Engage 2012: Responding to change

This NCCPE-organised event is described in the following terms:

"This, the third NCCPE [UK] National Conference, will explore how engagement helps universities to navigate the complexities of change and to respond to increasingly intense public interest.

The 21st century University must adapt to face the challenges posed by the need to more rigorously demonstrate the impact of research; increasing demands for a 'relevant' curriculum that prepares students for life beyond university; and the need to mobilise knowledge in addressing challenges faced by society. Engagement is a key approach that enables the sector to learn from others and to develop strategies that are sensitive to these wider societal shifts and expectations.

Taking place in Bristol, this interactive conference will look across the whole engagement agenda including research; teaching and learning; knowledge exchange; volunteering and social responsibility, and will explore common themes including:

• Leadership: How can leaders of higher education best navigate the current changes to the sector?
• External voices: How do organisations outside the sector view higher education? What potential do others see in the sector developing a more engaged approach to their work? What lessons have they learned that could help us?
• Partnership: With the strain on public resources, how can sustainable partnerships be supported to deliver mutual benefit?
• Realising Impact: Increasingly funders require organisations to evidence impact of their work. What are the key ways to ensure impactful work? How can this be evidenced?
• Teamwork: Increasingly the role of effective team working – across disciplines, roles and within and outside the sector – has risen up the agenda. What are the key ways to build and support teams to realise the potential of working together?
• Effective Practice: There are lots of examples of innovative or excellent practice across the UK. What can we learn together from these projects to inspire change?

The conference is aimed at anyone passionate about the role of public engagement including: senior managers responsible to inspiring a culture of engagement within their institution; funders working to inspire institutions to develop more engaged practice; policy makers responsible for creating an environment where engagement thrives; community groups working with or wanting to work with universities and research institutes; academics wanting to develop engaged practice; public engagement support staff; public engagement practitioners - or those interested in engaging the public with their work (including students and researchers); students keen on realising the potential of an engaged education; volunteer managers; engaged organisations and charities wanting to develop more effective engagement work in partnership with the HE sector.