July 2023
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This conference brought together policymakers, funding bodies and stakeholders to examine the future of the Research Excellence Framework.
It followed the publication of final outcomes from the Future Research Assessment Programme, being jointly undertaken by the four UK higher education funding bodies, exploring new approaches for assessing research performance in higher education.
We are pleased to have been able to include keynote sessions with Dr Steven Hill, Director of Research, Research England; Alexander Ademokun, Deputy Director, Place, Impact and Research, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology; Marta Agostinho, Executive Director, EU-LIFE; and Professor Fiona Ross, Emerita Professor, Health and Social Care, Kingston University.
Areas for discussion included:
- the ongoing development of the next framework and exercise, and the future of the REF
- the impact of reform on research culture, environments and incentives
- responding to the FRAP, and considering the consequences for submitting institutions and staff
Delegates also addressed the UK’s wider research and innovation policy, including coordination and strategy issues raised by the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee and the Nurse Review.
Further sessions brought out latest thinking on:
- the place of the REF within the UK’s research ecosystem and its role in allocating funding
- the utility of the REF as a measure of research excellence at the institutional and disciplinary level, and its potential use in national planning and monitoring of the research base
- development of transnational principles on research assessment, and the impacts of both UK and EU reforms on collaboration and cooperation
The conference was an opportunity for stakeholders to consider the issues alongside key policy officials from DAERA, NI; Defra; DfE; Department for the Economy, NI; DESNZ; DHSC; DSIT; FCDO; GO-Science; HMRC; IPO; MOJ; POST; The Scottish Government; and the Welsh Government.
