Research England is to explore the option of removing research funding from universities that fail to meet “baseline performance” measures.

Unveiling a new “ to take place during the three-month pause on the Research Excellence Framework (REF), the funding body that leads the exercise said it would “explore the option of baseline performance in research culture being a condition of funding”.

Work on this area follows calls by research-intensive universities to review the use of the “people, culture and environment” (PCE) section in the REF, which was due to increase its weighting from 15 per cent in REF 2021 to 25 per cent in REF 2029, reaching the same weighting as impact.

Several university leaders have �ٴDZ�����Times Higher Education about their deep concern over the PCE reforms, which they believe will undermine the credibility of the REF by deprioritising assessment of outputs; excellence is due to fall from a 60 per cent weighting in REF 2021 to 50 per cent in REF 2029.

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At Universities UK’s annual conference, science minister Patrick Vallance told vice-chancellors that the REF “needs to be a credible assessment of quality.”

That programme of work could see research environment treated as a regulatory matter, as proposed by Anton Muscatelli, principal and president of the University of Glasgow, in an interview with Times Higher Education, with institutions required to meet certain standards for environment as a condition of funding.

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That would mark a change from the current approach in which research culture excellence would be incentivised using the REF and the £2 billion a year of quality-related funding attached to it, which is allocated to universities in block grants.

In addition, Research England will “consider how our funding allocation mechanisms in England could be modified to reward collaboration and specialisation, as part of our ongoing review of Strategic Institutional Research Funding”.

That move, if implemented, might be viewed as a means to force some universities to refocus their research activity on areas of strength, and stop doing research in some disciplines.

Ian Chapman, the new chief executive UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), which oversees the allocation of £9 billion a year of research funding including the REF’s £2 billion, told the UUK conference that universities might need to start doing “fewer things but doing them really well”. Chapman explained that he was wary of a “crumbs for everyone” approach to funding.

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In addition, Research England will “explore options for a twin or multi-track lighter touch approach to assessment for less research-intensive institutions and smaller specialist institutions” and “accelerate current work and thinking about the future of research assessment”.

Over the autumn, further details on these work areas will be communicated, alongside continued engagement with the sector and its representative bodies, explained the announcement by Research England, which said it welcomed the pause in the development of REF 2029 “to take stock and ensure alignment with the UK government’s priorities and vision for higher education”.

“Outcomes of the recently concluded pilot assessment that examined people, culture and environment will be taken into account, and every opportunity will be taken to streamline and reduce burden on the sector,” it continued, referencing pilot assessments to find metrics to assess PCE, which are believed to have proved disappointing.

Jessica Corner, executive chair of Research England, said: “We all strive for a research and innovation system that is dynamic, globally competitive and rooted in excellence. The brief pause in developing REF 2029 will allow us to take stock and really deliver this ambition.”

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“Today, we have set out our programme of work that we will be focusing on during the pause, and we look forward to engaging with colleagues in the devolved funding bodies and those from across the sector in the coming months,” Corner added.

jack.grove@timeshighereducation.com