Commenting on Jo Johnson’s speech at the HEFCE conference and the announcement of a ‘Knowledge Exchange Framework’, University Alliance Chief Executive Maddalaine Ansell said:
“Alliance universities work with 16,000 businesses, including 11,000 small and medium sized enterprises, and more than two fifths of successful graduate start ups come from our members. So we’d support any move to give this aspect of universities’ mission greater recognition and support.
“The Knowledge Exchange Framework must look beyond simply the commercialisation of research, patents and intellectual property, which are only one aspect of a much wider range of interactions between universities, businesses and communities, alongside entrepreneurial activity.
“To work effectively the ‘KEF’ needs to reward and incentivise a full range of transformative collaborations, not just a narrow slice of existing activity. There are many paths to impact.”
Notes to editors:
- University Alliance’s Dr Faye Taylor wrote an article for Wonkhe on the many aspects of innovation.
- In 2016 University Alliance published Creative Innovative Regions which argued for a broader understanding of knowledge exchange activity.
