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Institutional Context
Summary
The mission of the University of Cambridge is to contribute to society through the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence. The University comprises 31 autonomous Colleges and 150 Departments, Faculties and institutions. It is a global university: its 19,000 students include 3,700 international students from 120 countries. Cambridge researchers collaborate with colleagues worldwide, the University has established partnerships in Asia, Africa, the Americas and Europe.
The University sits at the heart of one of the world’s largest technology clusters, hosting more than 5,000 knowledge-intensive firms based and generating more than £15.5 billion turnover. Cambridge promotes and actively engages at the interface between academia and business, and has a global reputation for innovation.
Institutional context
Knowledge Exchange (KE) enables the University’s world-leading research and teaching to translate into meaningful societal change at scale. It does so by supporting the creation of new ventures derived from Cambridge IP and through collaboration with academic partners, companies, national and local governments, policymakers, NHS trusts and hospitals, NGOs, charities and with the local community.
The University is at the heart of Europe’s most successful innovation ecosystem. University research, skills and innovations support the development of new technologies, businesses and social enterprises in the Cambridge Cluster, home to more than 5,100 knowledge-intensive companies, generating more than £15.5 billion turnover and providing 70,000 jobs. The Cluster has created 18 unicorns ($1 billion businesses), including ARM, Aveva, CAT and Solexa. The University has invested over £25m in spin-outs which between them have raised a further $1.8 billion in follow-on funding since 1995.
Our technology transfer company Cambridge Enterprise sits at the heart of around 40 initiatives and activities designed to support innovation and commercialisation. These provide a comprehensive ecosystem, complemented by a network of around 60 KE professionals providing support and mentoring to champion ideas and ensure they translate into positive societal benefit.
The University’s role in local, national and global partnerships enables it to make significant contributions to the global innovation agenda and to provide policymakers with the insights and evidence they need to formulate effective policy. With Research England support we have launched the Policy Evidence Unit for University Commercialisation and Innovation. The University coordinates 10U, bringing together leading technology transfer organisations from the US and the UK. Through executive education and professional development programmes, provided by institutions such as Cambridge Judge Business School, Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) and the Institute for Manufacturing, the University supports the development of knowledge and skills in organisations around the world.
Cambridge Zero, the Whittle Lab, CISL, and the Centre for Science and Policy are some of the institutes and initiatives bringing to bear blue-sky, inter-disciplinary thinking and cutting-edge technologies on the global climate emergency and to shape the political, policy and business response to it.
Cambridge’s well-established network enabled the University to respond promptly and effectively to the challenge presented by Covid-19. Among the many contributions made by the University was the rapid creation, in partnership with AstraZeneca and GSK, of a Covid testing centre, a method for managing the flow of patients through Addenbrooke’s hospital, a low-cost easy-to-manufacture ventilator for use in low and middle-income countries, and a logistics hub to deliver PPE to the NHS frontline.
Large-scale public and community engagement (Cambridge Festivals, Open Cambridge, University of Cambridge Museums and Botanic Garden), and collaborations with schools (such as Millennium Maths Project, Isaac Physics) play a vital role in connecting researchers and ideas with the community.
The University’s future KE priorities are to further strengthen its support for technology transfer, the Cambridge innovation ecosystem and its collaborative research and engagement activities. It continues to explore the most effective ways of demonstrating the economic and societal impact of its activities.
For further information, please send queries to Louise.Atkins@admin.cam.ac.uk
Local Growth and Regeneration
Summary of approach
The University of Cambridge has two strategic objectives for local growth and regeneration. We aim:
to continue acting as the driver of economic growth in Cambridgeshire, including through representation on the Combined Authority Business Board, and
to work constructively and openly with local partners (private and public) to help make said growth more sustainable, more inclusive and provided for in terms of public infrastructure
It is important to note that many of our local engagements occur at a Collegiate, Faculty and Departmental level, all of which act with different degrees of autonomy from the central University. This unique institutional structure enables greater public reach when compared to the other models within the sector.
Aspect 1: Strategy
The University of Cambridge is a global institution with historic roots running deep across its city-region. While our horizons span continents, it is critically important that we continue to engage with our local communities, to work with their neighbourhoods and natural capital for research and innovation, and to mitigate the challenges they face. This is the central pillar of our approach for regional engagement, allowing us to integrate blue-skies and curiosity-driven research into local outreach.
As outlined in our East of England Research Horizons publication in March 2019, our regional engagement is both a constructive contribution to local life as well as a vehicle to explore some of the most salient international issues of our time – whether in relation to climate change, planning, social policy or education.
Strategic role
The University of Cambridge approaches local growth in three main ways:
Undertaking academic-driven research with local communities, nearby commercial partners and public bodies
Working collaboratively with local authorities to shape and deliver public sector, public and commercial infrastructure improvements
Organising educational and other outreach programmes, many of which are research driven, to help bridge local and regional inequalities
Geography
Our geography is shaped by several factors, some institutional, others economic and political.
Institutionally, the University of Cambridge employs c13,000 staff, drawn from different towns and counties. Our provision of hard infrastructure (in terms of labs, office space and commercial facilities) and soft infrastructure (in terms of academic networks and financial support) underpins the success of the Cambridge Cluster which employs a collective 70,000 people. It is critical for the University to broaden the travel choices and experiences of these local employees.
Economically, the University works closely with the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority and its Business Board (our region’s LEP). Our work in this and other local forums have identified sub-economic regions of Cambridgeshire and East Anglia that require specific interventions, at both a research and institutional level.
Politically, the University is a statutory partner on the Greater Cambridge Partnership and works closely with its local authorities, providing advice and research expertise where required. The University is also involved in several other regional consortia, including:
The Ox-Cam Arc Universities Group (AUG)
The London Stansted Cambridge Corridor (LSCC)
Understanding need
The University of Cambridge was a key contributor to the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Independent Economic Review (CPIER), with several members of the University acting as Commissioners. This review underpinned the subsequent Local Industrial Strategy, to which we also made important contributions.
The CPIER outlined three sub-regional economies across the Cambridgeshire region, which are reflected in our locational priorities for knowledge exchange. These sub-economies were:
Greater Cambridge – whose activities focus on life sciences and IT.
Greater Peterborough – whose activities focus on manufacturing and distribution.
Fens – whose activities focus on natural capital and Agri-Tech.
The University operates various impact-orientated knowledge and research exchange bodies in all these areas, many of which will be referenced in Aspect 2, including:
Aspect 2: Activity
Our response to Aspect 1 identified three ways we contribute to our geography. Below describes some of the examples of delivery for each area:
Academic-driven research with local communities and partners
Infrastructure: Improving planning models
As Cambridge expands, pressure is placed on local planning authorities to deliver strategic, sustainable investments. To frame a long-term model for local growth, academics in our Department for Architecture and Centre for Business Research developed a model to forecast fluctuations in local transport, housing, employment and land value – enabling local planners to take choices informed by cutting-edge research. The model produced many of projections in the 2018 Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Independent Economic Review and recommendations of the Local Industrial Strategy.
Agriculture: Raising productivity
The University of Cambridge is an active member of Agri-Tech East, working with local businesses, including the National Institute for Agricultural Botany (NIAB) with whom we’re establishing a new centre at the University. Through this work, university organisations such as the Cambridge University Potato Growers Research Association and the Cambridge Global Food Security Inter-disciplinary Research Centre, are able to directly engage farmers across our region, upscaling productivity in our rural communities. Other examples of our work in the Fens sub-economy can be found here.
In 2019 we opened a new Centre for Doctoral Training in Agri-Food Robotics, in partnership with the Universities of Lincoln and East Anglia.
Life Sciences: Supporting the NHS
Cambridge is best known for its Life Sciences Cluster, one of the largest in the world. To support the NHS, University researchers have engaged with communities across Eastern England:
Cambridge academics in the Cognitive Function and Ageing Studies Project have conducted an inter-generational study of hundreds of NHS patients in Ely to monitor the causes and impacts of cognitive decline in ageing. This is a critical public sector growth need as Cambridgeshire has one of the UK’s fastest-growing ageing populations.
Similar studies are taking place in Norfolk (with 30,000 residents enrolled in the EPIC programme) and the Fens (with 12,000 residents taking part in the Fenland Study) to ascertain the impact of local lifestyles and public policy on Cancer and Diabetes.
For other examples of local Life Sciences contributions, including collaboration with 30 local GP federations, please visit our regional research page here.
Facilitating entrepreneurialism: West Cambridge
The University drives economic growth across our region. At the new West Cambridge site, the University is constructing the city’s first Innovation District, bringing together academic departments, big business, spin out/scale up space and public facilities. The site will facilitate a further 11,000 employees over the next decade and is already home to some of Cambridge’s principle economic organs:
This complements the University’s development of the Cambridge Biomedical Campus (CBC), now the largest biomedical research site in Europe with 30,000 employees forecast by the 2030s.
These two sites epitomise the University’s ‘enabling approach’ that allows innovation to flourish and knowledge to permeate from academia to industry. We provide Hard Infrastructure to physically house multi-disciplinary and early stage innovation teams, Soft Infrastructure in the form of cultural and professional networks, Financial Support to help translate research effectively and Recruitment Pools through our unique talent across the University. This helps underpin education, training and opportunity for emerging entrepreneurs.
Delivering public improvements: Eddington
To address Cambridge’s housing shortage, the University embarked on its largest ever capital project by building a new sustainable residential and research community. This includes provision for 3,000 homes (half of which are subsidised for key workers). The neighbourhood is also home to several public facilitates, including: the country’s first research-informed and generating University Primary School, a retail centre, sports facilities, green spaces and 100,000 sq. metres of research space.
Supporting investment: Cambridge&
To deliver the Local Industrial Strategy, the University has created Cambridge’s first Inward Investment Agency. With support from local businesses, civic institutions like the Greater Cambridge Partnership and the academic community, Cambridge& will offer a single front door to the city to help manage Foreign Direct Investment to the region.
Widening Participation: Insight Peterborough
The University’s principle asset is its people and so we have integrated many of our PhD & Post-Doctoral students into outreach programmes across the region, to help combat regional inequality and increase student aspiration in struggling schools. Our Insight Explore programme in Peterborough and West Norfolk, for example, connects University post-docs with almost 200 pupils across 10 of Peterborough’s state schools, promoting aspiration and unlocking academic opportunity for local communities.
We also work closely with local partners to address social mobility, including through the East Anglian Uni Connect Programme, a partnership of 5 regional HEIs and 8 regional FECs (led by Cambridge). Since launching in 2017 it has worked with over 100 schools and colleges, delivering 12,000 activities to over 50,000 East Anglian students. Through its interventions it has helped to increase the proportion of disadvantaged students progressing to Higher Education across the region from 27.8% to 39.9%.
Aspect 3: Results
Impact
Local economy
The University continues to drive local economic growth in Cambridge, which remained the highest of any English city in 2019. For example, employment growth and investment expansion at CBC has transformed the site into Europe's largest Life Sciences cluster.
Indeed, over the last 5 years Cambridge Innovation Capital (see above) has invested over £170m into 31 Cambridge start-ups, pushing University and partner investments in these firms to over £1bn.
The impact of this activity can be seen in the 2020 Budget where various commitments were provided to Cambridge, including a new rail station at CBC within a decade.
Public Services (Sector focus: Housing)
The University’s delivery of housing at Eddington has significantly added to the provision of homes in Cambridge. Indeed, the 2020 Centre for Cities report found that Cambridge had become the UK’s number one city for housing stock growth with an increase of 2.2% on 2017. Based on the latest information from the Local Planning Authority we estimate that Eddington accounts for one third of affordable housing growth in the City between 2013 and 2019.
Private Partnerships (Sector focus: Agri-Tech and Life Sciences)
In part a result of our burgeoning local partnerships, the University is currently constructing its first Crop Sciences Centre which will introduce a new Multidisciplinary Research Programme to Cambridge, focusing on partnerships with industry.
Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is responsible for ensuring that research on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus integrates NHS patients. At any given time, the Trust hosts over 1,000 R&D projects, maximising patient proximity to the latest biomedical breakthroughs. This was recognised by government in their 2019 commitment to jointly fund a new East of England Children’s Hospital on-site.
Additional University proposals to provide the NHS with the East of England’s only High-Consequence Infectious Disease unit are currently underway, subject to public funding.
Communications
We communicate our impact in three main ways:
For tracking our economic impact and that of the knowledge-intensive cluster, we publish biannual Innovation in Numbers updates. This has buy-in from local partners and has helped to streamline external messaging from city stakeholders.
For tracking the performance of the city as a whole, academic teams at the University have joined forces with Cambridge Ahead to track sector and sub-sector growth data. The findings are regularly updated on the Cambridge Cluster Map.
For communicating our regional research outputs and infrastructure investments, the University has created a bespoke regional website, together with a list of key internal stakeholders. This is an excellent source of information for further impact-orientated outreach and contains the East of England Research Horizons referenced in Aspect One.
For further information, please send queries to aaron.cohen-gold@admin.cam.ac.uk
Public & Community Engagement
Summary of approach
Public engagement (PE) is central to the mission of the University of Cambridge and creates bridges between the academic community and the public, locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.
The focus of the central PE team is to provide and support an environment which enables high-quality public engagement with research to flourish.
We provide an extensive training portfolio to build skills and confidence, funding schemes to facilitate projects and opportunities, and platforms for researchers to engage with members of the public to develop their PE practice. We provide bespoke advice and support to enable researchers to lead their own PE projects, believing that this engaged research practice best enriches research and enhances the University’s impact on, and contribution to, society.
Aspect 1: Strategy
Our vision for public engagement
The mission of the University of Cambridge is to contribute to society through the pursuit of education, learning and research.
Public engagement in its broadest sense fulfils the University’s mission by creating bridges between the academic community and the public, locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. The University defines public engagement as the many ways in which we share expertise, knowledge gained, resources and collections to both inform and inspire those we interact with while soliciting public input and participation in our work. The University of Cambridge as an institution values public engagement as an important aspect of academic endeavour.
Consultation within the University and with PE leads at other Universities, Wellcome Trust, Royal Institution, Cambridge City Council and Further Education providers informed our 2017 Review of Public Engagement. This recognised real progress is reliant on involvement of Schools and Faculties rather than a top-down approach. We therefore developed an overarching vision for PE and guiding principles and support Schools and Faculties to develop their own strategy.
Our guiding principles
We are accountable to the University, to our academic and professional colleagues, and to our communities.
We recognise, reward and celebrate excellence in PE.
We support researchers and professional staff to engage effectively.
We develop, strengthen and maintain collaborative relationships with our communities.
We share expertise, resources and collections with our communities.
Supporting principle 1
The core-funded central PE team sits within the Office of External Affairs and Communications and is recognised as the central source of advice and support. One member sits jointly with Research Strategy providing advice to Impact and REF Teams, another has responsibility for community engagement, building relationships with community leaders and local organisations. Grants and sponsorship support creative projects, festival commissions and collaborative work with partners. Festivals, museums and faculty events are open to all. Online and traditional media promote these opportunities widely.
We align our work with funders and NCCPE. We facilitate collaboration internally and externally and provide centrally organised activities for researchers and the public to engage. We support Schools to deliver on their public and community engagement priorities. We are pro-active and inclusive in our approach to equality and diversity to ensure our activity and actions support a culture that encourages all groups to engage. We believe that PE enriches research and enhances the University’s impact on Society.
The Public Engagement Advisory Group provides high-level guidance to embed a culture supportive of PE aligned to the impact agenda. Chaired by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research, membership comprises senior academics and post-doctoral representatives from each School, Heads of Public Engagement, Impact Acceleration and University of Cambridge Museums. Members act as liaisons between their School/Institution and central University. The group meets termly, reporting annually to the University Research Policy Committee.
Aspect 2: Support
Supporting principles 1, 2, 3.
PE Advisory Group members champion PE at senior University Committee level. Members provided evidence to the recent academic career consultation and, as a result, PE is now part of the Academic Career Pathways Scheme.
Our work is informed by the PE Advisory Group, researchers, professional services staff and Patrons Groups. Patrons Group membership includes academics, journalists, teachers, professional communicators and voluntary and professional organisation members. Public panels direct our medical research. Festivals are evaluated by the public, researchers and external evaluators. Museums conduct extensive evaluation including focus group work to identify barriers for engagement.
Vice-Chancellor’s Awards for research impact and engagement demonstrate how knowledge generated at Cambridge has a major impact on society globally. In partnership with the Research Office, awards include early career and established researchers, professional services staff and external collaborations. Many form REF Impact Case Studies. 2020 included an award for online engagement in response to Covid-19.
Engaged Researcher training is delivered by the PE team, colleagues and professional trainers. Courses are evaluated by participants, trainers and external evaluators to improve and develop the programme.
Training includes introductory courses and masterclasses. This flexibility ensures training is relevant and increases number and diversity of researchers active in PE. One-to-one advice sessions are offered for senior researchers and those developing activities and including PE in grant and fellowship applications. Creative Encounters link researchers with creatives to produce innovative films. Rising Stars provides an intensive training for Festival participation.
Covid-19 moved training digitally, covering PE online, storytelling, film, illustration, animation, games, policy engagement, engaging on animal research and with families. The format worked successfully allowing participants to receive mentoring and develop skills and outputs. We brought forward our Curious People video project where researchers answer questions from the public, proving another opportunity to develop online engagement skills.
Our PE Network meets minimum termly. Members propose themes, lead discussions and share best practice. Our annual PE Conference is a space for learning and skills sharing. We invite PE leaders internally and externally to contribute. Our PE Bulletin highlights activity, funding and training and shares successes and resources.
Our PE Starter Fund supports novel projects based on contemporary research. We fund, mentor and train successful researchers to engage with specific audiences, develop a community partnership or create Festival activities.
Aspect 3: Activity
Supporting principles 2, 3, 4, 5.
We support excellence in research-led PE working with researchers to design impact driven, relevant, collaborative and consultative PE that informs research. Our audiences are global, projects are international, with evaluation integral to success. Most impactful projects are recognised through the Vice-Chancellor’s Awards. 2019 winning projects included:
Development of a global low-cost mobile air pollution sensor network driven by citizen science, empowering citizens in the UK, Argentina, Kenya and Brazil and informing policy.
Engaging >18,000 police officers to change the face of trauma resilience in UK policing, informing national policy and operational change.
Textile maps created in collaboration with a local artist and community, enabling hundreds of young and partially sighted people to enjoy a touch tour of polar research.
We support and deliver large-scale public and community engagement activity, including activity to diversify our engagements. Through internal and external partnerships, we discuss research with our communities, local and international. Examples include:
2018/2019 University of Cambridge Museums welcomed over one million visitors including ~135,000 educational visits. Museums undertake an extensive event programme working collaboratively with underserved and diverse audiences within and external to the museums.
Open Cambridge events are co-created with Colleges, City and County Council, community groups, institutions and religious leaders.
FunLab at Cambridge City Council Big Weekend allows us to share research with local audiences who, evaluation shows, don’t generally attend festivals or museums.
In 2019 our Cambridge Festivals resulted in ~100,000 interactions between the public and >1,500 researchers. Two-thirds of contributors were from the University and a third from industry, research institutions, policy and voluntary organisations, schools, charities and creatives. We work with Widening Participation to support young people from care and disadvantaged backgrounds to attend. We develop activities for specific audiences in collaboration with charities and patient groups. Because place is important, use University and City venues and take events to communities to reach new and unengaged audiences. Each year ~45-50% of visitors attend for the first time.
We cancelled the 2020 Science Festival after four days due to Covid-19. We are now developing our interdisciplinary digital Cambridge Festival, considering format, device and platform to ensure activity is accessible for our audience. We are mindful of the digital divide and include physical resource packs in planning. We contributed to Cambridge City Council physical summer activity sheets, 1000 of which were distributed through Food Hubs. Evaluation will inform the development of Festival resources.
We are committed to disseminating knowledge. Through open access and Cambridge Digital Library we share research and collections to support research, innovation and public use.
Aspect 4: Results and learning
Supporting principles 2, 3, 4, 5.
Evaluation shows researcher confidence is extremely important in fostering a successful culture of engagement, as are platforms to develop skills and recognition for innovative engagement.
39 PE training sessions ran in 2019/2020. Attendees reported an increase in confidence and competence.
Festivals provide opportunities to develop and improve PE skills, 92% of Faculties regularly take part, including many doctoral training programmes.
92% of researchers report Festival participation is valuable, improving skills and sparking ideas for research.
“It has helped me think about the overarching implications of what we do and helped me realise how much misinformation is transmitted through the media.” Researcher, 2018
Starter grants fund new projects. In 2019/2020, 37 applications were received. Grants are awarded to projects aligning with our guiding principles for PE.
Festivals have been an important part of Cambridge for 26 years.
Evaluated by visitors, contributors and external evaluators against aims and expected outcomes to inform future planning.
External impact-focused evaluation shows audiences value the opportunity to talk directly to researchers. This inspirational nature informs our approach, focusing on research from the University and partners. In 2019 ~80% speakers were Cambridge-based.
Diversity is embedded into our programming. In 2019, 45% of speakers were women, 13% from BAME communities.
KPIs based on number of events, new attendees, reach and satisfaction are met each year. In 2019, 98% of respondents said the Festival was good or very good.
Cambridge Science Festival won the 2019 Cambridge Independent STEM Initiative of the year.
“I have been attending the science festival since I was young, and it has catalysed my love of science (I’m going to study a degree in physics this year). Encouraging young people to explore science is very important for society, as a more scientifically thinking population is able to make better decisions for themselves and wider society, so will make the world a better place. I am very grateful for the Festival and want the organisers to know that it really does make a difference to the community.” Festival attendee 2019
Innovative research-led engagement is recognised through Vice Chancellor’s Awards.
Supported and hosted by the Vice Chancellor and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research).
67 applications received in 2019/2020, up each year, applications from all levels including senior academics and external collaborations.
Awards given to projects that align to our guiding principles around targeted audience-focused consultative engagement that show high societal and/or economic impact across the globe.
Aspect 5: Acting on results
We undertake NCCPE EDGE analysis of our work and, given the extremely devolved nature of the University, have made substantial progress in many areas, particularly around embedding an internal culture supportive of PE. Our training has been recognised and we are now a specialist training provider for researcher development. We report on our activity to the Vice Chancellor, PE Advisory Group, Patrons, Schools, funders, European Union, UKRI, Arts Council, Office of Students and to the public.
We are regularly asked to provide information and advice to senior members of the University. We undertake surveys of professional services staff through our PE network to inform our planning and ensure activity supports the PE priorities of researchers they represent.
The Public category is our current focus. Building on our vision and guiding principles, and informed by evaluation, the largest change to our activity is our new Cambridge Festival, approved by Senior Leaders at the Research Policy Committee in January. Our new festival will be a space where we highlight the interdisciplinary approach to research for which Cambridge is renowned but also to challenge and explore different formats and diversify our engagements.
Although presently on hold due to Covid-19, the extra capacity this change brings will allow us to map community activity across the University as a benchmark and then work with community leaders and local organisations to develop our co-created community and schools engagement activity further.
Our first Cambridge Festival will be digital. We are in the process of consulting with our Patrons Group on aims and what success might look like post Covid-19. We will adapt these based on feedback particularly as we move to a mixed live plus digital engagement model. We hope that an outcome focused approach, based on significance, will play an important way our engagement is valued in the future.
For further information, please send queries to lucinda.spokes@admin.cam.ac.uk