Knowledge Exchange Concordat review

Knowledge exchange is a collaborative and creative effort that helps knowledge and research to make a positive impact in society and the economy. This review of the Knowledge Exchange Concordat – an initiative to support universities in their knowledge exchange activities – looks at the results and gives recommendations for next steps.

Executive summary

Download the Executive summary of the Knowledge Exchange Concordat Review [PDF].

What is knowledge exchange

Knowledge exchange refers to the sharing of knowledge, expertise and ideas between universities and their non-academic partners. It covers a wide range of activities, for example:

turning research into new companies, products or processes
supporting start-ups
involving students and graduates in applying their skills and engaging with local communities

Knowledge exchange helps to tackle issues including inequality economic prosperity, net zero and Covid-19 treatment and prevention.

What is the Knowledge Exchange Concordat?

The Knowledge Exchange Concordat (KE Concordat) is a sector-led initiative to recognise, develop and improve the many different ways higher education providers engage in knowledge exchange. It is led jointly by our team at Universities UK and GuildHE.

A total of 136 higher education institutions have signed up to it and 112 chose to take part in a development year exercise. So far it has:

brought together over 1,000 examples of innovative practice
created 560 priority actions for improved collaborative working
improved cross-sector collaboration and enhanced the impact of research on locally, nationally and globally

Examples from universities

Here are just a handful of examples of how universities are making a difference by sharing knowledge and research to have a real impact.

Developing Entrepreneurial Women at the University of South Wales

This programme supported female founders on their start-up journey. Delivered in partnership with NatWest Cymru, it offered start-up masterclasses, small business coaching and a supportive community for women entrepreneurs.

By harnessing the university’s expertise, insights and networks, this programme helped to advance gender diversity in the business sector in Wales.

The Glasgow City Innovation District

Led by the University of Strathclyde, the Innovation District is home to over 1600 businesses and is gaining global recognition as an effective way for developing new ideas, technologies and business practices. The University is also leading on creating 100% climate neutral and climate resilient areas within the district.

The Bioscience Technology Facility at the University of York

This unique facility is providing access to technology and research services for the biosciences. Through this facility, the University of York became the first UK university to loan equipment, validate Covid-19 tests and provide training to NHS England during the early stages of the pandemic - nearly doubling the testing capacity at York Hospital, as a result.

The Michael Beverley Innovation Fellowships at the University of Leeds

These fellowships are developing the next generation of academic entrepreneurs. The £1 million scheme provides funding, training and a supportive network and mentorship to early-career researchers, with the aim of building their commercial awareness, skills and confidence to achieve impact in society and the economy.

The Bridge at University of Plymouth

This scheme is connecting the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Business with local communities and the creative sector.

It has played a leading role in multi-million initiatives such as the South West Creative Technology Network, designed to drive the growth of the regional creative economy, as well as the iMayflower consortium, which seeks to build Plymouth’s Creative Industries and nurture creative ‘people power’ across the city.

BIG South London

BIG South London brings together the world-class knowledge, expertise and facilities of twelve universities and colleges for the benefit and economic recovery of the businesses and communities based in South London.

The programme offers funding and expertise to foster growth and innovation in this area, and will create a network of physical hubs and workspaces in the future.

Recommendations from the review

The review in the executive summary recommends:

The Knowledge Exchange Concordat must be repeated within three years and become established alongside other concordats for all institutions.
Institutions should aim to develop an institution-wide, long-term vision for KE activities.
As far as possible, funders should consider further aligning the different external KE reporting and accountability requirements to reduce duplication and the administrative burden, and to maximise impact.
The concordat should evolve to enable institutions to demonstrate how KE practice is both improving and evolving and is responsive to national policy priorities.
The sector should support using the action plans to exchange good practice and innovation, and develop a repository of KE resources and case studies.

Supporting documents

Along with the executive summary, the full review includes:

an evaluation report [PDF] summarising the outcomes of a survey of institutional representatives and evaluators, conducted by Universities UK.
a review of institutional action plans and evaluator feedback [PDF], conducted by the National Centre for Universities and Business (NCUB).
an analysis of priority actions [PDF]

Who is involved?

The concordat is led by Universities UK and GuildHE.

It's supported by: