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Academic’s classic study on Health and Tourism re-launched by leading academic publisher

In February 2015, Routledge re-released the classic study – Health and the International Tourist in hardback and as an ebook.  This was originally published in 1996, edited by Stephen Clift and Stephen Page which now features in the new Routledge Revivals Series, based on a collaborative funded research project on health and tourism originally funded by South East Thames Regional Health Authority based at what is now Canterbury Christ Church University.

  This study mapped out the interdisciplinary connections and relationships between health science, medicine, tourism and the behaviour of tourists with leading contributions from authorities in the field working around the nascent area of travel medicine.  The study provided a basis for health promotion strategies by health organisations focusing on diverse issues such as AIDS, staying safe in the sun, avoiding traveller’s diarrhoea and understanding what goes wrong on holiday for tourist in relation to their risk behaviours.

Routledge Revivals are described by the publisher on their website as an opportunity to ‘discover past brilliance and purchase previously out of print and unavailable titles by some of the world’s most eminent academic scholars. Drawing from over 100 years of innovative, cutting-edge, publishing Routledge Revivals is an exciting new programme whereby key titles from the distinguished and extensive backlist of the many acclaimed imprints associated with Routledge will be re-issued. The programme draws upon the illustrious backlists of Kegan Paul, Trench & Trubner, Routledge & Kegan Paul, Methuen, Allen & Unwin and Routledge itself.  Routledge Revivals spans the whole of the Humanities and Social Sciences, and includes works by some of the world’s greatest thinkers including Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, Simone Weil, Martin Buber, Karl Jaspers and Max Beloff’.

Stephen J. Page is Professor of Tourism in the Faculty of Management and the book marked the beginning of a research journey on tourism and health research spanning almost 20 years.

Research Funding Opportunities

Short-term constitutional change knowledge exchange leadership fellowships

Economic and Social Research Council, GB

The ESRC invites expressions of interest (EOI) for up to four short-term Knowledge Exchange (KE) Leadership Fellows around issues of constitutional change, broadly conceived. The Fellows’ objective is to maximise the breadth and depth of social science contributions to debates in the period immediately after the 2015 General Election, through the development of a programme of KE and public engagement activities.

These posts can be held by mid-career or senior academics, as well as non-academics, and applicants do not have to be based at an eligible UK research organisation. Non-academics are especially encouraged to apply. Applications are encouraged from individuals or from a cluster comprising up to four Fellows. Whether individual or cluster applications, it is envisaged that one Fellow will lead on co-ordinating the activities of the group. These appointments are for six to eight months’ duration, finishing at or before the end of 2015. It is expected that the successful applicants will begin work on 1 May 2015.

The total maximum budget for the cluster of four posts is £160,000 (100 per cent fEC), and individual Fellow applications are capped at £40,000 (100 per cent fEC). These awards are outside of normal fEC rules, and ESRC’s contribution will be 100 per cent of the funds requested in the proposal. Leadership Fellows will be expected to spend at least 20 per cent of their time on activities related to the award. This budget is expected to contribute to (but is unlikely to cover in full) salary costs, any specialist support staff (eg media/communications), and a range of strategic KE activities (eg networking, events, outputs), as well as costs associated with co-ordinating the cluster (if applicable).

Expressions of interest for the post(s) should be submitted by password-protected email toconstitutionalchange@esrc.ac.uk no later than 16.00 on 24 March 2015.

 

Centre for doctoral training: the use of smart and autonomous observation for the environmental sciences

Natural Environment Research Council, GB

NERC will fund one new CDT in ‘The use of smart and autonomous observation for the environmental sciences’ as part of the 2015 CDT call. The priority area is outlined below with the full details set out in the Announcement of Opportunity.

Funding for eight studentships will be awarded per annum, and the CDT award will provide funding for three years of new student intake from 2016-17.

There is a two-stage application process.

Outline proposal applications must use the form provided below and be submitted to the NERC Studentships & Training Awards Group at stag@nerc.ac.uk. The closing date for outline proposals is 16:00 on Thursday 16 April 2015.

Full proposal applications will be invited following the outline assessment stage. Full proposal applications using the form provided below must be submitted via the research councils’ Joint electronic-Submission system (Je-S). The deadline for submission of full proposals is 16:00 on Thursday 30 July 2015.

 

Enhancing user experience using personal data

Innovate UK, GB

Innovate UK is to invest up to £2 million to support feasibility studies looking at innovative ways to improve the user experience in the digital economy. We are looking for projects that use the increasing amount of personal data generated by individuals to gain insights into user needs and behaviours.  The competition is open to small and medium-sized enterprises singly or in collaboration. Proposals must be led by a business. Small businesses could receive up to 70% of their eligible project costs, medium-sized businesses 60%.

We expect projects to last 6 to 12 months and to range in size from total costs of £90,000 to £120,000.

This competition opens on 16 March 2015. The deadline for registration is noon on 29 April 2015, and the deadline for applications is noon on 6 May 2015.

 

Modular training partnerships

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, GB

Modular Training Partnerships (MTPs) fund the development of industrially-relevant short training courses at Masters level. Training should be developed in close collaboration with industry, and evidence of industrial demand is a key requirement for funding.

MTPs provide pump-prime funding for:

  • the development of individual training modules
  • preparation and marketing of course materials, and course launch

We also consider clusters of complementary modules if there is sufficient evidence of industrial demand.

Training should be delivered using the most appropriate method for the target industry (e.g. distance learning, web-based learning packages or residential 2-3 day seminar and workshop sessions).

Priority is given to applications in subject areas of significant need identified by industry, and applications that are within strategic priority areas (see related links). Applications are assessed by Committee E (see related links), which includes members from the industrial community. There are three application deadlines per year and proposals are considered at the next available Committee E meeting.

Applications must be made through the Je-S system.

Application Deadline: 15th July 2015

 

Skills development fellowships – expertise at the social science interface

Medical Research Council, GB

Skills Development Fellowships (previously Strategic Skills Fellowships) will support training for very early career researchers in, or individuals changing disciplines to, MRC priority areas for capacity-building at this level. The scheme currently focusses on the following areas:

  • Quantitative expertise: covering mathematics, statistics, computation and informatics applicable to any biomedical or health related data sources, from molecular to population level.Applicants from a quantitative disciplinary background should be seeking to develop new expertise and skills by applying mathematical, statistical and computational methods to biomedical and/or health research across MRC remit, including the development of novel methods in these areas if needed for the application. Applicants from an existing background in other disciplines should be seeking to acquire training in quantitative methods as applied to biomedical and/or health research.
  • Expertise at the social science interface: with a focus on areas of health economics and/or mixed methods research.

Applicants from an economics or social sciences research background should be seeking to develop new expertise and skills by applying economics or social sciences methods to biomedical and/or health research across MRC’s remit, including the development of novel methods in these areas if needed for the application. Applicants from an existing background in other disciplines should be seeking or to acquire training in economics or social research methods as applied to biomedical and/or health research.The fellowship provides full personal salary costs, with support for consumables, travel costs and capital equipment appropriate for the research project. Research staff fees and the substantial costs associated with collecting or generating primary data are not normally allowed within this scheme, unless approved exceptionally by the MRC office prior to submission.

Application deadline: 16/06/2015

 

Science in culture early-career researcher workshop – the lived environment

Arts and Humanities Research Council, GB

Date of Workshop: 20th and 21st May 2015

The aim of this ECR Workshop is to bring together early career researchers to identify key future opportunities for inter-disciplinary research under the topic ‘The Lived Environment’, within the Science in Culture theme.

The AHRC is looking to invite early career researchers from a wide range of arts and humanities research disciplines, and from a wide range of science disciplines, as well as relevant practice-based research contexts with an interest in this topic.

The workshop is designed to give ECRs the opportunity to network outside of their current research organisations, sectors and disciplines and to facilitate the development of initial ideas for future research which could lead to applications for collaborative Innovation Awards (or under other funding streams).The AHRC is looking for ECR applicants who are interested in taking part in a highly participative, interactive and open workshop which seeks to make new connections between arts and humanities researchers and scientists and demonstrate the capacity to contribute to the development of the Science in Culture Theme.  Successful applicants attending the ECR workshop will have a follow up opportunity to apply for closed Innovation Award funding (up to £80,000 Full Economic Costing (FEC)) under the Science in Culture theme.

Application Deadline: 10/04/2015 at 4pm

 

Enhancing user experience in retail

Innovate UK, GB

Innovate UK is to invest up to £4 million to support new ways of enhancing user experience in retail.

We are looking for projects that convert data about people into valuable insights that improve the user experience for customers and lead to commercial gains (for example, more customers, higher sales and increased profits) for retailers.The competition is open to companies of any size in working in partnership. Proposals must be led by a business.Small and medium sized businesses could receive up to 60% of their eligible project costs and large businesses 50%. We expect projects to last 12 to 24 months and total project costs to range in size from £400,000 to £1 million, although we may consider projects outside this range.

This competition opens on 16 March 2015. The deadline for registration is noon on 6 May 2015, and the deadline for expressions of interest is noon on 13 May 2015.

 

UK/China low carbon cities research

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, GB and other funders

Building on five years of successful collaborative research programmes funded jointly by the Natural Sciences Foundation of China (NSFC) and the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) in Energy research, we are inviting proposals to our latest joint call in the area of Low Carbon Cities research between China and the UK. A scoping workshop was held in Chengdu, China in January 2015 to identify themes for this call.

Low Carbon Cities combines research to reduce the carbon emissions of existing technologies and fundamental research into alternative energy sources and a reduction of energy demand, all with a focus on future urban environments.

Such research requires a multi-disciplinary approach, combining technological expertise with an understanding of societal factors including public policy that govern uptake. Significant sub-themes include:

  • Low Carbon Transportation
  • Smart and Efficient Buildings
  • Low Carbon District Heating / Cooling

This is a call for proposals that aims to foster collaboration between UK and Chinese academics who work in the field of Low Carbon Cities. Proposal should include at least one academic from both the UK and China and should demonstrate truly collaborative working which will lead to impactful outcomes.

The proposals will be assessed using an expert panel which will include key academic and industrial researchers who work in the Low Carbon Cities space. This call is expected to address key challenges that were identified at the scoping workshop attended by leading UK and Chinese researchers, held in Chengdu, China.

The call closes at 16.00 on 23 April 2015 with the first part providing up to £3.3 million, for grants up to £800 thousand available from EPSRC and the second part providing up to £1.2 million available for a specific research area from Newton funding. Applicants can either apply for the EPSRC or Newton funded streams.

 

Translational alliance platforms

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, GB

EPSRC invites participation in a funding initiative which aims to support researchers in the formation and development of new sustainable long-term translational partnerships which will deliver impact from existing EPSRC research investments. Partnerships should aim to develop research outcomes towards tangible application and use, and also to share engineering knowledge and approaches in order to co-design future user oriented research strategies. This call is open to those who wish to develop translational partners at the multi-disciplinary interface between Healthcare Technologies and the Engineering areas of Synthetic Biology, Chemical and Formulation Engineering, Robotics and Autonomous Systems, and Microsystems. A budget of £4 million is available to support a number of flexible translational partnership investments across this broad interface.

The primary aim of this funding activity is to enable the development of new long-term relationships between a researcher, or team of researchers, and an identified translational partner. Translational partners may be any non-academic user organisation (e.g. an industrial, charitable, clinical or not for profit organisation) which has the experience and capability to translate research outcomes into new or improved products, services or systems. The translational partner should be clearly appropriate for the translation of the research in question, and must have the expertise to work in collaboration with the academic partner in order to both deliver translational research outcomes and inform and co-design future research.

Outline Application Deadline: 28/05/2015 at 4pm.

 

ICT pioneers competition

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, GB and other funders

UK ICT Pioneers is a unique partnership between Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and key stakeholders that aims to recognise the most exceptional UK doctoral students in ICT-related topics who are able to communicate and demonstrate the excellence and exploitation potential of their research. The 2015 competition is being sponsored by: Dstl, HP, EPSRC, BCS, BT, Facebook and Samsung.

This exciting competition is open to all UK students in the final two years of their doctoral training. You must be undertaking research in an ICT-related subject which includes but is not restricted to Electronics, Communications, Computer Science, Human-Computer Interfaces and Photonics. Your doctoral training does not have to be funded by EPSRC to participate in this competition. Following the success of previous rounds of the competition, EPSRC’s ICT theme launched the UK ICT Pioneers 2015 competition on 05 March 2015. The competition is currently accepting expressions of interest from applicants.

Before applying for the 2015 UK ICT Pioneers competition you should read the Further Information and How to Apply document (under “Resources” on this page).

You should complete and submit the expression of interest form by the closing date of 12:00, Thursday 16 April 2015.

 

Cleaner, more efficient conventional fuels – collaborative research and development

Innovate UK, GB

Innovate UK is to invest up to £5m in collaborative R&D and feasibility studies to stimulate innovation in conventional fossil fuels.

The aim is to improve efficiency, reduce cost and minimise the environmental impact of coal, natural gas and oil.  Projects must be business-led and all must involve an SME.
Unconventional fossil fuels such as shale gas, shale oil and tar sands are outside the scope of this competition. 
We are allocating up to £4m of the total funding for business-led, collaborative R&D projects (industrial research), with a business partner attracting 50% public funding for their project costs (60% for SMEs). We expect collaborative R&D projects to range in size from £250k to £1.5m, although we may consider projects outside this range. Up to £1m of the total funding will be available for smaller-scale feasibility studies (or pre-industrial research). These can be collaborative but must be led by an SME (working with large businesses, other SMEs or research organisations) or developed by a single SME. Feasibility studies also attract public funding. Innovate UK will fund 70% of eligible project costs for small enterprises, 60% for medium enterprises and 50% for large enterprises. We expect feasibility projects to range in size from £100k to £150k.

In addition, up to £1 million is available through the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) for the academic element of projects that fall within NERC-remit and fulfil NERC’s criteria for support and focus on translation of existing research outcomes to meet industry issues and challenges.

The competition opens for both types of project application on 2 March 2015. The deadline for feasibility studies, for which there is a single-stage process, is at noon on 10 June 2015. The deadline for expressions of interest for collaborative R&D, for which there is a two-stage process, is at noon on 15 April 2015. A briefing event for potential applicants will be held in London on 10 March 2015.

Abstracts bursary programme for MEIbioeng15

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, GB

Abstract submission is now open for MEIbioeng15 on 7th and 8th September 2015 at the University of Leeds. The Scientific Advisory Panel of nine internationally recognised scientists and research leaders welcome abstracts across nine themes, including scientific research areas, commercial translation and careers and outreach. Top abstracts will be selected for oral presentation; all abstracts will present a poster and be published in the conference programme and abstracts book (with ISBN number).

MEIbioeng15 also intends to offer an abstracts bursary programme to encourage early submission, offered on a first come, first served basis. Our event has evolved to be the national biomedical engineering event for the UK, originating from the community developed through the former Centres of Excellence in Medical Engineering in the UK (funded by Wellcome Trust and EPSRC from 2009) and The Bioengineering Society Annual Meeting – attracting participants from leading academic centres and the medical technology industry.

For further information on how to submit an abstract and the guidelines visit the abstracts submission page of the event website

The deadline for submission is midnight 31st March 2015.

 

Efficacy and mechanism evaluation programme – researcher-led workstream

Department of Health including NIHR, GB and other funders

The EME Programme’s researcher-led workstream is an ongoing research funding opportunity funded by the Medical Research Council. You are welcome to submit a preliminary application at any time, however there will be three cut-off dates each year.

If you are the lead applicant, you must be based in the UK. Co-applicants may be based outside the UK, and if necessary research can be conducted overseas. The rationale for this should be clearly set out in the application and each case will be judged on its merits. Please note that Research Councils UK eligibility rules apply to the EME Programme. Further information on this requirement is available from the Research Councils UK’s eligibility webpages.

Outline Application Deadline: 01 July 2015.

 

Adventures in energy

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, GB

EPSRC, as part of the Research Councils UK (RCUK) Energy Programme, invites adventurous research proposals from researchers who wish to develop their ideas in the energy sector for the first time. To be eligible for this call, applicants should hold or have recently held (grant end date on or after 01 January 2014) at least oneEPSRC research grant. However, investigators on any current or completed EPSRC grants funded wholly or largely by the EPSRC Energy Theme during the period 2011-14 are not eligible for this call – please refer to the list of grants given below.

We particularly wish to encourage cross-cutting, interdisciplinary proposals focused on novel energy technology development. Proposals may consist of a single research project or a suite of small-scale feasibility studies based around a common theme. Collaborative projects are encouraged, but each proposal should be submitted on a single Je-S form. Individual applicants may only be named on one proposal to this call, whether as Principal Investigator (PI) or Co-Investigator (Co-I).

The call closes at 16:00 on Thursday 21 May 2015. Up to £4 million is available for this call; proposals should not exceed £500 thousand in value at 80% full Economic Cost (fEC).

Potential applicants to this call must register their intent by submitting an Expression of Interest via the form at the bottom of the page by 23:59 on Tuesday 07 April 2015, including the names and affiliations of the PI and any Co-Is, the topic(s) of the research, and the approximate value of the funds to be requested.

Applicants who do not register their intent to submit a proposal will have their applications rejected without recourse to peer review.

 

Research and innovation developing technological solutions and services for water systems

Water JPI, EU and other funders

The ERA-NET Cofund Water Works 2014 was launched in 2014 in support of the Water JPI. It is funded by the EC under Horizon 2020.  WaterWorks2014 aims at tackling European water challenges through the development of transnational and trans-disciplinary research and innovation actions. WaterWorks2014 addresses the specific challenge of integrating the efforts and Strategic Agendas of many European Water Research and Innovation Funding Organisations.  WaterWorks2014 will benefit researchers, policy-makers, water authorities, utility operators, industry, farmers, and citizens by developing new solutions in the water domain.

This is a 2-stage application process. All applications should be submitted via an Online Application System(ww2014-submission.fct.pt). 
Registration is required
 in order to apply.

1st Stage – Deadline for Submission of Pre-Proposals: 4 May 2015, 17h00 (CET)
2nd Stage – Deadline for Submission of Full Proposals14 September 2015, 17h00 (CET)

 

HE Policy Update

Monday

Extremism on campus

Grant Shapps, Tory Party Chairman, has criticised Vince Cable for trying to water down proposals to ban extremist speakers from university campuses, as the coalition partners hit deadlock over planned guidance for universities. Rules are being drawn up by Downing Street demanding that universities ban all “extremist” speakers following passage of a law imposing a statutory requirement on educational institutions and other public bodies to prevent terrorism. Government row over ban on extremist speakers on university campuses (The Guardian).

Tuesday

Satellite Campuses

Theresa May, believes satellite campuses set up in London by universities in other parts of the UK have become a loophole used by people wanting to work in Britain rather than institutions offering rigorous academic courses to highly qualified students. New rules are now being introduced to require the satellite campuses to be fully integrated with the home university by offering the same courses, teaching standards and exams. Institutions that fail to comply will have their licences revoked. Satellite university campuses in London are being exploited  (The Times).

Election Hustings

The Times Higher Education ran a Higher Education Hustings with Greg Clark (Conservative Minister for universities and science), Liam Byrne (Labour shadow HE and science secretary) and Julian Huppert (Lib Dem science spokesperson). THE has published a write up of the debate here.

Wednesday

New Private Provider

A new private university is planned to open in 2017 in Hereford. The New Model Institute for Technology & Engineering (NMITE) will focus on manufacturing, defence engineering and agri-tech and will cater for up to 5,000 students. Hereford NMITE university ‘will create 500 jobs’ (BBC News).

Thursday

Part-time Students

Government proposals on accelerated and flexible degrees in response to the collapse in part-time study are set to be put forward in the coming weeks, Greg Clark suggested at the HE Hustings. Flexible study emerges as cross-party concern  (THE).

PhDs

Growth in the number of PhDs awarded in some academic disciplines has far outstripped that in others, evidence submitted to the REF shows. The percentage increase in doctoral degrees awarded in the social sciences during the REF period was 35 per cent, compared with just 18 per cent in medical and life sciences, for example. Social sciences ups the PhD pace  (THE).

Income of Higher Education Providers

HESA’s new publication ‘HE Finance Plus 2013/14’ outlines higher education institutions income and expenditure. The report can be viewed here.

Friday

Science Education

Science is being squeezed out of primary schools, with many now teaching the subject for less than two hours a week, business leaders have warned. Science ‘squeezed out of primary schools’ (BBC News).

 

Mapping the UK research landscape: your opportunity to contribute

The Council for Science and Technology (CST) have launched a project to help them to understand the knowledge landscape in the UK. By providing information about yourself, how your research area fits within ‘the landscape of connected disciplines’ and research infrastructure in your area, you can contribute to the CST’s understanding of how the research community defines itself and the links that exist between disciplines. For more information, and to submit your views, go to https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-knowledge-landscape-tool-launches

Building a research team

Are you a researcher looking to submit a research application? If so, this could be your opportunity to start building up a research team. Not only will this reduce the cost of your bid, but it will also give you the chance to start building up a group in your research field.  

So, what do we mean by a research team? There are a number of definitions, but a key characteristic is that a research team is a group of people, working together with a commitment to achieve a common research goal. At BU, this might mean those working together on a research project, a research cluster, a centre or an institute. Teams are likely to include academics – senior, junior or both – research assistants and, where appropriate, technical or administrative staff. Individuals are likely to bring a range of skills, knowledge and experience to the team which complement one another. However, you may also wish to consider whether team members’ behavioural traits and characteristics are also complementary. You can find out more from Vitae at https://www.vitae.ac.uk/doing-research/leadership-development-for-principal-investigators-pis/building-and-managing-a-research-team

If you are considering bringing together a research team, and aren’t sure how to go about it, please contact one of the Research Facilitators in RKEO – Jennifer Roddis, Alexandra Pekalski, Emily Cieciura and Paul Lynch – and we’ll be pleased to help.

Successful FST Santander-funded networking and conference visit to Spain, February 2015

Dr Daniel Franklin (FST) recently visited colleagues from the University of Malaga in Spain, a Santander Partner University, and also attended the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography meeting in nearby Granada. This meeting had 2,500 delegates from 65 countries and used a parallel session format to present cutting-edge science from across the myriad disciplines involved in the study of aquatic systems.
During the visit Dan discussed research ideas with Dr Maria Segovia of the University of Malaga and met members of her research group. Discussion focused on the measurement of phytoplankton dynamics during large-scale ecosystem manipulations (mesocosm experiments) which are designed to test the response of the microbial food web to CO2 enrichment. Dan also discussed the possibility of student and staff research exchanges with Dr Segovia and this will form an ongoing process.
At the conference BU FST PhD students Ian Chapman and Dave Hartnell gave excellent presentations to leading lights in the fields of cyanobacteria management and phytoplankton assessment. The conference was excellent in the range of opportunities it provided to meet with and discuss research with world-leading specialists. We are now planning a submission to a high-impact factor journal which will publish proceedings from the conference. Overall, a very successful visit. Thanks to Santander for the funding.

Student-midwife-run postnatal clinic: FUSION example

FHSS staff and students published their latest article ‘Would a student midwife run postnatal clinic make a valuable addition to midwifery education in the UK? — A systematic review’ now out on line in Nurse Education Today 35 : 480-486.   The paper is written by Wendy Marsh, Dana M. Colbourne, Susan Way & Vanora Hundley.

We are pleased to inform you that the final version of your article with full bibliographic details is now available online.  The publishers are providing the following personal article link, which will provide free access to this article, and is valid for 50 days, until April 17, 2015:  http://authors.elsevier.com/a/1QcG5xHa50bEa

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

Cake Sale for Alzheimer’s Society

Sarah and I will be hosting a bake sale in the Talbot Campus Atrium on Thursday 5th March, from 1-3pm, in aid of our 54km trek along the Isle of Wight coastal path this May Bank Holiday weekend. We’re taking on this test of endurance to support the valuable work of Alzheimer’s Society, and to help to make a difference for people living with dementia.

We would like to raise £295 each and we’ve been challenged to reach 50% of our fundraising target by 23rd March 2015. In order to achieve this goal, we would like to invite you to indulge your sweet tooth in aid of a good cause, and join us in the Atrium this Thursday afternoon for cakes and treats!

We’ll have a wide variety of cakes, biscuits, chocolates, and other treats available, along with vegan-friendly, gluten-free, and sugar-free options. If you would like to donate some baked goods for our stall, please contact us at snoone@bournemouth.ac.uk or lreynolds@bournemouth.ac.uk to make arrangements.

We’re not putting any prices on our cakes. We want people to donate however much they would like to (loose change also welcomed!). Alternatively, if you would like to donate to our fundraising efforts online, please visit our JustGiving team page at http://www.justgiving.com/teams/IOW2015-BUDI

To give you an idea of what your generosity could mean for people with dementia:

  • £5 could pay for one person to attend a half hour session at a monthly Dementia Café, providing information and support for people with dementia and their carers.
  • £20 could pay for 100 copies of Understanding and respecting the person with dementia – one of the Society’s most requested factsheets
  • £50 could fund a PhD researcher for one day to continue vital research into understanding the causes of dementia, how it can be treated and, ultimately, to find a cure.
  • £100 could pay for 4 weekly visits by an experienced Dementia Support Worker to someone affected by dementia offering them one-on-one support to help them feel less alone and to identify the services that could help them.
  • £120 could pay to run Talking Point for one day – the Society’s 24/7 online community for all people affected by dementia.

We have already received some very generous donations following our last blog post, and we would like to thank you for your support so far. We look forward to seeing you on Thursday!

Research Professional – all you need to know

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

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

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

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

Administrator Guide: A detailed description of the administrator functionality.

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

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

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

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

24th March 2015

28th April 2015

29th May 2015

23rd June 2015

28th July 2015

25th August 2015

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

Two BU authored chapters in new book on childbirth

BU Ph.D. student and Consultant Midwife Kathryn Gutteridge and Hannah Dahlen Associate Professor of Midwifery at the University of Western Sydney contributed a chapter to the book ‘The Roar behind the Silence: Why kindness, compassion and respect matter in maternity care’.  Kathryn Gutteridge and Hannah Dahlen wrote under the title ‘Stop the fear and embrace birth’.  BU’s Dr. Jenny Hall also wrote a chapter called ‘Spirituality, compassion and maternity care’.

The  volume edited by Sheena Byrom and Soo Downe was published this week by Pinter & Martin (London).   I received my copy of the book yesterday, but didn’t have a chance to look at it until today.  The Roar Behind the Silence is both a practical and inspirational book, which likely to be of interest to people working in maternity care (midwives, doctors, managers), local and regional maternity-care policy-makers as well as politicians and funders and, of course, to many pregnant women and maternity-care pressure groups.  The book highlights examples of good practice, and offers practical tools for making change happen, advice on how to use evidence and real-life stories.

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

Matt Bentley’s Fusion Fund Research – South Africa Update

Friday marked a successful visit to Abagold in Hermanus. Hermanus is famous for whale watching where the Southern Right whales can been seen close to the shore from September to November. The visit to Abagold by Matt and Carol Simon was hosted by Stoffel van Dyk who is their Operational Director. Abagold is one of the world’s premier abalone aquaculture farms producing the highest quality abalone for the export market. Abagold’s operation is sustainable and helps protect the wild abalone population from poaching activity. Abagold is also the industrial partner in the Fusion Investment Fund project. The farm will offer facilities for BU students who will trialling novel technologies for controlling shell-boring pests of the molluscs.

HE Policy Update

Monday

Student Loans

Labour party analysis of Treasury figures suggests that student loan write-offs will rise to £20bn per year by 2048-49. Student loan write-offs will rise to £20bn by 2048-49, Labour warns (The Guardian​).

Labour and fees

Lord Mandelson’s speech to UUK last week warned that cutting university tuition fees to £6,000 a year could trigger a rise in foreign students to plug the funding gap, squeezing places available for British teenagers. Cutting tuition fees could reduce college places for Britons, warns Mandelson (The Times).

Tuesday

BIS criticism on alternative providers

A report from the Commons Public Accounts Committee has criticised how BIS handled the privatisation of higher education, concluding that the department ignored repeated warnings about the potential abuse of public money. MPs criticise lax oversight of £1.2bn higher education expansion  (The Guardian).

Wednesday

Maintenance loans

An extensive look at how “the squeezed middle” are facing financial difficulties in affording HE for their children because they earn too much for a full maintenance loan – which in many cases does not meet the full costs of attending universities (such as accommodation and living expenses). Parents lose their car paying price of university  (BBC News).

Student loan system – ‘unsustainable’ 

Professor Nicholas Barr, from the London School of Economics and Political Science, has warned that the current student loans system under which graduates start repayments once they earn £21,000 a year is unsustainable. He said repayments should start at £18,000 a year to avoid massive increases in taxes or cuts to university finances. Expert warns ‘unsustainable’ student loan system could leave £1bn unpaid, (The Independent).

Policy

The APPG on Migration has published a report warning that British universities are now losing out in the global race to attract international students, in particular to other Anglophone countries with more attractive post study work opportunities such as; the United States, Australia and Canada.  Post-Study Work Opportunities in the UK – New report warns UK at risk of losing foothold in crucial international student market (All-Party Parliamentary Group on Migration).

Thursday

Nurse review

Fears about the objectivity of Sir Paul Nurse’s review of the research councils may be eased by the announcement of an advisory board containing a number of prominent sector figures. Advisory board to help steer Nurse review of research councils (THE).

OFFA

Office for Fair Access (OFFA) has published their strategic plan. It reported that a record number of 22,000 teenagers from poor families went to university in 2011. Under OFFA’s plans, this number should rise to nearly 40,000 within five years. They have also singled out highly selective universities, calling on them to do more to widen their intake. The Russell Group has responded to the surprise target, saying that they were keen to open their doors to more students but could do only so much if teenagers were not leaving school with the necessary grades. Universities told to double intake of poor students (The Times), Offa: no cap, no excuses on poor students, (THE).

Friday

Labour outline tuition fee plan

Ed Miliband today announced that if elected, Labour would cut university tuition fees in England to £6,000 per year from autumn 2016 in a speech on how the next Labour Government will support young people. He announced that the policy would be funded by reducing tax relief on pensions for those earning over £150,000 per year. The Labour leader also announced an increase of non-repayable maintenance grants by £400 per year to cover students’ living costs. However, these grants are only available to families with a total income below £42,000.  Labour promises to cut tuition fees to £6,000 (BBC News), Miliband announces £6K tuition fees pledge (THE).

 

Matt Bentley’s Fusion Fund Research in South Africa

Here in South Africa kicking off the Fusion Fund project on controlling pest infestations in abalone aquaculture. I arrived safely in Stellenbosch yesterday after the overnight flight from Heathrow. It was nearly two hours late but actually arriving at 08.30 rather than 06.30 local time is not a bad thing. I met up with Carol (Dr Carol Simon) in the Botany and Zoology Department of Stellenbosch University today. Two BU students will be here on the Fusion Fund project early this summer so sorting out the details for their visit are the first priority. We need to plan all the experimental work carefully to make sure we don’t lose time and get everything done (I should say achieve all the objectives!) that we need to during their research visit.

Dr Simon is the SA lead on the project

Lunchtime Seminar with Zoe Sheppard on 4th March

Lunchtime Seminar on the Findings from Research Impact Scoping Exercise, Wednesday 4th March in R302

Research should make a difference, and as the Faculty’s strapline is ‘helping to make people’s lives better’, it is of relevance to us all. Our forthcoming Seminar series will showcase some of the excellent work of the Faculty to inspire other academics and PhD students.

No need to book, just turn up. Contact Zoe on zsheppard@bournemouth.ac.uk for more information.

Future Impact Seminar dates can be found by clicking on the link below.

Impact Seminar dates 2015

We look forward to seeing you there.