Oxford Brookes ranked highly for third year in a row in latest Knowledge Exchange Framework results

Oxford Brookes University has once again performed strongly in Research England’s Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF), an annual national-level assessment of how universities benefit the economy and society.

Oxford Brookes’ successful work in commercialising its intellectual property (IP), predominantly through IP licensing, but also through the setting up of spin-out companies, is ranked in the top 20% of English universities. 

In the third successive set of Knowledge Exchange Framework results, Oxford Brookes was placed in the top 40% for its research partnerships and for working with the public and third sectors. The University was recognised for its strength in working with external organisations and contributing to the local economy, supporting business growth.

Professor Linda King, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Global Partnerships at Oxford Brookes University, said: “We welcome this third report on knowledge exchange activities in universities, which shows that Oxford Brookes is continuing its strong tradition of working closely with local partners and organisations. Our success in IP and commercialisation reflects how our research expertise is making a difference in the real world.”

Examples of successful spin-outs from Oxford Brookes University include Oxford Expression Technologies Ltd which is using its virus-based protein expression technology to help global companies develop vaccines and diagnostic assays - used to analyse specific biomarkers for detecting or identifying pathogens, such as viruses, bacteria or toxins.

The latest spinout venture at Oxford Brookes is MetaGuideX, an innovative cancer diagnostics company which won the 2020 Oxford Academic Health Science Network’s Accelerator programme.

The University also works with a range of external partners. A recent Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Blenheim Palace saw Oxford Brookes’ academics across multiple disciplines working together to develop an AI-enabled, real-time visitor management system to enhance visitor experience and support business operations.

The Knowledge Exchange Framework looks at seven areas of knowledge exchange. This year Oxford Brookes was placed in a cluster of 33 universities with a broad portfolio of expertise generating excellent research across all disciplines.

For more information see Research England’s KEF dashboard page here.