ESRC Impact Acceleration Account

The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) awarded the University of Hertfordshire a £1.25 million Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) in March 2023 to deliver a 5-year programme of impact activities, starting in April 2023.

The ESRC IAA supports a wide range of activities within research organisations, aiming to unlock the impact of social, economic and behavioural research and contribute to a prosperous, inclusive, healthy and secure society.

32 research organisations across the UK, including the University of Hertfordshire, are benefitting from this £40 million investment from the ESRC.

This grant will help drive forwards and further develop the real-world impact of the University's ESRC-remit research.

The University will use the ESRC IAA to:

1. improve health and wellbeing, increase inclusivity and strengthen societal resilience, especially in the East of England, by leveraging our partnerships with health and care networks, local authorities, government, businesses, place-making bodies, schools, not-for-profits and disadvantaged communities;
2. create new commercialisation pathways for our social sciences research through internal and external funding mechanisms and increasing access to training in business planning and industry engagement; and
3. enhance interdisciplinary knowledge exchange between our social sciences and arts & humanities researchers by aligning our ESRC and AHRC IAAs and providing joint upskilling opportunities in KE and co-production.

For more information about the University of Hertfordshire ESRC IAA please contact: iaa@herts.ac.uk

University of Hertfordshire wins second IAA award