Environment submissions database

The COVID19 pandemic has had a number of significant impacts on the research environment at Queen Mary University of London. The research community at the University has also contributed in numerous ways to supporting response efforts to the pandemic. The University has introduced a range of additional support for staff, including flexibilities on research delivery in the context of health impacts and home schooling/other caring responsibilities. The University also diverted key resource to COVID19 support efforts, including the provision of Personal Protective Equipment to the NHS, and the release of staff and students to provide frontline support to NHS hospitals and to support the establishment and operation of the national Lighthouse laboratories. QM also established a new clinical research centre to support the Janssen COVID-19 vaccine trial, established a PCR Testing facility as part of the Pan-London MedCity COVID-19 Alliance, and has supported the roll-out of the national vaccination programme by providing campus space for a vaccination centre. Non-COVID19 research laboratories were closed or partially closed during the first national lockdown which constrained research activity from late March 2020 through to the end of the REF assessment period. The vast majority of research laboratories had re-opened when safe to do so by early July 2020. However, due to COVID19 safety mitigations, full occupancy was not possible after re-opening and a complete return to research activity was not possible (as it remains at the time of submission). Closure of archives, research libraries and fieldwork research sites has also had a major impact on research activity in the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, with many such research resources remaining closed or inaccessible throughout the final months of the REF assessment period, constraining research activity. New research grant applications over this period have also been negatively impacted in Medicine and Dentistry due to staff being redeployed to assist the NHS. Because of the lag effects on applications, research grant awards and income have yet to see a negative impact. Due to these constraints on research activity and impacts of the pandemic on staff time and responsibilities, the University has agreed hundreds of research grant contract changes with funding bodies to ensure we minimise as far as possible the impacts of the pandemic on the completion of grant-funded research activity. Impacts on practice-based research in film and drama submissions: REF mitigation mechanisms have provided some flexibilities but have not overcome situations where performances have not been possible in person or in any other format. Impacts on impact activity: QM is submitting six impact case studies materially affected by the pandemic. The majority involve impact activity undertaken with arts, culture and external organisations, entailing delayed, postponed or cancelled activity. As a result, planned impact activity with external organisations can no longer be reflected in the impact case studies, diminishing the power of the University’s research in these areas. There have been particular negative impacts on submissions to Main Panel D (four of the six impacted case studies) where practice-based research is key.