Public engagement case studies

Examples of public engagement at Plymouth
Explore Awards 2

Public engagement case studies

Examples of public engagement at Plymouth

The sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ continues its commitment to engaging the public with its research. Here you can find some of the ways our researchers have worked to engaged with the public, share specific research findings, and help the public to benefit from the research being done at the University.

 
 
 
 

What we achieved

The FUTURES programme has now ended and during its six years, the sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ reached a total of 15,077 people with 348 researchers.

  • HIn 2020/2021 we reached 2,915 people with 39 researchers

  • HIn 2022/2023 we reached 2,997 people with 86 researchers

  • HIn 2024/2025 we reached 9,165 people with 223 researchers

 
 

Big planets and shining stars galaxy in space - stock photo
FUTURES: Festival of discovery
Funded by UK Research and Innovation, FUTURES brings research to life by giving you the opportunity to get creative, ask questions and try new things. 
Futures2021 festival of discovery.Held as part of European Researchers Night, a range of events featuring academics from the sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½.Seas the Day (National Marine Aquarium) – world-leading experts from sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½â€™s Marine Institute will explore one of the global challenges facing our planet – how to protect our seas – through a range of talks and family activities.
Explore Awards
The Explore Awards aim to assist researchers, with priority for Early Career Researchers, in a range of ways to support their public engagement with research.
2023 Get Involved Awards 
Get Involved Awards
Community groups, charities and social enterprises can apply to work with sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½â€™s researchers, to better understand a problem in their local area and to gain valuable insights.
Created by Layla Hamed – a UoP creative media student, this documentary was part of a Get Involved Awards research project, on arts-based sessions for people over 55 struggling with social isolation.
 

Awards and recognition

VC Awards 2025 – Working with Communities and the Public

Winner: sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ Law Clinic, FoAHB: Rosie Brennan, Lexi Climie and Luke Fisher.
Associate Professor Rosie Brennan, and Lecturers Lexi Climie and Luke Fisher lead our award-winning Law Clinic, which provides outstanding pro bono legal services in matters relating to employment, family, and immigration.
It’s more than a place of learning. The Law Clinic has become a beacon of hope for the city – a compassionate and steadfast presence for those who cannot afford legal assistance, and a living example of how a university can transform its community.
For further information on the Law Clinic, please visit - sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ Law Clinic - sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½.
VC Awards 2025

2024 Awards
Dr Clare Pettinger receiving Vice Chancellor's Award from Professor Richard Davies

VC Awards – Civic and Public Engagement Winner 2024 

Winner: Dr Clare Pettinger, Faculty of Health
Clare is a respected pioneer in using creative methods to engage diverse audiences, including harder-to-reach, ‘less affluent’ community groups. She excels in co-designing inventive, socially innovative research and then translating this into visually appealing, accessible and inclusive formats, aligning with the institutional goal of knowledge mobilisation.
Her ongoing action research promotes methodological innovation and advocates for compassionate and authentic community-centric ‘co-production’ approaches to achieve food system justice, emphasising capacity building for socio-cultural transformation. This is deserved recognition for Clare and her work in dietetics, clearly demonstrating her working above and beyond her role, and the significant impact of her innovative work on the Plymouth Fish Finger project.  

2023 Awards
Ian Sherrif and dementia research team posing with the VC and their VC award

VC Awards – Civic and Public Engagement Winner 2023 

Ian Sherriff BEM, Dr Kate Turner and Dr Alison Warren, Dementia Research Team, Faculty of Health 
Ian Sherriff, Dr Kate Turner and Dr Alison Warren in collaboration with key stakeholders in the United Kingdom have contributed to guidance to support people living with dementia to travel by air. The research informed recommendations are of importance to airports, airlines and policy makers to enhance the travel experience of people with non-visible disabilities and their travel companions. A working group, the Prime Minister’s Dementia Group for Air Transport, was formed in 2015 and brought together people living with dementia, their carers, dementia ambassadors, passenger experience consultants, cabin crew trainers, hidden disability advocates and others to share best practice and influence the air travel chain experience.
The outputs from the working group and research have informed best practice at key airports in the UK with growing interest further afield. 

Times Higher Education Awards 2023
Representatives from the University are presented with their award by broadcaster and author Sandi Toksvig

University wins Outstanding Contribution to the Local Community category at Times Higher Education Awards 2023

The sa¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½â€™s work to combine first-rate dental training with outstanding community care has been rewarded at the Times Higher Education Awards 2023.