Impact and engagement

Partnerships between institutions and wider world now worth almost £4 billion

REF case studies used to create a map of knowledge connections between fields

University of Wisconsin-Madison academic says disciplines, despite initial stumbles, might be better suited than some think

Complexity of government initiatives to help commercialise university research under scrutiny 

Universities UK has launched its fightback against the prospect of further funding cuts with the publication of a study highlighting the economic benefits of higher education

The UK’s only national humanities research festival has announced funding awards to 41 universities and cultural organisations

Academics at Newcastle University have been matched with members of the public as pen pals.

Prosecutors rely on techniques developed by team at the University of Warwick to secure conviction in ‘body in suitcase’ killing

Student beds, government bonds and science parks in investment packages assembled by new UK innovation team

George Freeman says public will back government’s ‘brave decision’ to open up healthcare records to medical research

Start-up aims to sidestep big pharmaceutical firms by developing its lab discoveries inside the university’s walls. Plus the latest higher education appointments

‘Culture change’ needed to avoid job losses

Jim O’Neill on how institutions outside London can do more to retain graduates and create jobs with government help

Hermann Hauser’s report suggests technology hubs could offer advice on innovation policy and calls for metrics to measure centres’ impact

Innovate UK is shifting its focus to boosting academia-industry engagement

The government should double the annual budget of its innovation agency to £1 billion so it can establish more “Catapult” centres, a new report says

The UK risks losing the global race to exploit the thinnest material on the planet, warns university leader

Institutions have long served as community anchors, and their role in local growth has scope to expand, says Madeleine Atkins

The rise of smart cities is challenging universities to respond with smarter learning, says Tim Blackman

Greg Clark’s portfolio will benefit institutions by recognising the vital role they play in local communities, Lord Heseltine argues

A $1 billion buyout of a UK biotech firm netted founder David S. Latchman just $709. He offers advice on seeking investors

A UK university-business incubator has been voted the best in Europe.

Peter Dobson, former leader of Begbroke Science Park, lays out frustrations with university

Senior scholar says his filmed 5-minute debates may expose the “tensions and contradictions’ in academics’ work

Academic proposes biomedical public-private partnerships to protect the ‘R&D ecosystem’ from commercial affairs

The University of Oxford’s technology transfer company is to help a group of Omani business leaders set up a new university in the country.

Heif review to ‘look again’ at incentives for helping small businesses, says Hefce chief

Umeå University aims to gain from its host city’s Capital of Culture status

Research areas championed by government dismissed as poor investments by technology expert

Commercialising research can do ‘far more’ for humanity than Nobel Prizes, says Mayor of London

The government will not increase the value of the higher education innovation fund, it announced today.

Ministers have commissioned a review on the possibility of expanding the Technology Strategy Board’s network of Catapult centres.

SMEs need tools as well as content to pinpoint research ‘nuggets’, says Elsevier chief

Fraunhofer UK plans to create up to four research centres in its first five years, according to the head of the country’s first centre in Glasgow

Britain needs Fraunhofer centres as well as Catapults if the ‘invention revolution’ is to materialise, asserts Tim Holt

The Treasury has funded a £15 million pilot project to establish three to four University Enterprise Zones in England.

Survey indicates need for fresh ways to measure engagement with industry

The government has given quantum technologies research a boost in the autumn statement.

Royal College of Art and Imperial partner in ‘high-impact’ hub

Report pays tribute to museums big and small

Witty recommends more collaboration, more funding and more weight for impact in REF

Impact should be given a weighting of 25 per cent at the next research excellence framework, the author of a government-commissioned review has said

Scientists need to lose their “excessive fastidiousness” to make London the scientific capital of the world, the city’s mayor Boris Johnson has said.

Academia ‘has a duty to nurture students’ fledgling businesses’, Royal Academy of Engineering panel hears

Universities should give more intellectual property over to small- and medium-sized British businesses

Allowing scientists to profit from their research would encourage entrepreneurship, says Institute of Cancer Research chairman Luke Johnson

The Catapult network of technology and innovation centres will see a “significant expansion”, the government has announced.

A £30 million investment in research and innovation campuses from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) has been unveiled.

‘Big community’ yet to be reached by prestigious programme, study finds

The government has defended its innovation policy after criticisms that the lack of a coherent strategy was harming UK business.

Cupp scheme offers lessons for sector. Elizabeth Gibney reports

The European Commission has announced plans to invest €22 billion (£19 billion) in public-private research and innovation projects over the next seven years.

Universities should play a bigger role in driving growth and should be more accessible to smaller businesses, according to a government-commissioned review.

Knowledge-transfer experts map path to market for university inventions

Rick Rylance offers academy guidance for business collaborations

Former CBI head says interaction’s the key to productivity

Sixteen UK higher education institutions are to benefit from a £50 million investment in research projects designed to drive economic growth, the universities and science minister has said.

The government’s innovation agency the Technology Strategy Board will see a £50 million boost to its budget this year, the government has announced.

A BBC scheme aims to tackle gender inequality

Publication not always relevant to business success, industry and sector figures argue