{"id":930,"date":"2022-10-11T17:24:45","date_gmt":"2022-10-11T16:24:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/publicengagement\/?p=930"},"modified":"2022-10-25T11:45:52","modified_gmt":"2022-10-25T10:45:52","slug":"beyond-the-one-off-embedding-university-and-science-centre-partnerships","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/publicengagement\/2022\/10\/11\/beyond-the-one-off-embedding-university-and-science-centre-partnerships\/","title":{"rendered":"Beyond the one-off: embedding university and science centre partnerships"},"content":{"rendered":"

During the <\/span>Association of Science and Discovery Centres<\/span><\/a>\u2019 annual conference in Glasgow, I hosted a conversation that explored the value of collaborations between universities and science centres, here are some of the key takeaways.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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ASDC National Conference 2022<\/span><\/h1>\n

Taking place each year, around September, the <\/span>Association of Science and Discovery Centres<\/span><\/a>\u2019 conference is an opportunity to share practice across the sector and explore new and emerging ideas in informal science learning and engagement.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

Held in Glasgow this year, I hosted a conversation about partnerships between universities and science centres. We had three partnerships to explore:<\/span> Centre of the Cell<\/span><\/a> \/ <\/span>Queen Mary University of London<\/span><\/a>; <\/span>National Space Centre<\/span><\/a> \/ <\/span>University of <\/span><\/a>Leicester <\/span><\/a>and <\/span>We The Curious<\/span><\/a> \/ <\/span>University of Bath<\/span><\/a>. Each relationship was different \u2013 from the individual and institutional drivers, the level of maturity, and how the work was funded.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The session generated lots of interest, with over 50 people joining us with some great questions, comments and thoughts. During the session, we wanted to unpack these relationships to explore what the benefits to the organisations and staff are, and from that, get a handle on how the partnerships are being sustained. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Before I reflect on the conversations I thought it would be helpful to add some context and describe the three relationships.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Centre of the Cell \/ Queen Mary University of London (QMUL)<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h1>\n

The Centre of the Cell is believed to be the world's first science centre in a working lab, the Blizard Institute of Cell and Molecular Science. Established in 2009, the partnership between the Centre and the Blizard Institute provides content for the shows and workshops from the research at QMUL. During the session, Rebecca Hill, Centre Manager, described how the expertise of the visitor-facing staff at Centre of the Cell has been used in the <\/span>CHILL research project<\/span><\/a> which is looking at the impact of air pollution and the introduction of the Ultra-Low Emissions Zone and its impact on children\u2019s health. The Education team have created a workshop allowing children to explore the science underpinning the research. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Funding: <\/span><\/i>QMUL\u00a0fund a proportion of the staff costs through research grant funding, core institute funding and their Higher Education Innovation Funding<\/span><\/a> allocation. Visitor entrance fees cover the other running and staff costs of the Centre of the Cell. The CHILL research funding paid for the development of the schools' workshops. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

National Space Centre \/ University of Leicester\u00a0<\/strong><\/h1>\n

From the National Space Centre, Josh Barker (the Centre's new Education and Outreach Officer) talked about the efforts getting the National Space Centre and the University of Leicester to work better together for regional development through Space Park Leicester. Leicester has a very long tradition of space industry and research and the local authority is keen that space careers are accessible and desirable for the young people of Leicester. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Funding: <\/span><\/i>evenly split between both organisations\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We The Curious \/ University of Bath<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h1>\n

Nathalia Gjersoe, a researcher in the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath, has been involved with We The Curious for many years. Working with the team at We The Curious, Thalia has developed activities to effectively collect data from visitors in a way that is robust enough for academic publication and creates a meaningful visitor experience for those coming through the doors. (We also have a connection because I used to work at We The Curious and still have professional friendships with staff from that time.)\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Funding: <\/span><\/i>staff time from core funding. More recently We The Curious secured funding from Wellcome and\u00a0the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 to create the <\/span>Open City Lab<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What did I take from the discussion?\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/h1>\n