New indicators to assess research culture at UK universities for the next Research Excellence Framework (REF) will be designed “in collaboration with the sector” and will “take careful account of variation in subjects, disciplines and different institutional types”, the head of Research England has promised.
Announcing new details of a pilot to test potential indicators for the people, culture and environment (PCE) section of REF 2029, Dame Jessica Corner says there will be “wide involvement and participation in the process” of creating the new indicators that she wanted to “co-create with the community”.
“The Research Excellence Framework has always been developed in collaboration with the sector, as a shared endeavour where concerns are settled and best fit solutions are found through iterative dialogue,” says Dame Jessica.
Her comments, published in a blog on 21 March, follow unhappiness among some university leaders about a lack of consultation over proposed changes to the next REF, which has been delayed for a year until the end of 2029 amid concerns over unresolved complexities related to the decision to no longer require all research-active staff to submit outputs.
