How Yorkshire’s universities can deliver value to the region - Dr Anthony Herbert
Universities are increasingly being asked to justify the regional value they provide. Students, employers, policymakers and the public all want to know what benefits higher education delivers beyond lecture halls and research laboratories.
Universities are far more than just centres of knowledge. At their best, they are engines of opportunity, innovation and public good. The question is not whether universities create value but how to make it visible through meaningful engagement with communities.
One of the most effective ways to do this is through partnerships that root universities in the communities they serve, transforming knowledge and expertise into societal benefit. At the University of Leeds, a collaboration between the School of Mechanical Engineering and the national charity REMAP provides a powerful illustration of this in practice.
REMAP is the only national charity which helps disabled people across the UK achieve greater independence and a better quality of life. The charity’s community of volunteer engineers design and create equipment when no commercial alternative exists – at no charge to the individuals they help.
Through the partnership, engineering staff and students are working alongside REMAP volunteers and disabled clients, drawing on the university's expertise, facilities and manufacturing infrastructure to translate ideas into practical solutions with meaningful impact.
Recent collaborations between REMAP volunteers and engineering technicians have supported Yorkshire residents living with rheumatoid arthritis and upper-limb differences through customised walking-stick handles produced using the university's advanced 3D printing facilities.
At the same time, students are contributing to projects ranging from a temporary upper-limb prosthetic system that helps bridge the gap between surgery and provision of a long-term NHS prosthesis, to a robotic assistive guitar-playing solution to help a stroke survivor continue pursuing a much-loved hobby.
Employers consistently tell universities they need graduates who can do more than demonstrate technical knowledge. They want people who can communicate, collaborate and solve complex problems in real-world settings. Projects like these deliver exactly that.
Students must engage directly with disabled clients, understand their individual challenges and design solutions that work in practice. In doing so, they learn that engineering is not just about performance or efficiency, but also about supporting people to achieve greater independence and a better quality of life. They learn to place people’s needs and experiences at the heart of the design process.
Universities have a civic responsibility to contribute to the regions they serve. At the University of Leeds, this commitment is reflected through initiatives such as the newly launched Civic Exchange, which brings together staff, students and regional partners to deliver lasting impact for our region in areas ranging from health to climate and culture.
These relationships are already strong. For example, the University of Leeds and Leeds City Council worked alongside city partners, local businesses and residents to help create Seacroft Forest Garden - transforming an eyesore plot of land into a thriving community garden.
The REMAP collaboration embodies this ethos. By bringing together students, academics, technical specialists, volunteers and disabled clients, it delivers practical solutions that change lives while providing students with valuable skills and experience.
Dr Anthony Herbert is a lecturer in Medical and Biological Engineering at the University of Leeds.