Professors Vanora Hundley and Edwin van Teijlingen in the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH) shall be traveling to Nepal tomorrow (22 May 2022) as part of the ERASMUS+ KA107 exchange between Bournemouth University and Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences (MMIHS) in Kathmandu. They will be involved in teaching M.Sc. Public Health students as well as undergraduate Nursing students . Furthermore, one-to-one tutorials have been planned with MMIHS health researchers. There will also be sessions on academic writing and publishing following the recently published textbook Academic Writing and Publishing in Health & Social Sciences[1].
Earlier this spring Dr. Pramod Regmi, Senior Lecturer in International Health in the Department of Nursing Sciences, traveled to MMIHS as part of this exchange. His visit in April 2022 included running the ‘Migration and Health Research Capacity Building Workshop for Early Career Researchers’ in Kathmandu. Bournemouth University organised this two-day event jointly with the University of Huddersfield, MMIHS, and the charity Green Tara Nepal.
Two current Faculty of Health & Social Sciences Ph.D. students are also benefittng from being involved in this exchange. Yagya Adhikari returned back to the UK a week or so ago whilst Sulochana Dhakal-Rai will be arriving in Kathmandu tomorrow. Both will use this ERASMUS+ opportunity to developed aspects of their Ph.D. thesis.
Reference:
Wasti, S.P., van Teijlingen, E., Simkhada, P.P., Hundley, V. withShreesh, K. (Eds.) (2022) Academic Writing and Publishing in Health & Social Sciences, Kathmandu, Nepal: Himal Books. [ISBN: 9789937117609]
Congratulations to Dr. Rachel Arnold in the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH) on the publication today of her paper ‘Why use Appreciative Inquiry? Lessons learned during COVID-19 in a UK maternity service‘ [1]. This methodological paper is co-authored with Dr. Clare Gordon who holds a has joint clinical academic post at UCLan and Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, with a focus on developing clinically focused stroke research, education and improvement. Clare is also a former BU Ph.D. student. Further co-authors from CMMPH are Professors Sue Way and Edwin van Teijlingen. The final co-author, Dr. Preeti Mahato, finished her post in CMMPH two days ago to start her Lectureship in Global Health at Royal Holloway (part of the University of London).
The paper highlights that selecting the most appropriate research method is an important decision in any study. It affects the type of study questions that can be answered. In addition, the research method will have an impact on the participants – how much of their time it takes, whether the questions seem important to them and whether there is any benefit in taking part. This is especially important when conducting research with staff in health services. This article is a reflection on the process of using Appreciative Inquiry (AI) in a study that explored staff well-being in a UK maternity unit. The authors discuss our experience of using AI,the strengths and limitations of this approach, and conclude with points to consider if you are thinking about using AI. Although a study team was actively involved in decisions, this paper is largely based on reflections by dr. Arnold, the researcher conducting the field work in the maternity services.
Reference:
Arnold, R., Gordon, C., van Teijlingen, E., Way, S., Mahato, P. (2022). Why use Appreciative Inquiry? Lessons learned during COVID-19 in a UK maternity service. European Journal of Midwifery, 6(May), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.18332/ejm/147444
In line with this Dementia Action Week, the e-Learning Dementia Education and Learning Through Simulation 2 (e-DEALTS 2) programme was launched on 16th May 2022. The launch event was well attended by members caring for those with dementia, health and care staff in contact with people with dementia, hospital and residential care management representatives, researchers and academics.
The Ageing and Dementia Research Centre at Bournemouth University were commissioned by Health Education England to develop the e-DEALTS2 toolkit. The e-DEALTS 2 programme is a simulation-based training programme designed to support trainers to deliver dementia training online to health and social care staff and volunteers who require Tier 2 training (i.e., those who have regular contact with people with dementia, clinical and non-clinical).
The underlying principle of the e-DEALTS2 training is to provide opportunities to understand the lived experience by putting attendees into the shoes of a person with dementia.
Looking forward, we are excited to evaluate the toolkit for future research development. If you would like to be contacted by the Ageing & Dementia Research Centre about the eDEALTS2 and receive any further updates, please complete the Bournemouth University form by visiting: https://forms.office.com/r/H3q5UP7TX1
The eDEALTS2 toolkit is now available on the Health Education England website. To download, please visit https://tinyurl.com/y2228tak
Blackpool forward Jake Daniels’ announcement that he is homosexual makes him the UK’s only active, openly gay, male professional footballer.
Daniels, aged 17, described the move as a “relief”, and was met with support and praise from key figures in men’s football and beyond, including Gary Lineker, Harry Kane and Sir Ian McKellen. He was also praised by national figureheads Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Prince William, who said Daniels coming out will “help break down barriers”.
The first UK professional footballer to come out was Justin Fashanu in 1990. The support for Daniels has been a stark contrast to the homophobic responses to Fashanu, who killed himself in 1998 at the age of 37.
Sport in the UK has long been rife with homophobia and considered an unsafe place for LGBT+ players. In 2017, a House of Commons report concluded that “despite the significant change in society’s attitudes to homosexuality in the last 30 years, there is little reflection of this progress being seen in football.”
Men’s professional football is the last of the UK’s three most popular sports, following rugby and cricket, to have an active, elite professional player come out. Rugby player Gareth Thomas came out in 2009 and cricketer Steven Davies came out in 2011.
This lagging behind is no surprise given the vile homophobic chanting at some of England’s best players such as Sol Campbell, and the reaction to Fashanu in the 1990s. Indeed, there are some early signs of homophobic hate in response to Daniels that have been condemned by LGBTQ+ rights group Stonewall.
Still, over the last couple of decades, changing cultural attitudes and campaigning efforts by organisations and fans have raised awareness of LGBTQ+ participation in sport.
The Justin Campaign, established in 2008 by a Brighton-based grassroots organisation, was one of the first official campaigns to raise awareness of homophobia in men’s football. The campaign had a local reach and targeted young people, mainly school and university students who entered tournaments as team “Tackle Homophobia”.
From the Justin Campaign came Football v Homophobia, developed by PrideSports, which now has a significant presence in the game worldwide. Alongside this grassroots activism, in 2013 betting company Paddy Power, working with Stonewall, initiated the Rainbow Laces campaign.
The FA, football’s governing body in England and Wales, introduced its first anti-homophobia initiative in 2012, Opening Doors and Joining In. Since then, the FA has endorsed both Football v Homophobia and the Rainbow Laces campaigns. However, research indicates that efforts by sport governing bodies can fall short and can be ineffective at actually implementing change.
While I don’t know how aware Daniels and his peers were of these campaigns as they were growing up, there is evidence from a 2017 study at a boy’s football academy that revealed “progressive attitudes towards homosexuality” among a small group of 14-15 year olds. This suggests that attitudes are becoming more inclusive – although the boys in the study felt unable to individually challenge homophobia when they observed it.
Fan attitudes
Homophobic chanting at men’s professional games can be a common occurrence. This chanting, often deemed as “banter” by the perpetrators, can be outright blatant homophobia, or what we now call a “micro-aggression”. Micro-aggressions are the everyday speech and actions directed at marginalised members of communities that reflect prejudice and discrimination, and can be damaging to minority individuals in sport.
Obviously, not all football fans make homophobic remarks and gestures at a game or on social media. Many formal LGBTQ+ fan groups, such as the Kop Outs (Liverpool), Gay Gooners (Arsenal) and Proud Canaries (Norwich City), have also been set up in recent years, creating a visible community within the oft-discriminatory world of football fandom.
Despite these efforts by fans, football’s governing bodies continue to ignore or forget homophobia. A case in point is Qatar, host country for FIFA’s men’s World Cup later this year, which has anti-gay laws.
Cultural shifts
At 17, Daniels has grown up with a popular culture that is more diverse than ever when it comes to gender and sexuality. There are more visible stories of LGBTQ+ people and communities generally, and within the world of sport. Thanks to decades of activism, LGBTQ+ culture has a place in the mainstream, and football is benefiting from this movement.
The women’s game is further along in celebrating out lesbian and bisexual players internationally. The 2019 FIFA women’s World Cup alone had 40 out women – players, coaches and managers – offering further evidence that the women’s game is a safer environment than the men’s. This might be because women in sport have had to deal with sexist and homophobic stereotypes for a very long time.
All of this, in addition to support from family and friends and teachers, coaches, officials and managers who are LGBTQ+ allies, will make young male footballers feel safe enough to come out.
The impact of Jake Daniels’ decision to come out cannot be underestimated. Not only will it allow him to be fully himself – and perhaps an even better player – it is set to shift the culture of men’s elite professional football.
Join us during Pride month for our next online public lecture to find out how Bournemouth University is challenging marginalisation and working with communities who are often under-represented.
Associate Professor in Media and Inclusivity Dr Christopher Pullen and Lecturer in History and Politics Dr Ieuan Franklin will talk about their work understanding the experiences of LGBTQ+ refugees and how best to support them.
Dr Jayne Caudwell, Associate Professor in Social Sciences, Gender and Sexualities, will share her project looking into the challenges and benefits of swimming sessions for transgender, non-binary and gender non-conforming participants.
There will also be the opportunity for questions and discussion.
This is the fifth event in our online public lecture series, which is showcasing BU research and expertise as part of the #ourBUstory campaign.
A reminder that we still have space on our research integrity events taking place this week:
Wednesday 18 May at 3 pm in the CREATE Lecture Theatre, Fusion Building, Talbot Campus – join Tim Clavert and the library team to consider Publications, open access and data. Booking via Eventbrite
Thursday 19 May at 10.30 pm join online (only) – Fay Sweeting and Emily Bird who will be discussing their research with the Police. Booking via Eventbrite
Thursday 19 May at 3 pm in FG06, Fusion Building, Talbot Campus – join Dr Sue Sudbury and Jess Ruddock for a workshop on ‘Practice Research Case Studies of Dorset Food Bank & Dorset Police’. Booking via Eventbrite.
Friday 20 May at 10.30 am and again at 3.30 pm in the CREATE Lecture Theatre, Fusion Building, Talbot Campus – join Dr Huseyin Dogan for two separate sessions considering Diversity, Accessibility & Inclusivity. Booking via Eventbrite.
Participatory Research: Doing research inclusively, doing research well
July 11 & 12 1.30-3.30pm
This course comprises two 2-hour workshop sessions for 12-30 people (optimum 20) plus recordings and additional materials. Both sessions will be in person, and we encourage academics from all faculties to sign up for both workshops.
Participants will gain clear insight into the multiple agendas driving participatory research. Together we will develop know-how in addition to know-what needed for participatory research. The group will work collaboratively to develop their own ideas stimulated by shared examples and real life conundrums.
Programme
Day 1: The why of participatory research – Adding value
Researching with not on: The changing dynamics of research and rationale behind the democratisation of research
Making the most of lived experience to add value to research
Participatory research designs and methods – different ways of knowing
5 practical changes we can make and why
Day 2: The how of participatory research – How to enhance research participation and quality
Co-producing research proposals and project designs
Participatory ways of working – getting ideas from successful projects
This is my truth – tell me yours – co-producing findings and outputs
5 steps to doing research inclusively and doing research well.
Creating social media posts that aim to build health or information literacy is challenging. It is one thing to get likes on a video of a cute dog dancing or beautiful hand-crafted artwork, it is another to develop reflective, empathetic understanding of complex phenomena in a bite-sized image or video.
To help guide you through the process, this workshop will introduce you to Professor Feigenbaum’s Pick N Mix strategy for social media storytelling. The Pick N Mix method is based on research findings from the UKRI/AHRC COVID-19 Rapid Response project that investigated the role of webcomics in public health messaging on social media during the first year of the pandemic. Our findings are further supported by contemporary research from the fields of media and communication studies, psychology and graphic medicine.
The strategies we introduce come from a variety of narrative communication techniques that have been shown to increase information retention, comprehension, relatability and empathy. Professor Feigenbaum has transformed these into easy-to-follow best practices that can be mixed with trending techniques and styles of social media storytelling to increase the reach and engagement of evidence-based content.
While there are hundreds of blogs and tutorial videos online that offer up advice on improving social media storytelling, reaching new audiences and increasing engagement with followers, many of these are focused on how to gain viewers on your instagram story. But if your goal is to build health and information literacy on social media, you need to go beyond traditional social media sales models to explore the unique needs of evidence-based communication. The tailored advice offered in this workshop is crucial when your aim is to increase health and information literacy or promote evidence-based behavioural change.
We are enjoying a busy second semester at the Women’s Academic Network, now in its 9th year. Here we provide a brief snapshot of what’s been happening and what’s coming up.
Following our excellent Research Masterclass on Focus Group Discussions with Dr Emma Pitchforth, University of Exeter and Professor Edwin van Teijlingen of FSS in Semester 1, our second Research Methodology Masterclass workshop will be held on May 25. This time we will be covering Psychosocial Visual Methodologies, including learning about Social Dreaming techniques. Workshop facilitation will be offered by Dr Lita Crociani-Windland, University West of England. Lita is a British Psychoanalytic Council Scholar and Director of the UWE Centre for Social Dreaming and an expert is her field. Register with WAN.
More Semester 2 events:
We have enjoyed two highly successful, open-to-all webinars recently.
On April 29, Pro-Chancellor Dr Sue Sutherland OBE introduced three eminent, media profiled, Independent Sage speakers, Professor Susan Michie, Professor Christina Pagel (UCL) and Dr Deepti Gurdasani (Queen Mary) for a powerful, punchy and candid discussion on the Online harassment and abuse of female scientists in the public sphere
On March 17 the BU Vice-Chancellor, Professor John Vinney, opened Women’s International Day at WAN with this year’s prestigious speaker, Jess Phillips, Labour Party MP for the constituency of Birmingham Yardley and Shadow Minister for Domestic Violence and Safeguarding. This was a hugely powerful and entertaining recorded session with one of the UK’s most authentic, audacious, witty and eloquent politicians speaking on the topic of ‘Another Year of Violence Towards Women and Girls!’
What else is going on?
The ever-popular WAN Writing Retreat is being held on July 11. Please register your interest.
WAN takes its responsibilities to support the career profiles of our women colleagues very seriously. Our annual Writing Retreat is a great opportunity to get down to some seriously inspired writing in a supported environment where your writing experience is facilitated by experienced and prolific women scholars.
Coming up: WAN speaker/panel series: ‘Gilead Now? Resisting the March of Misogyny’. We are in the process of planning a number of events under our rolling new series that draws on Margaret Atwood’s dystopic Handmaid vision to explore reminiscent manifestations of women’s oppression emerging in contemporary societies.
Not yet a WAN member?
All women academic/PGR across any academic discipline can join WAN.
For more information and to register interest in events please contact:
Professor Sara Ashencaen Crabtree: scrabtree@bournemouth.ac.uk
This month CMMPH has two new research papers focusing on COVID-19. The first one published in World Medical & Health Policy reports on a quantitative study of the availability of hand-washing facilities in households across Nepal [1]. This study used secondary data from Nepal Demographic Health Survey (NDHS) 2016 to assess the association between households’ wealth status to handwashing stations. The findings reported a statistically significant association between age of the household head, residence place, ecological zone, province, wealth status, having of mosquito net, having a radio, and TV at respondents’ household to fixed hand-washing stations at their households.
The second paper published three days ago in Vaccinesis a qualitative study of of interviews with Nepali immigrants living in the UK and their attitudes towards COVD-19 vaccination [2]. Vaccination saves lives and can be an effective strategy for preventing the spread of the COVID-19, but negative attitudes towards vaccines lead to vaccine hesitancy. This study aimed to explore the factors influencing the uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine in the Nepali community in the UK. This study found that attitudes towards COVID-19 are generally positive. Nine overlapping themes around barriers to COVID-19 vaccination were identified: (a) rumours and mis/disinformation; (b) prefer home remedies and yoga; (c) religion restriction; (d) concern towards vaccine eligibility; (e) difficulty with online vaccine booking system; (f) doubts of vaccine effectiveness after changing the second dose timeline; (g) lack of confidence in the vaccine; (h) past bad experience with the influenza vaccine; and (i) worried about side-effects. Understanding barriers to the uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine can help in the design of better targeted interventions. Public health messages including favourable policy should be tailored to address those barriers and make this vaccination programme more viable and acceptable to the ethnic minority communities in the UK. This Vaccine paper includes two FHSS Visiting Faculty as co-authors: Prof. Padam Simkhada and Dr. Bibha Simkhada.
Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen
References:
Sharma, M., Adhikari, R., van Teijlingen, E. (2022) Handwashing station in Nepal: Role of wealth status in establishing a handwashing station, World Medical & Health Policy Accepted
Simkhada, P., Tamang, P., Timilsina, L., Simkhada, B., Bissell, P., van Teijlingen, E., Sah, S.K., Wasti, S.P. (2022) Factors Influencing COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake among Nepali in the UK: A Qualitative Study, Vaccine 10(5), 780;https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines10050780
Café Scientifique will be returning to in-person events in Bournemouth from this June. We’re looking for people to get involved as organisers and speakers.
Following a long period of holding these events online, we’re happy to announce the return of BU’s Café Scientifique to the friendly, in-person format that makes it special.
For the unaware, Café Scientifique is a public event format, popular around the world, where anyone can come along to explore the latest research in science and technology in a casual café setting. Following a short presentation by a researcher, we provide plenty of time for questions and discussion from a varied public audience.
Taking place on a weekday evening, Café Scientifique events will run monthly from June (excepting August and January). They’re led centrally by the BU Public Engagement with Research Team, and we’re looking to involve a wider range of people from across BU to make them a success. It’s a fantastic opportunity to meet other people, get experience in engaging with the public, gain surprising insights into your own work and enjoy some relaxed and friendly events.
You can get involved in a number of flexible ways;
Speaking at an event – share your research in anything science/technology related in a short presentation and engage in discussion with the public audience.
Hosting events – every Cafe Sci event needs a host – to welcome the audience, introduce the speakers and keep the questions flowing. This is a great opportunity for someone to develop skills and experience interacting with the public, as well as being an enjoyable way to meet other people.
Helping to organise events – whether it’s finding speakers, helping polish a presentation, promoting these events far and wide and more – we’d welcome any BU staff or students who’d like to help out with various bits behind the scenes on these events. This is a great way to dip your toes in the world of public engagement, gain experience in organising events and work on a fun project with others across BU.
If you have any questions, are interested in speaking at, and/or helping to host or organise these events, then please get in touch with the public engagement team at publicengagement@bournemouth.ac.uk. There’s no commitment, we can start from there and see what would work best for everyone.
We’re pleased to announce a new guide to support BU staff with managing new and existing staff employed on external R&KE awards, as well as staffing information to include on applications for external funding. The ‘BU Guide for managing staff employed on external R&KE applications and awards’ can be found on the intranet here.
A working group led by RDS, and including HR and Faculty Operations Managers, has worked on the guide for the past six months. A team of academics have reviewed the content and provided feedback, which has been incorporated. A big thank you to all those who have contributed to the guide.
The guide aims to provide an overview of, and links to, all the information needed for including staff on external research and knowledge exchange (R&KE) applications (pre-award), and how to recruit and manage those staff if awarded on to a project (post-award). The guide is structured into pre-award and post-award to assist with both the completion of staff sections on an application form and guidance on what to do when your application has been awarded and/or you require support from HR, RDS, or your Faculty Operations team. It also contains FAQs, useful links and contacts. The guide complements and should be used in conjunction with HR guidance available on the staff intranet.
RDS staff will ensure that the guide is disseminated to applicants (upon receipt of an intention to bid form including staff) and award holders (when staff are to be recruited, etc.).
Postgraduate researchers and supervisors, hopefully you have seen your monthly update for the researcher development e-newsletter sent last week. If you have missed it, please check your junk email or you can view it within the Researcher Development Programme on Brightspace.
The start of the month is a great time to reflect on your upcoming postgraduate researcher development needs and explore what is being delivered this month as part of the Doctoral College Researcher Development Programme and what is available via your Faculty or Department. Remember some sessions only run once per year, so don’t miss out.
The wait is over and the REF 2021 results have now been published.
We’re delighted to reveal that 94% of our research has been found to be internationally-recognised or above, with 19% found to be world-leading in quality.
95.7% of our research was found to be delivering considerable impact or above, with 31.5% achieving an outstanding impact score.
This means that we have held and improved upon our position from REF 2014 while dramatically increasing the size of our submission. We submitted more than three times the number of staff than in REF 2014, and by maintaining quality, we have shown how the breadth and depth of our research portfolio has grown.
Highlights include:
UOAs 14 (Geography and Environmental Studies), 15 (Archaeology), 18 (Law), and 34 (Communications, Cultural and Media Studies) all scored 100% 4*+3* for impact
UOAs 15 (Archaeology) and 32 (Art and Design: History, Practice and Theory) scored 100% 4*+3* for environment
UOA 24 (Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism) scored 80% 4*+3* for outputs
UOA 34 (Communications, Cultural and Media Studies) is in Q1 for impact
Equality and diversity were key drivers in developing our submission, and we took a collaborative approach with a broad range of academic and professional staff working together to make our submission as inclusive as possible.
In total, we submitted 1,209 research outputs and 47 impact case studies across 13 Units of Assessment (up from eight UOAs in REF 2014) – which represents a huge amount of time, work, and energy from colleagues across the university.
A huge thank you to everyone who supported the REF 2021 in some way – this is a moment to reflect and feel proud of everything we have achieved.
More information about our submission can be found the BU website and the full REF 2021 results are available on the REF website.
FUN (Feeling the UNfelt: Assistive Technology accessible digital environments with a haptic interface) is a 2-year HEIF funded research project designed to help address the current lack of (freely) available accessible software resources for children and young people (CYP) who have physical disabilities, specifically with a focus on learning about the physical world through gameplay and haptic feedback. The project is a partnership between Bournemouth University and Livability Victoria School in Poole (find more about the project here).
As the FUN project is coming to its end (finishing on 31st July 2022), we organised a dissemination and networking event on 5th May in the Executive Business Centre. The main aim of the event was to present and demonstrate our project outputs and discuss its future potential with relevant internal and external academics and professionals, thus setting the stage for building wider impact. There were four presentations, one guest talk, two demo sessions, and a discussion at the end. Besides BU academics working on this and other related Assistive Technology projects, there were external people with various backgrounds related to special education, including teachers, technicians, consultants, occupational therapists, and assistive technologists, coming from BU, Livability Victoria School, Langside School, Treloar School and College, and the ACE Centre.
After opening the event, Dr Vedad Hulusic, the PI on the project, invited Prof Christos Gatzidis, the convener of the Assistive Technology (AT) Strategic Investment Area (SIA) who gave a brief presentation on the AT SIA strategy and other related AT-related projects at BU. This was followed by the FUN project presentation by Dr Mark Moseley, a postdoctoral research assistant on the project. At the end of his presentation, Mark gave a short demo of the FUN educational games and invited everyone to try them themselves using either touchscreen or eye-gaze interaction.
The guest speaker was Prof Pedro Encarnação from the Universidade Católica Portuguesa (UCP). In his talk titled “The use of physical and virtual robots to promote inclusive education” he covered his group’s work on physical and virtual robots and presented the results showing the success of virtual environments for children and young people in the educational setting. This was followed by a presentation by Dr Huseyin Dogan and Dr Paul Whittington who talked about the case studies of user ability detection, accessibility requirements capture, and provision of Assistive Technology recommendations – the work their group has been working on for the past few years. In the end, there was another demo session and a discussion on the past, present, and future of AT, instigating great participation by all participants.
The FUN games are being finalised and will be freely available both as standalone (executable) as well as web-based (running in a web browser) software. The aim is to have these games available in as many special schools across the UK and beyond, and in homes of CYP who will be able to use them independently without required supervision and assistance. The users will be able to create personal profiles and configure all required accessibility and game features to make their experience as FUN as possible, as well as to create new in-game content for themselves and their peers. The event participants had very positive feedback on the FUN project and games and anticipated a significant impact through the improvement of the quality of life of CYP with physical disabilities, their parents, caregivers, and teachers. The FUN team plans to extend this project by strengthening existing and creating new collaborations. The extensions will be multidirectional involving co-design with practitioners, changing practices, policies, and curricula in special schools, and having such games being used in educational institutions allowing CYP with profound disabilities to have FUN while learning.
“I really enjoyed the day – fascinating, inspiring & really positive.“ – Teacher, Livability Victoria School
“Haptic device easily put on/off, providing good feedback to a child.Worth considering use with adults with learning disabilities.” – Occupational therapist, Langside School
“The students involved whom I work with enjoyed the sessions + it was something that enhanced their self-esteem.“ – Teacher, Livability Victoria School
“It can be easily adapted to make it accessible to a wider range of individuals.“ – AAC consultant, ACE Centre
“Very good, simple to setup and use.“ – Technician/Music teacher, Livability Victoria School
Come join us next week, for an exciting series of keynote speakers and bespoke workshops discussing many subjects under the theme of research integrity.
We start the week of events with a talk by James Parry, Chief Executive of UK Research integrity Office (UKRIO).
UKRIO is an independent charity, offering support to the public, researchers and organisations to further good practice in academic, scientific and medical research. They promote integrity and high ethical standards in research, as well as robust and fair methods to address poor practice and misconduct. They pursue these aims through their publications on research practice, in-depth support and services for research employers, their education and training activities, and by providing expert guidance in response to requests for assistance from individuals and organisations.
Established in 2006, their aims are to:
Promote the good governance, management and conduct of academic, scientific and medical research.
Share good practice on how to address poor practice, misconduct and unethical behaviour.
Give confidential, independent and expert advice on specific research projects, cases, problems and issues.
James directs UKRIO’s work programme and leads its advisory service, responding to queries and concerns about research practice from researchers and the public.
Join us online or in person on Monday 16 May 2022 at 10.30 am.
Exciting changes are coming to you from August 2022 in terms of the support provided by RDS’ Research Facilitators.
As agreed at the December 2021 Research Performance and Management Committee, the focus of the Research Facilitators will change from Faculty-facing to funder specialisms, based on the major funders. The current post titles will change to ‘Research Facilitator for…’:
Life Sciences – focusing on:
NIHR: National Institute for Health and Care Research
Contacts for each post will be confirmed next month. The focus of the Research Facilitator support will remain unchanged, which is to identify potential funding opportunities through horizon scanning and cascade these across BU; and within their funder specialisms – provide support to researchers to develop their bids through building research teams (including external collaborators as well as inter/multi-disciplinary teams within BU) and, advising on bid content and structure to ensure a high-quality bid is submitted to external funders. Support for all other types of bids will be provided through Faculty Leadership and Research Mentors.
The change to funder specialisms will mean that we can provide support to a larger number of academics through funder focussed briefings, scramble events, STEAMLabs (to form interdisciplinary ideas linked with external collaborators), and training through the RKEDF. We have already started transitioning to funder-focussed training, and opportunities are already available to you, such as:
Leverhulme Trust Research Project – Outline Stage – workshop 11/5/22
AHRC Research Development and Engagement Fellowships (ECR and Standard – open calls) – workshop 25/5/22
Repurposing Your Unsuccessful Grant Applications – workshops 20/5/22 and 7/7/22
In addition to Research Facilitators, there are several support options in place to support you through the pre-award process and finding funding opportunities tailored to you. BU have invested in Research Professional, which enables you to target opportunities specifically for your research area. If you are new to Research Professional, this link provides you with help guides and bi-monthly webinars to help you get started. In addition, weekly funder briefings will continue this academic year, and the programme for 2022/23 will ensure a greater focus on specific opportunities each week. We will also be trialling a user-friendly ‘funding opportunities’ newsletter shortly.
More information will be communicated in June to help you navigate the pre-award process and we will also confirm contact names for each funder specialism. Further communications will outline the changes leading up to August 2022. Stay tuned!