Impact in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2014
The Research Excellence Framework (REF) is the new peer review assessment of the quality of research taking place at eligible UK Higher Education Institutions, which will be used to distribute HEFCE quality-related research (QR) funding from 2015.
Impact accounts for 20% of the evaluation of research under the REF 2014 and requires submitting higher education institutions to demonstrate the impact of their research, defined as, “an effect on, change or benefit to the economy, society, culture, public policy or services, health, the environment or quality of life, beyond academia.”
For the REF 2014 we are developing Impact Statements, which are grouped in "Units of Assessment" (UoA) organised by subject area.
Impact Statements define the UoA's approach to impact and strategies and plans for developing impact.
Each Unit of Assessment is also developing Impact Case Studies which describe impacts of research between 2008 and 2013 and are intended to exemplify the approach to impact of each UoA described in the Impact Statement.
Links to resources about Impact in the REF 2014:
- During 2010 HEFCE ran a pilot exercise to test and develop proposals for assessing the impact of research in the REF 2014
- Social Policy Review of the HEFCE Impact Pilot
- Capturing Research Impacts: A Review of International Practice prepared for HEFCE
- REF 2014 Panel Criteria and associated publications
We will update these pages as Salford Impact develops. To comment or to find out more, please contact us and join us on Twitter.