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Sussex Researcher School

Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers

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Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers 


The Concordat is an agreement between employers of researchers and research funders on the expectations for the professional development and employment conditions of researchers in the UK.

 sets out the expectations and responsibilities of researchers, their managers, employers and funders. It aims to increase the attractiveness and sustainability of research careers in the UK and to improve the quantity, quality and impact of research for the benefit of UK society and the economy.

About the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers

The Concordat was established to ensure that today's researchers are nurtured and supported during their career development.

By setting out clear expectations for researchers, research managers, research institutions, and funders of research, the Concordat aims to enhance the research workforce and thereby sustain research excellence in the UK, bringing benefits to the health, economy and wellbeing of our nation.

The Concordat has three defining Principles covering:

  1. Environment and Culture
    Excellent research requires a supportive and inclusive research culture
  2. Employment
    Researchers are recruited, employed and managed under conditions that recognise their value and importance
  3. Professional and Career Development
    Professional and career development are integral to enabling researchers to develop their full potential

For each of these Principles, the Concordat outlines the key responsibilities of the four main stakeholder groups:

  1. Funders
    Providing funding for public or private research
  2. Institutions
    Universities and research institutes as employers of researchers
  3. Managers of researchers
    Having direct line management responsibility for researchers
  4. Researchers
    Employed primarily to conduct research

More information on the Concordat can be found .

University Commitment to the Concordat

The University's Interim Vice-Chancellor, Professor David Maguire, signed the Concordat for Researcher Development on Thursday 11 November 2021.

Please see the letter from our Interim Vice-Chancellor.

Becoming a signatory triggers a process to design an Action Plan for meeting the Concordat's principles and obligations. This is published as the HR Excellence in Research Action Plan, publicly available on the University website.

 

Research with Impact Forum - Understanding the Researcher Development Concordat

The Research with Impact Forum on 10 March 2022 was hosted by Prof Keith Jones, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Research and Enterprise, and Dr Erika Mancini, Chair of the Sussex Researcher Development Concordat Steering Group.

A panel of internal and external stakeholders discussed different aspects of the Concordat and its implications for institutions, academic Schools, researchers, managers of researchers and funders.

Click on the links below to skip directly to the presentations:

If you have any queries regarding HREiR or the Concordat, contact researchstaffoffice@sussex.ac.uk.

Sussex Researcher School

E: researcher-school@sussex.ac.uk