This interactive session will look at the current Higher Education landscape for public engagement and impact, the Research Excellence Framework (REF) and beyond. It will be led by the Faculty impact and public engagement team, helping you see the potential for impact and public engagement opportunities within your own research.

1. Introducing Research Impact
Emily Goodier and Alison Hall
Impact Capture Assistants
Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Science

2. Today’s workshop
• To start to think about who would be interested in your research
and use this to identify stakeholders that your research could
impact upon.
• To think strategically and practically about how you could engage
with these identified stakeholders to ensure your research leads
to impact.
• How to evidence your impact appropriately.

3. What is Research Impact?
“…an effect on, change or benefit to the economy, society, culture,
public policy or services, health, the environment or quality of
life, beyond academia.”

4. Who could you work with?
Dr Ben Edwards – Prehistoric Wales
• Excavation at a site in North Wales, Bryn Celli Ddu

5. Who could you work with?
Dr Ben Edwards – Prehistoric Wales
• Excavation at Bryn Celli Ddu in North Wales,
Local community
Heritage organisations
Schools
Policy makers
Archaeologists
Hobbyists

6. Economic
Practice
Social/Cultural
Quality of life/Health
Environment
Policy
Why might they be interested?

7. Steps for gaining and recording impact
Step 1. Raising awareness/dissemination
For example, Traditional and Social Media or Research briefing
documents
What are other
words for
disseminate?
Spread, circulate, disperse,
diffuse, distribute,
propagate, broadcast,
scatter, promulgate,
dissipate

8. Steps for gaining and recording impact
Step 2. Intervention
CASE STUDY: Alice Kettle ‘Stitch A Tree’

9. Steps for gaining and recording impact
Step 2. Intervention
CASE STUDY: Manchester Writing School
“Let’s Talk About the Weather:
Poems and Ideas for Teachers”

10. Steps for gaining and recording impact
Step 3. Feedback
• Interviews
• Surveys
• Quotes from attendees
• Teacher diaries
• Films and photos
• Testimonials
• Media coverage
• Demographic data

11. Useful links
www.rcuk.ac.uk/innovation/impacts/
https://www.nihr.ac.uk/documents/how-to-disseminate-your-research/19951
https://www.publicengagement.ac.uk/
https://www.fasttrackimpact.com
Contacts
Helen Darby – Impact and Public Engagement Manager
h.darby@mmu.ac.uk