Summary of the impact

While academic research about 18^th-century women writers is well established, many general readers are completely unfamiliar with the range, presence and vitality of their cultural activity. Elizabeth Eger's research on 18^th-century women's writing led to a free, public exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery aimed to bridge the distance between specialised and general knowledge by introducing to the general public the original bluestockings— a group of intellectual women who had significant social and literary impact upon Enlightenment Britain but were subsequently written out of history. The exhibition attracted a large audience of over 185,000 people, approximately twice the number predicted by the NPG. 40% of the visitors were first time at the NPG, and an outreach programme ensured this audience was diverse.

Summary of the impact

Research into seventeenth-century Quaker writings conducted at Loughborough University by Prof. Elaine Hobby and Dr Catie Gill has enriched the cultural and spiritual lives of modern-day Quakers, and that of others interested in the Quaker movement. This has been achieved both through their involvement in an advisory capacity at Woodbrooke, Europe's only Quaker Study Centre, since the mid-1990s, and through their working together to produce a booklet and audio materials that are being distributed by the Quaker group Kindlers. The booklet and its related recording grew from a workshop that Hobby led for Kindlers in London in November 2011.

Summary of the impact

Italiane. Biografia del Novecento has enhanced public discourse by stimulating widespread and important debates in the Italian media, among politicians and the public about the role of women in twentieth-century Italy. Some of its arguments have been considered controversial, leading many commentators, including the prominent journalist Paolo Mieli in 2012, to call it a `courageous book' (Section 5:3). As the first scholarly but accessible work of synthesis (in any language) ranging over the history of Italian women in the whole twentieth century it is an important milestone for Italian women's history and for discussions about women's role in contemporary Italy. It has also made a significant contribution to history teaching in Italian universities.

Summary of the impact

This case study focuses on the social and educational benefit to local Lincolnshire communities of English research at Lincoln on life writing, creative uses of oral history and literary and dramatic representations of marginalised communities. In particular, it highlights the ways in which research in this area has led to knowledge transfer as a means of empowering rural communities through helping community groups to research, write, document, represent and disseminate their own stories. These acts of recovery have contributed to the self-realisation and empowerment of individuals and have enabled cross-generational connections and community cohesion. English research at Lincoln in these areas spans the 18^th to 21^st-centuries and has developed over nine years. Research activities in this area include a conference, a festival, publications, public talks and two related Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funded projects (details below).

Summary of the impact

Research demonstrating the innovative contributions of early women writers to the cultural, socio-political, and economic life of their period has enhanced and broadened understanding of British and European literary traditions. It has contributed intellectually and economically to the heritage industry through Chawton House Library (CHL), a registered charity promoting early women's writing, and a range of other public organisations. Key findings of the research have been used to reinvigorate secondary school teaching and inspire those who occupy leadership roles in education, inform television documentary makers, and enthuse old and new readers internationally.

Summary of the impact

Professor Karen Sayer's research on the rural, `Nature' and the countryside, farming and the farmed animal in the Modern period, has informed three TV series (Victorian Farm, Edwardian Farm, Wartime Farm) viewed by millions in the UK and worldwide. These extremely popular series have had a major impact within public understandings of not only the history of agriculture and its strategic importance, but also rural social history within British society. Sayer's input ensured a historically accurate representation of the past and, in the case of Wartime Farm, brought the rural experience into the discourse of World War II, which so often focuses on the urban. This impact has been further developed through a partnership with the Yorkshire Museum of Farming where Sayer undertook consultation with museum staff on exhibitions and displays.

Summary of the impact

Newcastle research has informed public perceptions of marriage as an institution in Britain and abroad by: (i) challenging cultural values and social assumptions about marriage; (ii) expanding the sensibilities of individuals on this subject; and (iii) extending the range and improving the quality of evidence pertaining to the history of marriage and through this enhancing public understanding of sexual health issues and informed marriage equality debates.

Summary of the impact

The production of hand-knitting is of key economic and cultural importance in Scotland. University of Glasgow research on the history of hand-knitting has: helped to enhance a significant textiles collection at Shetland Museum and Archives (~88,000 visitors each year) and contributed to the growth of public interest in and understanding of this craft activity and its history. Glasgow research has also informed the work of contemporary knitwear designers who have found inspiration in the traditional designs and colour ways and has engaged the wider public, promoting greater appreciation of the cultural significance of hand-knitting and its role in the rural economy of the past and present.

Summary of the impact

Research into contemporary women's writing that took place in the School of Cultural Studies and Humanities at Leeds Metropolitan University between 2000 and 2013 has contributed to the continuing personal and professional development of beneficiaries amongst the public, as well as postgraduate students significantly beyond the submitting HEI. The majority of these beneficiaries have engaged directly with this research in two ways: via the website (the Contemporary Women's Writing Association website, or its sister organisation the Postgraduate Contemporary Women's Writing Network website) or via a public lecture or event.

Summary of the impact

Clarissa Campbell Orr has contributed to broader cultural enrichment through her participation in three exhibitions and their associated events. The exhibitions and venues are:

• on Mary Delany at the Yale Centre for British Art (YCBA), New Haven, USA and the John Soane Museum, London;
• on Johan Zoffany at the YCBA and the Royal Academy;
• on Thomas Lawrence at the London, National Portrait Gallery (NPG).

These are significant venues with an international clientele, the exhibitions last on average for 12 weeks, and are reviewed both in the art historical press and mainstream newspapers and magazines in the UK and USA.