The Higher Education Funding Council for England announced today that it will award the University of Birmingham funding of £44.6 million for research, placing the University top in the region and 11th nationally.

This is the first award of funding that reflects Birmingham’s performance in the Research Assessment Exercise 2008 - a UK-wide survey of research quality - which ranked 89.9% of the University’s research as being “world-leading” or “internationally excellent”.

Vice-Chancellor of the University of Birmingham, Professor Michael Sterling, said:

“At the University of Birmingham, we are committed to carrying out research that has global impact; that is agenda-setting; that changes lives.  This award recognises that the quality and quantity of research activity undertaken at Birmingham is delivering just that.  This confirms the University’s position as a major international research player and the biggest in the region.”

Ends

Notes to Editors:

Higher Education Funding Council for England – recurrent grant for 2009-10, by West Midlands region

Institution

Total recurrent research funding

Regional research funding ranking

National research funding ranking

Further information:

Rachel Burrows – Head of Communications, University of Birmingham

Tel: 0121 414 6681 / mob: 07789 921165 / email: r.burrows@bham.ac.uk