Research Excellence Framework: invitation to participate in a pilot exercise to assess impact

To:

Heads of HEFCE-funded higher education institutions

Dear Vice-Chancellor or Principal

1.   This letter invites expressions of interest from higher education institutions (HEIs) that are willing to volunteer to participate in a pilot exercise to help develop proposals for assessing the impact of research in the Research Excellence Framework (REF). If interested please respond by Friday 28 August 2009.

2.   In June 2009, our Board endorsed proposals on the key elements of the REF. We will consult formally on detailed proposals for the REF during autumn 2009.

3.   The REF will be a unified framework for assessing the quality of research across all disciplines. It will focus on identifying excellent research, including its impact on the economy and society. Assessment will be undertaken by expert panels based on submissions from HEIs¹.

4.   The autumn consultation will include proposals for assessing the economic and social impact of high quality research, as a significant element within the REF. We have so far developed our proposed approach to assessing impact through informal consultation with a range of stakeholders from the higher education sector, research users, Research Councils and other funders, and expert advice.

5.   We are in the process of finalising detailed consultation proposals, and we have formed a clear view of the framework for assessing impact in the REF. The assessment of research impact will focus on impacts achieved during the assessment period underpinned by high quality research (which may have been undertaken over a longer period). We will propose that submissions for assessment should include three main elements:

• a number of case studies illustrating the research driven contribution to economic, social, public policy, cultural or quality of life impacts
• a statement (made in a standard format) summarising the full range of impacts for the submission as a whole
• some supporting quantitative indicators.

6.   This element in the assessment process is largely new and comparatively untried. For this reason, and given that the timetable for implementing the overall REF is tight, we plan to run a pilot exercise to test and inform the further development of our approach. We envisage that the pilot will run from autumn 2009 to mid-2010.

7.   We plan to pilot the impact proposals in around four to six discipline fields (which for the time being we will define in terms of RAE units of assessment) including at least one field from within each of the following:

• medical and life sciences
• physical sciences and engineering
• social sciences
• arts and humanities.

8.   We will ask HEIs involved in the pilot exercise to make impact submissions in broadly the form set out above to some or all of the piloted discipline fields. We will aim to receive at least eight submissions in total to each of the discipline fields piloted. We expect to involve a spread of institutions from across the UK and include a sufficient number to spread the workload effectively (the other UK HE funding bodies are sending similar letters to their HEIs).

9.   We will set up a pilot expert panel for each of the discipline fields piloted to assess the submissions and provide advice and feedback on the process. We envisage that membership of the panels will include significant numbers of research users as well as practising researchers.

10.   We aim to identify pilot institutions and discipline fields by autumn 2009. A steering group involving senior research user and HEI representatives is being established to oversee the pilot exercise.

11.   I hope that your HEI will consider taking part in this important exercise. To express an interest in taking part in the pilot, please contact Hannah Chaplin (h.chaplin@hefce.ac.uk) by Friday 28 August 2009.

12.   Note: if your institution has already expressed an interest in taking part in the pilot of public benefit statements (HEFCE Circular letter 16/2009) and would also be interested in participating in the REF impact pilot, you will be considered for both. If you have a preference, please indicate this in your response.

Yours sincerely

Paul Hubbard
Head of Research Policy

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Notes

1.   It should be noted that we are no longer planning to undertake an exercise in 2010 to produce quality assessments for certain disciplines based purely on bibliometric analysis. This element in our previous proposals cannot be carried through following our conclusion that bibliometric indicators alone cannot provide a sufficiently robust measure of quality to drive funding allocations in any discipline at present.

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