An update from Professor Dame Jessica Corner

Results from REF2021 have reaffirmed the University of Nottingham’s reputation as one the UK’s leading research universities.

I am grateful to colleagues from across our university who made our submission possible and helped deliver our very good set of results.

This include academics, research support teams, postgraduate research students, technicians, REF coordinators, impact officers, library and HR colleagues, digital and technical colleagues, PPSE and finance colleagues, external relations and marketing colleagues and of course, colleagues from Research and Innovation.

I would also like to recognise that our monumental submission was only made possible by a great deal of goodwill, which came in many different ways and far beyond producing the research itself. As examples, anyone who gave time to complete a book or publication, write an impact case study or coordinate a unit submission will have been supported by someone else who may have covered teaching responsibilities or administrative tasks. Everyone has contributed and now shares in our success.

Please look out for acknowledgements of such contributions from individuals and teams towards REF2021 on digital screens around the university, and on social media over the coming weeks.

An overview of our results can be found on the university’s Research Excellence Framework pages; for full details of the university’s REF2021 assessment, alongside that for other institutions, please visit the REF2021 website.

This huge undertaking justifies our share of £2bn of public funding for research nationally per annum and allows us to evidence the remarkable impact of our research on the world.

Critically, REF endorses the role the university research plays in contributing to and benefiting society. In the REF2021 assessment period (2014-21), the lives of more than 100 million people have been positively changed by our research. We saved the NHS £2 billion, thanks to research including influencing vaccine policies, evidencing the value of community pharmacies and helping GPs reduce prescription errors. Legislation informed by our discoveries touches the lives of every UK citizen, from improving road safety, to safeguarding children online to protecting consumers.

We submitted 135 impact case studies to REF2021, and more than half of these are featured as profiles and ‘research stories’ on the impact section of our website.

Please look out for and share our campaign – From our world to yours – celebrating the impact of our research. Look out for #WeAreUoNResearch and follow @UoNResearch.

Read Dame Jessica’s full update