Similar case studies

REF impact found 31 Case Studies

Currently displayed text from case study:

Victoria County History

Summary of the impact

Through accessible local history resources co-produced by academics and community volunteers, Riden has helped to open up previously academic-focused research to new, local audiences. He has empowered amateur historians through new research skills to take an active role in documenting and thereby conserving their communities' histories (this has included volunteers publishing their own research). He has contributed to an improved quality of visitor experience at a local heritage organisation through providing new knowledge and confidence to volunteer guides. Through translating the co-produced resources for use in primary and secondary schools, he has given children new research skills which they have then used to develop new understanding of their community's history.

Submitting Institution

University of Nottingham

Unit of Assessment

History

Summary Impact Type

Societal

Research Subject Area(s)

History and Archaeology: Historical Studies

Sharing Our Heritage: fostering public engagement with regional archives and ‘doing history’

Summary of the impact

Lancaster's History department has built on its tradition of service and consultancy to transform public resources for, and engagement with, the history of northern England (Lancashire, Cumbria, Northumberland, and the Borders). This has been achieved through: i) creating open-access databases of historical sources with tailored support for non-academic users; ii) training non-academics in historical research and engaging them in projects, thereby empowering people in the region and beyond to `do history', particularly through the Victoria County History, Cumbria: a community-based project fostering life-long learning, led by the department and funded through partnership with a charitable trust; iii) contributing to the development of a new archive centre in Carlisle, thus enhancing the region's archival infrastructure.

Submitting Institution

Lancaster University

Unit of Assessment

History

Summary Impact Type

Cultural

Research Subject Area(s)

Language, Communication and Culture: Literary Studies
History and Archaeology: Historical Studies

Influencing the history curriculum at the local and national levels through oral histories about Bengali migration and settlement

Summary of the impact

An Ofsted review of the National Curriculum found that diversity and multiculturalism is taught poorly in British schools and recommended that personal, family and local history be included in the curriculum. A joint project between LSE and Cambridge University, in partnership with Runnymede Trust, used underpinning research on Bengali migration and settlement to develop a new approach for teaching history that is effective in addressing Ofsted's concerns. The project produced a website and educational resources for teachers and students, tested and proved the new approach in three diverse cities, and influenced Government revisions to the National Curriculum to ensure that important diversity and multicultural elements were retained. The website has received over 66,500 visits (one-third UK, two-thirds international), has been selected by the British Library for the permanent UK Web Archive, and has become an inspiration and template for other diversity-related knowledge transfer projects such as 'Revealing Romans'.

Submitting Institution

London School of Economics & Political Science

Unit of Assessment

Sociology

Summary Impact Type

Societal

Research Subject Area(s)

Studies In Human Society: Political Science
Language, Communication and Culture: Cultural Studies
History and Archaeology: Historical Studies

Transforming access to, and raising awareness of the Penguin Archive

Summary of the impact

The Penguin Archive Project, funded by a major grant from the AHRC [7], produced an online catalogue of the Penguin Collection at the University of Bristol Library (launched in 2011). Penguin Books transformed the range and greatly extended the availability of books to a general readership in the twentieth century. The Penguin Archive located at the University of Bristol can therefore be conceived of as a record of the democratisation of reading in the UK in the twentieth century. As a result of the Penguin Archive Project impact has been realised in three main areas: improving access to the Penguin Archive and making it easier to use for a variety of non-academic users; raising awareness and understanding of the significance of the archive and the rich cultural heritage of Penguin books through public engagement and media activities including a major international conference in 2010; developing collaborative links with Penguin and contributing to their publishing practice. As a result, researchers, editors, authors, publishers and other users such as the Penguin Collectors Society now have access to this major resource.

Submitting Institution

University of Bristol

Unit of Assessment

English Language and Literature

Summary Impact Type

Cultural

Research Subject Area(s)

Studies In Human Society: Policy and Administration
Language, Communication and Culture: Literary Studies
History and Archaeology: Historical Studies

Local Histories and National Pasts: Empowering local people to reconnect with history

Summary of the impact

Since 1948, Leicester historians have transformed the way we look at the past by pioneering new methodologies centred on Local History. In the last two decades, this "Leicester Approach" has reconnected history to ordinary people, involving them in historical research and showing in practical ways the relationship between history and local communities. This case-study highlights the public impact of Leicester's latest research projects, which have systematically empowered local communities to explore, understand and enjoy their family, regional and cultural histories. In a fast-moving, migratory world, the projects enhance public awareness of a shared past, boost local place attachment, and foster cultural understanding and cohesion.

Submitting Institution

University of Leicester

Unit of Assessment

History

Summary Impact Type

Cultural

Research Subject Area(s)

Language, Communication and Culture: Cultural Studies
History and Archaeology: Historical Studies

‘Connecting Cornwall: Telecommunications, Work and Locality in West Britain, 1870-1918’

Summary of the impact

Dr Richard Noakes led `Connecting Cornwall', a project working with the Porthcurno Telegraph Museum (PTM) from February 2009 - July 2012, looking at the lives and careers of the `ordinary' men who operated the Victorian and Edwardian British submarine cable network.

The project was fundamental in building a working relationship with PTM that now paves the way for future research-based collaborations. The exhibition also raised the profile of PTM. A new section of the website was created for PTM, greatly improving its online presence and user experience. Impacts on the public have included providing access to previously unseen archival material, preserving and displaying artefacts of cultural heritage and in educating people with regards to their local history.

Submitting Institution

University of Exeter

Unit of Assessment

History

Summary Impact Type

Cultural

Research Subject Area(s)

Language, Communication and Culture: Cultural Studies, Literary Studies
History and Archaeology: Historical Studies

Local history and local communities in Staffordshire

Summary of the impact

Keele University's long-standing research expertise in local history, particularly that of its immediate region, has had a significant and enduring impact on professional practice, community resilience and individual well-being. Keele historians have provided vital assistance to local archivists and heritage practitioners in the preservation and public dissemination of the region's history and cultural heritage through the provision of substantial works of reference and support for study-days and community `road shows'. Their research has helped sustain local societies and encouraged a variety of volunteering initiatives, whereby groups and individuals are empowered to engage in their own study of the past.

Submitting Institution

Keele University

Unit of Assessment

History

Summary Impact Type

Cultural

Research Subject Area(s)

Studies In Human Society: Policy and Administration
Language, Communication and Culture: Cultural Studies
History and Archaeology: Historical Studies

The Reception of Classical Antiquity: Raising Public Awareness and Influence on Higher Education

Summary of the impact

The Bristol department of Classics and Ancient History has long been well known for its work on the reception of antiquity. In addition to scholarly publication it has sponsored a great many public events on reception topics, bringing aspects of the classical heritage to the attention of diverse audiences. The first aspect of the impact therefore relates to "creating and interpreting cultural capital" (Main Panel D Criteria, para 84). The second aspect is the influence this research has had on education during the REF period in HEIs both in the UK and North America with respect to the undergraduate curriculum.

Submitting Institution

University of Bristol

Unit of Assessment

Classics

Summary Impact Type

Cultural

Research Subject Area(s)

Language, Communication and Culture: Cultural Studies, Literary Studies
History and Archaeology: Historical Studies

Fifteenth-Century England

Summary of the impact

The Wars of the Roses and Richard III remain engrossing and controversial after 500 years throughout the Anglophone world and beyond. Hicks and Holford have made a significant impact on public knowledge and understanding of the period's politics and society. Their publications, printed and online, are valuable resources for professional and amateur historians, students and the general public, nationally and internationally. Hicks' Anne Neville underpinned Philippa Gregory's novel, The Kingmaker's Daughter and hence the BBC series The White Queen. The website, blog and twitter, Mapping the Medieval Countryside, are making the inquisitions post mortem (IPMs) much more widely accessible and useful than hitherto.

Submitting Institution

University of Winchester

Unit of Assessment

History

Summary Impact Type

Cultural

Research Subject Area(s)

Language, Communication and Culture: Cultural Studies, Literary Studies
History and Archaeology: Historical Studies

Public history: local history, community engagement, archive digitisation and e-learning

Summary of the impact

This case study in public history research activity has achieved impact through promoting lay engagement with twentieth-century local history and extending popular knowledge, appreciation, commemoration and ownership of the recent histories of local people, communities and institutions. A particular area of influence has been in relation to informing understanding of the history and heritage of urban council estates. Research has also influenced the development of good practice in digital preservation and archiving, and in the creation and use of historical e-resources by individuals, communities and schools.

Submitting Institution

Bishop Grosseteste University

Unit of Assessment

History

Summary Impact Type

Cultural

Research Subject Area(s)

Language, Communication and Culture: Literary Studies
History and Archaeology: Curatorial and Related Studies, Historical Studies

Filter Impact Case Studies

Download Impact Case Studies