Six clusters chosen as 'beacons' for university-society dialogue
The UK has launched a huge, country-wide campaign to bring universities closer to the general public. A GBP 9.2 million (€13.1 million) scheme has created six 'beacons' around the UK (Manchester, Newcastle, Norwich, London, Cardiff and Edinburgh), each of which comprises a collaborative network of institutions. In addition to the six beacons, a coordinating centre will be based in Bristol. The centre will become the one-stop-shop for best practice, and will provide a single contact point for the entire UK higher education system. 'Public and societal engagement needs to become an integral part of researchers' university experience,' said UK Science and Innovation Minister Ian Pearson. 'Bringing scientists and the public together is doubly beneficial. It helps ensure scientific work is relevant to society and that the public have trust in science. I want to see a culture shift to recognise the importance of this activity within a research context.' Each cluster involves a range of local actors. The East Anglia beacon, for example, brings together 22 partners, including: the University of East Anglia, Norfolk Ambition, Norwich City Council, the Norfolk Museums Service, Norwich and Norfolk Voluntary Services, the Institute of Food Research, the John Innes Centre, the Eastern Daily Press (EDP) and BBC East. The Welsh cluster has already announced the four public engagement programmes that it is to launch. They will address: 'our place in the future'; 'health and wellbeing'; 'climate and sustainability'; and 'the Welsh identity in the 21st century'. The initiative will receive funding from the UK's higher education and research councils, as well as from the Wellcome Trust. David Eastwood, chief executive of the Higher Education Funding Council for England, said: 'Universities have a responsibility to step up and address this agenda. It's not going to be addressed in a paternalistic way, but through dialogue and through taking the public seriously, and its agenda, rather than patronising it.' Professor Nancy Rothwell is vice president for research at the University of Manchester. She believes that the beacons scheme will allow the university to integrate itself into the local community and to find out what residents really want to know about the university's work. 'This is a chance for us to learn from people across the Manchester area, to build bridges, make universities integral to the wider community and seek opportunities to make an impact through engagement.'
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