REF Consultation and Public Engagement

Overview

HEFCE ran a consultation on the replacement for the RAE – the Research Assessment Exercise.  This is the process whereby around £10 billion is allocated to universities and research institutes, through a periodic assessment of the excellence of their research activity. The consultation on the Research Excellence Framework (REF) ran until the 16th December 2009.

The REF proposals present important opportunities to encourage public engagement in universities and research institutes, in particular through their focus on the measurement of the ‘impact’ of research. The proposals generated debate in the sector, particularly around the proposed approach to the assessment of impact.  

At the NCCPE, we recognize that the proposals could significantly enhance the status and resourcing of public engagement in higher education.  But there are risks, in particular the focus on demonstrating impact could generate cynicism and mis-trust of engagement, and encourage ‘box ticking’ or superficial approaches to engagement which in the long-term undermine quality.

NCCPE Response

We worked in partnership with the Beacons for Public Engagement and university staff across the UK to inform our response to the REF, and to support others in developing their responses. We also ran a workshop specifically looking at how the proposals related to public engagement. The outputs from this work are available below.