Environment submissions database

BU’s research environment has been shaped considerably by COVID-19. When the first national lockdown started, 47% of our externally funded research projects were unable to continue owing to a lack of access to research facilities, off-site field locations and the inability to travel. This resulted in a decrease in research income in 2019/2020, after a period of rapid growth. For research dependent upon on inclement weather (for example archaeology in Siberia) or biological cycles (such as translocation of juvenile salmonids) the delays resulted in up to a year’s lost fieldwork. Most of our knowledge exchange and impact acceleration activities were also forced into suspension. Furthermore, with a large proportion (33%) of our academic community working in allied health disciplines, the focus of activity was on education and professional practice such as ensuring that undergraduate students could work on the front line. Internal support for research was also interrupted; some pump-priming projects were suspended, whilst others had to be redesigned to ensure they could continue. Crucially, the pandemic resulted in the need for the University to switch to different educational delivery models to maintain educational standards, reducing the capacity for research. Financial uncertainty arising from COVID-19, immediately led to the suspension of major new internal investments (planned for £2m per year) including funding for a new Research Institute. The combined impact of these events was a reduction in research and knowledge exchange activity, preventing us from increasing research capacity in line with the pace and aspiration of BU2025. We enabled the return of academics to on-campus research facilities through a process of strategic prioritisation to benefit PGRs and externally-funded research. To enable fieldwork, mechanisms were devised to ensure that off-site activities were COVID-secure with a scheme for rapid approvals to prevent further delay. Online briefing sessions contributed to a spike in research proposals, particularly to funders’ rapid response calls to understand the impact of COVID-19. All PGRs received extensive virtual support, including online delivery of the PGR Development Programme (which saw an increase in attendance of 125%), all academic milestones taking place online and 37 costed extensions were provided, representing an investment of £140K. Extensive support was provided to our academic community by the central Research Development & Support team to redesign projects, secure extensions, and allocate the UKRI costed allocation scheme. Knowledge exchange activities, including public engagement, were successfully moved online bringing new audiences for our research. Strategic planning for 2021 will see a renewed focus on research at BU with opportunities for creating and sustaining strategic research growth.