THE Awards 2021
The Times Higher Education Awards have been recognising outstanding achievements in UK higher education for the best part of two decades, but never before have they shone a light on the level of effort and creativity that was demanded of universities throughout the 2019-20 academic year.
The response required, and delivered, in the face of a global pandemic was unique, and many of the awards submissions reflected those unprecedented circumstances.
Universities’ great strength is not just that they respond to circumstances, but that they also provide a level of constancy at times of uncertainty and change. The award winners profiled in the pages that follow demonstrate that 2019-20 was not just a year of pandemic disruption, it was also a year in which incredible achievements were made in all the areas you would hope and expect: world-changing research, brilliant learning and teaching, international and industrial engagement, and the full gamut of activities that run through universities like words through a stick of rock.
We hope that you will find inspiration reading these stories of excellence, as we did. Many congratulations again to all of our winners, and to all of those shortlisted.
– John Gill, editor, THE
The winners were announced on 25 November 2021, view the photos of the ceremony in our Flickr album .
Below are the shortlists and winning entries, and here you will find an e-book profiling all the winners .
Watch the highlights video
Business School of the Year
Sponsored by Salesforce
Aberystwyth Business School, Aberystwyth University
School of Management, University of Bradford (winner)
School of Business, University of Dundee
Imperial College Business School
Leeds University Business School
University of Sussex Business School
International Collaboration of the Year
The universities of Kent and Cambridge, on behalf of the GCRF COMPASS project
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (winner)
Knowledge Exchange/Transfer Initiative of the Year
University of Glasgow (Lighthouse Laboratory)
(winner)
London School of Economics and Political Science
Most Innovative Teacher of the Year
Sponsored by Advance HE
Paul Driver, Anglia Ruskin University
Liam Jarvis, University of Essex (winner)
Chris Jones, Pearson College London
Sara Namvar, University of Salford
Alexia Petsalis-Diomidis, University of St Andrews
Rhianedd Smith, University of Reading
Cath Seeds, SRUC (Scotland's Rural College)
David Wareing, University of Central Lancashire
Outstanding Contribution to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
Sponsored by Advance HE
Edinburgh Napier University (winner)
Royal Holloway, University of London
Outstanding Contribution to the Local Community
University of Central Lancashire
London Metropolitan University
University of Nottingham and Nottingham Trent University
(winner)
Outstanding Entrepreneurial University
Sponsored by NCEE
Sheffield Hallam University (winner, watch the video )
Outstanding Estates Team
Canterbury Christ Church University
Newcastle University (winner)
Outstanding Library Team
Sponsored by Kortext
University of the Arts London (winner, watch the video )
Outstanding Marketing/Communications Team
Sponsored by Unibuddy
University of Oxford (winner)
University of the West of England
University of the West of Scotland
Outstanding Research Supervisor of the Year
Sponsored by Elsevier
Ravinder Anand-Ivell, University of Nottingham
Richard Godwin, Harper Adams University (winner)
Will Harvey, University of Exeter
Lorraine Hope, University of Portsmouth
Luca Longo, Technological University Dublin
Clive Palmer, University of Central Lancashire
Corina Sas, Lancaster University
Rachel Tolhurst, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
Outstanding Support for Students
Sponsored by Studiosity
De Montfort University (winner)
RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences
University of the West of England
Outstanding Technician of the Year
Sponsored by Technician Commitment
Trevor Carey, University College Cork
Andrew Filby, Newcastle University (winner, watch the video )
Steve Florence, Sheffield Hallam University
Abbe Martyn, University of Surrey
Manisha Patel, University of Salford
Paul Rowley, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine
Kerry Truman, Nottingham Trent University
Andrew Whittam, University of Reading
Research Project of the Year: Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Bournemouth University and the University of Strathclyde
University of Nottingham (winner)
Research Project of the Year: STEM
Sponsored by Elsevier
De Montfort University, in collaboration with Anglia Ruskin University
University of Oxford, Nuffield Department of Population Health (winner)
Royal Holloway, University of London, in collaboration with the University of York, Leeds Museums and Galleries, and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
Technological or Digital Innovation of the Year
King's College London (winner)
University of Plymouth and Plymouth College of Art
Widening Participation or Outreach Initiative of the Year
Brighton and Sussex Medical School
Manchester Metropolitan University (winner)
University of Nottingham and partners
Waterford Institute of Technology
THE DataPoints Merit Award
Sponsored by THE DataPoints
Entries were not required for this category.
University of Aberdeen
Bournemouth University (winner)
University College Cork
University of Dundee
University of Exeter
University of Manchester
Newcastle University
University of Surrey
THE Outstanding Achievement Award
Sponsored by Anderson Quigley
There is no shortlist for this category.
Professor Dame Sarah Gilbert (winner)
University of the Year
Sponsored by Adobe
Cardiff Metropolitan University (winner)
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine