Focus
Our universities are committed to supporting research excellence through sustained investment and maximising its impact globally, nationally and locally.
Through coordination of our efforts and resources we have shown how we can leverage our collective expertise to deliver cutting-edge research findings that are helping society respond to its most pressing concerns.
By working together on mutual priorities such as high-performance computing, equipment and infrastructure, we seek to enable researchers to achieve things that would otherwise be impossible.
All of our universities invest in high quality science that is essential for the sustained development of world-leading research. Our discoveries through this research make a positive impact on the UK economy, our wellbeing and to the world around us.
Here are our main areas of focus:
Impact and place
Imperial ChemEng Enterprise Day 2026
Science & Engineering South (SES) partner Imperial College London brought together founders, investors and researchers for ChemEng Enterprise Day 2026, showcasing a growing pipeline of deep-tech ventures from its Department of Chemical Engineering.
London Centre for Nanotechnology Marks 20 Years of Scientific Innovation and Partnership
Bringing together researchers across Imperial, UCL and King’s, the London Centre for Nanotechnology has spent the last 20 years driving collaborative research at the nanoscale. We spoke with Co-Director Professor Sandrine Heutz about the Centre’s evolution, its impact, and the future of nanoscience in London.
UK’s Most Powerful Quantum Computer
The UK’s most powerful quantum computer will be based at the University of Cambridge. It is part of a major new partnership with IonQ, the University’s largest corporate research collaboration.
Computing
UK’s Most Powerful Quantum Computer
The UK’s most powerful quantum computer will be based at the University of Cambridge. It is part of a major new partnership with IonQ, the University’s largest corporate research collaboration.
Supporting digital Research Technical Professionals: Building a community, shaping careers
With a growing recognition of the technical skills needed to underpin modern research, a project has been launched to support a community of professionals with these skills. Jeremy Cohen describes STEP-UP and how it will give this community the infrastructure they deserve.
Crafting culture change
This year is the tenth anniversary of the Research Software Engineers’ community. It’s a milestone for the group – but also a huge milestone for the UK research environment.
Research Data
Elevating research data stewardship at UCL
The job of curating and sharing research data is vital, but it has traditionally fallen to different groups of people. At UCL a dedicated team of Research Data Stewards has been assembled to work across a range of projects and services, as James Wilson explains.
Supporting digital Research Technical Professionals: Building a community, shaping careers
With a growing recognition of the technical skills needed to underpin modern research, a project has been launched to support a community of professionals with these skills. Jeremy Cohen describes STEP-UP and how it will give this community the infrastructure they deserve.
Research technology professionals – adding value to research teams
When research technology professionals work with your team it makes for ‘happy researchers’ delegates at a SES event heard last month.
Equipment
Royce Cambridge
The Royce facilities at the University of Cambridge provides state-of-the-art equipment for the study of many different materials with almost a third of users from outside the host institution. Find out more about how Royce Cambridge supports the UK research ecosystem.
Research technology professionals – adding value to research teams
When research technology professionals work with your team it makes for ‘happy researchers’ delegates at a SES event heard last month.
Research technology professionals: the hidden roles behind research success
Research Technology Professionals play a crucial role in achieving high-quality research outputs. Supporting their career progression benefits the whole research community.