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This case study describes the impact of practice-led research in health and social care settings. There are three main areas of impact to this research:
Dr Neil Brownsword's research focuses on the associated histories of ceramic manufacture in North Staffordshire, and its recent decline. Through his artistic practice, this research has been disseminated beyond academia to enhance public awareness of the social, cultural and economic effects of this downturn, on people, place and heritage. The impact of this research culturally, has arguably positioned Brownsword `at the forefront of current experimental and conceptual approaches to clay in Europe and Scandinavia' (Fielding 2008). In preparing programmes dealing with ceramic history, the BBC has presented Brownsword's expertise to communicate a broader public understanding of the region's post-industrial landscape.
The research has had significant impact in three key areas:
Between 25% and 33% of all perpetrators of sexual abuse in the UK are children or young people. Policy and practice in relation to this group has been under-developed. The research detailed in this case study constitutes a body of work that has identified gaps in service delivery and has significantly advanced policy, training, treatment services, and assessment and intervention practices for this group of children and their families. The research findings have led to a shift across key service providers, including Barnardo's and NSPCC, away from adult sex offender approaches towards more child-centred and holistic interventions.
Harrison makes public sculptural installations using and referencing the processes of firing clay in live public experiments that draw on, and become metaphors for, socio-political events. A Residency at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), London (October 2012-March 2013) enabled Harrison to bring the process and methods of these innovative time-based works (developed since 2002) to a larger public, including those in education at all levels and professional audiences, transforming attitudes, knowledge and understanding of the ceramics field, and contributing to significant economic impact via visitor numbers and practical workshops. The V&A has c1.6million visitors in any six-month period, 50,000 school trips, and a substantial online audience.
The two main impacts resulting from the research concern museum curation in Britain and educational curricula in the USA. The research has influenced museum curatorial practices around collections of 20th Century Design and collection development of the internationally significant Henry Rothschild Study Centre at Shipley Art Gallery, Gateshead. The research has provided the basis for curriculum development at the Cooper-Hewitt Smithsonian National Design Museum and Parsons School of Design, New York. This large body of research has had an impact on museum professionals and their fund-raisers, researchers across the UK and US, educators, post-graduate students, practitioners and the general public.
Research in the Department of Civil and Structural Engineering at the University of Sheffield on dynamic performance and vibration serviceability has contributed to internationally applied guidance on building serviceability for floors, buildings, stadia and other structures and has led to the spin-out Full Scale Dynamics Ltd (FSDL). Based on our research FSDL provides applied research and consultancy services, and has delivered projects approaching £1m since 2008. FSDL has demonstrated significant reach through its work with blue chip clients nationally and internationally. Our research has impacted on leading national sport infrastructure (such as Premiership Football stadia and notably the Olympic 2012 Velodrome) and public companies to deliver economic benefits by providing evidence based compliance, demonstrating that stadia, hospitals, manufacturing plants and other public structures comply with safety and vibration serviceability standards. Interventions based on our research and implemented via FSDL have, on numerous occasions, avoided potentially serious economic and safety consequences due to the poor vibration performance of structures.
In this case study we describe an interrelated collection of impacts on healthcare in the NHS; these are summarised in the Table below.
Research focusing on sustainable urban living explores design innovation at the intersection of technology and policy. Its impact has been through the co-design and co-development of integrated systems for securing a sustainable future in collaboration with user groups and communities. The research has reduced energy consumption and increased well-being through innovations in `whole system' retrofitting combined with user participation in the UK and France. It has also led to the development of `living laboratories' and exemplar projects for both the construction industry and building users, demonstrating ways of `locking-in' and reusing waste material in building construction. Influential in the development of planning policies for urban agriculture in London and Berlin, the research has also been instrumental in empowering and mobilizing communities in cities worldwide.
This case study in the history of British regional and urban culture demonstrates research impact that is an extension of the unit's longstanding commitment to benefitting regional and local constituencies. The impact extends to non-academic audiences locally, regionally and nationally. It has formed the basis of local collaborations with organisations that are prominent in curating Teesside's industrial and post-industrial heritage. Its local impact has also exemplified the unit's strong interaction with local and community history groups. The findings of Vall's underpinning research into the history of British regional and urban culture has also engaged local and national audiences through radio and television features and documentaries addressing regional identity and industrial heritage. This research has helped to raise public awareness of the specific challenges attached to the promotion of creative economies in industrial regions. Moreover, it has benefitted local people by revealing and contextualising the complexity and diversity of contemporary regional industrial heritage.