The Dalton Nuclear Institute has been recognised as “world-leading” by Prime Minister Andy Burnham during his Innovation Nation speech in Ұ������, where he outlined his vision for the UK to become the world's leading innovation nation.

At the forefront of nuclear innovation

In highlighting the organisations helping to drive innovation, economic growth and industrial renewal, the Prime Minister recognised the Dalton Nuclear Institute as one of the leading institutions at the forefront of nuclear innovation.

The recognition reflects the Institute's longstanding contribution to nuclear research, innovation, skills development and policy engagement.

As The University of Ұ������'s hub for nuclear activity, the Dalton Nuclear Institute brings together expertise spanning the full nuclear fuel cycle, advanced reactor technologies, fusion, decommissioning, materials, robotics, environmental protection and energy systems.

Research and skills

Alongside its internationally recognised research, the Institute plays a leading role in developing the future nuclear workforce. Through its Centres for Doctoral Training (CDTs), postgraduate programmes and industry partnerships, Dalton helps equip students and researchers with the skills needed to support the UK's civil and defence nuclear ambitions. The Institute also partners in the Nuclear Technology Education Consortium (NTEC), which delivers specialist postgraduate nuclear education to students and professionals from across the UK and around the world.

The Institute's impact extends beyond research and education. Through its policy engagement activities, including influential contributions like our Generic Feasibility Assessment tool, and policy papers addressing a range of challenges such as ‘non-proliferation for fusion energy’ and ‘actionable opportunities from the UK nuclear regulatory review 2025’, Dalton is helping to shape national conversations around regulation, energy security, innovation and the future of the UK's nuclear sector.

Watch Andy Burnham's speech at the Innovation Nation Summit in Ұ������:

The 30,000 sq ft centre is the first major physical development within the Atom Valley Innovation District (AVID), a 25-acre hub for advanced materials and manufacturing in Rochdale, bringing together businesses, researchers, investors and innovation partners in one location.��AVID provides an environment where organisations can innovate, grow and commercialise new technologies, strengthening Greater Ұ������'s position as a leading centre for advanced materials and manufacturing.��

Completion of the building represents a major milestone for years of partnership working between Rochdale Development Agency (RDA), Greater Ұ������ Combined Authority (GMCA), The University of Ұ������ and wider innovation partners.

RDA has led the physical development of the SMMC, working with partners to secure investment and position advanced materials and manufacturing as a priority opportunity for Rochdale and Greater Ұ������. The next phase will see work move from construction towards specialist fit-out ahead of bringing the centre into operation in 2027.

The RDA brought together partners from industry, academia and government to establish the Centre of Expertise in Advanced Materials and Sustainability (CEAMS) in 2023. Since then, businesses have been able to connect with a national network of specialist expertise, facilities and innovation support through the CEAMS partners, including The University of Ұ������, the Henry Royce Institute, National Physical Laboratory (NPL), CPI and NCC.

CEAMS has already supported more than 90 companies, developing new products and processes and demonstrating the value of a more connected innovation ecosystem.

The SMMC will provide a permanent physical gateway into the UK’s renowned advanced materials and manufacturing network. It will offer advanced materials and manufacturing businesses access to specialist space, facilities, expertise and the CEAMS national network of innovation support, helping them move from concept towards commercial application.

The development of the SMMC building has received £15.2 million from the UK Government's Towns Fund, £15m from the GMCA’s Good Growth Fund and £10 million from the Greater Ұ������ Investment Zone.

The next phase for the innovation district has received a further major boost through £16.4 million from the Local Innovation Partnerships Fund (LIPF), a flagship UK government programme delivered through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) in partnership with GMCA and Innovation Greater Ұ������ (IGM), investing £500 million to strengthen regional innovation economies across the country. The University of Ұ������ is the lead delivery partner for the programme, working with RDA and the CEAMS consortium of national innovation partners to activate the ecosystem around the SMMC. Independent analysis forecasts that the centre will generate £107 million of economic value over ten years, delivering a 2:1 return on public investment while helping to attract new businesses, inward investment and high-value employment into Atom Valley.

Councillor Daniel Meredith, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration and Housing at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “The building completion of the Sustainable Materials & Manufacturing Centre is fantastic news for Rochdale residents. This landmark facility will help create new employment opportunities, support the development of high-value skills and ensure local people can benefit from some of the most exciting advances in modern manufacturing and materials science.

“We've worked hard to position Rochdale at the forefront of innovation and advanced manufacturing, and the SMMC is a clear example of that ambition becoming reality. It's a major investment in our future, creating opportunities for local businesses, attracting new employers and helping to build a stronger economy for generations to come.”

Professor John Holden, Vice-President for Civic Engagement and Innovation at The University of Ұ������, said: “Completing the base build is a major achievement and testament to the partnership that has brought the SMMC this far. The opportunity now is to bring that physical investment to life by drawing together businesses, research, expertise and innovation in a way that creates lasting value for Rochdale, Greater Ұ������ and the UK.

“The University is the lead delivery partner charged with delivering the innovation ecosystem that will accelerate the growth of the advanced materials and manufacturing cluster already in the region, connecting our research strengths with businesses and national partners to help new ideas develop, scale and reach the market at pace, and attracting over £60 million in private sector investment. The SMMC and wider Atom Valley Innovation District is a crucial part of our commitment to driving innovation-led growth right across Greater Ұ������.”

Charlotte Deane, UK Research & Innovation senior sponsor for Greater Ұ������ said: “Greater Ұ������ has outstanding strengths in advanced materials and manufacturing. This £16.4m Local Innovation Partnerships Fund (LIPF) investment backs those strengths by connecting businesses with a national network of expertise and support to turn world-class research and innovation into economic opportunity by powering the growth of an advanced materials focused cluster of companies on the Kingsway Business Park.

“The SMMC and the wider Atom Valley Innovation District show the potential of universities, industry and

civic partners working together to support innovation-led growth, unlock new supply chain opportunities, create new jobs and strengthen the region’s ability to attract and grow innovative businesses.”

Mayor of Greater Ұ������ Bev Craig said: “Atom Valley is an exciting opportunity and key to our plans to bring good growth to every postcode in Greater Ұ������. The completion of the SMMC building is a major milestone for what will become a nationally significant hub for innovation.

“We’re providing space for businesses and connecting them with investment, world-class research, facilities and support within the wider Atom Valley Innovation District. In practice, that means more opportunities for our businesses to grow, attracting new investment to this part of Greater Ұ������, and more high-value jobs for our residents.”

The milestone was announced during a week where The University of Ұ������ hosted its inaugural Innovation Festival, to showcase Ұ������'s vibrant, globally connected innovation ecosystem and bring together researchers, students, entrepreneurs, partners, investors and civic leaders to explore how ideas become impact.

Where earlier days celebrated what Ұ������ is building, Thursday looked outwards. The first Cambridge x Ұ������ Partnership Innovation Summit filled Sister to the brim with founders, researchers, investors and policymakers from both cities. Panels explored the partnership’s mission to ‘supercharge innovation-led growth’, with speakers from the University, Arm, Northern Gritstone, No. 10 North, UKRI and the British Chambers of Commerce.

Six Ұ������ founders pitched their innovations in lightning talks, and Bev Craig, Mayor of Greater Ұ������, gave the keynote before closing remarks from University of Ұ������ President and Vice-Chancellor, Duncan Ivison and Shaun Grady, UK Chair of AstraZeneca. The Investor Summit continued the conversation on growth capital in the afternoon. In the evening, University of Ұ������ founders pitched to investors, mentors and partners at Ұ������ Venture Builder Demo Day, also at Sister, while Holiferm’s co-founders shared how they built their biotechnology company at The Founders Playbook at Ұ������ Museum.

Co-opetition: the experiment linking two innovation powerhouses

Opening the summit, Faye Holland, Partnership Director of the Cambridge x Ұ������ Partnership, argued that the UK's challenge may be less about talent or funding than about systems. The partnership is the UK's first deliberately designed cross-city innovation partnership, with three objectives: driving economic growth, building for global growth, and making sure that growth is good growth that reaches communities beyond the innovation economy. Duncan Ivison, President and Vice-Chancellor of The University of Ұ������, said the UK too often gets caught in binaries, such as north versus south, and needs to "multiply our relationships, not narrow them" to compete globally.

“What typically happens is we compete. Our postcodes compete, our councils compete, our combined authorities compete… I wonder why we don't use the word co-opetition, where we bring collaboration and competition together in a really positive way… We only have three years from start to finish to prove that this model can actually work.” — Faye Holland, Partnership Director, The Cambridge x Ұ������ Partnership

“Cambridge and Ұ������ are not rivals; they are increasingly one ecosystem, and the UK innovation economy, as a whole, is stronger for it.” — Shaun Grady, UK Chair, AstraZeneca

Six ventures, five minutes each: �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s ideas take the stage

Six lightning talks showed the kind of companies the partnership wants to help scale. Hosted by Dr Karim Bahou, Head of Innovation at Sister, the founders pitched for the audience’s vote. Alongside pitches from N:SYM and Nanoco, Spore Sense, which spun out of the University just four weeks ago, has developed a sensor that detects crop disease before symptoms appear. Silveray has invented flexible digital X-ray film for inspecting pipes and welds, an industry still largely reliant on analogue film. CircKit is helping fashion brands design waste out from the start, and Fava Health is bringing genomics into everyday healthcare for better personalised treatment.

“There is still a major imbalance in where innovation capital flows within the UK… Around 80% of venture capital still remains within London, Oxford and Cambridge… A big part of the opportunity is making it easier for founders to move between these two ecosystems, and share deal flow across both of these regions.” — Dr Karim A. Bahou, Head of Innovation, Sister

Competing with the world, not each other��

A panel chaired by Fiona Tuck of Metro Dynamics asked what Britain’s innovation economy still lacks. Professor Dame Jessica Corner, Executive Chair of Research England, said the UK is too small to treat its regions as separate innovation ecosystems, with capital “stuck” in the places that are already well resourced. Harriet Gordon, Deputy Director at No. 10 North, said the UK’s real competition is Boston, Silicon Valley and Paris: for investors, the choice is rarely Ұ������ or Liverpool, but Ұ������ or Munich.����

In her keynote, Bev Craig, Mayor of Greater Ұ������, said regions need to “complement each other, not just compete with each other”, and set out a vision of good growth that people can feel in their daily lives.��

“Simply creating growth to impact on someone’s bank balance, without seeing the number of jobs increase and the quality of someone’s life improve, is just growth for growth’s sake.” — Bev Craig, Mayor of Greater Ұ��������

Announcements and developments��

• The Cambridge x Ұ������ Partnership will launch an “innovation passport” by the end of the year, giving founders and researchers easier access to office space, accelerator programmes, investors and corporate partners across both cities.
• A joint investment prospectus for Cambridge and Ұ������ is on its way, Shaun Grady, UK Chair of AstraZeneca, told the summit, urging investors to “get in early”.��

Ұ������ 2035: voices from the Festival��

“I would hope that eight- and nine-year-olds growing up in Ardwick and Brunswick, right next to us, or a young person growing up in Rochdale, not only see the University as part of the place they live, but see it as theirs in some way.” — Duncan Ivison, President and Vice-Chancellor, The University of Ұ��������

“By 2035, I’d expect to see Graphene in many products, from shoes to clothing to computers to tyres to aircraft – not in there because it’s Graphene, but because it’s adding competitive advantage.” — James Baker, founder, Baker Graphene, and former Chief Executive, Graphene@Ұ��������

Demo Day��

On Thursday evening, the Masood Entrepreneurship Centre and Venture Café Ұ������ hosted Ұ������ Venture Builder Demo Day 2026 at Sister. University of Ұ������ founders from the Venture Builder programme took to the stage to pitch ventures they had spent months testing and refining. They ranged from Remi, a platform that helps therapists manage clients and build personalised exercises, to a student startup growing organic bananas and drying them with solar power. Investors, mentors, alumni, corporate partners and a delegation from Hartford in the US then joined the founders for a showcase and networking reception, continuing the outward-looking theme of the day.��

“I’ve made more progress in the paste ten minutes of networking here than in the past 30 days of cold emailing and cold LinkedIn messaging!” — Jacob Katz, founder, AMBS, BSc Management with Strategy, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship��

"Innovation doesn't happen just because you have a great idea… Getting people that have money, people that have technology, people that know how to do business – you can't do it on your own, but you can pull them together into one location." — Gene Goddard, Chief Business Investment Officer, Metro Hartford��

Around the Festival��

Away from Sister, Sow the City shared community-led social innovation at Growing Change event, and showcased funded projects at Inclusive Innovation for People and Planet. Beyond the Hearing Loop explored how Auracast audio technology could benefit deaf, hard-of-hearing and neurodivergent communities, and the University and national initiative, E3M met to discuss social enterprise innovation in public services.��

Coming up��

The Festival closes on Friday 9 October with the final of the Coller AI Competition, where University of Ұ������ AI startups pitch live for a £100,000 equity investment from The Jeremy Coller Foundation.����

The first cohort was recognised at a special celebration event on 24 September 2026, where participants received certificates marking the completion of the year-long programme. The event will also welcome the programme's second cohort as Teach Economics enters an ambitious new phase of growth.

Created in response to a shortage of specialist economics teachers and uneven access to economics education across the country, the programme supports qualified teachers to develop the knowledge, skills and confidence needed to teach A Level economics alongside their existing subject specialism. The training is provided at no cost to participating teachers or their schools.

Following a successful first year in North-West England, the programme is expanding significantly during the 2026/27 academic year. Teachers from selected regions across England and Wales will be able to take part, extending the programme's reach to more schools and colleges. A UK-wide expansion is planned for the 2027/28 academic year, creating even further opportunities for teachers and students to benefit from the initiative.

The programme was launched following research commissioned by the Bank of England and undertaken by FFT Education Datalab, which highlighted significant disparities in who studies economics. The research found striking differences in participation by region, socio-economic background, school type and gender, despite economics becoming increasingly popular in recent years.

Research findings showed that students in some regions are substantially less likely to study economics than those in London, while disadvantaged pupils continue to be underrepresented in the subject. Around 70% of economics students are male, highlighting ongoing challenges in widening participation.

The celebration event brought together teachers, University colleagues, Bank of England representatives and education partners to recognise the achievements of the inaugural cohort and explore the opportunities ahead as the programme continues to expand. The programme's second cohort will begin their studies during the 2026/27 academic year.��

An international team of Astronomers including researchers from the Universities of Ұ������ and Oxford have used a combination of the MeerKAT telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope to identify the most distant fast radio burst (FRB) seen to date.

Published today in , the new findings show that the host galaxy of the FRB is surprisingly small and young which suggests that there is little delay between when galaxies form stars and when they become capable of generating FRBs.

The record breaker dates back to just 3 billion years after the big bang though the origin of such events, remains uncertain. First discovered in 2007, FRBs are enigmatic, millisecond-long flashes of radio emission from the distant universe. Their finding has implications for what kind of energetic event creates these bursts.

The MeerTRAP team, led by Ben Stappers at the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, used the MeerKAT telescope in South Africa to detect the burst on March 4, 2024, leading to its designation as FRB 20240304B. The radio emission from this burst suggested that it was extremely distant, possibly the most distant one seen to date.

“The host sticks out in the whole galaxy sample that we have. And it was not what we were expecting,” said Ben Stappers of The University of Ұ������, a co-author on the paper. “This combination of using the MeerTRAP project on the MeerKAT telescope to discover and localize these distant bursts and Webb to study their hosts is very exciting.”

Webb’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) instrument detected a galaxy in the right location, and found that the FRB corresponded to a time just 3 billion years after the big bang. The vast majority of FRBs detected to date occurred billions of years later in cosmic history.

“What makes fast radio bursts interesting is that we don't know what generates them. We have theories for what objects produce them, but we don't have conclusive proof,” said Manisha Caleb of the University of Sydney, lead author on the study.

The team discovered that the host galaxy of FRB 20240304B was not typical of other galaxies with FRBs. Most FRB galaxies are massive star-forming galaxies, but the galaxy they found was 1,000 times less massive than they expected.

“We thought it would be a big, nicely formed galaxy with lots of stars, and instead it was a little dwarf galaxy, although it was actively forming stars,” said Caleb.

The galaxy existed at the height of “” – a period in the history of the universe when star formation was at its peak. The galaxy’s rate of star formation suggested that the majority of its stars may have formed within just 30 million years.

This has important implications for the origin of fast radio bursts. One theory suggests that FRBs may originate from the merger of two neutron stars, whilst a second theory proposes that an FRB can originate from a single, young, highly magnetic neutron star known as a magnetar through a mechanism like starquakes.

“Our work suggests that it’s very unlikely that this FRB was produced by a merger,” said Caleb.

In addition to being a record-holder, the new FRB enabled the team to learn more about the billions of light-years of apparently empty space between the burst and Earth.

Dr Kaustubh Rajwade from the Department of Physics at the University of Oxford and co-author of the study led the software development that enabled localising the FRB. "MeerKAT is uniquely placed to find FRBs at such distances and it’s one of the few telescopes that can find FRBs from the early days of the Universe and probe important epochs in our Cosmic history” said Dr. Rajwade.

In the future, the team is excited about the potential to discover more distant FRBs. They estimate that the MeerKAT telescope may be able to detect and localize several FRBs per year potentially dating more than halfway back to the start of the universe. As other new radio telescope facilities and instruments come online, that discovery pace may grow. The Webb telescope will be essential for characterizing those distant host galaxies.

In the first study of its kind, published in , the scientists show how changes in this gene can cause a much milder disease than previously known

They identified that in 14 patients with retinitis pigmentosa, it was caused by certain combinations of faults in a gene called IDUA.

The gene is normally associated with mucopolysaccharidosis type I (MPS I), a rare disorder that can cause severe physical disability, heart problems, skeletal abnormalities and shortened life expectancy.

Yet several of the patients in the study showed no signs of the disorder despite detailed medical assessments and follow-up into their forties, fifties, sixties and seventies.

Their failing eyesight was the first and sometimes only clue to an underlying health problem.

The findings suggest some people with retinitis pigmentosa may actually have an extremely mild form of a metabolic disease that has gone unrecognised for decades.

The discovery expands our understanding of MPS I and reveals that the condition can exist in a much milder form than previously thought.

None of the patients carried the combinations of severe genetic faults normally seen in classic MPS I.

Instead, they carried milder combinations of gene faults in IDUA.

Through a series of lab experiments, the scientists found these milder faults act in different ways - some directly reducing the enzyme's activity, others disrupting the gene's splicing instructions - but in each case leaving behind only a tiny fraction, as little as 0.5 to 2 per cent, of normal function.

The scientists suspect this tiny amount of residual activity may be enough to protect most organs from damage while leaving the retina vulnerable.

One theory is that the eye may be especially sensitive to defects in the body's cellular recycling machinery because of its exceptionally high energy demands.

The findings could have implications for genetic screening programmes designed to identify rare diseases, including MPS I, in newborn babies.

And they also underline the importance of including IDUA and related metabolic genes in genetic testing for inherited retinal diseases.

Lead author from The University of Ұ������ said: "This study shows that the same gene can cause dramatically different disease outcomes, depending on how much of its related enzyme activity remains.

“In some patients we found almost no evidence of the devastating multisystem disorder typically associated with IDUA - their disease appeared confined to the retina, the mildest presentation we've seen to date.

“These findings broaden the recognised spectrum of disease, improve diagnosis for patients with inherited blindness, and provide important clues about why the retina appears especially susceptible to even very small reductions in enzyme function.

“We hope they will help clinicians identify hitherto unrecognised cases of IDUA-related disease and pave the way for future treatments aimed at preserving vision before irreversible damage occurs.”

• The paper Hypomorphic IDUA genotypes are associated with retinitis pigmentosa in individuals without syndromic mucopolysaccharidosis type I , published in ,�� is available at DOI: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2026.09.008

Children as young as five can engage meaningfully with complex ideas about human rights, new research from The University of Ұ������ suggests.

The study explored how children aged five to nine understood human rights through their engagement with Dreams of Freedom, a picturebook based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Dr Rebecca Simpson-Hargreaves found that children were able to interpret ideas about rights through their own experiences, cultural knowledge and conversations with other children - challenging assumptions that human rights are too complex for young children to understand.

Children develop their own ideas about rights

The research found that children did more than simply identify or explain the rights presented in the picturebook.

When invited to create their own rights pages, children came up with ideas including the “Freedom to protect wildlife”, the idea that “Men and women should have the same rights”, and the “Freedom to love”.

Other contributions focused on empathy and kindness, having choices, rest and play, fairness and protection.

Dr Simpson-Hargreaves says these responses show how children can interpret human rights through everyday experiences of care, fairness and belonging, rather than only through formal definitions of rights.

Children question the adult world

The research also found that children were capable of reflecting critically on the relationship between children and adults.

Some children questioned whether adults really understand children's perspectives and why adults' views are often given greater weight. This included one Year 4 pupil who said: “Adults think that because they run the country that they know best.”

The researchers say such responses demonstrate children's awareness of power relationships between adults and children.

Giving children different ways to speak

The research involved interviews, focus groups and creative activities with children in three primary schools.

Using a picturebook alongside discussion and drawing allowed children with different reading, writing and speaking abilities to express their ideas in different ways.

The research found that the whole picturebook provided a stronger basis for children's deeper reasoning than using isolated extracts. The open-ended format gave children opportunities to interpret the material for themselves and develop their own ideas.

The findings suggest that providing children with genuine opportunities to discuss complex issues can reveal forms of reasoning that may otherwise be overlooked.

“Picturebooks can provide a valuable starting point for these conversations, particularly when children are given the space to lead discussions and explore ideas in their own ways.”

Publication details

Title:
Investigating Children’s Perceptions of Human Rights Values Through the Picturebook Medium

URL:

The University of Ұ������ celebrated the very best in collaboration and knowledge exchange on Wednesday 7 October at the inaugural Partnership Excellence Awards, recognising the people, projects and organisations delivering outstanding impact through partnership working.

Held at the Whitworth Art Gallery as part of the University's Innovation Festival, the awards brought together academics, researchers, professional services colleagues and their external partners and collaborators for an evening of celebration. The inaugural awards attracted more than 120 nominations, with 25 partnerships shortlisted across eight awards. They were organised by the Business Engagement and Knowledge Exchange team, led by Dr Louise Bates, Director of Business Engagement and Knowledge Exchange, and hosted by compere Adam Lovell.

Welcoming guests, Professor John Holden, Vice-President for Civic Engagement and Innovation, said partnership runs through the University's Ұ������ 2035 strategy. “No matter how good we are as a university, we can only have the scale of impact we want by working with others,” he said. Over the past year, he added, the University has created 191 new business partnerships, around one for every working day, and now ranks first in the UK for contract research with small and medium-sized enterprises.

The awards, Professor Holden said, were about “recognising the people and relationships that make those projects possible… We all know that partnership working depends on brave people.”

This year's winners demonstrate the impact of collaboration across research and innovation, business growth, social enterprise, regional development and strategic industry engagement.

Strategic Alliance Excellence

🏆 Boots / No7 & Prof. Michael Sherratt and Dr. Abigail Langton

The long-standing partnership between Boots / No7 and The University of Ұ������ was recognised for its outstanding contribution to skin science and evidence-based skincare. Over more than two decades, the collaboration has translated world-leading research into products used by millions of consumers while generating significant research outputs, investment and innovation.

Regional Partnership Excellence

🏆 United Utilities & Prof. Timothy Foster

United Utilities was recognised for a long-standing collaboration with the University covering areas including integrated water management, digitisation, robotics, sustainability and skills development. The partnership has helped inform major regional initiatives and continues to support innovation and economic growth across the North-West.

Research Collaboration Excellence

🏆 FUJIFILM & Prof. Alan Dickson

The partnership between FUJIFILM and the University was recognised for advancing bioprocessing and biomanufacturing research through the Centre of Excellence in Bioprocessing 2.0. The collaboration has supported researchers and PhD students, generated high-quality publications and strengthened the translation of research into industrial applications and novel biological medicines.

Social Enterprise Excellence

🏆 One World Together & Prof. Nicola Banks

One World Together received the award for its partnership with the University to support changemaking education, community engagement and social impact. The collaboration has secured funding to work with schools across Greater Ұ������, provided valuable opportunities for students, and supported community-led organisations both in the UK and internationally.

Small Business Partnership Excellence

🏆 Saraco Industries Ltd & Prof. Sarah Cartmell and Prof. Andrew McBain

Saraco Industries Ltd was recognised for a highly successful partnership that has combined academic expertise with industrial innovation to develop plastic-free clinical disinfection wipes for healthcare applications, while strengthening the company's research and development capability. The collaboration has evolved through multiple projects and demonstrates the long-term value of university-SME partnerships.

Academic Business Engagement and Knowledge Exchange Champion

🏆 Dr Thomas Bannan

Dr Thomas Bannan was recognised for an extensive portfolio of partnerships that translate atmospheric science into public, environmental and economic benefit. His work spans collaboration with local authorities, industry, policymakers and communities, including leadership of air quality initiatives, Innovate UK projects and the £1.3 million RAMMIC Retrofit Innovation Centre.

Business Partnership Rising Star

🏆 Dr Milo Harries

Dr Milo Harries received the Rising Star Award for his work with Leeds City Council and the Aire Resilience Company, using creative and participatory approaches to engage communities around climate resilience and natural flood management. His work has helped strengthen cross-sector collaboration and support the growth of the Aire Resilience Company as a Community Interest Company.

Partnership Excellence of the Year

🏆 Saraco Industries Ltd & Prof. Sarah Cartmell and Prof. Andrew McBain

The evening's highest accolade, Partnership Excellence of the Year, was awarded to Saraco Industries Ltd in recognition of the depth, longevity and impact of its collaboration with the University. Through multiple collaborative projects, the partnership has combined expertise in bioengineering, microbiology and materials science to drive innovation, support business growth and develop new healthcare solutions with real-world impact.

An evening of partnership

The winners' trophies were designed and manufactured by students in the University's Makerspace, reflecting the creativity and collaboration at the heart of the celebration. The shortlist was reviewed by a panel of 21 judges from academia, leadership, professional services and innovation.

Rising Star category shortlisted nominee Dr Amy Worth had partnered with Eli Lilly and Company for a decade to study the complex neuronal circuitry that underpins the actions of GLP-1 drugs to combat diabetes, obesity and cravings for alcohol. She and lab group lead Professor Simon Luckman said that trust is at the heart of the partnership. “We’ve built it up over 20 years, so now there is very open and honest exchange.”

For Dr Joanne Tippett, whose RoundView project was also shortlisted, a good partnership requires: “It takes the ability to try something out and find out it doesn't work and learn from that and keep going and iterating on an idea.”

Congratulations to all finalists and the many colleagues, support staff and external partners whose commitment and collaboration underpins the success that these Partnership Excellence Awards celebrated in style.

Wednesday was the Festival’s busiest day yet. At Ұ������ to Market, spinouts supported by The University of Ұ������ Innovation Factory showcased their work on the ground floor of University Place, from AI-guided enzyme engineering to virtual reality healthcare training and research-led theatre.

A short walk away in Whitworth Hall, the Powerhouse of Innovation Showcase brought together the teams, programmes and partners that help those ideas grow, including a new collaboration between the Innovate UK Innovation-to-Commercialisation of University Research programme (ICURe) and the .

In the evening, the inaugural Partnership Excellence Awards at the Whitworth celebrated the partnerships behind the University’s impact. The evening’s highest accolade, Partnership Excellence of the Year, went to Saraco Industries Ltd, Professor Sarah Cartmell and Professor Andrew McBain, whose collaboration has developed plastic-free clinical disinfection wipes for healthcare.

From enzymes to the stage: �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s spinouts step into the spotlight

Ұ������ to Market filled the ground floor of University Place with spinouts supported by The University of Ұ������ Innovation Factory, whose portfolio now numbers around 84 companies worth an estimated £400–500 million. The ventures exhibiting were at very different stages. Among them, Imperagen uses an AI-led robotic lab to engineer enzymes for manufacturers. GiFT, an electromagnetic guidance system for tracheostomy procedures, improved needle accuracy fourfold in trials on mannequins, and its team estimates it could save the NHS around £50 million a year. Not every venture was a technology: Tiny Human Dramas turns anthropological research into short pieces of theatre.

“If it hadn’t been for the Innovation Factory, I wouldn’t have known I belonged in this space… In the arts, a little bit of attention and a little bit of funding goes a long way. The more of us that are in this scene, the more it’ll feel like this is innovation, of a particular kind.” — Megan Rose Donnelly, Lecturer in Social Anthropology and founder of Tiny Human Dramas

The innovation ecosystem backing �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s bright ideas

The Powerhouse of Innovation Showcase in the Whitworth Hall brought together some 25 of the teams, programmes and partners that help ideas grow across the University, and one new collaboration showcased one way in which those pieces can connect. The Innovate UK ICURe programme, ran across the North from The University of Ұ������, helps “commercially curious” academics find out whether there is a real market for their research by getting out and talking to potential customers, investors and regulators. Starting later this month, ICURe’s latest local endeavour will bring cohorts of materials researchers at the Henry Royce Institute together with business mentors and potential customers, adding commercial know-how to the equipment and expertise Royce already opens up to researchers, spinouts, and SMEs.

“The best part of this job is, without a shadow of a doubt, talking to these entrepreneurial leads and seeing their personal development growth… to see the light bulb come on above their head.” — Veronica Ferguson, Head of Regional Hub Operations Manager, Innovate UK ICURe

“Don’t put risk-averseness in front of innovation… In order to innovate, in order to keep moving, we’ve got to expand our boundaries… We’ve got to have the freedom to think, the freedom to challenge, the freedom to question and test. Those are the core fundamentals.” — Saeed Adam, Client Relations Manager, Executive Education, Alliance Ұ������ Business School

Inaugural Partnership Excellence Awards celebrate Ұ������'s collaborators

The University celebrated its most impactful collaborations on Wednesday evening at the inaugural Partnership Excellence Awards, held at the Whitworth Art Gallery as part of the Innovation Festival.

Organised by the Business Engagement and Knowledge Exchange team, directed by Dr Louise Bates, the awards drew more than 120 nominations. The joyous event brought 25 shortlisted partnerships together, adding an extra layer of connection between academics, industry, public sector and community collaborators.

Congratulations to everyone, especially each category winner:

• Regional Partnership – United Utilities with Prof. Tim Foster, Department of Civil Engineering and Management.
• Social Enterprise Partnership – One World Together with Prof. Nicola Banks, Global Development Institute, School of Environment, Education and Development.
• Strategic Alliance – Boots/No 7 with Prof. Michael Sherratt and Dr Abigail Langton, School of Biological Sciences.
• Small Business Partnership – Saraco Industries Ltd with Prof. Sarah Cartmell and Prof. Andrew McBain, Department of Materials and School of Biological Sciences.
• Research collaboration – FUJIFILM with Prof. Alan Dickson
• Academic Business Engagement and Knowledge Exchange Champion – Dr Thomas Bannan.
• Business Partner Rising Star – Dr Milo Harries.

The multidisciplinary partnership with Saraco Industries also won the Partnership of the Year Award. The relationship began with an award-winning Knowledge Exchange Partnership in 2021 that advanced materials science, biophysics and microbiology expertise into the business, enabling development of plastic-free clinical disinfection wipes that met stringent EN standards. The partnership deepened with further projects to on formulation development and collaboration on a clear, data-driven R&D roadmap. A second KTP is now developing bacteriophage-infused wipes for healthcare applications.

Professor John Holden, Vice-President for Civic Engagement and Innovation, said: “Partnership working depends on brave people.” The University applauds all the pioneers and risk-takers nominated for these awards.

Read the full awards story story.

Announcements and developments

• On Tuesday evening, the University celebrated the completion of William Kay House, putting innovation at the heart of campus and creating a new home for .

Ұ������ 2035: voices from the Festival

“If by 2035 we can tangibly say that, through the things we’ve supported, we have improved quality of lives, through environmental and social impact, I would feel extremely proud.” — Catherine Headley, Chief Executive Officer, The University of Ұ������ Innovation Factory

“I’d love one of our spinouts to get to the scale where they’re employing 10,000 people. It’s about jobs, and the impact that has. For me, that’s what it’s all about.” — Nic Gowland, Portfolio Director, The University of Ұ������ Innovation Factory

“Next month we’ll use it in patients in hospital… This could actually save people’s lives.” — Professor Andy Weightman, Professor of Medical Mechatronics, The University of Ұ������, on his hopes for the GiFT guidance system

Around the Festival

Beyond the core events, the Masood Entrepreneurship Centre hosted an Enterprise Educators UK exchange event on partner-enabled learning, bringing together academics, University colleagues, students and industry representatives to explore how industry partnerships can be built into enterprise and entrepreneurship education. At Contact Theatre, Creative �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s Re-imagining Innovation: The Value of Creative Practices, part of The Cultural Welcome festival, explored how creative writers and artists approach ideas about innovation – a fitting companion to the theatre of Tiny Human Dramas at Ұ������ to Market.

Coming up

On Thursday 8 October, the brings founders, researchers, investors and policymakers to Sister / Renold Building (8.45am–1.30pm), followed by the invite-only Investor Summit (1.30pm–5pm).

University founders then pitch at , also at Sister (5pm–8.30pm), while Holiferm’s co-founders share their story at , Ұ������ Museum (5pm–7pm).

Fringe events include:

• Social Enterprise Innovation in Public Services

The ultra-sensitive monitoring technology reveals how different parts of the brain respond during a stroke, potentially allowing doctors to identify which areas can still be saved and which are at greatest risk of further harm.

The study in mice, published in , brought together researchers from The University of Ұ������, the Institute of Microelectronics of Barcelona (IMB-CNM, CSIC), the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), and industry partner Multi Channel Systems in Germany.

Ischaemic Stroke is one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide and occurs when a blockage cuts off blood supply to part of the brain.

But scientists say the initial loss of blood flow is only part of the story, because a second wave of damage can spread through surrounding tissue in the hours that follow.

These waves, known as cortical spreading depolarizations, are bursts of abnormal electrical activity that travel through injured brain tissue and can contribute to the expansion of the original injury.

Until now, researchers have struggled to study the signals accurately because conventional monitoring technologies cannot reliably capture the extremely slow electrical changes involved.

However, using advanced graphene-based sensors placed directly on the brains of mice, the team recorded these events in unprecedented detail, revealing signals that are poorly captured by conventional recording technologies and whose significance has therefore not been fully appreciated.

The researchers found that the shape and characteristics of the electrical signals acted as a fingerprint for the health of nearby brain tissue.

The signals were able to distinguish between tissue that remained relatively healthy, tissue that was vulnerable and potentially recoverable, and tissue that had already suffered severe damage.

Crucially, the technology also revealed how blood vessels responded when these electrical waves passed through the brain.

In healthier areas, blood flow increased to support recovery, while in more vulnerable regions blood flow sometimes fell even further, increasing the risk of lasting damage.

The team then demonstrated that these harmful responses could be modified using low doses of ketamine, a drug already widely used in clinical practice.

Ketamine shortened the duration of damaging electrical events, improved blood flow responses and reduced the overall size of brain injuries in the study.

Lead author from the University of Ұ�������� added: “This work raises the prospect that graphene-based brain monitoring could one day provide doctors with a real-time map of brain vulnerability during stroke.

“This could helping them target treatments to patients most at risk and ultimately improve recovery and long-term outcomes.”

Co-author from The University of Ұ������ and UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, said: “For the first time, we have been able to see critical stroke-related brain signals with a level of detail that was previously impossible to achieve.

“What is particularly exciting is that the signals tell us about the condition of the surrounding brain tissue and how likely it is to deteriorate further.

Co-author Dr Anton Guimerà-Brunet from IMB-CNM, CSIC�� said: “This study opens up the possibility of monitoring injury as it happens and identifying opportunities for intervention when treatment could make the greatest difference.”

• ·The paper “Perfusion-dependent spreading depolarization signatures identify tissue vulnerability in stroke”, is published in DOI: 10.1093/brain/awag305
• Image depicts the graphene-based brain sensor��on a mouse's brain

The CDT in 2D Materials of Tomorrow hosted its Industry Engagement and Partnership Day at the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC) on 25 June 2026, bringing together academics, GEIC specialists and companies to identify industrial challenges and develop new opportunities for collaboration.

Rather than following a traditional programme of academic presentations, the event adopted an industry-led approach, inviting companies to present their current technical challenges and unmet needs. This enabled academics and GEIC specialists to explore potential solutions and identify opportunities for collaborative R&D and industry-supported CDT PhD projects.

The afternoon featured themed breakout sessions covering 2D-material-based devices and electronics; composites and coatings; membranes, filtration and separation technologies; and imaging and characterisation. Roundtable discussions were complemented by dedicated one-to-one meetings, giving industry representatives and researchers the opportunity to explore specific technical challenges and potential collaborative projects in greater depth.

A key objective was to connect fundamental academic research with translation and commercialisation. The event highlighted the GEIC’s capabilities in scale-up and commercialisation, demonstrating how collaborative research in 2D materials can progress from university laboratories towards industrial application.

The event attracted a diverse range of organisations, from established companies and national organisations, including Seagate, Baker Hughes and the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), to emerging technology companies such as AeraLung Technologies, alongside Water Offsets, Cambridge Display Technology, Vector Homes, TBA Protective Solutions and others.

Professor Rahul Nair, commented:��

The approach has already delivered tangible outcomes, with two industry-funded projects secured and a further project currently under discussion as its scope is finalised.

The longer-term ambition is to build a collaborative environment that brings together academic expertise, industrial insight and the scale-up and commercialisation capabilities of the GEIC. By integrating these strengths from an early stage, the CDT aims to develop research projects that address genuine industrial needs while creating valuable opportunities for doctoral researchers to engage directly with industry.

Prof Cinzia Casiraghi, Chief Scientific Officer at the GEIC, comments:

“We have been delighted to host this CDT event at the GEIC, reflecting our role in connecting academic research with industrial innovation. Bringing PhD researchers and industry together creates opportunities for industry-supported research addressing real technological challenges, while developing the skills and collaborations needed to accelerate advanced materials innovation.”

Unlocking ideas with �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s future innovators

MEC Ideas Unlocked, a hands-on event at University Place, brought together students from across the University to explore what it means to think and act like an entrepreneur. Masood Entrepreneurship Centre’s Louise Taylor, Enterprise Manager, and Dan Syder, Ecosystem Development Manager, worked with students in groups as they identified a problem, brainstormed solutions, and shaped their thinking using the MEC Business Model Canvas.

For many, it was a first taste of enterprise: "Usually we have lots of ideas, but we don't know how to structure them, how to convert them into a business," said Prem Todeti, a first-year renewable energy master's student.

The event reflects MEC's university-wide remit — and its momentum. Director Lee Pugalis said the Centre has almost trebled business formation over five years, with over 80 businesses created in the last year alone.

"I never would have met any of these individuals had I not come to the event. It just demonstrated the importance of people from all over the world having different ideas, but you can still come together and make one solid foundation." — Darcey Cornish, final-year International Management student, Alliance Ұ������ Business School

"Today’s event showed me that every problem has a solution. Collectively, we can work together and do better." — Dr. Soumya Pujar, Master's in Public Health student, University of Ұ������

Rooted in the North, global in mindset

The strongest spin-outs think globally from day one. That was the consensus at Northern Gritstone's panel at the Whitworth Art Gallery, which explored how northern start-ups can scale worldwide without losing their regional roots. From life sciences to battery technology, panellists agreed that companies go global because their innovations meet real customer needs around the world.

But global ambition need not mean leaving the North behind. Dr Nicola Broughton, Chair of University of Liverpool spin-out Extentus Pharma, said a company can run sales and a commercial hub in the United States while keeping its research base in the UK. Northern roots also carry growing weight. As Professor Sam Butterworth, Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Ұ������ spin-out Apini Therapeutics, put it: "I think our Ұ������ origin builds on reputation. There is great science coming out of the Northwest."

One panellist was missing for the best possible reason. Dr Tim Echtermeyer, founder of PhovIR Technologies, a spin-out from the University's Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre, was in California meeting investors to secure the company's next funding round.

“Recruiting people with experience, I think, is the most important thing you can do to grow globally. If you get that flywheel going, that's what's really exciting.” — Joanne Hosker, Head of NG Innovation Services, Northern Gritstone

Founders find clearer routes to grow at Sister

If the Whitworth panel showed how far Ұ������'s strongest ventures can go, Founder Momentum Day showed how entrepreneurs take the first steps. Back for a second edition at Sister, the innovation hub on the University's former North Campus, the day connected early-stage founders with peers and more specialist advice.

Getting ready for investment was a recurring theme. In a workshop on investor readiness, Adam Clayton of GM Business Growth Hub said that investors are now backing the founder as much as the product. So, transparency, resilience and a well-organised data room, count as much as the pitch deck. He urged founders to name their rivals rather than avoid them: "Competition is good because it shows there's money to be made."

“Days like this matter for AI founders like me. You can build something technically brilliant, but you only learn how to win people’s trust by talking to customers, advisers, and other founders.” – Leyla Ari, AI entrepreneur

The afternoon's Silicon Sessions, hosted by Lewis Sayes of Silicon Mingle, swapped pitching for problem-solving. Three founders each shared a real challenge, then experts and peers worked through solutions together, including Karim Bahou, Head of Innovation at Sister, and specialists in marketing, commercial law and grant funding. "We always like to present our businesses as perfect," Sayes said. "That’s why I enjoy doing this so much, because it changes that around."

The support continues after the day. Sister runs free Thursday evening gatherings and co-working space for founders, Silicon Mingle holds a monthly mixer on the last Wednesday of each month, and Founder Momentum Day returns in a few months. As Will Pretsell of Evolve Speakers told the room at the close, "Your business is only going to grow as far as you push it.”

Ұ������ 2035: voices from the Festival

“Students are our most powerful innovators. So, if every student was graduating with an entrepreneurial mindset... it could be well in excess of 50,000 students. That talent pipeline is the biggest impact we can have in terms of innovation.” — Lee Pugalis, Director, Masood Entrepreneurship Centre

Coming up

Wednesday’s sessions: , 09:30–13:00, Ground Floor, University Place and , 11:00–16:00, Whitworth Hall.

Waitlist available:

The Partnership Excellence Awards will celebrate outstanding collaborations, partnerships and knowledge exchange activity that deliver impact across The University of Ұ������ and beyond… (Invite only.)

A new £1.2 million EPSRC grant will support researchers at The University of Ұ������ in exploring how water and dissolved salts behave under atomic-scale confinement, addressing a longstanding challenge in nanoscience, energy technologies and molecular biology.����

Researchers at the at The University of Ұ������ have been awarded a £1.2 million Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Standard Research Grant to investigate the electrical properties of water and aqueous electrolytes when confined to spaces just a few atoms thick.����

Led by , the project, Unravelling the Electrical Properties of Two-Dimensional Water and Aqueous Electrolytes, will bring together researchers from Ұ������ alongside collaborators at Politecnico di Milano, the University of Cambridge and Oxford Instruments Asylum Research. The Ұ������ team includes co-investigators Professor Sir Andre Geim and .��

Water is essential to processes ranging from energy storage and electrochemistry to biological function, yet many of its electrical properties remain poorly understood, particularly near surfaces and under extreme confinement. While scientists have studied these effects for decades, directly measuring them at the atomic scale has remained a major experimental challenge.��

The new project builds on recent breakthroughs by the Ұ������ team, which developed a unique experimental platform capable of confining water inside atomically thin channels and probing its electrical behaviour with nanoscale precision. Previous studies revealed that water confined to layers only one to two nanometres thick can exhibit unusual electrical polarisability and exceptionally high conductivity compared with bulk water (see and ).

The research will focus on developing new devices made from two-dimensional materials that can confine water and electrolytes within atomically thin channels. Using an advanced scanning probe microscopy technique, scanning dielectric microscopy, the team will measure and map electrical properties including conductivity and dielectric response with unprecedented spatial resolution.����

Alongside experimental work, the project will develop new theoretical models to explain how water and ions behave under confinement and provide much-needed experimental benchmarks for simulations in physical chemistry, electrochemistry and molecular science.����

The findings could have implications across a range of fields. Water and electrolytes confined within nanoporous materials are central to batteries, fuel cells, supercapacitors, filtration membranes, emerging iontronic devices, which use ions rather than electrons to process and transmit signals, and biomolecular function. Improved understanding of their behaviour could help guide future developments in energy technologies, water treatment, sensing and nanofluidic systems.��

Professor Sarah Sharples, Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering at The University of Ұ������, "The properties of water under extreme confinement have surprised us before. By combining advanced two-dimensional materials with new nanoscale measurement techniques, we now have an opportunity to investigate questions that have remained experimentally inaccessible for many years."����

The three-year project will be carried out at the National Graphene Institute, drawing on Ұ������'s expertise in two-dimensional materials, nanoscale device fabrication and scanning probe microscopy, together with theoretical and industrial partners in the UK and Europe.

A placement programme at The University of Ұ������ is giving accounting and finance students the opportunity to apply what they have learned to real-world problems, while providing practical support to local charities.

The Social Responsibility Placement Programme led by Dr Nooch Kuasirikun, Associate Professor at Alliance Ұ������ Business School, was launched in summer 2025 to connect postgraduate accounting students with registered charities in Ұ������.

The programme has grown from two charities taking part in its first year to five in its second, with students volunteering around one day a week over a four-to-six-week period between late June and July.

Their work has included helping charities organise financial information, analyse expenditure and donations, improve reporting and develop tools to support their financial management.

Practical help for charities

Participating charities have praised the students for their professionalism, reliability and ability to work independently while responding to the organisations' needs.

In one case, students helped a charity organise a year's worth of expenditure and work through four years of donations in preparation for a Gift Aid claim.

Another group developed a new tool designed to save staff time, improve financial reporting and help the charity identify potential financial risks at an earlier stage.

For the students, the placements have provided an opportunity to see how their accounting knowledge can be applied outside the classroom.

Several students have highlighted their satisfaction at seeing work they had produced being used by organisations in the community. One student said it was particularly rewarding to know that a dashboard they had created would continue to be used by the charity after their placement had ended.

The placements have also enabled students to develop practical skills including Excel automation and data processing, while gaining experience of working with organisations operating with limited resources.

Accounting with a social purpose

Working with charities has given the students an insight into some of the different pressures involved in managing finances in the voluntary sector, where financial sustainability has to be balanced with an organisation's social mission.

Dr Nooch Kuasirikun, who leads the programme, said the experience demonstrated the wider contribution that accounting expertise can make.

The programme is expected to expand further, with the organisers hoping to involve more Ұ������ charities and students in future placements.

Charities interested in taking part in the next programme, which is due to take place in June and July 2027, can contact Kirsty.Hutchison@manchester.ac.uk and/or nooch.kuasirikun@manchester.ac.uk to discuss potential accounting tasks that students could undertake.

That streak of rebellion, the instinct to question the rules, try something different and find another way has remained a defining feature of an exciting and innovative career.

Lomax says studying Liberal Studies in Science at The University of Ұ������ in the 1960s changed the course of his life. It was a degree that combined pure science with subjects including technology, economics and the history of innovation.

“I just wanted to be an entrepreneur and build things, I love business. Ұ������ had the Atlas 1 computer, which weighed more than two tonnes. It was fascinating, I learned to programme and that became a transformational part of my life”.

After graduating, he took that knowledge into industry, exploring how computers could transform traditional engineering.

In the 1980s, he helped turn Misys, a small technology software company, into a global business employing thousands. In 1998, it became the first UK IT company to enter the FTSE 100.

Five decades on from that first trip to The University of Ұ������ as a student, Kevin Lomax has returned-this time with a £1m gift to the Founders Fund. The University of Ұ������ has pledged a further £2m to the fund to help students, staff and graduates access early-stage investment for innovation and business.

The University of Ұ������ has set an initial goal to raise £10m for The Founders Fund through philanthropic donations.

The investment will address a critical funding gap facing students, staff, and alumni entrepreneurs as they turn ideas into viable high growth companies.

The Fund is part of Challenge Accepted, the University’s ambitious initiative bringing together its global community to tackle major challenges, unlock new ideas and turn innovation into positive impact.

For Lomax, the crucial word is early.

He has spent much of his career investing in early-stage technology companies and has seen first-hand how a relatively small amount of money at the right moment can make a difference to an idea becoming a successful business.

One investment he describes has since reached a valuation of billions of dollars. But four years earlier, the company needed just $150,000 to get started.

“If it didn’t get the $150,000, it wouldn’t have got off the ground” he says.

That, Lomax argues, is the gap the Founders Fund can help address.

“The earliest stage of building a company is also one of the riskiest, 8 out of 10 early ventures may fail. That is precisely why conventional investors can be reluctant to provide the first funding."

Lomax believes that risk is essential.

“That's where the future is. New companies are where much of the future economic growth and job creation will come from. Established businesses can become more efficient and grow steadily, but it is often new businesses that have the potential to grow rapidly and create entirely new markets.”

The Founders Fund is more than simply writing cheques. It is about creating the opportunity to test an idea, learn, adapt and, crucially, sometimes fail. The courage to change direction is something Lomax understands from his own experience.

Misys began with a different ambition. Initially, Lomax wanted to develop computer-aided design technology, but he realised that the company could not build the momentum to compete effectively in the American market. He changed course, turning instead to insurance software.

For today’s entrepreneur, he believes the lesson is simple: don’t become so attached to the original idea that you fail to recognise when the market is telling you to change.

“You start off with one aim, but you quickly recognise that actually you’re going in the wrong direction, and you need to have a different one.”

There are many lessons to learn in business. For Lomax, a fundamental one is that people matter more than ideas.

When he considers investing in an early-stage technology company, he says the first thing he looks at is the people.

“You can have the best idea in the world, but if you don’t have the skill set to deliver on that it won’t succeed. And that means recognising your own limitations.”

For highly technical minds, it could mean bringing in people who understand sales, markets, finance or how to turn brilliant technology into a commercial proposition.

“Understand what needs to be done and trust in the right people to do it.”

The Founders Fund will be launched at the beginning of a week-long programme of activity across The University of �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s inaugural Innovation Festival.

High-potential ventures are expected to typically receive investments of £25,000 to £250,000, in return for a small, non-controlling equity stake. The call for applications is expected to open in January 2027.

Lomax says there is so much to celebrate about Ұ������ - its innovation, cultural diversity, and welcoming spirit. For him, bringing entrepreneurs, researchers, investors, and students together is valuable because nobody knows where the next idea will come from.

“Innovation requires people to put ideas on the table, challenge them and see what happens.”

Lomax fondly remembers doing just that in the early days of his career.

“We would finish work and head to the pub, where they would debate what the company should do next.”

“It was a very creative process where people were coming up with ideas all the time, obviously not all good.”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“The important thing is creating an environment where people feel able to suggest something different.”

The University used the opening day of the Innovation Festival to launch , a delivery plan designed to help create “Europe’s most inclusive and impactful innovation ecosystem” by 2035 as part of the University’s Strategy to 2035. The plan sets out how the University will broaden innovation beyond technology transfer and spinouts to include partnerships, skills, communities and social impact.

Announcing a new £10 million University Founders Fund to help students, staff and alumni turn promising ideas into viable businesses, Professor Aline Miller, Associate Vice-President for Enterprise and Chief Scientific Officer at Unit M at The University of Ұ������, said: “Innovation is for everyone, and it’s not just about technology. It’s about doing new things, new ways.” Professor John Holden, Vice-President for Civic Engagement and Innovation and Chief Executive Officer, Unit M added: “We like to talk about those $1 billion unicorns. But innovation is really about helping solve societal challenges.” He aspired to Ұ������ becoming home to the first “social unicorn” using innovation to improve one billion people’s lives.

Founder and University of Ұ������ board member at Mattillion, Matt Scullion agreed that Ұ������ is poised for success in the global community by 2035: “It’s a lovely turnabout that I think other city regions in the UK and Europe are looking to Ұ������ as this beacon of innovation and growth. And, you know, that’s not been an overnight thing, but it’s also not stopping.”

Planning for Ұ������ as a centre for inclusive innovation

A panel chaired by Elvira Uyarra, Professor of Innovation Studies at Alliance Ұ������ Business School and Executive Director of the , asked how the University’s ambition for Europe’s most inclusive innovation ecosystem might translate into delivery. Dr Julian Skyrme, Executive Director of Social Responsibility and Civic Engagement, framed inclusion around three questions—innovation for whom, by whom, and how—arguing that affected communities must help shape decisions.

Professor Johannes Glückler (University of Munich) urged Ұ������ to build relationships between currently disconnected sectors, citing Coventry’s linking of automotive and gaming clusters. Professor Meric Gertler (University of Toronto) said research excellence alone does not guarantee local benefit, but universities can deliberately change that, backed by “local, patient” capital.

Lisa Dale-Clough, Director Economy at Greater Ұ������ Combined Authority, highlighted the Atom Valley innovation district in Rochdale and said inclusive innovation must improve job quality and solve local problems.

Ұ������'s impact in early-stage ventures

From life sciences spinouts to next-generation diagnostics, innovators at the Festival shared what it takes to turn promising research into real-world solutions. Dr Alexander Stokes, a founder of Imprinted Diagnostics, described his mission to build a portable blood-testing platform based on innovative molecular imprinted polymer technology. He’s grown the company from a two-person team to a wider network of 30 collaborators and is now looking to the US for investors. Professor Sam Butterworth (Apini Therapeutics) highlighted how University support, translational funding and investor backing helped transform early-stage research into a multimillion-pound venture now advancing towards clinical trials. Across the session, speakers emphasised the importance of collaboration, persistence and learning from setbacks. As Matt Scullion, founder of Ұ������ AI and data unicorn Matillion, reflected: “We've got this deep reservoir of academic and scientific expertise here... I think we can figure out ways to put it together and build the consequential companies of tomorrow better.”

Announcements and developments

• The University of Ұ������ is launching a £10m Founders Fund to provide crucial pre-seed investment for the next generation of entrepreneurs. Read the full story.

Coming up

Students at Ұ������ won’t want to miss Tuesday’s MEC Ideas Unlocked event, 10:00-16:00, The Atrium, University Place. Find out more →

Join one of Tuesday’s fringe sessions, including a panel session “Building companies that are rooted in the North but Global in mindset” sponsored by Northern Gritstone, 10:15-12:00, Whitworth Art Gallery. Reserve your spot →

A team of experts at the University of Ұ������ will combine expertise to transform how we understand British democracy.

The team will be involved in the British Election Survey (BES) - the longest-running and most authoritative survey of electoral behaviour in the UK, tracking the attitudes and behaviour of British voters at every general election since 1964.

A new study, themed ‘Representing Voters’, places the representation of different groups of voters at the heart of its design, analysis and dissemination. It will introduce new methods, new data and new ways of making the British Election Survey accessible to researchers, policymakers, journalists and the public.

The Ұ������ experts, , , and are based in the departments of and , and they form part of a research team bringing together investigators from University of Ұ������, Royal Holloway and King’s College London. The full team combines expertise in electoral behaviour, survey methodology, AI, social media, candidate politics and public engagement.

For further information visit:

Reinforcement learning (RL) is a powerful paradigm for policy optimisation in sequential decision making, it is used to train an intelligent agent (policy) to make optimal decisions by maximising some long-term reward. While online RL learns a policy by actively interacting with an environment and collecting new data through exploration and exploitation, offline RL learns a policy from a fixed, pre-collected dataset without further interaction with the environment. A typical challenge in offline RL is distributional shift, where the learned policy may encounter scenarios not covered by the offline data. This paper tackles distributional shift and integration of labelled (with rewards) data and unlabelled (without rewards) data in offline RL.

The proposed method, called semi-pessimistic pseudo labelling (SPL), makes it possible to take advantage of the unlabelled data to find a better policy than would be possible only using the labelled data. This improves the reliability of decision-making by improving estimation and accounting for uncertainty while remaining computationally efficient. The authors provide theoretical guarantees for the method and demonstrate its effectiveness through simulations, standard reinforcement learning benchmarks, and an application to adaptive deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's disease. By making better use of available data, the approach has the potential to improve AI systems in healthcare and other high-stakes domains.

You can find the full ‘.

Jin Zhu^1,2, Xin Zhou³, Jiaang Yao⁴, Gholamali Aminian⁵, Omar Rivasplata⁶, Simon Little⁴, Lexin Li³∗, Chengchun Shi¹∗
¹London School of Economics and Political Science, ²University of Birmingham, ³University of California at Berkeley, ⁴University of California at San Francesco, ⁵The Alan Turing Institute, ⁶University of Ұ������. *Corresponding authors.

The research, funded by The Christie Charity and led by scientists at The University of Ұ������, aims to transform how doctors detect breast cancer that develops during or just after pregnancy, which is often discovered late when the cancer has already spread, which leads to poorer survival rates.

Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer-related death in women aged 35–64 in the UK, and is increasing twice as fast in women under 50 compared to women over 50. While breastfeeding is generally associated with lowering the long-term risk of developing breast cancer, risk rises during pregnancy and after giving birth and gradually falls over the following decade.

The study, called BRACELET-BM, has started recruiting participants at the Nightingale Centre in Wythenshawe, part of Ұ������ University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT). One of the first mothers to donate breast milk is married mum-of -three, Hannah Brennan, 31, from Glossop in Derbyshire who has a 12-month-old baby girl, Ada, as well as a five-year old daughter and a two-year-old son.

The registered midwife who is currently studying for a PhD at The University of Ұ������ said: “As soon as I saw the research team were looking to recruit women who were breast-feeding, I wanted to do it. As I’m doing my doctorate, I’m passionate about people being involved in research. My paternal grandmother died aged 51 from breast cancer and sadly I never met her. However, I was named after her and I’m told I look like her so I’m doing this for her as well as my two daughters.

“Participating in the BRACELET-BM study was really straight-forward. I just gave a blood sample and donated some breast milk and answered a few questions. As a midwife I feel it’s really important to help other women, so if my small contribution can benefit other mothers in the future, I’m just glad to be able to make a difference and would encourage other breastfeeding mums to take part.”

Pregnancy-Related Breast Cancer, diagnosed during pregnancy or shortly afterwards, occurs in approximately 1 in 3,000 pregnancies in the general population. Among women at very high risk of breast cancer, such as BRCA gene carriers, rates have been reported as high as 1 in 50 pregnancies. Between 35-50% of breast cancer cases in women under 55 years of age are within 10 years of having a baby and 5% of breast cancer in women under 45 are within a year of giving birth. Better breast cancer screening is needed especially in younger women.

The BRACELET-BM study is led by Dr Niki Flaum from The University of Ұ������, in partnership with Dr Florent Mouliere at the CRUK National Biomarker Centre. Professor Sacha Howell, consultant oncologist at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and MFT is a co-lead on the study.

Dr Niki Flaum who is also a consultant oncologist at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust said: “There is an urgent need to find better, more reliable ways to detect breast cancer in women during and after pregnancy. We believe breast milk may provide a unique and non-invasive window into what is happening inside the breast. We know surprising little about the genetic changes to breast milk, as this bio-fluid has been remarkably under-researched until now.

“Pregnancy-related breast cancer is more likely to be diagnosed at a later stage, when the cancer has already spread, and survival outcomes are significantly worse compared with women of the same age who have not recently given birth. Diagnosis is particularly challenging because breast imaging during pregnancy and lactation is often unreliable.

“Thanks to The Christie Charity’s support, Ұ������ has the opportunity to lead internationally in developing a completely new approach to breast cancer detection. If reliable methods for detecting cancer-related DNA in breast milk can be found, we hope future research will test whether this approach could be developed into a screening tool for women with breast cancer or those at high risk.”

Initially the study will recruit 40 lactating women, 25 with general population risk and 15 from a high-risk category where there is a family history of breast cancer. Researchers will collect breast milk and blood samples from patients at the Nightingale Centre and Saint Mary’s Hospital, also part of MFT, to develop a Ұ������ Breast Biofluid Biobank with more than 200 samples available for future research.

The team within the Cancer Research UK National Biomarker Centre, part of the University of Ұ������ will analyse the samples of fluid.

Dr Florent Mouliere, who leads a research team at the Cancer Research UK National Biomarker Centre in Ұ������ where the samples of breast fluid are being analysed said: “Scientists in our laboratories have identified tiny fragments of genetic material shed by cells in some samples of breast milk that have been donated for this study. The DNA structure is unique in breast milk, and we now understand what this DNA looks like which is a major step forward.

“We now need to focus on the main aim of this study, which is to explore how best to collect the samples, work out if they can be safely frozen in a domestic freezer (which would be a convenient method for a nursing mum), what time of day is best for a sample to be collected, and if other factors such as an infection in the mother or baby would affect the sample results.” An international study (September 2023) showed that circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) could be detected in breast milk, but the best methods for collecting, processing and storing breast milk for this purpose have not yet been established.

Alongside donating blood and breast milk samples, participants will complete questionnaires and interviews to assess how acceptable this approach is, ensuring any future screening method is practical as well as effective.

Lousie Hadley, chief executive of The Christie Charity, said “We are very pleased to be able to fund this important research which could improve early detection of breast cancer in high-risk women, including BRCA carrier, enable screening specifically for pregnancy-related breast cancer and help predict risk of postpartum breast cancer. It would also provide reassurance for high-risk women wishing to breastfeed, who are currently often advised to stop early so MRI screening can resume.

“This support is part of The Christie Charity’s commitment to providing £30 million of much-needed funding by 2030 to enable our brightest researchers to make game-changing discoveries right here in Ұ������. We are very grateful for the continued support of all our donors in helping us reach this goal.”

The initial feasibility study for BRACELET-BM was funded by Prevent Breast Cancer, Cancer Research UK and the Academy of Medical Sciences.

For more information on how to take part in this research and donate breast milk and a blood sample should email the-christie.bracelet-BM@nhs.net or call 0161 918 7694. Anyone wishing to donate to The Christie Charity can visit Help support research at The Christie Dr Niki Flaum and Professor Sacha Howell are both part of the Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Theme at the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre (BRC): Ұ������, which aims to develop screening strategies and biomarkers to identify cancer and cancer risk sooner.

The University has set an initial goal of raising £10 million for the Fund, predominantly through philanthropic support.

So far, the Founders Fund has received a £2m commitment from the University and a £1m philanthropic gift from alumnus and technology entrepreneur Kevin Lomax.

The announcement marks the beginning of a week-long programme of activity across the University's inaugural Innovation Festival.

The Founders Fund will address a critical funding gap facing students, staff, and alumni entrepreneurs as they turn ideas into viable businesses. Alongside investment, founders will be connected to Unit M’s wider innovation ecosystem, giving them access to support, expertise, and networks as they launch and grow their ventures. As ventures develop, they will be better positioned to attract further private investment, including potential seed-stage backing from investors such as Northern Gritstone.

It will provide founder-friendly equity investment to high-potential start up and spin out ventures affiliated with the University, helping entrepreneurs launch and grow ambitious companies, attract follow-on private investment, and retain entrepreneurial talent within the region.

The Fund is part of Challenge Accepted, the University’s ambitious initiative bringing together it’s global community to tackle major challenges, unlock new ideas and turn innovation into positive impact.

Returns from successful investment will be reinvested in future ventures, helping to support successive generations of university entrepreneurs.

Over time, the Fund will contribute to the University’s ambition to create Europe’s most inclusive and impactful innovation ecosystem by 2035, while generating lasting financial, economic, and reputational value for the University and the region.

Professor Aline Miller, Associate Vice President (Enterprise) and CSO, Unit M at The University of Ұ������, said:

“I am incredibly excited to be launching the Founders Fund. It represents a strong commitment from the University to our innovation agenda and to backing talented students, colleagues and alumni who have the ambition to turn great ideas into high-growth ventures. I am looking forward to seeing the quality of ideas that come through the pipeline and helping more founders take their first steps towards impact.”

Kevin Lomax, University of Ұ������ alumnus and entrepreneur said:

“The University of Ұ������ has fantastic technology, research, and graduates, as well as an incredible culture and environment. I want to see it become a real heartbeat of the UK. I hope the Founders Fund will help create a legacy, supporting entrepreneurs to turn their ideas into businesses, creating jobs, and helping drive economic growth.”

Investments are expected to range from £25,000 to £250,000, typically in exchange for a small, non-controlling equity stake.

The inaugural call for applications is expected to open in January 2027.

End

Scientists have developed a new way to make ceramic materials that can better withstand extreme heat and continue performing reliably in sensors and actuators. The approach creates tiny structures throughout the material that give it new electrical and mechanical properties.

Using heat to organise from within

The international team have created what they describe as “bulk ferroelectric heterostructures” within a lead-free bismuth ferrite-barium titanate ceramic. Instead of building materials from many ultra-thin layers to create useful electrical effects, the researchers used heat to reorganise the material from within. This created tiny regions with slightly different chemical make-ups throughout the ceramic, each thousands of times smaller than the width of a human hair. Together, these regions formed an internal network that changed how electricity and mechanical forces moved through the material.

The study published in addresses a longstanding challenge in materials science. Many of the unusual electrical and electromechanical behaviours that emerge at interfaces can be achieved in thin-film devices, but translating these effects into solid materials suitable for practical applications has proved difficult. The new study demonstrates a way to reproduce these interface-driven effects inside a scalable ceramic architecture.

Potential application areas identified by the researchers include high-temperature piezoelectric sensors, ultrasonic transducers and electromechanical actuators, particularly in situations where conventional materials face limitations due to temperature, electrical loading or long-term stability requirements.

Impact on thermal performance

Using atomic-resolution microscopy, spectroscopy and computational modelling, the researchers found that the heat treatment drives nanoscale elemental partitioning, creating Bi-rich and Ba-rich regions within a coherent crystal lattice. These compositionally distinct regions generate local electric fields, elastic strain fields and charged domain walls that influence how the material behaves under electrical and mechanical loading.

One of the most striking findings was the impact on thermal performance. The researchers report a Curie temperature of 824°C in the engineered material, more than 350°C higher than the starting material. The ceramic also maintained strong piezoelectric performance at temperatures relevant to industrial sensing and monitoring applications.

The team also demonstrated a method for creating programmable ferroelectric behaviour. By combining electrical or mechanical conditioning with thermal ageing, they were able to imprint preferred domain configurations into the material. These configurations remain recoverable after the application of strong electrical fields, enabling reversible electromechanical responses that are often difficult to achieve in conventional bulk ferroelectrics.

In one configuration, the researchers achieved large reversible shear strains, a characteristic that could be useful in actuator technologies. The study also reports internal bias fields exceeding 8 MV m⁻¹, substantially higher than those typically observed in traditional bulk ferroelectric materials.

The work builds on around a decade of research into lead-free piezoelectric ceramics at The University of Ұ������ and has already led to intellectual property protection for the underlying materials and manufacturing approach. The research team behind this study is supporting the translation of the research towards potential industrial applications.
The study involved researchers from The University of Ұ������, the Henry Royce Institute, ShanghaiTech University, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Diamond Light Source, the University of Leeds and Sheffield Hallam University.

added: “The broader significance of this work is that it introduces a new design framework. Instead of focusing solely on changing composition, we can use controlled nanoscale self-organisation to build new functionality directly into a material. We believe this concept could be applied across a much wider range of ferroic materials in future.”

In a Ұ������ laboratory, a jet engine component is being redesigned to support cleaner and more resilient flying. Just a short walk away, across seventy-two high-definition screens in the Alliance Ұ������ Business School, a digital twin of Greater Ұ������ is tracking nitrogen dioxide levels across the city’s road network. Meanwhile, in the Centre for Quantum Science and Engineering, a research team is developing navigation systems that might soon be able to run without satellites.

Ұ������ is the perfect place to explore some of the most complex questions facing the transport system, so when the Department for Transport brought some of its senior leadership team to the University for facility tours, a research showcase and panel discussions with regional leaders, they found opportunities to meet University colleagues and connect research, innovation and public value. A city where academic experts are already working with industry and local government to accelerate innovation, inform policy and connect national transport priorities with the needs of people and places.

Shaping the future of transport

Most of the hardest transport challenges we face don’t exist in isolation. Decarbonising aviation will need advances in chemistry, materials science, engineering and social science. Making freight logistics smarter will involve data science, AI and industry input on how ports work at their best. Whereas keeping infrastructure safe and strong for decades demands new approaches in mathematics, monitoring and materials.

�Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s research community reflects that complexity, so during this event delegates explored three interconnected themes.

1. Decarbonising transport

• Professor Sandy Smith showcased his work on liquid hydrogen propulsion systems that could enable a new generation of zero-emission aircraft
• highlighted advances in jet engine design that could reduce wear in components, improve their performance and support a more resilient future for flying.

• Researchers from then presented their work on the transition to more sustainable transport systems across aviation, shipping and active travel, including their recommendations on the proposed Heathrow expansion.

2. Smarter systems

• Dr Jayadev Vijayan demonstrated quantum acceleration sensing technologies, which could make it possible to navigate underground and in other environments where satellite signals are unreliable.
• Dr Ciara McGrath and Conor March showcased SatVis, an augmented reality platform that visualises the normally invisible satellite infrastructure which underpins modern transport and communications.
• Dr Arijit De presented an AI-powered digital twin for freight, maritime logistics and port operations, which allows operators to make faster, safer and more sustainable decisions across complex supply chains.

3. Advanced materials, emerging technologies and infrastructure

• Professor Philip McCann and outlined the spatial economics of regional productivity and its implications for investing in transport.
• Professor , Dr Chris Hickey, Michail Dellepiane, , and all showcased how advances in their fields – from computation and infrastructure engineering, to regulatory insight and materials science are supporting safer, smarter and more resilient transport networks.
• Researchers from the Centre for Robotics and AI and the , demonstrated a range of transport-related robotic applications.

Dr Jayadev Vijayan discussing how quantum acceleration sensing technologies could unlock new situational awareness capabilities via subterranean mapping and enable navigation systems that do not rely on satellites.

Facilities built for transport

Research alone isn’t enough. Moving from insight to impact, requires facilities where ideas can be tested, validated and scaled. Over the past decade the University has invested £1 billion in its campus to create infrastructure that’s designed precisely for that purpose.

During their visit, delegates explored six of those facilities, each one offering a different window into how Ұ������ moves research into the real world.

• is a unique large-scale facility that enables interactive three-dimensional exploration of complex datasets using high-definition screens. It offers transport researchers and University partners the ability to interrogate data at scale, including a digital twin of Greater Ұ������ incorporating NO2 emissions data and related urban datasets.
• provides the capability to test and validate future electrification components and networks. Its expertise spans power electronics, electric machines, energy storage and aircraft electrical networks, including the Rolls-Royce 120 kW IEPNEF facility, making it a critical resource for research into the electrification of transport.
• houses pilot-scale facilities where low-carbon hydrogen, sustainable aviation fuels and other clean technologies can be developed and tested under industrially relevant conditions, bridging the gap between laboratory research and deployment at scale.
• �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s is the largest electrical infrastructure test and research facility in UK academia. Its work spans high voltage systems for future electric aircraft, to novel cable transmission systems, helping to accelerate the electrification of transport more broadly.
• The Aerospace Systems Laboratory specialises in aerial robotics and autonomy, covering improvements to flight vehicle capabilities and the development of new use cases for existing technology – during the visit it also hosted a live drone demonstration within its indoor tracking arena.
• Finally, the University Library’s , spanning around 2,600 items from the 19th and 20th centuries, provided a unique historical resource on the development of railways in Britain and internationally, connecting our present moment to a much longer story of transport change.

�Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s High Voltage Lab is the largest electrical infrastructure test and research facility in UK academia supporting the electrification of transport.

Connecting research, cities and people

Exemplified by the Bee Network, the UK's first fully integrated public transport system outside London, Ұ������'s transport research does not happen at a distance from the places and people it is designed to serve. Instead, it is embedded within one of the UK's most ambitious city-regions, where the University works alongside local and devolved government, civic institutions and industry as an active partner in shaping and delivering change.

How this ecosystem enables Ұ������ to move rapidly from research and innovation to real-world implementation was explored during a panel discussion at the event.

Transport, Growth and Partnership in Greater Ұ������ brought together leaders from Ұ������ City Council, the Greater Ұ������ Combined Authority, Bruntwood SciTech and Ұ������ Airports Group.

Fittingly, the discussion was hosted in the University's Engineering Building, located at the heart of the Oxford Road Corridor, one of Greater Ұ������'s most economically significant districts. Home to more than 70,000 jobs and generating around £3 billion in Gross Value Added annually, the Corridor brings together universities, Ұ������ University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Ұ������ Science Park and a growing mix of commercial, retail and leisure developments. As a place where research, healthcare, business and government sit side by side, it offers a powerful example of how long-term partnerships can strengthen places, accelerate innovation and turn ambition into delivery.

Leaders from Ұ������ City Council, the Greater Ұ������ Combined Authority, Bruntwood SciTech and Ұ������ Airports Group joined colleagues from the University and Department for Transport to discuss the power of collaboration.

A second panel session, The Future of Sustainable Mobility: Connecting Transport, People and Place, chaired by Professor Alice Larkin and featuring Dr Chris Jones, Professor Karen Lucas and Professor Paul Mativenga, explored how transport connects to broader questions of social equity, environmental sustainability and economic opportunity.

A strategic partner for transport innovation

From sustainable fuels and aircraft electrification to robotics, infrastructure, digital twins and transport policy, The University of Ұ������ offers partners access to a connected research ecosystem, rather than a series of isolated specialisms.

For further information or to explore potential research and innovation collaborations with The University of Ұ������, across transport, mobility, infrastructure, electrification or decarbonisation, please contact the Business Engagement team.

Ұ������ has been ranked eighth in the UK for another year whilst falling slightly by four places to 60 overall in the world in the latest 2027 rankings of 2,297 universities. Its overall score is 74.8, a marginal decrease of 0.1 points compared with the previous year.

It follows progress in the latest domestic league tables, with Ұ������ rising 15 places to 20th in the Guardian University Guide 2027 and being named Northwest University of the Year in The Sunday Times Good University Guide.

The results come as the University begins to implement Ұ������ 2035, its ten-year strategy to strengthen excellence in teaching, learning and research. It also underlines the need to improve �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s international position in an increasingly competitive global higher education environment.

Professor Duncan Ivison, President and Vice-Chancellor of The University of Ұ������, said: “Ұ������ remains one of the UK’s leading universities, but we recognise that our global position has declined and that we need to improve.

“Ұ������ 2035 sets out how we will build on our strengths, raise the quality and consistency of our teaching and research and translate more of our discoveries into benefits for society. This will take sustained effort across the University, but we have a clear strategy and a strong foundation from which to make progress.”

Professor Colette Fagan, Vice-President for Research of The University of Ұ������, said: “The recent suite of university rankings are a useful gauge for us as we begin to put our strategy into practice.

“By bringing together outstanding research, new ideas and partnerships, Ұ������ makes a substantial positive difference to communities locally, nationally and globally.

“Rankings don’t measure everything we value, or everything universities contribute to society. But they do give us a useful indication of where we can keep improving. I’m grateful for the continuing hard work of colleagues across the University and for their commitment to our students, our research and the communities we serve.”

The Times Higher Education assessment looks at universities across teaching, research environment, research quality, industry and international outlook.

A University of Ұ������ undergraduate has won second place in the Cambridge Edge AI Innovation for Sustainability Challenge 2026 with a concept designed to improve early wildfire detection whilst reducing reliance on energy-intensive data centres.

PyroWatch, developed by Computer Science student Marwan Barakat Abdelfattah, proposes a network of affordable devices that can analyse local weather and environmental conditions to help predict wildfire risk and support faster response.

The project was named runner-up in the national competition, which challenged UK university students to design AI systems that can learn from each other without exchanging raw data between edge nodes or uploading raw data to the cloud.

Marwan received a £2,000 prize for his second-place finish.

How PyroWatch works

Wildfires are becoming an increasingly urgent sustainability challenge, with devastating consequences for communities, livelihoods, food production, public health and carbon emissions. PyroWatch was inspired by the growing visibility of wildfires in places such as California, as well as the need for more accessible tools that could help governments, fire services, local authorities and businesses prepare for and respond to fires earlier.

The concept uses solar-powered devices with batteries to run small AI models close to where data is generated. By processing information locally rather than relying on constant data transmission to central servers, the system is designed to reduce communications, energy use and dependence on data centres.

Unlike some existing wildfire monitoring approaches, which can depend on expensive thermal cameras and fixed infrastructure, PyroWatch is intended to be low-cost, scalable and deployable across high-risk landscapes, industrial sites and remote locations. Marwan said the system could also learn from local coordinates and previous fire conditions to estimate where risks may emerge or continue.

Marwan Barakat Abdelfattah said: “Being selected as a finalist and winning second place means a lot. It was the first time I had produced an independent research document of this kind, and I learned so much through the process. It showed me how much work researchers put into producing credible ideas that could make a real-world difference.”

The Cambridge Edge AI Innovation for Sustainability Challenge 2026 is hosted by MICROP Inc. and its sister company Arculus System in partnership with the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL). The competition invited students to explore AI approaches that keep data local, operate within limited computing and energy resources, and exchange knowledge to create collective intelligence across distributed systems.

James Yang, CEO and Co-founder of MICROIP Inc. and Arculus System, said: "Well done to the talented creator behind Pyro Watch on a brilliant individual submission. The creativity shown in tackling real-world environmental monitoring and thermal management through intelligent, localized AI design is highly commendable. It is inspiring to see such fresh thinking from a solo innovator, and this unique perspective holds great promise for shaping a safer, more sustainable future."

Viola Jardon, Head of Innovation Programmes at CISL, said: “The future of AI cannot simply be about using more data, more computing power and more energy to become smarter. The real innovation challenge is how we create greater intelligence within real-world constraints. This challenge was all about giving the next generation of UK talent the opportunity to explore AI that can collaborate while keeping data local, use resources more intelligently, and ultimately deliver more sustainable outcomes.”

Further information is available at: .

In a study published in Nature Chemistry, an international team of researchers from Germany and the UK, including chemists from The University of Ұ������, have synthesised and characterised what they describe as the first isolable uranium Fischer-type carbyne, a compound where carbon forms an unusual triple-bond interaction with uranium.

The findings give researchers a clearer example of how uranium can form multiple bonds with carbon, providing a new reference point for comparing the chemistry of actinides with more familiar transition metals. The discovery also demonstrates a new way of building previously inaccessible uranium compounds, expanding the toolkit for studying heavy-element chemistry.

Showing that uranium can form a rare carbon bond

Metal-carbon triple bonds are well established in transition-metal chemistry, but creating an equivalent uranium compound stable enough to isolate and study has proved much more challenging. Until now, related uranium examples had only been observed under highly specialised conditions, such as at extremely low temperatures or when trapped inside hollow carbon molecules known as fullerene cages.

The team, including , , , and Adam Brookfield, used a new synthetic strategy combining a uranium precursor with a recently developed carbon-atom transfer reagent, enabling them to create the compound and study it in detail.

To confirm the discovery, the researchers used single-crystal X-ray diffraction, spectroscopy, magnetometry and advanced computational analysis. Together, these methods showed that the new compound has the key features expected for a Fischer-type carbyne.

The team’s measurements showed that the uranium and carbon atoms sit 2.379(15) Å apart from each other. In chemical structures, shorter distances are usually needed to have multiple bonding, but in this case quantum crystallography was used to visualise and confirm the uranium–carbon triple-bond interaction. Further analysis showed that this bond is formed through two-way electron sharing: carbon donates two electrons to uranium, while uranium also donates electrons back to carbon, in this case with two orthogonal one electron bonds which is rare.

The compound was also found to be relatively unreactive, which is what chemists would expect for this type of Fischer carbyne. Additional experiments showed that the bonding could be changed through chemical reduction, giving the team further evidence for how the compound’s electrons are arranged.

Why the discovery matters

The findings are primarily important for fundamental chemistry. They provide researchers with a clearer picture of how uranium forms bonds with carbon and help place actinide chemistry within a broader understanding of how elements behave across the periodic table.

The work also highlights the potential of modern carbon-atom transfer reagents to create compounds that were previously difficult or impossible to access, potentially enabling future studies of uranium-carbon bonding and related actinide systems.

, Research Fellow, at The University of Ұ������, said: “This study provides a platform for exploring new uranium-carbon bonding chemistry. Understanding how these interactions work will help us place actinide chemistry in a broader context and could guide future efforts to design related compounds.”

Running from 17 October to 7 November, the Festival features a programme of free public events addressing some of the most pressing questions facing society today. Led by researchers from a range of disciplines and perspectives, the events take ideas and expertise beyond the University and into communities, exploring the impact of the cost of living crisis through activities designed for audiences of all ages and backgrounds.

This year’s focus on money, finance and the cost of living examines how financial pressures affect individuals, families and communities, while highlighting how social science can help us understand these challenges and their wider effects.

The Festival’s impact is clear. Last year, 93% of participants said they learned something new, while 58% said the events changed their opinion about something.

Putting money and the cost of living under the spotlight

Through discussions and workshops, participants will learn how financial decisions affect our everyday lives and challenge common assumptions about money.

This year’s theme was praised for its poignancy by :

The activities will explore topics such as how children understand money and fairness, whether generosity can survive rising costs of living, the hidden costs of bereavement, the impact of the cost of living crisis on reading and education, and learning how research is helping communities navigate economic uncertainty.

These events offer a chance to engage with big issues in accessible, thought-provoking ways, showing exactly how the social sciences can help us make sense of the world around us.

This year's programme

This year's events are inclusive for everyone. Whether you’re a family looking for child-friendly activities over half-term, a professional looking for development opportunities, or simply interested in learning more about the topics, there’s something for you!

Below is an overview of some of the events taking place so far:

• , 17 October 2026, 10.00 to 15.00

Discover the hidden mathematics behind every day cultural practices, interests, and communities, and learn how numbers influence our daily lives in ways we often don't notice.

• 28 October 2026, 10.00 to 15.30

Can people still afford to be generous when money is tight? This interactive event explores giving, fairness and community in an age of economic uncertainty.

• , 28 October 2026, 10.00 to 15.30

Through poetry and creative expression, explore how financial pressures are shaping educational experiences and share your perspective in an evolving exhibition.

• , 28 October 2026, 10.00 to 15.00

A series of activities demonstrating how different generations think about money, where financial confidence comes from, and why attitudes towards spending and saving can vary so widely.

• , 29 October 2026, 18.30 to 19.30

Challenge common assumptions about money and gain practical insights into the financial decisions we make every day.

• , 3 November to 5 November 2026, 10.00 to 17.00

Discover how art can communicate experiences of imprisonment, provide powerful personal testimony and encourage new conversations about justice and rehabilitation.

• , 3 November 2026, 14.00 to 17.00

A thought-provoking discussion examining the relationship between money, social connection and community experiences within contemporary gay male cultures.

• , 3 November 2026, 10.00 to 12.00

Bereavement can bring significant emotional and financial challenges. This event explores the often-overlooked costs associated with death and the impact they have on families.

• , 4 November 2026, 10.00 to 13.30

When access to reading is already unequal, ensuring the books available are representative is more important than ever. Join this workshop and learn how to create inclusive reading environments.

• , 6 November 2026, 13.00 to 16.00

Discover how data can reveal hidden patterns in everyday life and how researchers use information to better understand communities and social change.

Browse the full Festival programme and book your place at events:

The Fellowship recognises Professor Agénor's outstanding contributions to the fields of international macroeconomics and development economics, as well as the impact of his work with international organisations including the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

Reflecting on the award

A prestigious recognition

Professor Agénor is internationally recognised for his research on macroeconomic policy, economic development, financial systems and growth, and has advised governments and international institutions throughout his distinguished career.

Earlier this year, Professor Agénor delivered 's annual Arthur Lewis Lecture, where he explored the relationship between gender equality, economic growth and public policy. The lecture highlighted how investments in education, infrastructure and social policy can help address gender disparities while supporting sustainable economic development.

Read about Professor Agénor’s recent lecture: Pierre-Richard Agénor delivers joint Arthur Lewis and Vital Topics lecture on gender equality and economic growth.

The School of Social Sciences congratulates Professor Agénor on this prestigious recognition and celebrates his continued contributions to economic research and policy.

Most sensors can only measure one thing at a time: like a thermometer for temperature, or a pressure gauge for pressure. Measuring two properties accurately from the same surface, at the same moment, usually means using two separate instruments – adding cost and complexity to the process.

Measuring air pressure and temperature simultaneously

Now, chemists and aerospace engineers at The University of Ұ������, working with colleagues at the University of Eastern Finland, have designed a molecule that can help us to do both simultaneously. It emits two distinct colours of light at once: one that responds to both air pressure and temperature, and one that only responds to temperature. By comparing these two signals it’s possible to take a corrected pressure reading from the molecule itself, rather than having to use a separate temperature sensor alongside a pressure sensor.

The molecule has been designed to be an active ingredient in the specialist paints that measure pressure on aircraft models in wind tunnels, solving a major challenge in the aerospace industry. When engineers test a new aircraft design in a wind tunnel, they need to know exactly how air pressure is distributed across every surface. One of the best ways of doing this is by using a pressure-sensitive paint that glows in proportion to the air pressure pushing against it. The problem is that the light these paints currently emit is sensitive not only to pressure, but also to temperature. As a scale model heats and cools during a wind tunnel test, the glowing shifts in ways that have nothing to do with pressure, introducing errors that engineers then have to correct.

Improving pressure-sensitive paint for aerospace applications

The team’s work, published in the journal , explains how the molecule is built around a gold atom bonded to a ring-shaped compound called acridine. The position of that bond within the structure determines which type of light the molecule produces. Gold was chosen because even subtle changes to where it sits within the molecule produce reliably different light-emitting behaviours, giving chemists precise control over the sensing properties. When the gold atom bonds to one position on the molecule, it triggers the pressure-sensitive red emission, whereas a bond at a different position triggers the temperature-only blue emission.

Calculations carried out by their colleagues in Finland, helped the team to understand and predict these differences before the molecule was built in the laboratory. Then in use, the molecule is embedded in a paint applied to test models in the standard way. A camera captures both emission colours simultaneously, and the ratio between the two signals automatically corrects for temperature, without any separate temperature sensor.

, Reader in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at The University of Ұ������, said: “In wind tunnel testing, temperature correction is currently one of the main challenges to making pressure-sensitive paints reliable. Having both pressure and temperature measurements come from the same molecule simultaneously is a more elegant solution, and potentially a more practical one for real test conditions, where adding extra instruments creates its own complications.”

The team’s work sits within a broader programme of research at Ұ������ into improving pressure-sensitive paint for aerospace applications. A related study, recently published in , addresses the temperature problem from a different direction, by designing a platinum-based paint with inherently low temperature sensitivity. Together, the two studies represent complementary approaches to one of the industry’s most persistent challenges.

A national survey of Ukrainian residents has provided one of the clearest estimates to date of the psychological impact of the ongoing war.

Published today in the , the peer-reviewed study analysed data from a nationally representative survey of civilians living in government-controlled regions of Ukraine.

It provides new estimates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complex PTSD (CPTSD), finding that 31.2% of respondents met the criteria for one of these mental health conditions.

People living in conflict zones face a heightened risk of traumatic experiences such as physical violence, forced displacement and the loss of loved ones. PTSD can develop after experiencing or witnessing trauma, causing persistent symptoms including intrusive memories, anxiety, irritability and sleep problems. CPTSD is a related but more severe condition that typically follows prolonged or repeated trauma, such as chronic abuse or captivity.

The findings indicate that PTSD and CPTSD are common among Ukrainian civilians living through an active and ongoing war.

'This study is the result of two teams bridging disciplinary boundaries and adapting their research approaches in a wartime context,' said Professor Olga Onuch from The University of Ұ������. 'With two of us being Ukrainian, it was not only urgent but personal. Studying trauma experiences and PTSD and CPTSD in a nationally representative sample allows us to give back to our professional and personal communities and facilitate better policy and response mechanisms. We do this work out of a shared sense of the social responsibility of science to society.

“Understanding PTSD and CPTSD - and war exposures more broadly - in a nationally representative sample during an ongoing war is vital for political, economic and societal life in Ukraine. Knowing these patterns can help communities, governments and international actors prepare immediate support and plan for longer-term needs.

Co-author Professor Volodymyr Kulyk, from the Department of Social Sciences at Kyiv School of Economics, adds: “It is important to keep in mind that PTSD and CPTSD are not limited to veterans or people close to combat zone but also are widespread among other categories of people heavily affected by the war, such as Internally Displaced Persons, people who suffered from missiles and drones attacking their cities and towns far from frontline, and those taking care of wounded or traumatized people.”

Involved in the study was – what the authors themselves describe as – “an unusual collaboration” of mental health researchers and social scientists. All had a specific interest in the impact of psychological trauma in Ukraine, on both mental health and sociopolitical outcomes.

The study grew out of research at The University of Ұ������ examining identity, democracy and social resilience in wartime Ukraine. This work, led by Professor Onuch as part of the Identity and Borders in Flux (IBIF) project, highlighted the need for a stronger understanding of trauma and war experiences. It led to a wider international, interdisciplinary collaboration involving researchers from Ұ������, King’s College London, Kyiv School of Economics, The George Washington University, the Centre for East European and International Studies (ZOiS) and Combat Stress. The research was then developed through the Conflict and Cooperation in Eastern Europe (KonKoop) network.��

Assembling a truly interdisciplinary team enabled rare access – in the current circumstances – to a robust, national representative sample, which (via a telephone survey) assessed lifetime exposure to traumatic events, war-related traumas, and symptoms of trauma-related mental health conditions.

From the total sample of 2,504 adults, the results showed:

• Most participants reported high levels of exposure to lifetime and war-related traumatic events, including fires or explosions, shelling, destruction caused by the war, and the injury, displacement, disappearance or death of family members or other loved ones.
• 31.2% of respondents met the criteria for PTSD (25.2%) or CPTSD (6%)

Factors associated with a greater likelihood of PTSD or CPTSD included being female, older age, lower educational attainment, previous military service, displacement due to the war, and a greater number of lifetime traumatic events and war-related stressors.

Being single was the only factor specifically associated with CPTSD rather than PTSD.

Because data were collected at a single point in time during an active conflict, the findings represent a snapshot of the population’s mental health rather than how symptoms change over time.

“One finding we found particularly interesting was that PTSD was much more common than Complex PTSD in this representative national sample,” says lead author, child and adult clinical psychologist, Dr Emma Facer-Irwin, who is a clinical lecturer at KCL. “This may suggest that psychological responses to ongoing war do not always fit neatly into models developed in post-conflict settings. When the threat remains active and unpredictable, the ways people experience and adapt to traumatic stress may be different, and this is an important area for future research.'

Professor Kulyk adds: “As pressure on Ukraine’s health system grows and uncertainty around future humanitarian support increases, understanding the prevalence of PTSD and complex PTSD is essential for planning both immediate and long-term mental health services. Further research will be essential to understand how the psychological impact of the war develops among the general population evolve as the conflict continues.”

As a limitation of their research, the authors note that the study relied on self-reported symptoms – which may be influenced by how participants interpreted the survey questions.

The next area of research they are looking to tackle is to improve understanding of the potential effects of trauma on political attitudes.

Publication details

This research was published in:
European Journal of Psychotraumatology

Title:
Prevalence of exposure to lifetime and war-related traumas, PTSD and complex PTSD in a sample from the Ukrainian general population

URL:��


DOI:
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A sensor so precise it can find buried pipes and cavities from the surface, without digging a single hole. A communications system where an eavesdropper cannot hide. A computer that can simulate the behaviour of molecules in ways that enable accelerated drug discovery and materials design.

What do each of these have in common? They’re all possibilities that quantum technologies offer and have a common challenge: the ability to engineer materials with such precision, that individual atoms can be placed where they’re needed and retain their quantum behaviour in ways ordinary materials simply can’t.

That is the ambition behind a new £12.6 million research programme, launched this year with funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). The programme, Materials Engineering for Advanced Devices (MEAD), is led by �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s Professor Richard Curry, in partnerships with colleagues at Ұ������, Imperial College London and the University of Leeds.

The precision problem

Quantum technologies work by exploiting the unusual rules that govern matter at the scale of individual atoms – rules that make certain capabilities in computing, sensing and communication possible, in a way that conventional electronics can’t achieve. Yet when a single misplaced atom can prevent a quantum device from working, understanding and controlling atomic-level structure isn’t just useful, it’s the whole game.

�Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s leadership of the MEAD programme starts here. The University is home to the Platform for Nanoscale Advanced Materials Engineering (P-NAME), a suite of three internationally unique instruments that can implant individual atoms into a material with precisions exceeding 20 nanometres – about 3,000 times finer than a human hair.

It was this capability, combined with advanced isotopic engineering (the use of specific atomic forms of an element that fine-tunes its quantum properties), that recently produced the world’s purest form of silicon. This research, published in the journal (), opens a new route towards quantum devices that can operate reliably without having to constantly correct for interference caused by unwanted atomic impurities (misplaced atoms).

“We’re all united in addressing the same challenge of building new devices, but at Ұ������ we’ll specifically use our expertise in engineering materials on the nanoscale, so that we can create a new set of advanced materials - specially designed to deliver the required quantum properties at the heart of these.

"We won't just study these materials and their quantum properties in the lab. We'll build them into working prototype devices to prove they can be used in real-world quantum technologies, such as quantum computers, secure communications systems and advanced sensors. Our ambition is for this research to have a transformative impact on how quantum technologies are applied in society."

From atoms to devices

MEAD has three interconnected ambitions, and the first is to produce the building blocks that quantum technologies need.

is developing a new class of quantum sensor aiming to use microscopic particles with quantum-engineered properties held in a vacuum. This approach could hugely increase the sensing performance of current technologies as existing trapped atoms devices are replaced by these macroscopic particles. Alongside this, is working on single-photon sources: devices that emit individual particles of light (photons), which are essential for quantum-secured communications.

Meanwhile, is leading work on using arrays of single atoms placed in isotopically pure silicon to demonstrate long-lived quantum properties for use in quantum computing. These materials will be tested in �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s new Hi-CaLM facility, a system capable of cooling devices to temperatures just a fraction of a degree above absolute zero, where quantum behaviour can be observed and harnessed in realistic device conditions.

The second task is to develop tools that allow scientists to understand what is actually happening at the atomic scale.

leads this work, aiming to extend materials imaging beyond the current limits. This should reveal not just where atoms sit, but which form (isotope) of each element they represent – something that determines how quantum devices behave.

is developing a technique that uses a form of light capable of passing through materials, to pinpoint the location of individual atoms within a working device without disturbing or damaging it.

then uses a technique called nanoSIMS to verify, at the finest possible resolution, that the materials being engineered actually contain what they’re designed to. Being able to check materials at the atomic scale, and feed those findings back into the engineering process, is what will separate informed development from guesswork.

The third part of the programme focusses on masers – the microwave equivalent of lasers, capable of picking up and amplifying extremely faint signals while adding almost no interference of their own (perhaps think of a microphone that can amplify a whisper across a room without adding any noise to it).

This maser research is led by team, where the modern room-temperature maser was first developed.

will act as a testbed for applying this technology to ‘troposcatter communications’ – a method of bouncing signals to our upper atmosphere to carry communications over long distances without relying on satellites.

, housing the Leeds Nanotechnology Cleanroom, at the University of Leeds will make quantum devices from the materials that Ұ������ engineers, before returning them to �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s Hi-CaLM facility for testing and analysis.

The programme draws on more than £150 million of existing infrastructure across the three institutions, often using facilities or equipment that have taken decades to build.

For the UK, which has committed billions to quantum technology investment, MEAD represents an investment on building the scientific foundations that we’ll need to achieve our goals.

Applications are now open for the second cohort of the: Greater �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s programme for researchers, technical founders and early-stage ventures turning scientific and engineering breakthroughs into investment-ready ventures. 7–10 ventures will be selected, with applications open to eligible teams across Greater Ұ������.

Delivered by Unit M, The University of Ұ������'s innovation unit, and backed by Greater Ұ������ Investment Zone funding, the programme runs from November 2026 to April 2027. Applications close 19 October 2026.

The deep tech accelerator is designed specifically for founders and researchers developing technologies rooted in significant scientific discoveries or engineering advances.

Unlike traditional startup programmes, it focuses on the unique challenges associated with commercialising deep tech innovations, helping participants navigate the journey from breakthrough research to investable business.

Many early-stage deep tech innovations need focused support to navigate the journey from research and development to commercial and societal impact.

Earlier in 2026, cohort 1 supported 10 deep tech ventures from across the University and the region working on next-generation health technologies, clean energy, advanced materials, agritech and space technologies.

Patrick Sarsfield, Founder and CEO of Graphene Thermal, and a member of the deep tech accelerator cohort #, said: “The Unit M deep tech accelerator is what we needed to prepare ourselves to be investment ready. All of the mentorship and guidance that we’ve had has come through the university support system. It’s really been at the centre of getting this business off the ground.”

Tim Bailey, Founder and CEO of WarmTronics, and a member of the deep tech accelerator cohort #1, said: “The accelerator helped us move forward in our commercialisation journey. Funding allowed us to do marketing and customer discovery that we initially wouldn't be able to afford. Off the back of that, we did an exhibition in London, we met with a major supermarket chain and we're now looking at trialling our products with them.”

Why apply?

Teams selected for cohort #2 of the programme will receive £25,000 in equity-free funding, alongside dedicated commercialisation support, access to specialist mentors and industry experts, customer discovery and market validation frameworks, and training on how to pitch effectively to investors.

Each venture will also benefit from support from experienced University of Ұ������ MBA students and the opportunity to present to investors and strategic partners at a dedicated demo day.

The programme is open to researchers, founders and spinouts from universities across Greater Ұ������, as well as technical founders from the region's wider deep tech community. Building on the success of the inaugural cohort, cohort #2 will place an increased emphasis on engaging teams from across the city-region, reflecting a continued commitment to strengthening Greater Ұ������'s deep tech ecosystem.

What is deep tech?

Deep tech refers to technologies built on significant scientific discoveries or engineering advances that create new capabilities and solve real-world problems.

Areas of interest for the programme include:

· Advanced materials and manufacturing;

· Quantum technologies;

· Artificial intelligence and data infrastructure;

· Biotechnology and health technologies;

· Climate and energy technologies;

· Robotics and automation;

· And space and aerospace technologies.

Who is eligible?

We are looking for teams or individuals based in Greater Ұ������ who are ready to spend six months building towards investment. We are looking for:

• Researchers whose work has commercial potential you haven't yet acted on, or
• Technical founders with a working prototype or early validation.

Not sure if you’re eligible? Come along to our on 29 September and 12 October or ask us directly by emailing community@unit-m.co.uk. Or join us at the on 7 October, during the Innovation Festival, where we will have a stand and can answer your questions.

Ready to apply?

Applications close 19 October 2026, with space for 7–10 teams in cohort #2.

Further details on eligibility, information sessions and the application process are available via the on Unit M’s website.

Key dates

• Applications close: 19 October 2026
• Information sessions: 29 September and 12 October 2026
• Programme delivery: November 2026 to April 2027

Why Greater Ұ������, why now?

The deep tech accelerator is part of a wider ambition to make Greater Ұ������ a leading hub for deep tech innovation, supported through the Greater Ұ������ Combined Authority’s (GMCA) Investment Zone funding. It is designed to help strengthen the region’s growing deep tech ecosystem by connecting founders with expertise, networks and opportunities for growth.

Bridging the gap between research and commercialisation, the programme provides the expertise, connections and support needed to help turn deep tech innovation into investable businesses with the potential for significant societal and economic impact.

Four Ұ������ academics made Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering

The Royal Academy of Engineering has today announced that four academics from The University of Ұ������, Professors Danielle George, Alan Partridge, and Rich Curry, and Visiting Professor Kirsty Armer will be part of the newest cohort of leading figures in the field of technology and engineering to be appointed Fellows.

They will be joining the Academy in its 50th year and are part of a cohort of 75 new Fellows, who are making an incredible impact across the engineering and technology sector with innovations in clean energy, AI, medicine and public health; joining leading figures who have influenced academia and business, worked to widen participation in engineering for people from underrepresented backgrounds, and provided expert policy advice to government.

Professors George, Armer, Partridge, and Curry will be formally admitted to the Academy at a special ceremony in London on 19 October, when each Fellow will sign the roll book. In joining the Fellowship, they will lend their unique capabilities to achieving the Academy’s aim to engineer better lives.

Sir John Lazar CBE FREng, President of the Royal Academy of Engineering, said:

“This year’s cohort will be joining a community of over 1,700 top engineers and innovators in the UK and around the world. Together, we ensure that bright ideas are supported, scaled and shared, turning ambition into innovation and innovation into impact. We aim to strengthen education, skills and inclusion to inspire and equip the engineers of today and tomorrow.”

Ұ������ Academics awarded prestigious Colin Campbell Mitchell Award

The Academy has also awarded Professors Barry Lennox (Electrical and Electronic Engineering) and Michael Fisher (Computer Science) the prestigious Colin Campbell Mitchell Award, given to a team of engineers who have made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of any field of UK engineering across the past four years. Visiting Professor Kirsty Hewitson was also part of the team receiving the Academy honour.

This year, it is given in recognition of the pioneering approach that the University of Ұ������ has been taking in its approach to developing robotic systems for deployment in hazardous environments.

Their work has delivered significant engineering, safety and economic benefits, including robotic deployments that reduce human exposure to dangerous environments, estimated savings of around £20 million for Sellafield and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, and a projected future value of £500 million through wider adoption of the technologies developed. They have also pioneered the use of digital twins and simulation environments to improve safety, training and operational efficiency, while contributing to the development of robotics policy and responsible AI practices in the UK and internationally.

Chair of the Academy’s Awards Committee, Luke Logan (FREng), said of the research,

"By translating robotics and AI research into real-world industrial applications, this team has transformed how hazardous and complex engineering tasks can be carried out. Their work is reducing risks to people, improving productivity and delivering substantial economic benefits across multiple sectors. Through an outstanding collaboration spanning industry, academia and the public sector, they have demonstrated how engineering innovation can deliver real-world impact."

In her role as Visiting Professor, Dr Hewitson will help to embed key principles for translating and commercialising innovations, as well as provide mentoring to underrepresented students, building industry links to provide future career opportunities.

Dr Hewitson, a distinguished expert in the translation and commercialisation of technologies across energy, defence and life science sectors, is visiting from the Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Collaboration (RAICo) – an end-user led collaboration between the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, Sellafield Ltd, AWE Nuclear Security Technologies and The University of Ұ������.

In her role at UKAEA and as Director of RAICo, Dr Hewitson oversees the development of robotics for nuclear decommissioning and fusion engineering, working with industry, academic and international partners to help remove people from hazardous environments and achieve safer, faster and more cost-effective solutions.

Prior to RAICo, Dr Hewitson had previously held positions as Chief Executive Officer at Innovate UK KTN, Vice-President of Strategy and Innovation at the National Nuclear Laboratory and Vice-President of Life Sciences at Ploughshare Innovations.

Dr Hewitson said of the announcement, “I feel privileged to have been appointed as a Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor at the University of Ұ������. I have seen first-hand how essential our relationship with academia is for connecting different ideas from different fields in ways that would not otherwise be apparent."

A new test to identify cells collected from urine and vaginal fluid could help rule out womb and other cancers in most women who experience bleeding after the menopause, find University of Ұ������ researchers.

Their study published in Lon 22/09/26 say the test could potentially reduce the need for invasive hospital investigations, easing anxiety during what can be a distressing time for many women.

The research team, also based at Ұ������ University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) and supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)Biomedical Research Centre (BRC): Ұ������, showed that the new test can detect womb cancer, also known as endometrial cancer, with high accuracy.

Postmenopausal bleeding currently triggers urgent investigation for possible cancer, often involving a series of uncomfortable, invasive and costly tests, even though most women will not ultimately receive a cancer diagnosis.

Further work from the group, also published in the same journal today, showed that current tests are poorly calibrated for people from Black ethnic backgrounds, leading to health inequalities in diagnosis, treatment and patient outcomes.

However, the new test was particularly effective at detecting aggressive and advanced cancers, and performed exceptionally well in Black women, who are twice as likely to die from womb cancer as White women in the UK.

The researchers say the new test could therefore help to reduce health inequities and improve outcomes for previously disadvantaged groups, including those who are unable to tolerate routine procedures.

The test could eventually be used in primary care and other community settings, helping speed up diagnosis and provide reassurance for many women.

Womb cancer affects nearly 10,000 women in the UK each year, but only 5–10% of women investigated for bleeding after the menopause will have cancer.

Despite that, most undergo invasive hospital tests that can be uncomfortable, costly and sometimes need repeating.

Previous studies led by Ұ������ researchers have suggested cancer cells can be detected in urine and vaginal fluid samples.

The DETECT study - as it is known - was designed to assess whether these simple, non-invasive tests could accurately identify women at risk while safely reassuring others.

The study involved 1,864 women attending hospitals *with postmenopausal bleeding, making it one of the largest evaluations of this approach to date.

Before having their routine clinical investigations, participants provided a urine sample and a vaginal fluid sample, which were examined for abnormal cells by specialist cytopathologists who did not know the women’s diagnoses.

A total of 115 women were found to have cancer, including 99 cases of womb cancer and a smaller number of other pelvic cancers.

When urine and vaginal cytology (cell sample) results were combined, the test correctly identified more than 80% of cancers and achieved a negative predictive value of 98.8% for womb cancer, meaning women with a negative result were highly unlikely to have the disease.

The vaginal test performed slightly better than the urine test alone, although both showed promising diagnostic accuracy.

The test detected almost all aggressive cancers, identifying 95.8% of high-grade tumours and 96.4% of cancers that had already spread beyond the uterus.

It also picked up 100% of cancers in Black women with 96% specificity, meaning that the test showed near perfect performance in this small subgroup of women.

The findings suggest the approach could become a valuable triage tool, helping clinicians decide which women need urgent invasive investigations while providing reassurance for many others.

Lead researcher Professor from The University of Ұ������ and Honorary Consultant in Gynaecological Oncology at MFT, said: “Bleeding after the menopause is understandably alarming for women because it can be a sign of cancer, but the vast majority of those investigated will not have the disease.

“At the moment, many women face invasive, uncomfortable tests that can be stressful as well as costly for health services before cancer can be ruled out.

“Our study shows that a simple test using urine and vaginal samples could help identify the women most likely to have cancer while safely reassuring many others much earlier in the diagnostic pathway.

“If further studies confirm these findings in routine practice, this approach has the potential to transform care for thousands of women every year.”

Prof Davidson, who is also Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Theme Co-Lead at the NIHR BRC: Ұ������, added: “Further studies are now needed to assess how the test would perform in routine clinical practice and whether it can reduce the number of invasive procedures women undergo.

“If successfully introduced into healthcare settings, the test could offer a faster, less invasive and more patient-friendly route to diagnosing womb cancer.”

• The study was funded by The Jon Moulton Charity Trust and the women were recruited from gynaecology clinics at seven hospital sites across North West England: St Mary’s Hospital, Trafford General Hospital, Wythenshawe Hospital, Royal Oldham Hospital, North Ұ������ General Hospital, Fairfield General Hospital and Tameside Hospital.
• The paper Urine and vaginal cytology for endometrial cancer detection in women with postmenopausal bleeding: the Developing Tests for Endometrial Cancer detection (DETECT) diagnostic accuracy study is available here: DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/

Publication details

The study was published in xxx journal.

DOI: http://xxx.

Three new Future Leaders Fellowships are empowering Ұ������ researchers to tackle very different scientific challenges – from predicting extreme ocean waves to designing miniature biological factories to wearable health technology that transcends health inequalities – with potentially far-reaching consequences.

Backed by a combined £5.4 million from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), Dr Samuel Draycott, Dr Lukas Hughes-Noehrer and Dr Richard Obexer are among the recipients of its 2026 Future Leaders Fellowships (FLF) awards. The funding will support four years of ambitious research in fields spanning ocean engineering, biotechnology and digital enabled health.

The Future Leaders Fellowships: at a glance

• How well we understand the ocean matters increasingly for the infrastructure we build, the energy we generate and our response to climate change. is investigating what happens when waves break in the complex conditions found in the ocean, with real implications for how we design offshore wind farms and other marine infrastructure, and for improving the accuracy of climate and ocean models that predict how the sea absorbs and releases carbon dioxide and other gases.
• Across Ұ������'s communities, is taking research directly into patients’ homes – creating a real-world test environment to help make wearable health technologies a routine part of cancer care. He's working to discover whether continuous data from wearable devices can help NHS clinical teams support patients through cancer surgery, and how to make sure this new model of care reaches everyone, including those at risk of digital exclusion.

• Meanwhile, in another laboratory in Ұ������, has been looking at the world on a different scale – exploring how nature packages enzymes inside tiny structures in living cells. He’s working to discover whether those same principles can be engineered to manufacture medicines, recycle carbon and produce valuable chemicals more efficiently.

Dr Samuel Draycott: Wavebreak

Offshore wind farms, ships and other marine structures all need to withstand the most powerful waves the ocean can produce, but many engineering models simplify the sea in ways that don’t fully reflect real-world conditions. This potentially affects how accurately we can predict the forces these structures will face.��

Recent work by Dr Draycott and collaborators, published in Nature, . Through this fellowship, Dr Draycott and his colleagues will build on this research to recreate even more realistic ocean conditions in their laboratory, combining waves travelling in different directions with currents that change speed with depth, as they do in the real ocean.��

The team will study what happens when waves break and what happens in the seconds afterwards, including how they move particles such as microplastics and phytoplankton, draw air into the ocean and transfer gases such as CO2 between the sea and atmosphere. This could improve our understanding of everything from pollution and marine ecosystems to the ocean’s role in absorbing carbon from the atmosphere.��

Dr Draycott, Senior Lecturer in Ocean Engineering in the Department of Civil Engineering and Management, University of Ұ������, said:��
“We’ve long relied on simplified models to understand how waves behave, but the real ocean is much more complex.

“This matters because engineers use estimates of extreme waves when designing offshore wind turbines, ships and platforms, so a better understanding of wave breaking could help us improve the safety and efficiency of this infrastructure. These are crucial industries, with the UK aiming to increase its offshore wind capacity to at least and a sector already employing tens of thousands of people .”��

The research, funded with £1.67m from UKRI, will take place in the University’s new Hydrodynamics Laboratory, using high-performance computer simulations and laboratory experiments to measure how waves break, how much air they draw into the water, and how they move particles.

Dr Lukas Hughes-Noehrer: Ұ������ Digital Health Living Lab

Wearable devices can monitor vital signs such as heart rate, activity and sleep, providing clinicians with valuable data to inform on-going patient care. The NHS 10 Year Health Plan identifies them as one of its “5 Big Bets” for transforming healthcare, but their use across the health service remains patchy, with benefits not reaching all communities equally. Through his fellowship, Dr Lukas Hughes-Noehrer will establish the Ұ������ Digital Health Living Lab, a real-world testbed where patients, families, community organisations, clinicians, researchers, industry partners, and local government work together to design and evaluate wearable-enabled care.

The £2.4m-UKRI funded programme is built around three strands. The first will work with communities to understand what helps or hinders people in adopting wearables, with a focus on accessibility, trust, usability and digital inclusion. The second will develop secure systems that connect wearable data to electronic health records and explore how continuous streams of patient-generated data can be transformed into clinically meaningful real-time information to support care. The third will embed a wearable-enabled clinical trial, working with approximately 800 patients undergoing lung and hepato-pancreato-biliary surgery to trial adoption and evaluate their potential to improve health outcomes.

Findings will help shape the future use of wearable technologies across healthcare and inform the development of digitally enabled hospitals and care pathways in Greater Ұ������ and beyond.

Dr Hughes-Noehrer, Lecturer in Mobile and Wearable Health Technology in the Division of Informatics, Imaging, and Data Sciences, and Lead for Computational Medicine at Ұ������ University NHS Foundation Trust said:

“As someone who works at the intersection of healthcare and research, I see first-hand how health inequalities can affect who benefits from new models of care and emerging technologies. Wearables have huge potential to provide more personalised, proactive support, but only if everyone can access, use and trust them. By working directly with our communities in Ұ������, I want to build a model for wearable-enabled care that is fair, safe and trusted, and that other places in the UK and beyond can follow.”

Dr Richard Obexer: De Novo Biomolecular Condensates for Programmable Assembly of Enzyme Cascades

Inside our cells are tiny droplets that act a little like miniature factories. Without being surrounded by a membrane, they can bring particular proteins and enzymes together, allowing chemical reactions to happen faster and more efficiently.

These structures known as ‘biomolecular condensates’, occur widely inside living cells, and Dr Richard Obexer is exploring whether we can recreate this natural trick, then engineer it to make useful products more efficiently.

His new fellowship, funded by £1.3m from UKRI, will enable him to combine AI-powered protein design with a laboratory process inspired by natural evolution, to rapidly test thousands of protein variations. The aim is to create molecules that can encourage these droplets to form around a much wider range of enzymes, while controlling what happens inside them. This could give researchers unprecedented control over the conditions inside each biological factory.

The team will initially test their approach by building a five-enzyme system to manufacture islatravir, an anti-HIV drug that’s currently made using conventional chemical synthesis. Next, they will explore whether a ten-enzyme system could turn CO2 and methanol into starch, potentially creating a route for converting captured carbon into useful materials. Finally, they’ll rebuild a biosynthetic pathway in bacteria to produce trunkamide, an anti-cancer compound that has proven difficult to manufacture at a useful scale.

Dr Obexer, BBSRC Discovery Fellow in Chemical Biology and Biological Chemistry, in the Department of Chemistry, University of Ұ������, said:

“Nature has already evolved incredibly efficient ways of organising chemistry inside cells, and we’re now asking whether we can recreate and engineer these to build tiny biological factories for ourselves. If we can combine that with AI-designed proteins, we could make entirely new manufacturing processes possible, from medicines to ways of turning captured carbon into useful products.”

The University of Ұ������ and the Jeremy Coller Foundation have announced the finalists for the Coller AI Competition with one early-stage venture set to receive a £100,000 equity investment to help turn it’s responsible AI innovation into a growing venture.

The competition attracted applicants from student, colleagues and alumni and brings together the University’s research strength, entrepreneurial talent and commitment to responsible innovation. It aims to identify and support founders developing AI solutions that are not only commercially promising but designed to benefit people and society.

The shortlisted Teams are:

Health Equity Chain

Health Equity Chain is building the Treatment Analyser System, an AI tool that helps doctors and patients make better prostate cancer treatment decisions. It shows a patient where they stand among people like them, making complex clinical information clear, understandable and equitable.

LanthaGen Bio Ltd

LanthaGen Bio has built an AI platform that simulates how biomolecules (proteins and peptides) bind metals, so new metal capturing proteins can be designed on a computer instead of found by trial and error. By drastically shortening the process it removes the energy, chemicals, plastic and solvent waste that repeated screening consumes.

SporeSense

SporeSense has built an AI-powered early-warning system that detects crop disease before any symptoms are visible. This lets farmers act early, cutting crop losses, reducing unnecessary pesticide use, and supporting more resilient, sustainable food production as climate change increases pressure on global agriculture.

SenseVale

SenseVale makes smart glasses that help blind and partially sighted people independently navigate their surroundings with minimal assistance. Sensors in the frame pick up what is around you, and the glasses tell you what they find through sound and vibration.

Forkprint Ltd

Forkprint is developing AI-enabled models that analyse any given food business’ data, such as recipes, menus and supplier information, to provide accurate greenhouse gas emissions GHGE information. This will enable food service businesses to assess and track the GHGE coming from their ingredients and food preparation processes, as well as rapidly develop lower-carbon recipes.

The initiative forms part of The University of �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s Challenge Accepted campaign, which supports ideas with the potential to tackle major global challenges.

The Coller AI Competition is supported by the Jeremy Coller Foundation, the philanthropic vehicle of private equity entrepreneur Jeremy Coller. The Foundation supports initiatives focused on education, entrepreneurship, pensions innovation and the transition to a more sustainable food system. By supporting ambitious ideas, the Foundation helps drive lasting change and empowers the next generation of innovators and problem solvers.

The winner will be announced at The University of Ұ������ Innovation Festival on the 9^th of October 2026.

The University of Ұ������ Innovation Festival takes place Monday 5th October to Friday 9th October 2026

/collaborate/innovation-festival/events/?utm_source=insider&utm_medium=digital_newsletter&utm_campaign=innovationfestival26

Background

The Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, has a very ambitious agenda for change but, very early in his tenure, the ability of the machinery of Government to move at the necessary pace was . Earlier this month, the Chancellor, the First Secretary of State and the Attorney General to say they ‘need to shoulder the responsibility for acting’ and explicitly looking to rebalance the use of consultation, to rethink tolerance of legal risk, and to redefine the role of judicial review. These changes are described as ‘initial steps in what will be a wider programme of work to pare back counterproductive administrative burdens’ allowing Ministers to act boldly, take responsibility, and instil greater agency within their Departments.

Both the messaging and the timing are opportune for the nuclear sector, which is still digesting the , set up to address the ‘systemic regulatory failure’ which has made the UK ‘the most expensive place in the World to build nuclear…’. The NRTF reported in late 2025, making 47 recommendations, and the Dalton Nuclear Institute (DNI) developed opportunities to address these in a subsequent . It now seems possible that a new Prime Minister with an ambitious change agenda, coupled with a shift to more proportionate regulation, can enable nuclear to fulfil its potential to meet our national and energy security requirements.

Risk and the Nuclear Sector

The idea of risk seems straightforward but, in a modern society, it comes in a wide range of flavours. Add complexity in governance where different stakeholders have different agendas and priorities, and management of risk can quickly impede progress while simultaneously obscuring serious hazards and distracting from resolution.

Risk was a particular area of focus in the DNI paper. The NRTF talked about ‘Portfolio Risk’ but didn’t really explore it in detail or suggest an approach to its management. However, DNI developed the idea and suggested the UK nuclear sector comprises three distinct portfolios:

• The NDA Estate - 18 Licensed Sites, tasked with delivering the NDA mission of decommissioning and cleaning up the legacy from the UK’s historic nuclear programmes.

• The Defence Nuclear Enterprise - 15 Licensed Sites owned and operated by multiple organisations, including AWE, Rolls-Royce, BAE Systems, and concerned with manufacturing and operating the UK’s military nuclear capability.

• Nuclear Generation - 9 Licensed Sites, all operated commercially by EDF Energy but legally owned by three different entities, either generating power or constructing new power reactors.

The critical point about Portfolio Risk is that, if we just focus on individual risks (e.g. commercial, legal, reputational….) in one part of a portfolio, we lose sight of a much bigger risk - that of the entire portfolio failing to deliver its mission, whether that is effective maintenance of the continuous at-sea deterrent, cleanup of the UK’s historical nuclear legacy, or generation of stable, low-carbon electricity.

HM Treasury’s strongly encourages exactly this reductionist approach to risk management, leading to consideration in turn of distinct classes of risk and sometimes multiple sub-classes within these, but not enabling an upwards view to appraise risks at the Portfolio or Sector level. Moreover, the Orange Book approach to risk can also lead to treatment of the different classes of risk as if they are independent, whereas they are in fact often strongly interdependent, leading to an inability to see the ‘wood for the trees’. Although risk classes may be analysed separately, interdependencies mean that the risk appetite associated with a specific piece of work will often actually be that of the most cautious element- in other words a project ‘goes at the pace of the slowest’.

The nuclear sector thus provides an excellent illustration of the difference between the Orange Book’s idealised view and the reality of a complex hierarchy of risks. At the site or operational level, accountabilities are already very clear, defined through the Nuclear Installations Act, Site Licensing and other tools, including the explicit identification of legally accountable duty holders. Above the individual duty holders, however, there is Portfolio Risk, as described above and, indeed, above that is what the DNI Paper terms ‘Sector Risk’; that is the potential for activities within one portfolio to adversely impact others. At first sight Sector Risk is not obvious, but the current mixture of risk aversion, over-complication, bureaucracy, inefficiency and poor delivery actually provides a perfect illustration. It has required drastic intervention from the highest level of Government, through the Regulatory Review and the accompanying , to address this Sector Risk.

Managing a Hierarchy of Risks

We have developed a possible governance structure for the sector, illustrated in Figure 1, which integrates the management of the three levels of risk within a single coherent framework. Legal responsibility and Controlling Mind authority rest clearly with the duty holders. The responsibility of portfolio owners is to put in place management frameworks which allow coordinated risk management across their portfolio and, since they do not have Controlling Mind authority, they must do this by working collectively with the duty holders in their portfolio. Such arrangements could include an operational sub-group, modelled on the Sellafield G6 or NRS D8^[1]. There is a tension between duty holders’ ‘local’ ALARP^[2] approach and the wider portfolio ALARP thinking, which will need to be managed through judicious use of flexibility and judgement such that Site Licensees can use the shared understanding of risks across the portfolio to defend their local decisions and actions as ‘reasonable’. There is also a need for a consistent sector-wide approach to risk management, reflecting national priorities, which we suggest should be overseen by an independently-chaired Nuclear Sector Risk Forum.

This structure can address the weakness in the Orange Book approach to risk management by providing clearer accountabilities and relationships, and enabling decision making at the correct level in the Enterprise. Such a change of approach is both timely and necessary. The NRTF report and the DNI Paper together offer both a detailed diagnosis of the problem and a potential cure.

While this discussion is focussed on nuclear, the problems identified are not limited to that one sector - lack of accountability, inability to get things done, delay and spiralling costs are endemic across UK Government’s programmes. The changes portended by the Chancellor’s letter could, if implemented sustainably, be transformative. Here, we offer a solution, noting that the nuclear sector has already been thinking about transformative change for some time. The ingredients are there - let’s use nuclear as an exemplar for the wider changes we must implement across the UK’s complex cross sectoral infrastructure landscape.

^[1] G6 (Sellafield) and D8 (Nuclear Restoration Services) are fora in which all stakeholders (Government, regulators and duty holders) convene to develop an optimised, consensus approach to difficult safety and/or environmental issues

^[2] There is an overarching requirement on duty holders in the nuclear sector to reduce risks to the point they are As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP)

This piece draws on the Dalton Nuclear Institute’s recent policy position paper, ‘, authored by William Bodel, Adrian Bull, Gregg Butler, Francis Livens and Fiona Rayment.

Signed on Monday 14th September 2026 at the Mansion House, London, at the Global Fusion Policy Summit, the landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) establishes a collaborative framework between the US-based University Fusion Association and a coalition of 16 UK universities, including The University of Ұ������. The flexible structure of the agreement invites further institutional participation, allowing additional universities to join the initiative in the coming months.

Representatives from UK & US universities, the US DoE and UK DESNZ at the signing of the MoU (© UKAEA)

The agreement focuses on critical pillars required to realise commercial fusion energy:

• Research and Innovation: Collaborative scientific discovery, technology development, and engineering deployment.
• Workforce & Skills Development: Multilevel educational and training initiatives designed to build a robust, inclusive, and diverse talent pipeline for the fusion sector over the next decade and beyond.
• Economic Impact: Promoting entrepreneurship and commercialisation pathways to generate economic benefit.
• Policy & Society: Advancing science-informed policy and serving the interests of society at large.

Anchored in shared values, the signatory institutions have pledged to uphold high standards of ethics and research integrity while prioritising student and trainee welfare. The framework emphasises collegiality across institutions to support career development, individual wellbeing, and the global fusion research community.

Dr Khan, Lecturer in Nuclear Materials at The University of Ұ������ and part of the Dalton Nuclear Institute, participated in the UK working group that helped develop the MoU and signed the agreement at the Global Fusion Policy Summit on behalf of UK universities. Dr Khan said:

The signing reflects The University of Ұ������ and Dalton Nuclear Institute’s expanding contributions to the UK’s fusion research community, building on more than 40 years of expertise in nuclear materials and engineering. The fusion community at Ұ������ continues to grow and spans a broad range of research areas, including materials, tritium and wider engineering. Being part of a wider network will enable researchers to share best practice, strengthen collaboration and support the development of fusion energy.��

David Capper, Director for New Nuclear Strategy and Fusion Energy, UK Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ), said:��
"Delivering fusion will require collaboration across academia, industry, and government, alongside a strong pipeline of skills and talent. Universities have an important role in making fusion possible which is why we welcome partnerships like the one being forged today.”��

Matt Lanctot, Acting Research Division Director, U.S. DOE, Fusion Energy Services, said:��
“This partnership will strengthen the publicly funded research base that drives fusion innovation while helping develop the talent and technology needed for a competitive private fusion sector. By connecting expertise across the Atlantic, this partnership can help close critical gaps on the path to commercial fusion.”��

By bringing together leading academic institutions across the Atlantic, this agreement establishes a unified foundation to train the next generation of scientists and engineers, accelerate technical breakthroughs, and strengthen the global fusion energy landscape.��

Find out more about our fusion energy research at The University of Ұ������:

The three-year appointment will support research, teaching and knowledge exchange at the intersection of artificial intelligence, creative practice, copyright and digital provenance. It builds on a collaboration initiated through Creative Ұ������, beginning with Melchior’s two-day visit to the University in May 2026.

An artist, composer and creative technologist, Melchior has spent more than 25 years exploring how music, science and emerging technology can reshape creative experience. His projects range from pioneering an artist website with David Bowie and helping shape Björk Digital and the Vulnicura VR album, to Massive Attack’s Fantom app and Mezzanine DNA experiment. He is founder of Genotone and creator of The Logos, a cathedral-scale collaborative installation with MIT that transforms signals from deep space into spatial sound.

He also advises UK government technical working groups on AI and copyright convened by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. In this work, he represents organisations whose combined membership includes around 30,000 artists: the Music Managers Forum, Featured Artists Coalition and Association for Electronic Music.

Building on “Proof of Human”

Creative Ұ������ welcomed Melchior to the University in May 2026 for a programme of public engagement, student learning and interdisciplinary exchange around AI and creative authorship. Colleagues from Computer Science, Law and Humanities joined representatives from Greater �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s creative sector to explore the challenges and opportunities generative AI presents for the creative and intellectual property sectors.

At the centre of the visit was “Proof of Human: AI, Copyright, and the Fight for Creative Authorship”, a public lecture held at SISTER in �Ѳ��Գ������ٱ��’s innovation district. Melchior examined how creative work can be attributed, protected and rewarded as generative AI becomes more widely used, making the case for reliable systems that verify authorship and trace the provenance of creative material.

He also led a masterclass for undergraduate and postgraduate music and composition students on moving music from studio to release while maintaining provenance and control of intellectual property. The visit created opportunities for collaboration across Computer Science, the School of Law and the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures.

Connecting expertise across disciplines and sectors

As Honorary Professor, Melchior will work with colleagues across the University over the next three years to develop research, teaching and knowledge exchange focused on AI, creativity and authorship. He will contribute to collaborative research into provenance technologies and their practical application within creative ecosystems, helping to translate emerging technical approaches into policy, industry and cultural contexts.

He will also support student learning through guest lectures, workshops and the co-supervision of PhD projects. The appointment will help shape interdisciplinary opportunities connecting computing, music, law, archives and public policy, while providing a foundation for future funding bids and longer-term partnerships in responsible and trustworthy AI.

September visit and podcast

Melchior will return to the University from 21-25 September 2026 for an engagement programme celebrating his new role. He will deliver a seminar for the Department of Computer Science and take part in research and knowledge exchange meetings with colleagues from across the University. The programme will explore potential collaborations connecting computing, the creative industries, policy and the cultural sector.

The visit will coincide with the release of a podcast episode on creative ownership, featuring Melchior in conversation with Parvathy Nair, a postgraduate researcher in AI and patent law. Part of a series on the ethics of AI in the cultural and creative industries, the episode considers how artists can retain ownership of their work within the current technological and regulatory landscape.

Supporting Ұ������ 2035

The collaboration aligns with From Ұ������ for the world, the University’s strategy to 2035. The strategy seeks to define what a great university looks like for the 21st century by creating knowledge for the public good, locally and globally. By connecting computer science with the creative industries, cultural organisations, law and policymaking, the appointment supports the University’s commitments to interdisciplinary research, partnership, responsible AI and translating research excellence into practical impact.

“Creative work is becoming fluid. It can be copied, transformed and recombined at machine speed, while authorship and ownership struggle to keep up,” said Andrew. “This appointment is an opportunity to bring computer scientists, artists, lawyers and policymakers together to build practical systems that keep identity and provenance attached to creative work.”

"I am delighted to welcome Andrew Melchior as Honorary Professor in Computer Science here in Ұ������," said Professor Andrew Stewart, Head of the Department of Computer Science. “He has a unique perspective at the intersection of AI, provenance, and creativity drawn from deep technical knowledge. Andrew’s particular lens is critical in helping us navigate the AI challenges and opportunities we face with respect to creative authorship. I very much look forward to his research collaborations and teaching contributions, both within the Department of Computer Science and, more broadly, across our University.”

Andrew has a remarkable ability to bridge worlds that do not always naturally come together, from computer science and policy to music, the arts and the creative industries," said Professor Michelle Phillips, Director of Creative Ұ������ and Professor of Music. “At a time when artificial intelligence is reshaping how creative work is produced, shared and valued, his expertise offers an important perspective on how we can protect and support human creativity.”

“His visit to Ұ������ earlier this year sparked valuable conversations between researchers, students, policymakers and creative practitioners, demonstrating the potential for genuinely interdisciplinary collaboration. We are delighted to build on that momentum through this appointment and look forward to developing new research, learning and engagement opportunities together over the coming years.”

Around one million people are living with dementia in the UK, yet more than a third do not have a diagnosis. Dementia risk is shaped by a mix of health, lifestyle and environmental factors, but there are positive steps people can take to reduce their risk.

The Ұ������ Brain Health Centre (MBHC) has been spearheaded by Alzheimer’s Society in partnership with Ұ������ University NHS Foundation Trust, Greater Ұ������ Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, The Geoffrey Jefferson Brain Research Centre at The University of Ұ������ and supported by NHS Greater Ұ������.

MBHC is a unique joined-up, single service bringing together psychiatrists, vascular specialists, clinical academics, and a multidisciplinary team to identify and support people at the earliest stages of memory loss. People will benefit from advanced diagnostic techniques such as MRI scans, lumbar punctures, heart health checks, and behavioural assessments, delivering an earlier and accurate diagnosis. This approach will also help identify underlying risk factors and inform the most effective treatment and support plan for individuals.

People who meet the requirements for the MBHC will be identified through existing memory assessment services and referred directly. Those who take part in the two-year pilot in central Ұ������ will also be given the chance, if they are eligible, to take part in research and clinical trials.

Alzheimer’s Society Brain Health Advisers will work alongside NHS clinicians to offer personalised support, guidance and information to people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), an early stage of memory and thinking changes, or dementia, as well as to anyone looking to improve their brain health through achievable lifestyle and health changes.

Michelle Dyson CB, Alzheimer’s Society Chief Executive Officer, said: “Dementia is the UK’s biggest killer, but it is not an inevitable part of ageing. Nearly half (45%) of dementia cases worldwide could be prevented or delayed by addressing health and lifestyle factors, throughout our lives, like high blood pressure.

“If we can identify people early enough, we can significantly improve their brain health and help put the brakes on dementia. The Ұ������ Brain Health Centre really is changing the game, and we are proud to be a partner. This model could be replicated in other regions, transforming the future for thousands of people at risk of dementia or in the early stages of memory loss.”

Professor Adam Greenstein, Consultant Geriatrician at Ұ������ University NHS Foundation Trust, Clinical Scientist at University of Ұ������ and Alzheimer’s Society Ambassador, said: “The Ұ������ Brain Health Centre is a game-changing approach which brings together partners who believe that greater collaboration can help diagnose more people at an earlier stage and improve health outcomes. We are combining clinical and research expertise to identify people earlier, address risk factors such as high blood pressure, and support patients to live better for longer.

This is an innovative step towards a proactive approach to brain health, and we are creating a model which we believe could be adopted more widely. Through this pilot, we will be generating the evidence to support future service collaboration and development by clinical, research and academic teams across the country.”

Dr Ross Dunne, Consultant Later Life Psychiatrist and Dementia Research Lead at Greater Ұ������ Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, said: “The Ұ������ Brain Health Centre is crucial to advancing our understanding and treatment of the diseases that cause dementia. Right now, the system is not set up for people when memory and thinking problems first appear. That is exactly when early diagnosis and treatment could have the greatest impact.

“We want the UK to be the best place in the world to get an early and accurate diagnosis. We can be a world leader in the research that will change the future of dementia. Together with our partners in Greater Ұ������ and Alzheimer's Society, our aim is to develop a model for brain health clinics nationwide.”

The Ұ������ Brain Health Centre’s pilot clinic is hosted at the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Clinical Research Facility (CRF): Ұ������ at Ұ������ Royal Infirmary.

• The Ұ������ Brain Health Centre reflects The University of Ұ������'s commitment through its Challenge Accepted campaign to bring together research, healthcare and communities to address some of society's most pressing challenges, including improving health outcomes and healthy ageing.
• If you’re worried about yourself, or someone close to you, then Alzheimer’s Society’s symptom checklist can help you start a conversation with a GP. Visit alzheimers.org.uk/checklist or call their Dementia Support Line on 0333 150 3456.