Our commitment to the Liverpool City Region

We’re proud to have been a part of our famous home maritime city of Liverpool for nearly 150 years.

And as proud partners of the city and wider region, we feel we have a role to play in helping it thrive now and in the future. That’s why we’re committed to using our spirit of creativity and originality to continue to play a critical role in the city’s future success and growth.

As a university, we share the city’s ambition to grow our collective reputation around the world through the provision of world-class research and education. And we’re committed to using our standing within the local community and at a regional level to create positive change for the Liverpool City Region for years to come.

Our commitment

Our vision is to drive prosperity and wellbeing for the Liverpool City Region through our research, innovation and partnerships for local and global impact. The University is committed to delivering growth in investment, jobs and innovation. We want to support our communities in addressing inequalities and improving life chances.

As a university, we have a huge impact economically, socially and culturally on the Liverpool City Region, and we're determined to strengthen our contribution further.

Investment in the City Region

As part of our strategy, Liverpool 2031, we’ve committed to a number of important actions over the coming years that will help with maximising our impact regionally and having a positive influence on the city and wider region.

We’re prioritising attracting investment to the Liverpool City Region in the areas of materials innovation, and health and life sciences. We’re also dedicated to securing significant external funding for these flagship priorities, working in partnership with the combined authority.

We have already played an integral role in securing £80 million of funding from central government for the Liverpool City Region Life Sciences Investment Zone. By working with key health partners in the region, we aim to trial new treatments and diagnostics which address key challenges locally and beyond.

Jobs and employment gaps in the community

As one of the largest employers in the city, we attract highly skilled employees from around the world to Liverpool and are committed to upskilling our workforce through staff development opportunities.

Through our dedication to open up higher education to all, we work with employers locally to identify and address skills gaps in the region’s workforce to help improve employability and improve the overall skill in evidence across the city.

Sustainability

Our research and education strengths add value in supporting our region to reach its Net Zero targets.

We’re aiming to use digital technologies to support local businesses to become more sustainable, cleaner and healthier. Working with the Combined Authority, we will support its Net Zero ambitions to benefit local communities, workers and visitors.

By addressing our own Net Zero challenge, we will also maximise our contribution to the Liverpool City Region targets. We will drive forward environmental changes through our education, research and operations. Read more about our sustainability strategy.

Work carried out by our Heseltine Institute for Public Policy, Practice and Place is already helping to shape and influence policies that support the development of sustainable and inclusive cities and regions.

Innovation

We have ambitious plans to deliver innovation to support the well-being and prosperity of communities across the region.

The investment already generated for the Life Sciences Investment Zone will provide the opportunity to deliver world-leading life science innovation, using world-class assets and facilities. This is critically important in our work to reduce health inequalities in Liverpool, the City Region and the North West of England.

We also want to bring the city’s key partners together to develop an Office for Public Service Innovation with the aim of improving public service delivery across the city region.

Widening participation

Widening participation has always been a cornerstone of our University. That’s why we strive to support our communities in addressing inequalities and improving life changes through widening access to education, as well as arts and culture initiatives.

We're also renewing our commitment to widening participation and outreach to raise educational attainment and aspiration. We want students from all backgrounds to be able to achieve their full potential.

Departments and Schools across our 3 Faculties provide outreach activities for school age children to raise the profile of specific subject areas and demonstrate the opportunities that higher education can provide. Find out more about our outreach activities:

We’re also using arts and culture to promote wellbeing in our region. Through our Tung Auditorium and Victoria Gallery and Museum, we will run a variety of activities designed to benefit the local community.

Partnerships

Critical to our ambition to drive prosperity and wellbeing for the Liverpool City Region are our strong relationships with Liverpool City Council and Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. Our network of partners throughout the Liverpool City Region enables our research and teaching to have a meaningful impact on local communities.

Being able to work closely with key partners means that, through our research, we can help to inform and shape policies that will combat local challenges, creating positive change for those who live in the region. We work closely with NHS Trusts across the region to ensure more positive health outcomes for the population and are working towards reducing health inequalities locally and beyond. Find out more about research in our Faculty of Health and Life Sciences.

We also support economic growth in the region by using our academic expertise and industry connections to support small and medium-sized enterprises. Our experts provide consultancy services, we help develop new products and services quickly or work with businesses on student placements.

Current projects

We want to bring the scale of our impact to life. To be able to evidence our impact and reach, we recently released a report which shows our overall impact on the City Region and UK as a whole. This report shows that we generate an estimated £1.2 billion Gross Value Added (GVA) and 15,870 jobs in the Liverpool City Region, showing a sizeable impact on our region.

Our connections and partnerships across the Liverpool City Region will also allow us to build on our previous successes, such as the Materials Innovation Factory, the Digital Innovation Facility and the Pandemic Institute. We want to use these assets to attract jobs and investment and support business growth.

The most recent Knowlege Exchange Framework (KEF) results place the University of Liverpool in the top 20% in the sector for Research Partnerships, Working with Business, and Working with the Public and Third Sector.

We have improved performance in KEF thanks to investment and growth in strategic areas. Income from intellectual property has almost tripled over the past year and our income from contract research with large businesses, and the number of graduate start-ups has also increased.

The impact of our close partnership with the Liverpool City Region is also evidenced by the establishment of the Liverpool City Region Civic Data Cooperative in 2020, funded by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. The Cooperative aims to create a data-sharing platform that means the civic data from local residents is better used to improve care and wellbeing, and fuel innovation.