News

UK takes lead in Europe as another 13 institutions are acknowledged by the European Commission

In December, another 13 institutions were acknowledged by the European Commission as being aligned with the European Charter and Code and awarded the HR Excellence in Research badge.

The 13 institutions were:

This brings to 23 the total number of UK higher education institutions that have been awarded the HR Excellence in Research badge as compared with 19 higher education institutions across the rest of the European Union.

Further information can be found on the Concordat’s European Charter & Code page

First ten institutions to be acknowledged by the European Commission

On 7 September, Sir Ivor Crewe, Chair of the Concordat Strategy Group, announced the first ten institutions to be acknowledged by the European Commission as being aligned with the European Charter and Code.

The ten institutions were:

Making the announcement, Sir Ivor said “I am delighted to be able to announce the first ten UK institutions to gain the HR excellence in research badging from the European Commission. Two years after the launch of the Concordat it is clear that UK institutions are putting in place policies and structures to ensure that research staff employment conditions and career development are central to university strategies. The nine UK higher education institutions join just twelve other European universities which have gained the formal recognition.

However, there remain some serious challenges for sustaining the research workforce in higher education, not least the importance of providing frameworks for career progression within an environment of short term, and increasingly uncertain, funding.”

Further information can be found on the Concordat’s European Charter & Code page

Report on higher education institutions’ strategic responses to the Concordat published

The Concordat Strategy Group has published a report on the first survey of higher education institutions’ strategic responses to the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers.

The report represents the efforts of over 100 UK universities to improve the career development opportunities for almost the whole research staff community.

Sir Ivor Crewe, Chair of the Concordat Strategy Group, said: “The report shows that a huge amount of work has already been undertaken throughout the sector. Much of this is a direct response to the stimulus provided by the Concordat. This agenda is overseen at the highest level and real change has been effected within the policies and practices of institutions.

“Nonetheless, there is plenty that institutions can learn from practice elsewhere in the sector. Happily, there is clearly enthusiasm within higher education to learn from one another and to continue to improve the service on offer to research staff. I am confident that institutions will continue to demonstrate progress and innovation in this area.”

The report makes six recommendations to the sector:

  1. Further sharing of practice between institutions needed
  2. Explore further ways of using CROS to monitor impact of Concordat
  3. Adopt all examples of awareness-raising highlighted in report
  4. Implement policies to ensure that research staff enjoy co-authorship and intellectual property rights
  5. Seek early acknowledgement of alignment with the European Charter and Code Charter and Code
  6. Explore ways of sustaining funding for staff and review use of fixed term contracts

A copy of the report can be downloaded here

Survey of HEI strategies launched: Concordat benchmarking project also helps institutions demonstrate alignment with the European Charter and Code
On 6 January the Concordat Coordinator, on behalf of the Concordat Strategy Group, launched a survey of HEI’s approaches to staff development and their implementation of the Concordat. A note was sent to Vice Chancellors and Principals across the UK and the survey will be available online until 6 April 2010.

As well as providing valuable benchmarking information for the Concordat Strategy Group, the survey will help institutions demonstrate alignment with the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers. More details on how the Concordat, the Charter and Code and the HEI Strategies survey support one another is available from the benchmarking pages.

Article published in Overview magazine
Tom Papworth, the Research Concordat Implementation Coordinator, wrote an article for Overview magazine in which he outlined the key role Principal Investigators will play in delivering the Concordat and the wider research staff development agenda.

http://www.vitae.ac.uk/CMS/files/upload/Overview_DEC09.pdf


European Charter and Code - alignment with Concordat
The UK has set out how the Concordat and the associated benchmarking projects will enable UK institutions to align themselves with the European Charter and Code.

UK mechanism for demonstrating sector-wide and institutional alignment with the European Charter and Code


Concordat Chair submits recommendations to Research Excellence Framework consultation
Sir Ivor Crew, Chair of the Concordat Strategy Group, wrote to HEFCE on 15 December 2009 as part of the consultation on the Research Excellence Framework. A copy of the letter is available here.


Two more organisations have formally agreed to support the Concordat
The Biochemical Society whose aim is to promote the advancement of the science of Biochemistry.

The Biosciences Federation - single authority representing the UK's biological expertise, providing independent opinion to inform public policy and promoting the advancement of the biosciences.

The supporters of the Concordat will play an important part in taking forward the actions in the Concordat, in particular the development of the implementation plan and supporting this plan through their organisations.

Professor Sir Ivor Crewe to lead on implementation of new research careers Concordat
Professor Sir Ivor Crewe is to take on the chair of a new high level strategy group set up to oversee the implementation of the recently launched Concordat to support the career development of researchers. The Concordat, a collaboration between Research Councils UK and Universities UK, sets out the expectations and responsibilities of researchers, their managers, employers and funders.

For more information please visit the Universities UK website.

Hard Copies of the Concordat
As the new academic year commences, have you enough copies of the Concordat for all your new researchers and academics? The initial print run of 50,000 copies has been sent out to the sector and we have had a reprint to ensure that copies are available for all new researchers and academics.

Please contact Rosie Beales if you need further copies.

Promotion of the Concordat
Some universities and regions have held or are planning events to promote the Concordat. We would welcome details of these events for the Concordat web site.

If you are planning an event please note that we stated in the Overview of the Implementation that representatives of the signatories and supporters particularly RCUK and UUK staff will seek to attend meetings of interested organisations to promote the Concordat and its implementation.