We are delighted to announce that The University of Nottingham has won the International Strategy of the Year category at the 2017 Times Higher Education Leadership & Management Awards (THELMAs).

The THELMAs, now in their ninth year, recognise outstanding work across the professional services and administration of the UK’s world-leading higher education institutions — showcasing and celebrating the best examples of innovation, teamwork and enterprise in the sector.

The University of Nottingham was nominated for the International Strategy of the Year THELMA award on the strength of our Creative Hub, which brings together science, technology and the arts to respond to changes in government policy in China and the UK.

The Hub links government, universities and businesses in China and the UK to ensure that cutting-edge ideas can be applied to new products and services and subsequently reach the market. At the heart of the Hub is the UNNC Incubator, a ground-breaking multi-use venue for student and staff entrepreneurs seeking to transform ideas into viable products and scalable companies.

Our THELMA win was officially announced yesterday at a ceremony at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London, with the judges commending how the University of Nottingham has “built on a long-standing, effective China strategy to bring in new innovative partnerships with creative industries, businesses, museums and national institutions.”

Paul Greatrix, Registrar at the University of Nottingham, commented: “Our international strategy is at the heart of what we do as a University. We are proud to be a global University, working to encourage the innovation and enterprise of our staff and students throughout all of our international campuses. This award recognises the creative vision and exceptional work of the team in our Creative Hub and beyond.”

The prestigious award is the latest in a series of accolades that have been presented to the University of Nottingham during June 2017 for its work across the higher education sector.

These include:

CASE Circle of Excellence Awards 2017

Earlier in June 2017, The University of Nottingham was recognised with a host of awards in the latest Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) Circle of Excellence Awards.

These awards recognise best practices in advancement and outstanding people who contribute to the growth and understanding of the advancement profession. The University received the following four awards:

• Special Events: Single Day – Grand Gold
• Interdisciplinary Advancement Projects – Gold
• Collaborative Program – Silver
• Advocacy Campaigns – Bronze

The awards relate to Nottingham in Parliament Day: an initiative held in October 2016, where the University of Nottingham led more than 100 partners from across the city, county and wider region to ‘take over’ the Houses of Parliament. The event saw more than 2,500 guests gather at 45 events across Parliament, celebrating the ideas, businesses and people that make Nottingham great.

Speaking at the event on Tuesday 25 October 2017, the speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow MP, commented: “Nottingham has shown itself to be a leader, and where you have led, others may now follow”.

You can read more about the Nottingham in Parliament Day in our previous blog post.

The Impact Awards 2017

The University of Nottingham has received the Project of the Year award for our Art-Business initiative at this year’s Impact Awards for Knowledge Exchange and Commercialisation (KEC) Professionals.

The Impact Awards recognise and celebrate the vital role KEC professionals play in maximising impact from research.

Gemma Morgan-Jones, Knowledge Exchange Officer at the University of Nottingham, said: “We are delighted that our Arts-Business initiative has won the KEC Project of The Year 2017. This project highlights the breadth and diversity of world-class research undertaken in the University of Nottingham’s Faculty of Arts and how, with support from our KEC team, this research is helping businesses to innovate.”

The judges commented: “This project clearly demonstrated the effort of the KEC team in bringing people together that will not have otherwise engage. The team made a real difference to both the academics from the university and the business community.”

Highlighting all of these recent successes, Paul Greatrix commended staff and students across the University for the wide-ranging efforts that helped to achieve the accolades. He said: “To win this variety of awards in such a short period of time is a testament to the dedication, talent and hard work displayed by staff right across the University of Nottingham, and further highlights the strength of the work, study and research that takes place here every day. We can all be extremely proud of our achievements.”