Brighton in the top tier for social and economic benefits

Research England’s third Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF3) confirmed that Brighton continues to perform highly across key categories. The university achieved a ‘very high’ rating for its research partnerships and public and community engagement, complemented by ‘high’ ratings for its work with business as well as the public and third sector.  

Published annually, the KEF highlights how English universities serve the economy and society, helping the public, business and communities to discover how they can benefit from the outstanding knowledge and expertise embedded in institutions. The aim of the KEF is to increase efficiency and effectiveness in the use of public funding for knowledge exchange, provide important tools to measure and reward knowledge exchange performance and delivery of key Government priorities, and to advance a culture of continuous improvement in universities.  

Professor Rusi Jaspal, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research and Knowledge Exchange), said: “Here at the University of Brighton we are committed to making a tangible difference to society through high-quality, practice-based learning, teaching and research and knowledge exchange.

“The KEF3 results clearly demonstrate our ability to collaborate, produce, share and apply solution-focused, new knowledge that addresses global challenges and that has a positive impact on people’s lives and the communities in which they reside.

“We are proud of our productive partnerships with a wide range of business and community collaborators, including our students’ volunteering, entrepreneurship and community projects. Together, we are making a difference in our region and beyond.”

Knowledge exchange in action

The University of Brighton remains at the forefront of public and community engagement activity and research partnerships, consistently demonstrating its commitment to communities and organisations locally and regionally.

A recent collaboration between the university and The Regency Town House used augmented reality and machine learning to enable museum users to recreate original Georgian interior designs by digitally ‘painting’ them onto a wall. In a series of events for the pilot, the museum became a living lab for visitor experience, enabling participants to have a deeper connection to the Regency Town House and addressing the need for the museum and heritage centre to develop immersive and compelling ways for audiences to learn (opens in YouTube) about the architecture and social history of Brighton and Hove.

The university’s commitment to working with businesses and the public and third sector was also recognised, reflecting successes through recent SME-focused innovation programmes, Research in Sussex Excellence (RISE) and Brighton Research Innovation Technology Exchange (BRITE), as well as its leading role in delivering Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs). The university has delivered 280 KTP projects to date, with 90% of projects exceeding objectives, gaining A grades from Innovation UK.

Research England has provided updated interactive dashboards, enabling deeper insights into institutional knowledge exchange contexts and various university engagements.

For more information about our projects, initiatives and partnerships, visit:

• Public and Community Engagement
• Collaborations with businesses

Businesses and community groups can contact the university to find out more about potential collaborations by emailing the Knowledge Exchange team on KnowledgeExchange@brighton.ac.uk.