Our research culture

Research is at the heart of everything that we do as a University and is core to our institutional strategy. We will create a positive and enabling research environment, delivering world-leading research that transforms lives, by fostering a research culture based on the principle of OASIS:

• Open
• Accountable
• Supportive
• Inclusive
• Sustainable

Open research culture

We believe that research should be as widely and freely accessible as possible. We strive to ensure that our outputs and datasets are open and visible to everyone, and we embrace a culture of openness that extends across the research landscape, encompassing creation, rigour and reproducibility, dissemination, and evaluation of outputs. Through public events, news releases, online features and other communication channels, we promote the scientific impact and wider benefits arising from our research. Our open access policies ensure our research is transparent and inclusive.

Accountable research culture

Accountability in the conduct of research is central to our ethos. We conduct research with integrity by working in an ethical and responsible way, ensuring trust and confidence in our methods, findings and research outputs.

Supportive research culture

All members of our University community are responsible for creating a positive and inclusive research culture. Together we strive to create an environment that nurtures our community of researchers at every level. Facilities, policies, collaborative processes, mentoring, pastoral care and careers guidance, support researchers to fulfil their potential in a safe, positive environment. We encourage collaboration between researchers across disciplines reducing silos that impede research and promote diversity in approach and thought to foster the creativity that drives world-leading research.

Inclusive research culture

Equity, diversity and inclusion are integral to a successful modern workplace. We work closely with our community to ensure that ours is an inclusive learning, working and research environment where all students, staff and visitors are treated with dignity and respect and feel they belong.

Sustainable research culture

Committed leadership is key to supporting and enabling our community of staff and students to create a powerful network of change makers. This safeguards the sustainability, and promotes continual enhancement, of our research culture. Research, like our teaching and our estate, operates in an environment of global awareness, integrating the UN Sustainable Development Goals into every day University life.

In April 2024 the University became a Concordat signatory (PDF, 175kb). The Concordat is aimed at all organisations in the research and innovation sector, including but not limited to UK Higher Education Providers, Independent Research Institutes and organisations funding research and innovation. The aim of the Concordat is to ensure research and innovation continues to play a critical part in understanding how our planet is changing, while helping us to act responsibly to protect and promote our environment. Signatories all align with the science of climate change and ecology and commit to transparently share information and learnings about the environmental impacts of their work. The Concordat is owned by the UK research and innovation sector. Wellcome is hosting the Concordat and UKRI has played a key role in coordinating its development, both acting on behalf of the R&I sector.

• Further information about the Environmental Sustainability Concordat.

Our values

Our research culture reflects the broader University values which underlie our Citizens of Change ethos, recognising and valuing the collective contribution to our research:

• Inclusive: We are diverse in our makeup and united in ambition. Our diversity is our strength and makes our community stronger.
• Inspiring: We are passionate about inspiring individuals to succeed and realise their ambitions. We challenge our community to think differently, to get involved, and to constantly embrace new ideas.
• Impactful: As Citizens of Change we will generate new ideas which deliver impact and empower our community.