David Willetts, the Minister of State for Universities and Science, has officially announced what many in the sector have expected for some time: there will be a one-year delay to the timetable of the Research Excellence Framework (REF). The announcement has been welcomed by HEFCE, and there is further analysis in the Times Higher Education.
The new timetable has pushed the assessment phase back to 2014, which means the deadline for submission of REF returns will likely be at the end of 2013. The outcomes of the REF will inform funding for HEIs from 2015-16.
The reasons given for the delay primarily surround the measurement of impact, the precise details of which have still not been revealed. As discussed on this blog and elsewhere, the inclusion of an impact measurement within the REF has been the focus of significant controversy within the higher education sector since it was announced by HEFCE under the Labour government.
UPDATE: >Research (the team behind ResearchProfessional) have blogged about the revised REF timeline in light of the Willetts announcement: http://exquisitelife.researchresearch.com/exquisite_life/2010/07/new-ref-timeline.html
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