Queen’s Anniversary Prizes honour university innovation

Twenty-two Queen’s Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education have been announced at a ceremony in London.

The awards, part of the UK’s national honours system, are granted every two years by the sovereign on the advice of the prime minister following a review carried out by the Royal Anniversary Trust, an independent charity. They were first awarded in 1994.

Sir Damon Buffini, the charity’s chair, said that the anniversary prizes were “shining a light on the groundbreaking work taking place in universities and colleges across the UK”.

“All 22 prize winners demonstrate excellence, innovation and impact, with many tackling some of the toughest problems we as a society face today. They are to be commended for reaching this pinnacle of achievement in the tertiary education sector,” Sir Damon said.

The awards honour a diverse range of projects, ranging from research into the life and work of the poet Robert Burns conducted at the University of Glasgow to The Open University’s development of authentic online laboratory experiences for distance learning students.

A formal honours ceremony will take place next year.

Winners of the Queen’s Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education, 2022-24

Aberystwyth University
Pioneering research into diseases caused by parasitic flatworms that is leading to the identification of new drugs, innovative detection methodologies and sustainable health practices, improving the quality of human and animal health, and safeguarding the global food supply.

University of the Arts London
Global leadership and pioneering work in environmental and social sustainability, shaping the future of the fashion industry through teaching, research, industry and community-based practices.

Bangor University
A novel system for public health surveillance through the analysis of harmful pathogens in waste water, deployed nationally during the pandemic and now adapted to measure a wide range of public health indicators. 

University of Birmingham
Worldwide leadership in aero-engineering research, in long-term partnership with Rolls-Royce, leading to the development of ever safer, more reliable, and more efficient aero-engines.

Bridgwater & Taunton College
The first further education college to gain consent from the Nursing and Midwifery Council and a university partner to deliver nursing degrees locally, opening up new career routes for all ages and responding to workforce challenges within the local NHS.

City College Plymouth
A leading provider of maritime skills, the college collaborates with a wide range of employers, offering world-class facilities, an innovative industry-led skills provision and an international reputation for excellence in a sector accounting for more than 10,000 jobs locally.

City of Glasgow College
Life-saving research into oxygen depletion in enclosed spaces on board ships, with the findings being shared through the development of accredited materials available to students globally in partnership with the Merchant Navy Training Board and the Maritime Education Foundation.

University of Glasgow
World-leading interdisciplinary research into the life and work of poet Robert Burns providing fresh insight and informing decisions on authenticity, provenance, acquisitions and exhibitions, and offering a template for studies on the impact of cultural figures in the wider economy. 

Hopwood Hall College and University Centre
A trauma-informed approach to learning, designed to support marginalised and disengaged young people aged 16 to 18, by responding to a range of social and mental health issues affecting life chances in one of the most deprived areas nationally.

Institute of Cancer Research
Transformational research programme significantly improving health outcomes of people with breast cancer globally, including new drug treatments for people with inherited genetic mutations, improved approaches for selecting those who can avoid chemotherapy and reducing the number of radiotherapy treatments.

Lakes College West Cumbria
A groundbreaking, transferrable model of training for higher technicians in the UK’s nuclear and low carbon sector within the framework of a curriculum developed with industry and accredited by the National College for Nuclear.

University of Lincoln
Innovations in agri-food technology including the development of robotic systems in harvesting crops, use of AI to support farming businesses in accessing global markets, and education programmes supporting labour supply, leading to improved productivity, efficiency and sustainability in rural economies. 

University of Liverpool
Innovative chemistry research that harnesses strategic collaborations with global partners to revolutionise materials discovery and design, decarbonise industrial processes, develop more sustainable fast-moving consumer products, and drive forward advances in drugs for combatting HIV and neglected diseases.

Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
International research leading to the development of a simple and affordable vector control for the elimination of sleeping sickness, protecting over 1.8 million people across five African countries and directly contributing to the World Health Organization confirming the elimination of the disease in Uganda.

Loughborough College
A unique, world-class space engineering programme in partnership with the National Space Academy that combines A levels and engineering to be the country’s most academically challenging course for 16- to 19-year-olds.

Newcastle University
An interdisciplinary research programme of global excellence in water security, working in partnership with communities, industry, governments and non-governmental organisations to deliver lasting real-world impact in a field that encompasses floods, droughts, water quality and public health.

The Open University
Delivering authentic online laboratory experiences at scale to distance learning students in the fields of science, health, computing and engineering; changing the way scientists and engineers of the future are educated via an accessible and inclusive online teaching model.

University of Oxford
Extensive and innovative research leading to major advances in autonomous robotic technology with applications across industry, notably transport, agriculture and energy; influencing UK policy for transport and safe nuclear power; and delivering technology for space exploration to the European Space Agency and Nasa.

Plumpton College
Innovator and developer of industry-led training and education programmes, supporting growth and sustainability of the English wine sector.

SRUC (Scotland’s Rural College)
A world-class, fully integrated, veterinary services team that has transformed animal health and welfare, delivered education and knowledge exchange and played a leading role in the eradication of bovine viral diarrhoea in the UK and Ireland.

University of Strathclyde
The UK’s largest academic centre for translational research and education in photonics, home to an internationally recognised photonics ecosystem that has been developed over more than three decades, including the UK’s first and only Fraunhofer Centre.

Swansea University
World-leading research that harnesses data to improve public health and well-being, providing a secure national data linkage and access system for all public data in Wales, and increasingly other UK nations, delivering population-level insights for governments and policymakers.

chris.havergal@timeshighereducation.com