New Network to link up ‘Islands of Excellence’ in Research

Health Sciences University

Based in Bournemouth, Health Sciences University is a highly esteemed, global pioneer in musculoskeletal healthcare, dedicated to excellence in education, clinical training and research. The university provides specialist study in health sciences at both undergraduate and postgraduate level, with state-of-the-art facilities, high quality teaching and a regarded level of professionalism. With over 50% of students coming from outside of the UK, the single-campus is a thriving, supportive and inclusive community, constantly at the forefront of engaging with others, collaborating with a number of partner organisations, businesses and other universities.

Health Sciences University’s facilities include the Chiropractic Clinic, the University College of Osteopathy, School of Medical Ultrasound with specialist imaging services, and the on-site Bournemouth Open Upright MRI facility. Alumni, research and collaborations span many countries and continents which gives emphasis to Health Sciences University’s reputation as global leaders in their specialist areas. The university has a history of innovation and is the sum of all its students, staff and alumni who have shaped and are shaping the fields of health sciences.

The first chiropractic college in Europe, founded in 1965, the Health Sciences University has a unique history and a proud heritage.

For more details on research visit the Health Sciences University website

University of Suffolk

The University of Suffolk is very proud to be home to a vibrant and dynamic research community with a range of specialist academic expertise.

Our current research priorities focus on our areas of distinctiveness:

Health and Wellbeing
Sustainability
Digital Futures
Crime and Social Justice
Culture and Heritage
Excellence in Education

In a rapidly changing and increasingly globalised world, our research is agile, responsive, collaborative, and grounded in robust scientific and ethical approaches. Supported by our Research Institutes and Centres, research at the University of Suffolk:

Significantly contributes to scientific, medical and technological innovation and solutions;
Evidences and informs key policy debates and developments; and
Actively challenges social injustice and inequality.

As a student-centred university, all our undergraduate and postgraduate courses are underpinned by high-quality applied, professional, and practice-led research. We have a thriving multi-disciplinary Doctoral College, which works collaboratively with our four academic schools and offers a range of new opportunities for PhD study supported by senior academics.

The University of Suffolk’s vision is to be a strong community impact university. We are very proud that our research is having significant impact on the economic, cultural and educational lives of the communities we serve regionally, nationally and internationally.

University of Suffolk

The Place - London Contemporary Dance School

We champion new ideas, embrace artistic innovation, and enable extraordinary experiences for you to realise your full potential as a dance artist. We prepare you for a portfolio career in dance and the creative industries.

The Place

LAMDA

A world-leading conservatoire, we offer exceptional vocational training to actors, stage managers, technicians, directors and designers, regardless of their background or economic circumstances.

We are also an awarding organisation, offering world-renowned qualifications in communication and performance and inspiring the next generation of confident communicators through our examinations in drama, literature and poetry.

We believe drama has the power to transform lives. We want more people to share in this experience through training, qualifications, work, productions and facilities.

LAMDA

Setting up an independent higher education provider which is fully integrated with a global technology company is a significant innovation – the first educational model of its kind. We are paving the way for academic-industrial collaborations which transcend traditional notions of academic and vocational pathways, enabling meaningful student choice and supporting employers to play a much more fundamental role in talent development.

This ground breaking approach is testament to Dyson’s pioneering spirit and its certainty that learning drives progress.

Dyson Institute of Engineering and Technology

Wrexham University

Visit the Wrexham University website

Wrexham University is based in Wrexham, North Wales. The university’s ancestry dates back to 1887 when the Wrexham School of Science and Art was established, in response to local demands and to create a highly skilled workforce for the growing industrial backbone of North East Wales. The result was that Wrexham’s founding college had a strong industrial character. That character has remained as one of the defining features of the University, and the University is proud of the contribution its research activity makes to real regional and national economic and social development.

Wrexham also has high quality facilities for land-based learning at its campus in Northop, Flintshire, while elsewhere in the county the Advanced Composite Training and Development Centre at Airbus is the result of a groundbreaking partnership between Wrexham University, Airbus, Deeside College and the Welsh Government. At St Asaph the university has OpTIC Glyndŵr, a leading centre for research and development in cutting-edge opto-electronics and ultra-high-precision optics technology.

From creating high precision timing systems for sub-atomic particle accelerators to tackling cyber-bullying and from developing the potential of biorefineries to improving lifestyle for health, the university’s research continues to demonstrate impact and significance both nationally and internationally.

The University’s expertise and research spans a wide range of disciplines organised within two University Institutes:

Arts, Science and Technology

Subject areas include: Biology and Environment, Business and Management, Chemistry, Computing, Creative Industries and Engineering and Applied Physics

Health, Medical Sciences and Society

Subject areas include: Applied Social Sciences, Education, Early Childhood and Family Studies, Health Sciences and Psychology.

Northeastern University London

Based in the heart of London, Northeastern University – London, previously known as New College of the Humanities, offers a broad portfolio of undergraduate combined honours degrees and postgraduate master’s programmes in the humanities, social sciences and sciences. Northeastern University – London gained UK university title in 2022, ten years after its launch, and has exceeded all Russell Group universities for overall student satisfaction in the UK’s National Student Survey for three consecutive years (NSS 2019, 2020 and 2021). The University is part of the Northeastern Global Network with a highly popular student mobility programme between the US and UK and a thriving research community.

University of Law

We are one of the UK’s longest-established specialist providers of legal education. Our origins can be traced back to 1876 with the formation of the leading tutorial firm Gibson & Weldon, and later on, with the establishment of The Law Society School of Law. In 1962 the two were amalgamated to establish The College of Law, and in 2012 we were granted our full university title.

We are now the largest provider of legal education in the UK – from our undergraduate law degrees to our diverse range of business, criminology, policing and psychology courses and postgraduate programmes. Our track record of excellence in learning and development has helped us establish worldwide connections within the legal and business industries. Many leading global law firms and businesses work exclusively with us to develop their people, and why employers of all types want to meet our students.

We are currently enhancing our environment for applied research and scholarship incorporating a focus on professional development, knowledge exchange and equity, diversity and inclusion.

Arts University Bournemouth

Arts University Bournemouth (formerly The Arts University College at Bournemouth), established in 1885 as a specialist institution, is now a leading University offering high quality specialist education in art, design, media and performance across the creative industries. The University provides staff and students with a well resourced environment in which to practise to the highest professional standards.

Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Drama

Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Drama was established in 1950 as an alternative to the other London drama schools. In 1950, Rose Bruford, a trained actor and verse and speech teacher at the Royal Academy of Music, founded a unique drama school that unified theatre practice and drama education into one curriculum. She aimed to train actors who could teach and teachers who could act. Her college, dedicated at first to the training of drama teachers, opened in 1951 as Rose Bruford Training College for Speech and Drama. It was part of a pioneering post-war British movement that saw theatre training as more than an elite, privileged activity. Since 1951, the College has drawn on this legacy to become world leading in its teaching across Theatre Arts, with unique courses including American Theatre Arts, European Theatre Arts, Creative Lighting, Design, and Actor Musicianship.

As a specialist Higher Education Institution, a research culture has developed at Rose Bruford College in recent years to reflect the institution’s identity in the key areas of investigation related to acting and performance, design, management and technical theatre. The research is both contemporary and historical, multicultural and international, with the potential for intercultural performance in both discipline-specific and interdisciplinary contexts. Growing, too, is the College’s ongoing exploration of new theatre technologies and methodologies, accelerated by the Digital Content Design programme, founded in 2019.

Our research is generally practice-oriented with a focus on industry engagement, reflecting the vocationality of the institution. Practice-based and scholarly research result in a range of outcomes, complemented by research that informs or is the consequence of teaching and learning and productions and research that interfaces reciprocally with theatres and wider entertainment industries.

Research Degrees

Postgraduate research is a key part of the College’s academic portfolio. We have a collaborative partnership with the University of East London with currently four students registered on the programme.

Research Lead

The Research Lead for the Institution is Professor Brian Lobel. He is a performer, teacher and curator who is interested in creating work about bodies and how they are watched, policed, poked, prodded and loved by others. His practice is most efficiently described as Former-American-Camp-Counselor-Turned-Performance-Artist, and his work has shown work internationally in a range of contexts from Sydney Opera House, to Harvard Medical School, to the National Theatre (London) and Lagos Theatre Festival, blending provocative humour with insightful reflection. His book ‘Theatre and Cancer’ was published in 2019.

Brian is newly Professor of Theatre & Performance at Rose Bruford College after serving as Knowledge Exchange Fellow at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and Reader in Theater at University of Chichester.

University of Cumbria

Visit the University of Cumbria website

Launched in 2007, the University of Cumbria is founded on the experience and tradition of well over 150 years of higher education. The university is a growing, multi-campus university that is home to over 10,000 students. The university offers high quality research-informed academic studies, professionally focused programmes and technical skills. By creating knowledge with our research, sharing information through our courses and making business connections with our placement opportunities, we help enable our students to realise their potential and achieve life-changing outcomes.

A sense of place is very important to the University and this influences the research that is undertaken here in terms of the local, national and international perspectives. The University of Cumbria is committed to creating high quality research with academic impact and real world benefits for communities, practitioners, society and policy through people, place and partnerships. Our research is grounded in the real world with an emphasis on place and applied research linking with industry. We aim to deliver research of national and international importance that addresses the challenges of our time and provide research-connected programmes of study https://www.cumbria.ac.uk/research/.

Our key areas of recognised research are as follows:

Active Ageing, sport and physical activity
Allied Health including medical imaging, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and radiography
The Arts
Sustainable business, ecotourism
Forestry, conservation and landscape
Wildlife Conservation
National parks and protected areas
Regional economic development
Educational Research
Outdoor learning and environment
Social sciences

Research Lead: Professor Diane Cox

Diane is the Director of Research & Head of the Graduate School for the University. As Director of Research, Diane is responsible for the strategic development of research across the University; as Head of the Graduate School, Diane is responsible for the effective and efficient operation of the Graduate School, and the quality of the postgraduate student experience. Diane has worked at the University of Cumbria (formerly St. Martin’s College) since 2000. She has previously held a number of academic posts; Senior Lecturer, Reader, Principal Lecturer and Research Coordinator. She gained a personal chair in 2011, and is a Professor of Occupational Therapy. Diane currently has four PhD students who are Occupational Therapists. She has published numerous papers. Prior to working in Higher Education, Diane worked for 15 years in the NHS, and is a member of a number of national committees about research. She collaborates with other Universities, NHS and Social sector about research and practice. She is and has been a member of a number of National Consultancy and Reference groups.

Contact: diane.cox@cumbria.ac.uk

Research Degrees

We offer two research degrees: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) and Master of Philosophy (MPhil). Both of these higher degrees are awarded based on a thesis, which embodies the results of the student’s research. The University of Cumbria operates a system of team supervision for research students. The team consists of a main supervisor and one, but usually two, other members whose research areas are relevant to the student’s thesis.

The University is committed to providing excellence in academic practice together with a supportive and stimulating environment. This is characterised by excellent supervision by a supervisory team; a dedicated Graduate School; access to research networks; possibilities for supervised involvement in teaching; relevant training in research methodologies and skills; and access to appropriate facilities to support research

Admission

Potential students need a good honours degree of a recognised university or comparable institution, or qualifications regarded as the equivalent. Some experience of research, research training or reflective professional practice is normally expected. An MA, MSc or equivalent is desirable but not essential. Potential students can discuss application with the Graduate School Administrator and the Graduate School prior to submitting a formal proposal for consideration. The Graduate School issues documentation on request to assist with the preparation of the proposal. Proficiency in English expression is a fundamental requirement for admission onto the research degree programme and normally an interview will be required.

Please note that research students are initially registered as probationary PhD candidates, with full PhD registration subject to confirmation following a formal confirmation panel meeting, which takes place between 12 and 18 months after commencement for full-time students, and 18 to 24 months for part-time. Alternatively, students can register for an MPhil, with the option of transferring to PhD, subject to requirements.

On 4th March, CREST will become GuildHE Research

GuildHE Research is the new name for CREST, the research consortium for smaller and specialist universities and colleges.

GuildHE Research will provide a vital voice for emerging research environments throughout the UK in an era of great change in research and innovation policy by strongly advocating for the recognition and support of excellent research wherever it is found.

From 4th March 2019 our new website will be https://research.guildhe.ac.uk. You will find all the same content as on https://crest.ac.uk. Links pointing to the CREST site will be redirected to our new home.

We hope you are as excited as we are of these changes. If you have any questions or comments please let us know: research@guildhe.ac.uk

University College of Ostheopaty

The University College of Osteopathy is the largest and oldest school of osteopathy in the UK; founded in 1917 it is respected throughout the world for providing high-quality, innovative and modern osteopathic education

For further information visit the College of Osteopathy website

University of Worcester

Visit the University of Worcester website

The University of Worcester is committed to producing high quality research with impact across all its subject areas and expect and support our academic staff to engage in research and knowledge transfer. At the same time, the institution wishes to develop and enhance areas of national and international excellence through its Research Centres and Groups.

The University has a strong focus on applied research, reflecting the professional and practice-based strengths of several of its academic Institutes and Research Centres; research which, through its application, will have significant impacts on the practice of teachers, health professionals, coaches, managers and artists.

Each of the University of Worcester’s six academic departments includes active researchers who are experts in their field:

Research Lead: Dr John-Paul Wilson

The University of Winchester

Visit the The University of Winchester website

The University of Winchester is a values-driven institution that offers excellent programmes of study sustained by teaching and research of the highest quality. Our research is driven by a commitment to make a difference. Our reputation for research excellence is growing as we continue to deliver impact at regional, national and international levels. In the most recent Research Excellence Framework (REF 2014), 82 per cent of our submitted research was considered to be recognised internationally.

Research Lead: Professor Kate Adams

University of St Mark and St John

Visit the University of St Mark and St John website

The University of St Mark & St John in Plymouth undertakes research with impact and relevance to society and the economy. The focus of research is upon health and wealth generation.

Research addresses economic growth and social mobility through sector-specific agendas in education, health, physical activity, sport, tourism, communication and the creative arts.

The university’s approach is based upon the principles of smart specialisation, bringing together subject knowledge, specialist research and sector priorities to create greater social and economic impact.

Particular strengths of our research, and designed to support health and wealth generation, are the:

provision and evaluation of evidence to inform sector-based policy, practice and innovation
development of applications and products to support behaviour change

The university’s strong values base, developed since its origins in 1838, underpins everything it does and its spirit of innovation and exploration is an important driver for its research activity.

Research areas covered by the University include:

Transformational education and STEM education
Physical activity, health and rehabilitation
Health-related technologies
Sport sciences and human performance
Sound and performance-related technologies
Creative writing, linguistics and science communication
Business and enterprise (small and micro business, social enterprise and third sector)
Social cohesion and community development
Speech & language therapy including dysphagia and Parkinson’s disease
Modern journalism and social media
Creative arts and its broader meaning to health and wealth generation

The University of St Mark & St John undertakes translational research across these areas as well as knowledge transfer, consultancies and private sector collaborations and partnerships.

Contact the Research and Innovation Office on research@marjon.ac.uk

Research Lead: Professor Andrew Edwards, University Director of Research

Professor Edwards is responsible for the strategic development of research and innovation at the university. The importance of research to the student community and to social and economic growth both regionally and at a national level is at the core of the development of the research and innovation agenda at the university.

Direct Contact: aedwards@marjon.ac.uk

St Mary’s University, Twickenham

Visit the St Mary’s University, Twickenham website

Value and Impact

St Mary’s has an established culture of research and scholarship, concentrated in hubs of excellence within research centres and at discipline level in Academic Schools.

Research at St Mary’s is valued, encouraged and supported; undertaking research and scholarship is an integral part of academic life here.

Many of our academics have extensive networks and professional groups nationally and overseas, which offer opportunities for collaborative working, joint grant applications and access to a wide range of resources and expertise. We welcome visiting scholars from around the world as part of our research community.

Research Areas

Research Degrees

St Mary’s has a vibrant and rapidly growing community of postgraduate research students who benefit greatly from the high levels of individual attention provided by our dedicated supervisors. Our research students have an active programme of specialist (discipline-based) and generic training and development which culminates in an annual research conference at St Mary’s.

Further Information

If you are interested in finding out more about research at St Mary’s, we hope you will find the information on our webpages useful. If you need any further information, please contact the Research Office:

Tel: 020 8240 4164
Email: research@stmarys.ac.uk

Research Lead: Claire Tapia, Head of Research Services, claire.tapia@stmarys.ac.uk

Postgraduate Research at St Mary’s

St Mary’s has a vibrant and rapidly growing community of postgraduate research students who benefit greatly from the high levels of individual attention provided by dedicated supervisors. The research students have an active programme of specialist (discipline-based) and generic training and development which culminates annually in a multidisciplinary conference held in June each year.

If you are considering working or studying at St Mary’s, or are interested in finding out more about research at St Mary’s, contact us using the form below, or visit the website: https://www.stmarys.ac.uk/research/prospective-research-students.htm

Southampton Solent University

Visit the Southampton Solent University website

Research at Southampton Solent is applicable to the public and private sectors including the maritime industry, voluntary services, sport, health, education, the creative industries and society. It seeks to contribute to the many different debates and issues that we are facing within a knowledge-based economy and fast changing global environment. Our research and enterprise activities inform change and have visible impact, in local, national and international arenas.

Research clusters and groups

We are keen to encourage colleagues to work collaboratively, perhaps to accelerate development or to address emerging challenges. The diversity of our research clusters and groups underpins a rich array of research at Southampton Solent University. Our activities lead to important developments in key sectors, and our researchers are keen to build relationships with businesses and the community.

Postgraduate research studies

We value our postgraduate research students and enable them to develop the wide range of skills needed to succeed in their individual studies and enhance their career prospects. With research as the basis of the doctoral education, our students develop the technical and intellectual abilities needed to work at the forefront of knowledge. We offer discipline-focused training, collaboration on live projects with industry partners, and the fostering of student-led initiatives. We are fully committed to supporting our doctoral students in their personal and professional development.

Research Lead: Catherine Lee

The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama

Visit the The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama website

Research@Central concerns itself with the ways in which theatre is made, analysed and documented across a range of contexts and environments.

Professor Maria Delgado, Director of Research, introduces Research@Central:

As a constituent College of the University of London, Central supports a dynamic research community of staff and postgraduate research students (PGRS). We have recognised expertise in the areas of acting and actor-training; applied and social theatre; directing, directors, scenography and design; and cultural histories of performance. Crucially, much of this research operates at the intersection with industry and is realised with partners from a range of sectors, including theatres, film bodies, local authorities, NGOs, charities, cultural festivals, and the museum sector. For example, internationally acclaimed, cross art form company, Fevered Sleep are an associate artist at Central – their work combining a commitment to research and innovative artistic practice. REF2014 recognised 39% of our research as 4* and 31% at 3*, highlighting the strengths of a culture that operates at the interface of the university and conservatoire sectors. To find out more about what we’re doing, who we’re working with and how our research makes a difference, look on our projects page.

Some thirty members of teaching staff are research active and there is an MPhil/PhD community numbering almost thirty, in addition to the 230 students undertaking one of a range of taught Masters programmes preparing postgraduates for higher research. Central also hosts Visiting Associate Students who join our active postgraduate community for a period of up to six months, postdoctoral researchers and Visiting Research Fellows.

Central runs two seminar series, Theatre Workings — outward-facing events bringing together renowned practitioners and eminent academics — and the more methodology-driven ‘Practices and Processes’, as well as a range of practice-led events and productions. Central Interviews offer a platform for practitioners and industry professionals to share their own research processes and findings. Recordings of these events are held in the Central archive.

For further details, see: https://www.cssd.ac.uk/research

Research Lead: Professor Maria Delgado, maria.delgado@cssd.ac.uk

Royal Agricultural University

Visit the Royal Agricultural University website

The Royal Agricultural University (RAU) is the oldest agricultural college (1845) in the English-speaking world, but also the newest, gaining university title in 2013; until 2000 it was outside the public sector. The RAU was founded with the express aim of delivering what is now termed translational research in a period of rapid scientific and technological developments. It is one of the smallest universities in the UK but has doubled in size during this REF period from ~600 students in 2007 to over 1100 in 2013. Increased size and natural turnover has enabled growth in academic staff during the latter part of this period, allowing realisation of the strategic plan to recruit research active staff to increase research capacity. Growth and level of research activity needs to be set within this transition. Historically the focus has been on teaching but research is also core to the mission, growth and development of the university.

With access to over 50 academic and research staff, University farms and research facilities, the Royal Agricultural University carries out an active programme of UK and international research. We are experienced in providing the right expertise and skills, including working in association with other national and international academic and research centres.

The RAU has a strategy of employing research active staff who can engage with stakeholders to identify research needs and exchange knowledge. They exploit funding opportunities and deliver research outputs to the widest audience through publications, conference presentations, organised conferences and seminars hosted on campus, and visits to stakeholder groups in their own locations. Our Annual Report documents a wide range of such dissemination activities.

Research Groups:

Sustainable Agriculture, Food and Rural Economy

The Sustainable Agriculture, Food and Rural Economy research group is based mainly in the School of Agriculture and Food but may involve staff from other Schools; its rationale is to promote higher yield and quality food within sustainable agricultural production and social systems.

Research is carried out on our own farms at Harnhill and Coates (LINK to farms pages) and on neighbouring farms as appropriate.

The Rural Innovation Centre (RIC), visited at its inception by Prince Charles in Nov 2013, is a £1.2M investment on Harnhill Farm (235ha purchased in 2009 for £2.4M) primarily for practical research, demonstration and knowledge exchange. The Rural Innovation Centre at Harnhill provides on-farm facilities for research projects.

Equine Research Group

The Equine Research Group based in in the newly established School of Equine Management and Science.

Fossehill Farm is an ideal location for equine research. It has a bespoke research barn which can be configured as separate loose boxes or as a communal American Barn facility. This enables efficient comparisons to be drawn between various management systems whilst controlling for environmental variation.

There is a horse walker for standardised exercise regimens often utilised in feeding trails. For medium to maximal exercise testing a 1km long bark chipping track is usable in all weather conditions.

The most recent addition is a 60 x 30 M outdoor arena featuring a Martin Collins Ecotrack. This facility is well set up for gait analysis due to the recent purchase of a high speed camera and Quintic video analysis suite. Moreover, the outdoor arena is the perfect setting for behavioural experiments featuring the ‘Tolmans Maze’ for example. Due to the high fencing and flat surrounding terrain distal cues can be minimised.

There are also laboratories on campus for DNA, dissections and analytical work.A research impact case study on Horse Nutrition is attached.

Research Lead: Professor Meriel Moore-Colyer, Director of Research Knowledge & Exchange, meriel.moore-colyer@rau.ac.uk

Ravensbourne University London

Visit the Ravensbourne University London website

Ravensbourne’s practice-based research also supports investigation into the industrial and cultural contexts, and impacts and value of emerging technologies. We are particularly interested in the aesthetics and uses of technologies which have relevance to the Creative Industries. We are committed to improving the affordances of emerging technologies, and particularly foreground knowledge exchange between industry and the Academy.

Researchers at Ravensbourne are likely to draw from ethnography, creative methods, action research, textual analysis, and production and audience studies. We are as likely to work with large organisations (Barclays, Marks and Spencer, the Royal Shakespeare Company, the BBC) as with Small to Medium-sized Enterprises who may be more associated with newer economic structures and production ecologies. We are also involved in policy-making and standard-setting.

Our researchers specialize in media production and technology (including stereoscopic 3-D and Broadcast Engineering), emerging design practices such as 3D printing, wearable futures, and learning and teaching (use of mobile platforms). We are particularly interested in exploring the blending of design with technology, and in inter-disciplinary working.

We are becoming known for our international conferences which draw researchers and industry together to explore emerging fields. We have hosted large events in Wearable Futures, Transmedia, and we host Mozilla’s annual ‘MozFest’. Our annual conference in 3-D film and television was the first large-scale event in the UK to foreground stereoscopy. The conference is now jointly hosted with the i3DS Society at the British Film Institute.

For further information:

https://www.ravensbourne.ac.uk/

Plymouth College of Art

Visit the Plymouth College of Art website

Plymouth College of Art’s (PCA) philosophy for research is grounded in the institution’s distinctive mission and purpose as a specialist provider of education in art, craft, design and media. It reflects PCA’s beliefs in the value of creative practice and the centrality of the principle of thinking through making. It also reflects a commitment to promote innovation, intellectual curiosity, entrepreneurship and creativity, adding value to the cultural, social and economic life of Plymouth and the South West region, and contributing positively to broader national and international cultural and economic agendas.

PCA strongly encourage and support links between research and pedagogy and between research and professional practice, and thinking through making radiates through all communities of practice – fine artists, makers, designers and creative media producers. It denotes the fundamental importance of the practitioner’s relationship to, and understanding of, materials, media, tools and processes, be it (for example) film-making, glass-blowing, curatorial research, or performance art.

PCA maintain a strong focus on professional studio and workshop regimes of knowledge and action, underpinned with an entrepreneurial/critical-curatorial approach to contexts of practice that are increasingly structured around portfolio career/SME settings.

There are strong historical threads embedded in this stance that can be traced back to the institution’s roots as the Plymouth Drawing School, established in 1856 as part of the then nation-wide wave of art, design and industry teaching institutions set-up in the wake of the 1851 Great Exhibition. However, contemporary investment in thinking through making emphatically does not signify a simplistic concentration solely on embodied technical skill.

PCA views creative making as essentially a research site, or laboratory, for the deep exploration of determinate ideas and feelings – a project that is radically open to the future and which embraces an ‘expanded’ field of creative practices.

Research Lead: Malcolm Ferris

Norwich University of the Arts

Visit the Norwich University of the Arts website

The ethos of a specialist academic culture underpins Norwich University of the Art‘s strategy for research, which focuses on generating new forms of creative practice informed by critical and cultural perspectives. NUA works with Universities, museums, galleries, and creative and cultural industries throughout the world, seeking to explore new ways in which art, design and media practice, interpretation and curation contribute to contemporary culture, society and public well-being.

Research produced by NUA staff, students and collaborators interrogates the contexts in which art, design and media are produced, understood, used, exchanged and sustained, setting out to challenge conventions, provide new insights and develop original applications. Their outcomes provide audiences with access to creative disciplines, innovative practices and cultural heritage. In developing the University’s research, staff and students have been publicly recognised for their work in the UK, Europe, the US, South America, North Africa, the Middle East, Australia and Asia.

NUA’s portfolio of activities comprises the following Research Themes:

Cultural and Political Narratives
NUA research into cultural and political narratives questions the interpretation and representation of contested creative and material practices, focusing on the cultural and political networks in which art, design and media are produced, valued and consumed. Through contemporary and historical approaches engaging both practice and criticism, work developed in this area pioneers understandings of the complex circumstances underlying creative and cultural practices and forms of communication. From curating major exhibitions for international museums, to developing new forms of literary criticism and representation and preparing major scholarly contributions, research in this area has engaged diverse audiences in Europe, Australia, the Middle East and US.

Digital and Physical Interactions
NUA research into digital and physical interactions investigates attitudes and approaches to the understanding of complex phenomena underpinning human cognition, behavior and experience. Through cross-disciplinary research engaging expertise in the physical sciences, work developed in this area expands knowledge and awareness of human processes such as vision, memory, navigation and reproduction. From producing city-wide navigable digital interventions, to investigating eye movement and reading, and creating audio-visual installations to explore attitudes towards birth, memory and medical imaging, research in this area has been installed, exhibited, performed and distributed through galleries, clinical research centres and public events in the UK, Europe, Asia, Australia, North and South America.

Objects and Environments
NUA’s emerging research into objects and environments examines and develops insights into ways in which objects and environments are imagined, constructed and sustained. Through creative and theoretical practice, work developed in this area advances knowledge of human and cultural activities in areas such as design, architecture, pedagogy, museum and project learning, and textiles. Staff – in particular early career staff – and student research projects have been constructed in unique contexts, embedded in cultural organisations: from examining environmental frameworks for museum learning and live projects, to exploring cultural and historical attitudes to design.

Research Lead: Director of Research: Professor Alison Goodrum, a.goodrum@nua.ac.uk

Professor Alison L Goodrum was appointed as Director of Research at Norwich University of the Arts in May 2017. Previously, she has held academic posts at the University of Auckland, Nottingham Trent University and Manchester Metropolitan University. Alison’s research interests traverse the disciplines of fashion theory, dress history and cultural geography and her PhD (awarded 2001) considered the ‘Britishness’ of British fashion. Alison specialises in the management of postgraduate research, the practice-based PhD and the mentoring of early-career researchers. She sits on the editorial boards of a number of scholarly journals and regularly contributes to international conferences, academic publications and popular media. Alison’s academic blog is available at: https://stylestakesproject.wordpress.com

Newman University

Visit the Newman University website

Newman University is developing a strong research culture and offers opportunities for research at postgraduate level. We offer a range of intellectually challenging taught postgraduate courses leading to the award of MRes, MA or MSc. Our research students study towards the award of EdD, MPhil or PhD, full or part-time, in a supportive research environment tailored to their needs.

The growing research culture at Newman University was recognised through the Research Excellence Framework Exercise (REF) 2014. The REF results indicated that all research outputs from the University were of national or international standards in terms of originality, significance and rigour, with some outputs being classified as world-leading. These results indicated that research groups and individuals across our six submitted Units (Education, Sport, Theology, English, History and Psychology) are engaged in research at the highest levels.

Newman’s postgraduate research students work towards EdD, MPhil or PhD degrees that are awarded by the Liverpool Hope University. Our members of staff have the expertise to provide supervision towards doctorate level qualifications (PhD and EdD) in a number of subject areas. Normally, the research proposal is negotiated by the candidate with a member of the research supervisory team. Research students receive a level of support not commonly available in larger and less community-based institutions.

We would be pleased to welcome postgraduate applications in the following subject areas:

About Newman University

Located at Bartley Green, south of the Birmingham City Centre, Newman University was awarded University Title in February 2013.

Newman has a long and proud tradition of providing high quality, formative education in a values-driven environment

We are an institution with a distinctive name and by nature, something of which we are also very proud. Based on our motto ‘ex umbris in veritatem’ (‘out of the shadows into truth’), and as an essential part of our mission of service, which is rooted in a sense of vocation for our staff and students, Newman is not just about education and the creation of knowledge, but also about the provision of solutions.

Research Lead: Professor Peter Childs

Peter has oversight for research development for both staff and research students. A Professor since 2003, Peter is also currently Director of CREST and has been a member of regional and national research bodies including the HERDA Research Special Interest Group, the Association of Research Managers and Administrators (ARMA) and the Association of University Research and Industry Links (AURIL). He was awarded a National Teaching Fellowship by the Higher Education Academy in 2004 and was elected a Fellow of the English Association in 2005.

In terms of his personal research, Peter has edited or written over twenty books on diverse subjects ranging from contemporary British culture to post-colonial theory. Peter’s early published works includePost-Colonial Theory and English Literature, Paul Scott’s Raj Quartet, The Twentieth Century in Poetry, and Modernism: the New Critical Idiom. More recent publications include Contemporary Novelists: British Fiction Since 1970 for Palgrave Macmillan, Texts: Contemporary Cultural Texts and Critical Approachesfor Edinburgh University Press, The Routledge Dictionary of Literary Terms, and books on Modernism and the Post-Colonial and Aesthetics and Ethics in Twenty-First Century British Novels for Continuum. He is currently researching and publishing on Ian McEwan, Julian Barnes and contemporary British fiction.

Leeds Trinity University

Visit the Leeds Trinity University website

Leeds Trinity is a teaching-led, research-informed university, committed to empowering individuals and engagement with communities. Our scholarships and research learning informs our teaching and likewise, our teaching influences the research we undertake.

Leeds Trinity has a rapidly growing research reputation in a number of specific areas of expertise with commitment to an actively forward-thinking programme that innovates the links between teaching and research across the full range of courses.

The postgraduate programmes are enriched by the latest and most advanced research to deliver an exceptional student experience with the support of our knowledgeable and professional industry-led academics who bring their own research to life.

The RAE (2008) results recognised this cutting-edge and established research reputation. Our History research area was judged world-leading and English, Theology and Religious Studies as internationally excellent.

The university is home to the Leeds Centre for Victorian Studies. Established in 1994, the LCVS offers full-time and part-time funded PhD Studentships in a supportive environment.

Research Lead: Professor Ray Lloyd

Professor Lloyd is responsible for the strategic development and delivery of the academic and research portfolio, the delivery of a distinctive student experience for Leeds Trinity University students and for quality enhancement and standards.

Leeds Arts University

Visit the Leeds Arts University website

Leeds Arts University has been delivering art and design education from its initial foundation as Leeds School of Art in 1846. Since the 1960s it has delivered higher education commencing with the award of Diploma in Art and Design and evolving into Degree provision during the following decades. In 2012 it transferred into the HE Sector. The University’s culture and character from inception to the present day are indelibly etched with innovation, success, determination and inclusion.

The University currently delivers postgraduate, undergraduate and further education. The University is a teaching led institution where research including practice-based research is encouraged and supported. Through research,members of staff acquire subject specific expertise, maintain currency with their subject and connect with other academics; all of which feeds into the work with students. At Leeds Arts University research ‘clusters’ run across programme areas to promote critical friendship, collaboration and innovation and support specialist practice, pedagogy and related forms of academic enquiry. In June 2017 the University was awarded the European Commission HR Excellence in Research Award.

Research Lead: Sam Broadhead

Dr. Samantha Broadhead is Head of Research at Leeds Arts University in the North of England. Her research interests include the experiences of mature students in art and design higher education; the intersections of film and textiles and the histories of modernist jewellery designers. Previously, she has lectured on post-compulsory education for the Department of Continuing Education at the University of Leeds for four years. She serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Widening Participation and Lifelong Learning; carries out review work for FACE (Forum for Access and Continuing Education) and is a member of the IAEF (Inclusive Arts Education Forum). She publishes work on widening participation in art and design education. Among other recent writings, she has published Inclusion in the art and design curriculum: Revisiting Bernstein and ‘class’ issues, in Hatton, K. (ed) 2015 Towards and Inclusive Arts Education, London, Trentham Books.

Research at Leeds Arts University

Our specialist research clusters include:

Pedagogies: Researching experience and the ideas around the pedagogy of art and design

Crossing Borders: Exploring national and international links and cross-disciplinary activity

Hartpury University

Visit the Hartpury University website

Hartpury University is one of the UK’s leading land-based and sports educational establishments. Our stunning specialist campus covers more than 360 hectares and is located near to both Gloucester and Cheltenham.

Hartpury is an Associate Faculty of the University of the West of England (UWE) and has been working in partnership with UWE since 1997. It is currently working towards ‘Taught Degree Awarding Powers’ with the aim of awarding its own degrees, potentially from September 2018.

Today it has more than 1500 students working towards foundation degrees, honours degrees and postgraduate qualifications in equine, sport and animal and land studies.

Hartpury also offers A Levels and BTEC Diplomas to more than 1600 full time students, as well as professional courses in leadership and management, teaching and training, animal care, dog grooming, equine studies, land-based studies, first aid and health and safety.

Hartpury is the world’s largest equine education establishment, hosting three international equine events, and regularly wins national titles in rugby and football as well as rowing, golf, modern pentathlon and netball.

https://www.hartpury.ac.uk

Harper Adams University

Visit the Harper Adams University website

Harper Adams University (HAU) is an institution that is closely related to the needs of the rural economy and industries reliant upon the rural economy, with a specific commitment to sustainable agriculture, re-establishing connections between food producers and consumers, knowledge transfer to support the rural economy and the international dimension of environmental and food chain sustainability.

HAU is uniquely placed to address the challenges raised following the publication of the UK Food Strategy 2030. We have a multi-disciplinary research and knowledge transfer environment where we can bring together different perspectives to encourage a broader view about solutions to the challenges ahead of us. We have an infrastructure base that is among the best in the UK in our subject base, and we are well positioned to capitalise on the UK Government’s recognition that the improved use of rural land is of critical importance in the future.

There is a healthy research environment at Harper Adams, producing some exciting ideas and advances for the land-based sector. Research at Harper Adams attracts around £3 million p.a. external funding from industry, Government and charities and there are about 70 PhD students. HAU has research competence across the entire agri-food chain, offering farm facilities, laboratories, glasshouses, and engineering workshops, and provides links to small and medium sized enterprises within the agri-food sector.

Our research centres and facilities include:

Research Lead: Professor Peter Kettlewell

Peter Kettlewell is a crop physiologist with a Bachelors degree from Newcastle University, and a Masters and Doctorate from Cambridge University. He started as a Lecturer at Harper Adams University (then Harper Adams Agricultural College) in 1980, was promoted to Professor of Crop Physiology in 2010, and at the same time was appointed Research Co-ordinator for the University. In this role Peter manages research degrees at HAU, from marketing to award, and facilitates research funding applications.

In his own research, he previously worked with a climate scientist and discovered that the large-scale winter climate phenomenon, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), influenced summer crop production in the UK through an association of the winter NAO with summer weather. This research featured widely in the media including on the front page of the Daily Telegraph and on BBC News 24. His current research is focused mainly on improving crop tolerance to drought.

Further Information

Research degrees are available on both a full-time and a part-time basis. For information on admission procedures, current research areas, and funding opportunities, please visit the Harper Adams University Research Degrees website at www.harper-adams.ac.uk/research or contact research@harper-adams.ac.uk.

Falmouth University

Visit the Falmouth University website

Falmouth University has a history of more than 100 years of creative thinking and design innovation.

Established in 1902 as Falmouth School of Art, it has grown over a century to become a digital innovation hub. Today, its portfolio of undergraduate and postgraduate courses represents the breadth of the Creative Industries, the fastest growing sector in the UK economy.

The University has recently experienced a period of rapid growth, its on-campus student population tripling in size since 2001 to nearly 5300 students today. These students study on two campuses in Falmouth and Penryn.

As well as the courses that are delivered on-campus in Cornwall, Falmouth also provides groundbreaking online distance learning and exciting collaborative partnerships with industry-leading bodies including the Academy of Contemporary Music and the Fashion Retail Academy in London.

Falmouth’s research programmes are built on the principle of open innovation – the idea that the grand challenges of our age can be addressed most effectively when tackled collaboratively across disciplinary boundaries. They focus on delivering impact for lives and economies through the development of new knowledge, solutions, services and products.

Falmouth University acts as an anchor institution in Cornwall, partnering with public and private sector organisations to support the county’s economic, skills and enterprise agendas. Its 2030 strategic plan is aligned with the Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly LEP 2030 plan and Cornwall Council’s long term strategic vision. The creative industries are key to the Cornwall economic strategy as the sector is not only currently the third largest employer in the region but also the likely source of future high growth companies and higher value jobs

Buckinghamshire New University

Visit the Buckinghamshire New University website

Research at Buckinghamshire New University (Bucks) is focused on the needs of business, commerce and industry as well as the public and voluntary sectors.

Bucks strongly encourage a collaborative approach and have a number of non-profit research centres and institutes which foster close links with industry, the public sector and charitable organisations.

Bucks has a flourishing research degree programme, with opportunities for both full-time and part-time study leading towards MPhil and PhD degrees in a wide range of subject areas.

Research is profiled in the Bucks Knowledge Archive, the online repository for Bucks’ academics’ research output.

Research Lead: Professor Jake Kaner

Bishop Grosseteste University

Visit the Bishop Grosseteste University website

Research is an integral part of academic life at Bishop Grosseteste and forms one of the defining characteristics of the university’s culture. Research stimulates innovation in learning and teaching, informs our practices and pushes back the boundaries of knowledge and changes lives.

Research is important to us at BG for its intrinsic as well as extrinsic value and our Centre for Educational Development and Research (CEDaR) supports research among staff and students across the institution.

Doctoral Study at Bishop Grosseteste

Studying for a doctoral level qualification is one of the most exciting, stimulating and challenging things you can do. BG’s innovative doctoral programmes are designed to empower you as a professional educator to conduct robust research focused on the critical analysis of evidence, pushing back the boundaries of knowledge, developing policy and professional practice, and improving the quality of education as a whole.

By undertaking doctoral level study, you will both join and contribute towards BG’s growing community of scholars and intellectual community in the heart of the cathedral and historic city of Lincoln. With degrees awarded by the University of Leicester, BG offers the opportunity to study for a full or part-time PhD or a part-time EdD. Each postgraduate route is designed to help obtain a doctoral level qualification, but each is intended to accommodate different student circumstances and preferred modes of study.

Research Lead: andrew.jackson@bishopg.ac.uk

Dr Andrew Jackson is Acting Head of Research at Bishop Grosseteste University. He is also a Historian and Geographer and the Head of the School of Humanities. Andrew’s current research interests include twentieth-century urban and rural change, and local and regional history. He also engages in consultancy and project work relating to community history and heritage, digitisation and e-learning. Andrew joined the staff of Bishop Grosseteste University in 2007, following ten years at the University of Exeter.

DR AJH JACKSON FRGS SFHEA

Bath Spa University

Visit the Bath Spa University website

Bath Spa University’s vision is to be a leading university in creativity, culture and enterprise. Through inspirational teaching and research, the University transforms students’ lives. Based in a World Heritage city and connected to a network of international partners, Bath Spa will ensure that its graduates are socially engaged global citizens. Three principles underpin the University’s vision: we are ethical, we are academically led, and we are focused on all our students acquiring the distinctive set of Bath Spa attributes.

In 2017, Bath Spa will celebrate 12 years as a university, 70 years of teacher education at Newton Park and over 160 years of teaching.

The University has been named by Which? as one of the top five creative universities in the UK, with around 7,000 students and 1,000 staff. Over 94 per cent of graduates are in work or further study within six months of graduating, and many are successful freelancers, entrepreneurs or are employed in different companies across many sectors.

For further information: https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/

Research Lead: Professor John Strachan

John is Pro-Vice Chancellor (Research & Enterprise), Dean of Graduate College and Director of Corsham Court Campus. He was previously acting Dean, School of Humanities and Cultural Industries and before that Associate Dean for Research, HCI.

John is Vice-Provost for Research and Development, Dean of Graduate College and Director of Corsham Court Campus. He was previously acting Dean, School of Humanities and Cultural Industries, and before that Associate Dean for Research, HCI.

John is Professor of English Literature. His research interests focus on British Romanticism, with a particular attention to Romantic-era popular culture, parody and satire, literary magazines and the work of Leigh Hunt, John Keats and William Wordsworth. He is fascinated by the relationship between literature and advertising, the subject of his monographs, Advertising and Satirical Culture in the Romantic Period, Cambridge University Press, 2007, and Advertising, Literature and Print Culture in Ireland, 1891-1922 (co-written with Claire Nally), Palgrave Macmillan, 2012.

Professor Strachan is an Associate Editor of the Oxford Companion to English Literature and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He previously held professorships at the universities of Northumbria and Sunderland.

New Network to link up ‘Islands of Excellence’ in Research

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Research Lead: Dr John-Paul Wilson

Research Lead: Professor Kate Adams

Research Lead: Professor Andrew Edwards, University Director of Research

Research Lead: Claire Tapia, Head of Research Services, claire.tapia@stmarys.ac.uk

Research Lead: Catherine Lee

Research Lead: Professor Maria Delgado, maria.delgado@cssd.ac.uk

Research Lead: Professor Meriel Moore-Colyer, Director of Research Knowledge & Exchange, meriel.moore-colyer@rau.ac.uk

Research Lead: Malcolm Ferris

Research Lead: Director of Research: Professor Alison Goodrum, a.goodrum@nua.ac.uk

Research Lead: Professor Peter Childs

Research Lead: Professor Ray Lloyd

Research Lead: Sam Broadhead

Research Lead: Professor Peter Kettlewell

Research Lead: Professor Jake Kaner

Research Lead: andrew.jackson@bishopg.ac.uk

Research Lead: Professor John Strachan