The University of Birmingham’s School of Education has been announced as one of the best schools in the UK for its areas of research in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2014.

The REF measures the quality and impact of research conducted in universities and higher education institutions in the UK against international standards of excellence, and enables higher education funding bodies to distribute public funds on the basis of both the quality and volume of the research as well as its wider impact.

The results of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2014 show that more than 81 per cent of all research carried out by the University of Birmingham is rated as internationally excellent (3*) or world leading (4*) according to a UK-wide research quality survey published today (Thursday 18 December).

The School of Education’s research centres carry out important, cutting-edge work in areas such as autism, character education, race and education, access to higher education, multilingualism, and visual impairment. The department is also integral to the establishment of the University of Birmingham secondary school which opens in September 2015.

The results also reveal that 87 per cent of the University of Birmingham’s research activity has a global impact, confirming its position among the world’s top universities for research in a broad range of areas from History and Education to Chemical Engineering and Psychology.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Birmingham, Professor Sir David Eastwood, said: ‘At Birmingham, pioneering innovative solutions that address big issues, unlock value and benefit society is at the heart of our research agenda. Today’s results put us among a handful of institutions that can demonstrate world-leading or internationally-renowned research across such a broad range of subjects.

“I am delighted that at this midpoint in our ten-year research strategy we have met, and mostly exceeded, the targets we set ourselves and confirmed our place amongst the very best universities across a number of disciplines.”