UCL: London's new beacon for public engagement

UCL is one of only six Beacons to be selected from 87 bids across the UK. The university will receive £1.2m through the initiative, which is funded by the UK higher education funding councils and Research Councils UK and supported by the Wellcome Trust. The university's Beacon partners include the Southbank Centre and the British Museum.

The funding and support will help UCL to build on its existing outreach programme which involves numerous university departments such as the UCL Petrie Museum of Egyptology, UCL's Centre for Transport Studies, and the UCL Mullard Space Science Laboratory working with schools, colleges and other groups to broaden access to the university's research and teaching and to engage in a dialogue with the community of which UCL is a part.

"Beacon status will help us build on the work we already do, by providing real incentives and support for staff and students to undertake more effective public engagement," said Professor Michael Worton, UCL Vice Provost (Academic and International). "We will build public engagement explicitly into our policies, develop our public spaces, provide tailored public engagement training and mentoring, and reward engagement through Beacon bursaries and fellowships."

To read the full press release, click here.