Category / BU Challenges

NIHR RDS Grant Applications – seminar & support event, Truro, Cornwall – 8th October 2019

BU Challenges, Events, Funding opportunities, NHS, pre-award

Are you planning to submit a grant application to NIHR?

We are holding a one-day event at the Knowledge Spa, Truro, Cornwall on Tuesday 8 October that is aimed at helping you to improve your chances of success..

The morning seminar session is open to anyone to come and hear RDS advisers give presentations on what makes a good grant proposal. Topics covered will include:

  • what does the NIHR look for?
  • the application as a marketing document: selling the topic, selling the method, and selling the team
  • the team
  • clarity of description and explanation
  • feasibility issues
  • identifying and avoiding potential pitfalls.

The afternoon support session of one-to-one appointments is for those who would like to discuss their own proposal with an RDS adviser.

This event is FREE and refreshments and lunch will be provided. Places are limited and will be allocated on a ‘first come, first served’ basis. In order to secure your place please register using our online form by 1pm, 25 September 2019. Find out more.

And don’t forget, your local branch of the NIHR RDS (Research Design Service) is based within the BU Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) on the 5th floor of Royal London House. Feel free to pop in and see us, call us on 61939 or send us an email.

Opportunity to share your research at the Bournemouth Air Festival

BU Challenges

As part of BU’s public engagement activity BU’s Marketing and Communications (M&C) Team will again have a presence at the Bournemouth Air Festival, which sees tens of thousands of visitors each year. For BU, the purpose will be to raise our profile and showcase the activity we do as part of our outreach activity in schools and colleges.  As part of this, M&C will be running activities which are accessible, participative and relevant to the audience, but we also want to showcase BU’s research to demonstrate the impact we have on our community locally, regionally or internationally – again, all relevant to the audience and a chance to position BU’s research specialisms, breadth and impact.

Members of BU’s outreach and corporate communications team will be on the stand each day of the festival and there is an opportunity to join us for a couple of hours to talk about your research with the public. The event runs from Thursday 29 August to Sunday 1 September .  If you are free to join us at some point over these 4 days, M&C can arrange the necessary pass, help in transporting any display materials you may wish to have on the stand during your visit and promote through our social media channels before and during the festival. There will also be a couple of tables under a covered stand on the main promenade.

It would be great to engage with the public on a range of areas of BU research and if you are interested in joining us please contact Ella Thompson athompson3@bournemouth.ac.uk in M&C and she will be able to plan your visit into our timetable.

WAN seminar: Working Women and Flexible Working

BU Challenges, Research news, Women's Academic Network

Dr Zoe Young is one of those rare creatures: an academic organisational sociologist and practising consultant to industry for the development of gender-equitable policies around the issue of flexible working. She has recently published an important research monograph, based on her PhD, exploring the experiences of flexible working among working mothers. In WAN we were very pleased that Dr Young accepted our invitation to share her interesting findings to an engaged, mixed audience of academics and professional services, with a lively discussion ensuing.

Flexible working is often mooted as the panacea for gender-based inequities in the workplace in terms of stalling and interrupted career progression and gender pay gaps. Moreover, this is primarily a gendered issue as flexible working is most likely to be requested by women, and this for the equally gendered reason that it is mostly women who are expected to adapt their working lives to the demands of childcare.

The conventional argument for flexible working (which is different from part-time working) is that this will help women to balance family and work time better and in consequence will overcome gendered career inequities. But does it?

Dr Young’s research suggests otherwise, pointing out that there are multiple variations of flexible working that could potentially be offered to employees from a currently very limited menu. Not only is the menu unimaginative and meanly populated, but while women have a legal right to request flexible work, companies are under no legal obligation to comply. Her research illustrates the unnecessary stressors and casualties caused to women workers by organisations unwilling to adapt to employees’ changing circumstances – and how flexible working, as it is currently practiced, far from being a solution, may add to the issues that disadvantage women in the workplace.

At BU the benefits of promoting flexible working is being seriously explored by the Equal Pay Review Committee and by Athena SWAN committees. It is recognised that all posts ideally should be flexible working ones and that male colleagues should also be encouraged to consider new working modes in order to spread the potential benefits. However, as Dr Young’s research suggests, a very important outcome of ensuring greater gender representation for flexible working, is that it would also serve to minimise the currently feminised disadvantages associated with that elusive pursuit of a better work-life balance.

CEL Co-Creation Award- BSc Marketing Students

BU Challenges, BU research, Centre for Excellence in Learning, Events, Funding opportunities, Fusion, Student Engagement, student research, Uncategorized

Following a competitive bidding process, Emma Keene and Julia Karol (BSc Marketing, final year students) have been successfully awarded this year ‘staff student co-creation award’. Emma is awarded for the project’ The contour generation’ which looks into the negative impact of social media on millennial’s mental health. Emma is mentored by Samreen Ashraf.
Whereas Julia’s project, “The snob effect” looks into the impact of Instagram influencers on the consumption of luxury fashion”. Julia has worked under the supervision of Dr. Elvira Bolat.
Congratulations to both the winners!

Future frameworks for international collaboration on research and innovation – Call for evidence

BU Challenges, BU research

Overview

The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation have commissioned Professor Sir Adrian Smith to provide independent advice on the design of future UK funding schemes for international collaboration, innovation and curiosity-driven blue-skies research. There is a written call for evidence to inform this advice, and BU is preparing an institutional response to this call.

 

Further information can be found in the call for evidence document, and associated Terms of Reference.

 

How to contribute

If you would like your feedback to be included in the institutional response, please complete the feedback form and send to Lisa Andrews, RDS Research Facilitator by Wednesday 15th May.

Funding opportunity – Innovate UK Smart Grants: February 2019

BU Challenges, BU research, Funding opportunities

Smart is the new name for Innovate UK’s ‘Open grant funding’ programme.

Innovate UK, as part of UK Research and Innovation, will invest up to £20 million in the best game-changing or disruptive ideas with a view to commercialisation.

All proposals must be business focused, rather than pure research. Applications can come from any area of technology (including arts, design, media or creative industries), science or engineering and be applied to any part of the economy.

Summary:

Call open: 18 February 2019, Monday

Call close : 24 April 2019, Wednesday

Available funding : between £25,000 and £500,000 (for single company or collaboration); between £25,000 and £2m (for collaboration only)

Duration : between 6 and 8 months (for single company or collaboration); between 19 and 36 months (for collaboration only)

Please see this link for more information.

Innovate UK funding : Demonstrators addressing cyber security challenges in the Internet of Things

BU Challenges, BU research, Funding opportunities, Industry collaboration, innovation

Innovate UK, through the UKRI’s Strategic Priorities Fund is investing up to £6million in collaborative, business led research and development (R&D) projects.

The aim of this competition is to solve industry-focused major cyber security-related challenges in the Internet of Things (IoT). You should include a plan to test nearer-to-market interventions and experiments in real environments.

Summary:

Competition opens : 18 February 2019 (Monday)

Competition closes : 1 May 2019 (Wednesday; noon)

Funding available : Your project’s total eligible costs must be between £2.5 million and £4 million and you can request up to £2 million grant.

For more information, please refer to this link.

ISCF Faraday Battery Challenge: Faraday Institution – Battery Characterisation Call

BU Challenges, BU research, Funding opportunities, innovation

Image from tbat.co.uk

The Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund invites proposal from researchers interested in research projects to develop battery related characterisation analytical techniques and capabilities.

This call is expected to lead to new characterisation and analytical techniques which will have the effect of strengthening the UK’s leading position in electrochemical energy storage technology, providing our battery researchers with world leading methods and capabilities to advance their research. In short, we are looking for a revolution in battery research and a “business as usual” approach will not be deemed sufficient.

Summary:

Closing date : 4 April 2019

Available award : £500,000 (up to £2million available for up to four awards)

Project duration : 21 months

For more information, please visit this link.

IMPORTANT : If you are planning to submit an application you must register your intent by completing the short survey at the bottom of this page by 14 March 2019 16:00.

ISCF Audience of the Future Challenge: the AotF Investor Accelerator launches 4 March

BU Challenges, BU research, Funding opportunities, pre-award

Image from www.immerseuk.org

The UK Research and Innovation, through the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, is launching the Audience of the Future Challange (AofT) Investor Accelerator co-investment fund on 4 March.

This next phase of AoFT co-investment fund is aimed at supporting the commercial development of significant innovation in the UK immersive tech sector through simultaneous grant funding and venture capital investment in UK creative businesses.

Next-generation digital healthcare funding – call to open soon!

BU Challenges, BU research, Funding opportunities, innovation

Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, has up to £5 million to invest in projects through the digital health technology catalyst – a programme that aims to accelerate the development of digital health innovations. UK businesses, partnered with other organisations including NHS organisations, HEIs, charities, public sector organisations, etc can apply for a share of up to £5 million to develop new digital health products through the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund. The project lead will need to be a UK-based small or medium-sized business (SME).

The competition is part of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund to deliver leading-edge healthcare in the UK.

Summary:

Call open : 11 February 2019

Deadline : 10 April 2019

Funding available : between £300,000 and £1million

Project duration : 18 months (between 1 October 2019 and 1 March 2021)

For more information about this funding call, please see this link.

 

Innovation, Commercialisation and Networking : Turn ideas into commercial success – an Innovate UK event – BOOK NOW!!

BU Challenges, BU research, Events, Industry collaboration, innovation, Knowledge Transfer, Knowledge Transfer Partnership

ICAN: Innovate UK in the South West

Innovation, Commercialisation And Networking: Turn ideas into commercial success. Get support, get inspiration, get funded – hear from Innovate UK, Dorset LEP and invited guests.

Innovation, Commercialisation And Networking (ICAN) is an event which aims to provide inspirational and informing content for any sized business or individuals with great ideas who want to stay ahead of the game.

It is a crucial time for businesses within the UK and innovation is key to maintaining a competitive advantage. New ideas are vital for businesses but this event looks at turning these ideas into reality, how to get innovation projects funded, who to turn to for support and guidance and crucially, how to turn these ideas into commercial success.
You’ll hear from businesses who have been there and done it, put your questions to an expert innovation panel and participate in workshops tailored to specific innovation topics. In addition to all of this, the event will provide a great networking opportunity to meet like-minded businesses and professional support services.
We look forward to seeing you at Bournemouth University on the 30th January 2019.
Places are limited so follow this link to book now!
Agenda to follow.
#ICANINNOVATE

Funding opportunities – Biomedical Catalyst 2019 – opening soon!

BU Challenges, BU research, Funding opportunities, Industry collaboration

Biomedical Catalyst 2019 round 1: feasibility and primer awards

The aim of the Biomedical Catalyst is to support the development of innovative healthcare products, technologies and processes. This competition combines the feasibility and primer (proof of concept) strands to enable SMEs to apply for projects lasting 3 to 18 months.

The aim of this competition is to explore and evaluate the commercial potential of an innovative scientific idea or carry out a technical evaluation through to proof of concept in a model system by:

  • reviewing research evidence and identifying possible applications
  • assessing business opportunities
  • assessing and/or protecting intellectual property
  • validating initial concepts and existing pre-clinical work through experimental studies
  • initial demonstration using in-vitro and in-vivo models (but not human clinical trials such as safety and efficacy)
  • early stage prototyping
  • preliminary regulatory advice

Summary:

Competition opens : 21 January 2019 (Monday)

Competition closes : 3 April 2019 (12 noon; Wednesday)

Available funding : between £50,000 and £1,000,000

Duration : between 3 to 18 months (starts by 1 September 2019; ends by 31 March 2021)

Please this link for more details.

Biomedical Catalyst 2019 round 1: early and late stage awards

UK businesses can apply for a share of up to £7 million to explore and evaluate the commercial potential of a scientific idea to solve a healthcare challenge.

The aim of this competition is to enable companies to create a data package that can support the subsequent testing of your products or carry out evaluations in a clinical setting or other relevant environment. This can include:

  • experimental evaluation (at laboratory scale)
  • use of in vitro and in vivo models to evaluate proof of concept or safety
  • exploring potential production mechanisms
  • prototyping
  • product development planning
  • intellectual property protection
  • demonstrating of clinical utility and effectiveness
  • demonstrating of safety and efficacy (including phase 1 and 2 clinical trials)
  • regulatory planning

Summary:

Competition opens : 21 January 2019 (Monday)

Competition closes : 3 April 2019 (12 noon; Wednesday)

Available funding : between £250,000 and £4,000,000

Duration : Must be at least one year (starts by 1 September 2019; ends by 31 March 2021)

Please this link for more details.

Using drama and storytelling in dementia care: Kick-off meeting for ERASMUS+ 2018 funded project

BU Challenges, Events, Research news

Using drama and storytelling in dementia care: Kick-off meeting for ERASMUS+ 2018 funded project

Last week, Dr Ben Hicks, I and the European partners from Greece, Romania, Bulgaria and Ireland began the ERASMUS+ 2018 funded project, exploring drama and storytelling in dementia care. The kick-off meeting was held in Bucharest, Romania, where all partners met to discuss the implementation of the project and establish targets for the next two years.

The morning session began with a discussion regarding the process of producing a booklet “Life in a story: creative arts and storytelling use for Alzheimer’s Disease patients and carers”. This will be based on a systematic review, conducted by Bournemouth University, and interviews with professionals who use drama and storytelling as a mean to engage people with dementia. In the afternoon, representatives from The Gaiety School of Acting, Ireland, introduced us to the use of theatre and storytelling. This was by far the most creative and interesting moment from the meeting, as we passed a ball of string amongst ourselves whilst regaling the proudest moment in our life.

The ball of string went around the table and everyone got a chance to tell their story. At the end, we could tangibly see that although we were all individuals, we each had similar stories that bound us together. The partners from Gaiety School of Acting will be creating a training programme using similar methods that focus of theatre and storytelling to train health and social care professionals to better understand, engage and support people living with dementia and their care partners.

 

As the meeting progressed, we also discussed the preparation of a toolkit for family carers to improve communication with people with dementia as well as the policy recommendations required for creating dementia friendly communities and institutions through the use of creative arts.

The meeting went well, and clear targets and future plans were established for the project. Moving forward, Bournemouth University will now begin conducting a systematic review of the area as well as interviews with dementia practitioners. This phase of the research will conclude in April 2019 and will inform the development of a ‘Train-the-Trainer booklet that will supplement the future drama and storytelling workshops (Phase 2).

My first international meeting as a research assistant exceeded my expectations. We received a very warm welcome, tackled the workload with a lot of heated discussions and achieved positive outcomes from the meeting. It was interesting to learn about cross cultural differences in dementia care and the benefits that the creative arts can offer people with dementia and their care partners. However, it was also upsetting to listen to project partners sharing their experiences of battling their Governments to provide even the most minimal of financial support for those living with dementia. Hopefully, this ERASMUS+ 2018 project will not only bring more dementia awareness across European countries, but also enable a wide variety of people to use drama and storytelling in dementia care to improve understanding of dementia and enhance the support provided to those living with the condition. I really look forward to the practical part of this project, when we receive the training from Gaiety School of Acting.

Blog written by Irma Konovalova (Research Assistant in the ADRC).

 

REF Internal Review Panels – Recruiting Now!

BU Challenges, BU research, REF Subjects, Research assessment

To help us prepare for our upcoming submission to the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 we are establishing a number of internal review panels to review and assess BU’s research outputs and impact case studies.

Expressions of Interest (EoI) are invited from academic staff who are interested in being a Panel Member. There will be one panel per Unit of Assessment (UOA) listed below. Those interested should identify which UOA Panel they would like to be considered for and put forward a short case (suggested length of one paragraph) as to why they are interested in the role and what they think they could bring to it. EoIs should be emailed to ref@bournemouth.ac.uk by 14th December 2018.

UOA Teams would particularly welcome EoIs from those who have:

  • Experience reviewing for previous REF stocktake exercises
  • Experience in editorship
  • Experience peer review

Full details of the role, the process of recruitment and terms of reference for the panels themselves can be found here.

Any queries regarding a specific panel should be directed to the UOA Leader. General enquiries should be directed to Shelly Anne Stringer, RKEO.

Unit of Assessment UOA Leader(s)
2 Public Health, Health Services and Primary Care Prof. Edwin Van Teijlingen
3 Allied Health Professions, Dentistry, Nursing and Pharmacy
4 Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience Dr. Peter Hills
11 Computer Science and Informatics Prof. Hamid Bouchachia
12 Engineering Prof. Zulfiqar Khan
14 Geography and Environmental Studies Prof. Rob Britton
15  Archaeology Prof. Kate Welham and Prof. Holger Schutkowski
17 Business and Management Studies Prof. Dean Patton
18 Law Dr Sascha-Dominik Bachman
20 Social Work and Social Policy Prof. Jonathan Parker
23 Education Prof. Julian McDougall and Prof. Debbie Holley
24 Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism Prof. Tim Rees (Sport) Prof. Adam Blake (Tourism)
27 English Language and Literature Prof. Bronwen Thomas
32 Art and Design: History, Practice and Theory Prof. Jian Chang
33 Music, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Film and Screen Studies Prof. Kerstin Stutterheim
34 Communication, Cultural and Media Studies, Library and Information Management Prof. Iain MacRury