BNU Inclusive Research and Knowledge Exchange Strategy

Strategic Aim

To build an inclusive research and knowledge exchange strategy that actively promotes diversity in all its forms, ensures equitable access to research opportunities, and cultivates an environment where all voices are heard, valued and celebrated. In doing so, we aim to foster a high-impact research community that reflects the richness of the world it seeks to understand and improve.

Enabling

To create excellent inclusive research and knowledge exchange (KE), we will ensure that we provide a research-rich environment where practice can flourish.

• Workload: we will continually reduce the amount of needless complexity and simplify processes to ensure that space is created – and preserved – in workloads to enable research and knowledge exchange

• Research development communities: all new academic colleagues will join an established research group or cluster to develop their research and KE skills from day one of employment with the aim of PhD by publication after 5 years. Where a traditional doctorate is a better fit, we will support this

• Diversity and inclusion: we will create specific support and training for colleagues for groups underrepresented within research, particularly at senior levels

• Inclusive recruitment: we will enact all elements of our inclusive recruitment policy including sending questions in advance, mandatory diverse panels, alternative formats and removal of desirable criteria

• Seed funding: funding will be allocated for new projects on the criteria of innovation, significance and impact

• ECR Network: we will create a network for early career researchers that will receive specialist training and mentoring from experienced colleagues

• Training and support: a new programme of inclusive research training will be designed, prioritising participatory and liberatory methodologies as well as research leadership

• Proformas: we will create a bank of proformas for job descriptions (e.g. Research Assistants), finance and other frequently used documents

• New academic pathways: the new Balanced Academic Pathways increase the emphasis on research, knowledge exchange and scholarship

• School-centre: there will be a research and KE lead in each school to coordinate with central colleagues such as the Research Development team

• Research Excellence Framework (REF): preparations, planning and development for the REF will be led by the Director of Research and Knowledge Exchange supported by the Research Lead in each School

• Staff will be supported in joining subject associations, learned societies or professional bodies through the Learning and Development Policy. As part of these memberships, staff will be supported in undertaking research-related activities in line with Metric A of Research Degree Awarding Powers (RDAP)

Enacting

We will be at the forefront of ethical, inclusive research that prioritises participatory methods and involves partners and community members as co-creators.

• Planning and support: all academic colleagues will have a 5 year research and scholarship plan to create longer term outputs, identify support needs and support the REF strategy

• Inclusive ethics framework: we will go above standard ethical frameworks to centre inclusivity, liberatory and decolonial approaches

• Bid writing support: we will provide support for bidding activities through a combination of development programmes, coaching and employing an external bid writer for strategically significant funds

• Inclusive Research Fellows: our work will be supported by Inclusive Research Fellows from the sectors we work in to maximise collaborative research and impact

• Community research partners: we will aim to employ partners from our community to work as co-researchers to increase skills capacity within our region

• Creating research centres: we will aim to develop specific research centres with a clear identity, aims and specialist impact

• Involving students and graduates: our students and graduates will become engaged in our practice as members of research teams, collecting data, coauthoring and applying research to professional contexts

• Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs): we will seek to employ GTAs in each school who will teach while engaged in doctoral research

• Collaboration: 50% of our research will be collaborative, working in partnership with NonGovernmental Organisations, communities and employers for mutual benefit and knowledge exchange

• Professional service colleagues: we will work with Professional Service Directors to ensure that central colleagues can become involved in research, KE and scholarship

• Doctoral: we will achieve RDAP, expand our Postgraduate Research Student numbers and offer inclusive research scholarships for applicants from groups under-represented in universities

Impacting

Our research and knowledge exchange will be rooted within social impact, locating innovation, positive change and capacity-building within our sectors and our communities.

• Conference: we will hold an annual research and KE conference open to partners and the community to showcase our practice, create new collaborations and impact professional sectors

• Seminars: we will create a series of informal research seminars to provide support for developing presentation and dissemination skills for Early Career Researchers and postgraduate research students

• Impact Team: we will move the functions of the Impact Centres into one central Impact Creation Team working closely with each School Research and KE Lead

• Teaching and learning: we will create a new Centre focusing on pedagogical research and ensuring all teaching is research-informed and research-led

• Evaluation: the impact of our research will be measured with an Impact Evaluation Tool that will inform the evolution of our research strategy

• Research translation: we will introduce a research translation service that will support colleagues turn research into CPD, ‘products’, services and consultancy

• Dissemination: we will prioritise an ethical approach to publishing, recognising the structural inequalities of the publishing industry as well as developing dissemination via performances, installations, exhibitions, online forms such as blogs and podcasts as well as public-focused outputs in alternative formats such as comic strips, short videos and memes

• Media: we will create a university-wide database of experts who will be media-trained and engage swiftly with emerging news in their research areas

• Public engagement: we create a series of talks, workshops and experience sessions based on our research open to the public

High Wycombe Campus

Queen Alexandra Road

High Wycombe

Buckinghamshire

HP11 2JZ

Aylesbury Campus

59 Walton Street

Aylesbury Buckinghamshire

HP21 7QG

Uxbridge Campus

106 Oxford Road

Uxbridge

Middlesex UB8 1NA

BNU based at Pinewood Studios

Pinewood Road

Iver Heath

Buckinghamshire SL0 0NH

Missenden Abbey

London Road

Great Missenden

Buckinghamshire HP16 0BD

Telephone: 0330 123 2023

Email: advice@bnu.ac.uk

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