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Last updated: 10 August 2023
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| Question | Response |
| 1A. Name of organisation | University of Gloucestershire |
| 1B. Type of organisation: higher education institution/industry/independent research performing organisation/other (please state) | Higher Education Institution |
| 1C. Date statement approved by governing body (DD/MM/YY) | 10/05/23 |
| 1D. Web address of organisation’s research integrity page (if applicable) | www.glos.ac.uk/research/research-integrity |
| 1E. Named senior member of staff to oversee research integrity | Name: Professor Sarah Jones / Professor Nigel McLoughlin |
| Email address: sjones20@glos.ac.uk nmcloughlin@glos.ac.uk | |
| 1F. Named member of staff who will act as a first point of contact for anyone wanting more information on matters of research integrity | Name: Sarabjit Bissas |
| Email address: sbissas@glos.ac.uk |
Our expectations of research integrity are of high standard in the conduct of research undertaken by staff, students, honorary and emeritus titleholders, associates and consultants and the University is strongly committed to upholding and fulfilling the commitments of the Concordat to Support Research Integrity (October 2019 (‘Concordat’)).
The University is committed to:
(1) Upholding the highest standards of rigour and integrity in all aspects of research
(2) Ensuring that research is conducted according to appropriate ethical, legal and professional frameworks, funding obligations and standards
(3) Supporting a research environment that is underpinned by a culture of integrity and supported by good governance, best practice, and promotes for the development of researchers in accordance with the Concordat Supporting the Career Development of Researchers
(4) Using transparent, independent, timely, robust and fair processes to deal with allegations of research misconduct should they arise
(5) Working together to strengthen the integrity of research and to review progress regularly and openly.
In compliance with the Concordat, the University is publishing a statement on research integrity on an annual basis, which is presented to its governing bodies (the Research Ethics Committee, the University Research Committee, the University Executive Committee, Academic Board and the University Council. In relation to external collaborative matters, the University Ethics and Integrity Committee oversees any issues that may arise relating to research integrity). This statement covers the period 2021-2022 and outlines the University’s framework and activities in support of fostering a culture of research integrity line with the expectations of the Concordat. It also provides a high-level summary of investigations of research misconduct that have been undertaken by the University. Our continued commitment to foster a culture of research integrity is driven by our recognition of the importance of undertaking our activities responsibly, in accordance with the highest ethical standards, and in compliance with the Concordat. The University’s new Research Strategy launched in 2021, is based on our core purpose, to inspire excellence in what we do, to respect all those we work with (both internally and externally) and build an inclusive community that encompasses students and staff. The University fully recognises its responsibilities to researchers, the wider community and is strongly committed to fostering a culture of research integrity, responsible research conduct, ethics, compliance, respect for human identity and governance across all of our research activities and at all levels.
The Pro Vice Chancellor Academic Enhancement and Research with support from the Head of Research Innovation and the Chair of Research Ethics Committee has the overall responsibility for compliance with the Concordat including the implementation of research policies, research ethics, research compliance and governance. Research integrity and research ethics training and development for students, staff and researchers, is overseen by our Head of Research Innovation and Chair of Research Ethics Committee. The groups and committees supporting Pro Vice Chancellor Academic Enhancement and Research on matters relating to research integrity and research ethics are:
The Concordats Implementation Working Group (CIWG)
School Research Ethics Panel (SREP)
Research Ethics Committee (REC)
University Ethics and Integrity Committee (UEIC).
University Research Committee (URC)
University Executive Committee (UEC)
Academic Board (AB)
University Council (UC) The Pro Vice Chancellor Academic Enhancement and Research and the Head of Research Innovation report regularly to University Committees on research matters to ensure institutional oversight. School Research Ethics Leads (SRELs) have a leadership role and an overall responsibility for researchers in their respective Schools and Communities. Their remit is to scrutinise research ethics applications and where appropriate to request the REC to consider onerous and high-risk applications. They are supported in disseminating good practice by the wider research leadership in the University, including Unit of Assessment (UoA) Leads, Research Priority Area (RPA) Leads who represent broad research areas, Postgraduate Research Leads (PGRLs) and the Chair of Research Ethics Committee. Research leaders are all responsible for championing research integrity and implementation of research policies and processes within their Schools and Communities. Our SRELs contribute to promoting and fostering a culture of research integrity within the disciplines relevant to their respective Schools and Communities. The REC Chair supports the Head of Research Innovation, UoA Leads, RPA Leads and SRELs and PGRLs on all matters relating to research integrity, research ethics, research compliance and governance. The REC Chair is also responsible for carrying out an annual auditing and reporting exercise to the University Research Committee.
The University is currently in the process of creating a dedicated Research Office which draws together staff with responsibilities which include support and oversight of developments underpinned by the Concordats for researcher development and research integrity. These will include:
(1) Leading on the compliance with the Concordat to Support Research Integrity through facilitating review and development of research policies, guidance and processes.
(2) Oversight and management of research ethics processes through the University’s ethics and governance review and monitoring of high-risk research projects.
(3) Providing expertise and advice on research integrity, research ethics, research compliance and clinical governance in line with legal and ethical requirements and available guidance, codes of conduct and practice.
(4) Providing advice and training to staff and students on all aspects of good and responsible research conduct including research integrity, research ethics, research compliance and clinical governance.
Management of the University’s procedure for investigating cases of alleged misconduct in research and ensuring that any allegations of research misconduct concerning University staff are investigated in a fair and timely manner, is undertaken by senior HR managers. All student investigations are undertaken in line with the relevant student regulations that apply at the time. The University has comprehensive research policies and procedures which are outlined in Research Ethics: A Handbook of Principles and Procedures to meet the expectations of the Concordat, including the development of a new Code of Practice – Research Integrity, which ensures alignment with sector guidance published by the UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) and the UK Research Integrity Office (UKRIO). Both provide an important framework for conducting research at the University and covers the entire research lifecycle. The University’s Handbook on Research Ethics can be found here. To ensure that our research policies are up-to-date, and that new policies are developed if required, a research policies action plan is maintained by the URC and these are reviewed regularly reviewed by Head of Research Innovation through the convening of the Concordats Implementation Working Group and in consultation with URC, REC, SREPs and SRELs. Prior to officially releasing, each new or revised research policy, it is widely consulted amongst the University community. Changes to existing policies, or introduction of new policies and procedures, are communicated to staff and students through a number of established communication channels, in line with the University’s guidance and process on dissemination and communications processes, for example on the student portal, ‘MyGlos’. The University aims to review and update its research policies every 3-5 years, or sooner where necessary in line with national (in some instances international) changes to relevant legislation, guidelines or requirements of regulatory bodies and funders.
The Research Ethics: A Handbook of Principles and Procedures was reviewed and revised during the period under review and revised handbook dated 21 March 2022 has been published and circulated amongst our students and staff. Also, in line with the sector we will be introducing our Code of Practice – Research Integrity to further embed Commitment 3 of the Concordat. Our Research Strategy has also been reviewed and renewed to support the University’s research priorities for the following 5 years, however, this will be reviewed once the revised guidelines on REF are published.
The University’s annual research development and training programme has been revised and updated for the 2022-23 academic year, including a review of our provision. The programme includes training, awareness raising, and permanent resources on matters of research integrity and research misconduct and through training and development opportunities we embed our commitment to this Concordat promoting researching safely. The University became a signatory of The Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers. As a direct result a working group of ‘Concordats Implementation Working Group’ has been established which oversee the institution’s action plans and commitments to the Concordats. The CIWG will take forward a gap analysis of the Concordat to Support Research Integrity and the Concordat Support the Career Development of Researchers with researchers at all levels to discuss their needs and understanding of the Concordats.
The University is committed to ensuring and maintaining a research environment that develops good research practice and embeds a culture of research integrity. It is recognised that multiple initiatives must be adopted to strengthen the understanding of research integrity across the University. The following includes initiatives and activities that are planned to be taken forward during 2023.
The implementation of new training sessions and workshops have been added to the University’s Research Training & Development Programme. These sessions are available for all academic staff and postgraduate research students. The following training events will be scheduled; Introduction to Research Ethics, Introduction to Research Integrity, Managing Risk in Research & Researching Safely Workshop, and Research Data Management Workshop. The University became a signatory of The Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers. A working group has been established which oversee the institution’s action plans and commitments to the concordats. The working group are taking forward a gap analysis of the Concordat to Support Research Integrity and will be considering the needs and understanding of research integrity.
University Students
Any concerns about research misconduct in relation to University students can be reported to the Quality Assurance Teams based in every University School. Such concerns will be treated as potential breaches of Academic Integrity and investigated an appropriately qualified panel in line with the University’s Academic Regulations.
University Staff
The University has the procedure for investigating cases of alleged misconduct in research which has been revised and updated in 2019 in line with the new requirements of research funders. The Procedure is managed by the Human Resources Team and includes clear principles and mechanisms to ensure that any investigations are conducted in a fair, thorough, objective and timely manner. All allegations are treated with confidentiality and in line with data protection legislation. Any allegations concerning University staff (both present and past) can be reported at the Research Ethics Committee or the Head of School, or directly to the Quality Assurance Team. As per the University’s procedure, all those raising concerns in good faith will be protected, supported and not penalised, in line with the University’s Whistleblowing Policy.
The table below sets out the high-level details of investigations and findings in relation to research misconduct allegations covering University staff in academic year 2021/2022. There was one investigation that took place, and the member of staff left the University before a formal investigation was due to be carried out.
| Type of allegation | Number of allegations | |||
| Number of allegations reported to the organisation | Number of formal investigations | Number upheld in part after formal investigation | Number upheld in full after formal investigation | |
| Fabrication | ||||
| Falsification | ||||
| Plagiarism | 1 | |||
| Failure to meet legal, ethical and professional obligations | ||||
| Misrepresentation (eg data; involvement; interests; qualification; and/or publication history) | ||||
| Improper dealing with allegations of misconduct | ||||
| Multiple areas of concern (when received in a single allegation) | ||||
| Other* | ||||
| Total: | 1 | |||
| *If you listed any allegations under the ‘Other’ category, please give a brief, high-level summary of their type here. Do not give any identifying or confidential information when responding. | ||||
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