Leeds Beckett’s contribution to the economy recognised by new national framework

Research England published its updated Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF2) today (Tuesday 27 September 2022), which examines how well English Higher Education Providers exchange knowledge and expertise to make a positive impact on the economy, place, and civic life.

Leeds Beckett University scored in the top category (very high engagement) for its Research Partnerships and Working with Public and Third Sector organisations; and was rated as having high levels of engagement for Working with Business.

Professor Cathy Barnes, Director of Research and Enterprise at Leeds Beckett University, said: “We are extremely proud of our knowledge exchange activity at the university and our new KEF results demonstrate our commitment to sharing our expertise with businesses and our community.”

Leeds Beckett University offers a wide variety of mentoring services and funded knowledge exchange initiatives for businesses – from Government-funded Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) innovation projects, to delivering the European Social Fund (ESF)-funded Women Empowered through Coaching and Networking (WECAN) project and the Government-funded Help to Grow: Management programme. The University’s research partnerships span areas of world-leading academic expertise – including the Retail Institute, Leeds Sustainability Institute, Obesity Institute and Centre for Dementia Research.

The Knowledge Transfer Partnership between Leeds Beckett University and multinational infrastructure and engineering company, Amey, was rated Outstanding by Innovate UK and created an estimated post-KTP profit of £1.3million by the third year. The University recently announced three new projects: with Inspired Pet Nutrition based in Thirsk, Welsh manufacturing company ABER Instruments, and Leeds-based Medasil Surgical Limited.

KEF aims to improve the status of knowledge exchange and provide the public with information on the rich and diverse ways English universities continue to engage with society and the economy, locally, national and internationally.

The full dashboards are available on the KEF’s interactive website at kef.ac.uk/

David Sweeney CBE, Executive Chair of Research England, said: “Knowledge exchange is integral to the mission and purpose of our universities, and its importance in contributing to societal and economic prosperity is strongly supported by the Government.

“Today’s new version of the Knowledge Exchange Framework takes further forward the vision and potential of KE activity, providing richer evidence to demonstrate universities’ strengths in different areas when set alongside their peers.”