Policy has been updated from one which provided leave for education, professional practice or research to one which grants leave for research only. This proposed change is in response to the BU2025 challenge to build significant research capability across the University.
  • The priority list for academic study leave has been expanded to include ECRs and professional & support staff undertaking doctorates.
  • Changes to the application and approval process.

The revised Policy is available on the Staff Intranet here: https://intranetsp.bournemouth.ac.uk/policy/academic-study-leave-policy.docx. It is being launched now to tie in with planning for appraisals, with a view to any study leave beginning from academic year 2021/22 onwards. Applications should be discussed with appraisers as part of the appraisal round this summer.

Research data: new dataset available

Prof. Mike Silk recently published his research data on ReShare, the UK Data Service’s research data repository, for his ESRC funded project Sex work in the context of sports mega events: Examining the impacts of Rio 2016. 

Many funders and journals require the data supporting research publications to be deposited for long-term preservation because of its value to future research. Here’s what Prof. Silk had to say:  

What’s most exciting/important about your research?  

Probably centring marginalisation / inequality and ensuring visibility / voice for those who are often excluded and/or peripheral to the juggernaut of mega-events (involving as it does securitisation, sterilisation of communities, event-led urban renewal that is often a guise for further marginalisation).  

What do you see as being the benefits of making your data available? 

The data being available means their voices live on past the event itself. Given this particular dataset is the first of its kind, having this data available will hopefully be a useful comparator for those addressing such issues at future events (e.g., Tokyo 2020 / Paris 2024). 

Any advice you would give to anyone about managing their data effectively for successful deposit? 

Most important thing for me was ensuring familiarity with the UK Data Service’s ‘Plan to Share’resource … essential to writing the bid and thereby study design. It meant data could be collected in a particular format that made it easy to deposit, as opposed to having to re-work the data at the conclusion of the project (once funding has run out!) to make it ‘shareable’! Going through this resource in advance of bid submission invariably strengthens the quality of the actual bid.  

The dataset is available on request via this link: 

https://doi.org/10.5255/UKDA-SN-853702 

What support is available for researchers? 

The library offers guidance and support for data management from bid preparation (Data Management Plans) to deposit in BORDaR, BU’s research data repository. Visit our research data management guide or email us at bordar@bournemouth.ac.uk. 

Participants needed for a study on educators’ wellbeing.

Researchers and students at the Department of Psychology are conducting research into the factors promoting and otherwise affecting the wellbeing of education professionals specifically during this phase of the covid-19 pandemic (Ethics ID:34613). Via an anonymous, short survey, gaining the views of a wide range of education professionals nationally we aim to provide the Department of Education and the whole community of education with an evidence-based perspective on what is working well in schools to support staff wellbeing.

To contribute please forward the following link to any friends/family/contacts involved with teaching and learning (senior leaders, teachers, support staff and all other educational professionals) in primary or secondary schools in the UK https://bournemouthpsych.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6mvGIrW6hk9z62F

If you have any questions or comments please contact us at researchwellbeing@bournemouth.ac.uk

Your support with this research would be greatly valued.

Violence against women and girls

Colleagues may be interested in responding to a new Home Affairs Committee inquiry into violence against women and girls.

The inquiry will look at how violence against women and girls is being addressed.  The Committee will use information from this call for evidence to inform its future programme of work on this issue. The deadline for submissions is 12pm on Tuesday 11 May 2021. You can submit evidence here – please engage with the policy team before submitting to an inquiry.

The Committee invites evidence on the following points, to inform development of its future programme:

How VAWG affects women and girls. This may include:

  • Information on different forms and experiences of VAWG – for example rape, sexual harassment and abuse, domestic abuse, coercive control, street and online harassment, stalking, forced marriage, female genital mutilation and other forms of violence and abuse – and the differences between addressing VAWG in the public and private spheres;
  • How VAWG has changed and how issues relating to VAWG are affected by modern technology, for example the use of social media and online dating sites, sexting, revenge porn and the accessibility of explicit pornography;
  • How VAWG affects young women and girls including in school and education institutions, in public places and online;
  • How VAWG affects particular groups, such as migrant women, sex workers or women with protected characteristics;
  • The prevalence and effect of honour-based violence and other practices that may affect minority groups such as female genital mutilation and forced marriage;
  • How sexual violence is being normalised within relationships, including strangulation, and the influence of extreme or violent pornography;
  • How organisations that women and girls turn to for support and help engage with issues relating to VAWG and their role in tackling and preventing it.

How VAWG should be prevented and addressed. This may include:

  • The role information and education for both men and women play in protecting women and girls;
  • Whether there is sufficient and appropriate support available for victims;
  • What measures should be in place for perpetrators;
  • The role of organisations and institutions including the police and criminal justice system, schools, colleges and education institutions, employers and trade unions, social media companies, local community and specialist services;
  • What lessons should be learnt from the 2016-2020 Ending Violence against Women and Girls strategy when developing the Government’s 2021-2024 strategy;
  • How current Bills, such as the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill and the Domestic Abuse Bill and other recent legislation that has been introduced can address, or have addressed, the issue of VAWG; and
  • Steps towards ratification of the Istanbul Convention.

Chair of the Home Affairs Committee Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP said: “Women across the country have been speaking out about their experiences of violence, abuse, stalking, and feeling unsafe – be it on our streets, in schools or at home. Everyone agrees that violence against women and girls is abhorrent, yet far too little has changed in practice to improve women’s safety and in some areas things have got worse. This inquiry will examine the many forms that violence against women and girls takes in our society, what action is being taken to end the scourge of violence against women and girls, and how it is currently being addressed by Government, the police and the criminal justice system.”

The call for game-changing research concepts now closes on Tuesday 4th May 5pm (deadline extended)

The call for game-changing research concepts to enable the growth of BU’s Strategic Investment Areas has been extended to Tue 4th May 5pm. 

This is your opportunity to put forward the concepts for which BU will be known in the years to come. Concepts that are prioritised for development by the SIA Steering Groups, will benefit from tailored institutional support to turn your idea into a reality.  This could include identification of match-funding, support from estates, personalised funding development support and much more – you tell us what you need!

 Game-changing research concepts are welcomed from all of our academic community across all career stages. 

To learn more about the SIAs, the open call and to discuss what you could do, read further details on the staff intranet The Teams links for each of the sesisons are here below for you to save in your calendars. For enquiries, please email sia@bournemouth.ac.uk. 

Briefing Events

Briefing events have all now taken place but if you have any questions regarding these, please email sia@bournemouth.ac.uk

 

General drop-in sessions

General drop in-sessions for any queries, to discuss potential ideas or to identify potential BU partners are taking place on the following dates/times supported by SIA Steering Group members and RDS staff:

  • 29 April 2pm

If you would like to join the meeting, please save this link in your diary and click on the link to join the meeting on the day: Click here to join the meeting

 

Mapping the Creative Coast: a south coast university consortium survey

BU is a member of the recently-formed Coastal Creatives Consortium (see below) and as such, we are now putting out this invitation to the broader digital creatives industry in the region to participate in an online survey, outlined here. Please engage your industry contacts so that we can build as deep a database as possible, with which ultimately to promote and leverage funding for coastal-based academic-industry research.

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Do you work in the digital creative industries around Bournemouth, Southampton, Portsmouth, Winchester, Chichester or the Isle of Wight? Please take 5 minutes to help with our research on potential relationships and collaborations with universities in the South-Central region.

We are inviting you to participate in an online survey for the Coastal Creatives consortium of regional universities (Bournemouth, Bournemouth Arts, Chichester, Portsmouth, Southampton and Southampton Solent). The consortium’s mission is to conduct research into the South-Central region’s digital creative industries and to assess the demand for industry-university collaborative research, development and educational needs and funding. This project is run from the University of Southampton and participation is voluntary.

The research question is: What kinds of research collaboration and partnerships (if any) would regional digital creative industries like to establish with local universities?

Seth Giddings (University of Southampton)

Jo Stark (University of Portsmouth).

‘Mapping the Creative Coast’ project, University of Southampton, ERGO 63710 (version 2 17/3/21)

https://www.southampton.ac.uk/siah/about/themes/mapping-the-creative-coast.page

BU Studentship Funding Panel

This week, the BU Research Blog has focussed on the different internal funding panels. This final post focusses on the BU Studentship Funding Panel, which oversees the allocation of central funding for postgraduate research (PGR) studentships. The BU Studentship Funding panel consists of thirteen panel members from across Faculties and Professional Services, is chaired by Professor Katherine Appleton (FMC), with the support of Associate Professor Dan Jackson (FMC), Deputy Chair.

BU has been awarding PhD Studentships since 2006 when, to help realise its then research vision, the University created an unprecedented 80 fully funded PhD studentships to support outstanding students. The most significant development of the scheme was the introduction of matched funding in 2009, which not only maximised the use of internal funds but also helped academics, and PGRs, develop specialised research collaborations with local, national and international organisations (including other HEIs), businesses and communities.

The continued focus on matched funding fulfils a number of BU priorities including:

  • increasing the number of Studentships available;
  • increasing the opportunities within QR and other funding allocations; and
  • the building and strengthening of a greater number of external relationships.

In addition, most importantly the inclusion of external partnerships also provides a stronger Fusion learning experience for our PGRs. Where possible, the allocation of the BU Studentships is aligned to BU’s Research Principles particularly in encouraging interdisciplinary research, building critical mass and the mentoring of ECRs through the professoriate.

Over the last 5 years alone, the scheme has provided funding for more than 150 PGRs across BU. Projects in recent years have been wide ranging  and include:

  • Type 1 diabetes and eating disorders: developing best practice communication guidelines for healthcare professionals supervised by Dr Janet James in collaboration with Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch in collaboration with Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
  • The impact of the current delivery models of care for older patients at Christchurch Day Hospital supervised by Dr Michele Board in collaboration with Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
  • Waterloo Uncovered: Using large-scale geophysical survey to investigate the world’s most famous battlefield supervised by Dr Stuart Eve in collaboration with Waterloo Uncovered
  • Modelling, prediction and control of the spread of aquaculture diseases supervised by Dr Marcin Budka in collaboration with Centre for Environments, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science
  • Phenology and ecology of the critically endangered European eel during their marine to freshwater transition supervised by Robert Britton in collaboration with Environment Agency
  • Injury risk and performance: Towards a better understanding of the complexities and intricacies of load monitoring within an elite football club supervised by Professor Tim Rees in collaboration with AFC Bournemouth
  • Intellectual property, information rights and the regulation of the Digital Single Market supervised by Professor Maurizio Borghi in collaboration with Erasmus + Programme
  • Artificial Intelligence Based Approaches for Game Design and Development supervised by Professor Feng Tian in collaboration with Shenzhen University, China
  • Reducing free sugar intakes: Evidence for effective dietary recommendations supervised by Professor Katherine Appleton in collaboration with International Sweeteners Association

Not surprisingly however, the impact of COVID-19 has been challenging for all involved in the BU Studentships. Recruitment of new PGRs was put on hold whilst BU focussed on supporting our existing studentships holders through these unusual and difficult times. Going forward, BU is working on reviewing the BU Studentships scheme to ensure a more equitable allocation of projects across all Faculties and developing a sustainable financial model prior to announcing the next competition for projects to start in September 2022.

COVID-19: Should psychologists know how to deal with this?

Mental health psychology practitioners (MHPPs) are likely to experience stress related to the responsibilities of their role as it exposes them to other people’s traumatic life experiences, a phenomenon called “vicarious traumatisation”. This refers to the emotional and cognitive disruptions faced by therapists, as they engage in therapeutic relationships with survivors of traumatic events. During times of excessive stress, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to examine the factors that might enhance coping skills and resilience in this group of professionals, as their role in fighting off the negative psychological effects of COVID-19 is crucial. The term “resilience” refers to a group of factors that promote positive mental health and well-being in individuals exposed to threatening conditions, traumatic experiences, or severe adversity.

In a study conducted in the UK by researchers at BU (Dr Constantina Panourgia, Dr Ala Yankouskaya, Dr Agata Wezyk, and Miss Zoe Taylor) in collaboration with University of West London and UCLy in Lyon, participants were invited to talk about their reality, including the effects of vicarious traumatisation on their well-being and strategies they employed to sustain positive mental health and demonstrate resilience.

According to the MHPPs who participated in the study, the pandemic affected them and their clients in different ways. Frequent occurrence of relationship violence, the effects of unemployment, suicide attempts, loneliness, and increased use of alcohol were among the topics their clients highlighted as factors affecting their stress and well-being. Also, the unavailability of stress relief strategies that people usually employed rendered MHPPs’ roles in supporting their patients more vital than ever. However, many of them perceived this as an extra burden and reported feelings of inadequacy and anger. Sleeplessness, flashbacks of their clients’ stories, helplessness, vulnerability, identification with patients’ fears, as well as a tendency to question their abilities as practitioners, were among the symptoms MHPPs experienced.

The MHPPs who participated in this study also reported several mechanisms they employed to maintain positive well-being and develop resilience during these unprecedented times. The importance of frequent, systematic supervision sessions was described as the key factor affecting their well-being and helping them set boundaries between their personal and professional lives. Moreover, practising yoga, meditation, and using delta 8 carts were described as useful tactics in building stress resilience, along with taking up new hobbies and avoiding social media. Finally, seeking social support, having self-awareness, and being able to manage their emotions were reported as key factors in helping them distinguish among their different roles (parents, friends, and therapists) and perform their duties.

The need to train and prepare MHPPs for situations that can be described as collectively traumatic was highlighted by this study’s results. The development of strategies and follow-up care programmes to alleviate the symptoms of vicarious traumatisation might help this group of practitioners develop resilience and be less susceptible to occupational risks, resulting in better outcomes for service users.

For more details: https://uwlpress.uwl.ac.uk/newvistas/article/id/121/

RDS Academic and Researcher Induction – 19th May 2021

The Research Development and Support (RDS) invite all ‘new to BU’ academics and researchers to an induction.

This event provides an overview of all the practical information staff need to begin developing their research plans at BU, using both internal and external networks; to develop and disseminate research outcomes; and maximising the available funding opportunities.

Objectives

  • The primary aim of this event is to raise participants’ awareness of how to get started in research at BU or, for more established staff, how to take their research to the next level
  • To provide participants with essential, practical information and orientation in key stages and processes of research and knowledge exchange at BU

Online induction being done a little bit differently

As this will be the second induction to be held online, we’ve learned from the first one and are doing things a bit differently this time (to avoid ‘death by PowerPoint’). RDS have prepared videos in advance so that attendees can watch these when suited to them before the induction day. There are nine videos in total (some are quite short, and the more important ones (on process) run to ~20 minutes) and all are available on Brightspace. The video topics are

  1. Overview of research at BU and Research Development and Support (RDS)
  2. Overview of the Funding Development Team
  3. Overview of the Project Delivery Team
  4. Overview of the Knowledge Exchange and Impact Team
  5. Applying for Research Funding at BU
  6. Managing your awarded grants
  7. Research Outputs
  8. Research Ethics
  9. Research Impact

These will be sent in advance (aiming for three weeks’ beforehand) to those attending the induction.

On the day of the induction, we will run an interactive session where attendees can meet their RDS faculty-facing staff, and have the opportunity to ask any questions on any of the topics above, or anything else RDS related that they need more information on. There will be breakout rooms for each faculty, as well as a room for Research Outputs and Ethics, and a room for Research Impact and Knowledge Exchange. The main room will remain open for any questions on strategy and research at BU. This will be a great opportunity to meet your RDS colleagues and to get 1-2-1 advice.

The fourteenth induction will be held on Wednesday, 19th May 2021, 9.30-11am, online.

If you would like to attend the induction then please book your place through Organisational Development and you can also visit their pages here.

We hope you can make it and look forward to seeing you.

Regards,

The RDS team (this photo was obviously taken pre-pandemic)

NIHR Supporting Social Care Research in South Central Workshop 26th May 2021

Developing a Strategy for Addressing NIHR Priorities

Our RDS colleagues at South Central are hosting a one-day workshop for those interested in social care research. If you are a social care researcher or practitioner, a user, commissioner or provider of social care services and have ideas about how to develop and support social care research in South Central, please join them for the day.

Find out more

Your local branch of the NIHR RDS (Research Design Service) is based within the BU Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU)

We can help with your application. We advise on all aspects of developing an application and can review application drafts as well as put them to a mock funding panel (run by RDS South West) known as Project Review Committee, which is a fantastic opportunity for researchers to obtain a critical review of a proposed grant application before this is sent to a funding body.

Contact us as early as possible to benefit fully from the advice

Feel free to call us on 01202 961939 or send us an email.

 

Research impact at BU: representation of para-athletes in the media & protecting the right to use parody

A series of posts highlighting BU’s impact case studies for REF 2021. (The full impact case studies will be published on the REF website summer 2022.)

Implementing a parody exception in the UK: shaping policy and innovating the creative sector

Research areas: Intellectual Property & Innovation Law, Media Regulation

Staff conducting research: Professor Dinusha Mendis, Dr Kris Erickson, Professor Martin Kretschmer

Background: The Hargreaves Review of Intellectual Property in 2011 focused on a number of issues, including copyright and parody. Against this background, the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) commissioned BU researchers to conduct a study supporting the UK government’s consultation on the Review. This resulted in BU researchers producing three reports for the government, reflecting a legal and empirical analysis to assess the economic effects of parody, and recommending the introduction of a parody exception.

The impact: In 2014, the UK government adopted a parody exception, with the UKIPO acknowledging that the research by the BU team was “instrumental in paving the way towards [its] implementation…”. Seven years on, the exception has benefited a range of stakeholders including artists, film and documentary makers, legal practitioners and wider society. Parody artists’ careers have been enhanced by the legalisation of their work, leading to increased income through greater exposure; the number of parody legal disputes has drastically reduced; the creative sector has been able to commission  parodies, increasing innovation and freedom of expression; and charities have generated income for worthwhile causes by using parody in fundraising campaigns.

Shaping para-sport policy and broadcast coverage

Research areas: Sport & Politics, Media & Education

Staff conducting research: Dr Emma Pullen, Professor Michael Silk, Dr Daniel Jackson, Dr Richard Scullion

Background: With the entry of Channel 4 as rights holder in the UK, the Paralympic Games has become an increasingly important site of disability representation. BU researchers undertook the largest ever academic project to examine the implications of the rapid commercialisation of the Games and the increasing visibility of (selected types of) disability in the media. The project aimed to capture the intentions and practices of Channel 4’s broadcasting of the Rio 2016 Paralympics, the influence of this on the content of Paralympic coverage and mediated forms of disability representation, and the wider impact on public attitudes toward disability.

The impact: Findings from the AHRC-funded project ‘Re-presenting para-sport bodies: Disability and the cultural legacy of the Paralympics’ have been utilised by Channel 4, Paralympics GB and UK Sport to shape future broadcasting, policy, practice and the promotion of para-sport.  Channel 4, which will broadcast the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games later this year, stated that BU’s research will “underpin… future coverage of the Paralympics”. The insights from the research data will also frame the decision-making of Paralympics GB, the governing body for the Great Britain and Northern Ireland team at the Paralympics. BU also collaborated with UK Sport to develop the UK Sport Public Attitudes Survey, focusing on public attitudes towards para-sport, the Paralympics, and media coverage of such events. The research team’s analysis of the initial results has helped shape UK Sport’s approach to parasport events, enabling them to “explore territory that we had never specifically entered into before and enhanced our knowledge accordingly”.