Topic Hub: PraxisAuril / Knowledge Exchange UK
The Knowledge Exchange UK Annual General Meeting 2025 (AGM) took place online on Thursday 26th June at 12pm.
The AGM included a presentation on Knowledge Exchange UK’s activities over the past year, a financial report, and the ratification of appointments to the Board of Directors. There was also a special item to amend the Articles. The meeting concluded with a look ahead to 2024/25 and the formal launch of Knowledge Exchange UK.
Please find below the recording and presentation:
Knowledge Exchange UK (KEUK) was officially launched last night at an exclusive event at the House of Lords, bringing together senior leaders from across research, industry, and government to celebrate the future of knowledge exchange (KE) in the UK.
The event marked a pivotal moment for KE, reinforcing its role in driving innovation, economic growth and real-world impact. Guests heard from key sector figures about the challenges and opportunities ahead for KE professionals in a rapidly changing global research and innovation landscape.
A night to remember
Professor Lord Lionel Tarassenko opened the evening with a warm welcome, setting the stage for discussions on the vital role of knowledge exchange in the UK’s innovation ecosystem. Professor Trevor McMillan, Vice-Chancellor of Keele University, reflected on the development of impact and KE within universities, highlighting key reviews, metrics frameworks and the KE Concordat. Adam Williams, Chief Executive and Controller General of the Intellectual Property Office, emphasised the importance of business in forging collaborations and the crucial role of intellectual property in research and across all sectors. Professor Charlotte Deane, Executive Chair of EPSRC at UKRI, provided insights into funding and policy priorities, focusing on mission-driven research and delivering value and impact for the UK economy.
Closing remarks from Amanda Selvaratnam, Chair of Knowledge Exchange UK, reflected on the organisation’s new direction:
“The launch of KEUK is more than a rebrand—it’s a renewed commitment to championing KE professionals and ensuring their work is recognised at the highest levels. The energy and engagement in the room last night reaffirmed the vital role KE plays in bridging research, business, and policy for the benefit of society.”
The evening was also a valuable networking opportunity, bringing together universities, businesses, funders, and policymakers to strengthen cross-sector collaboration and inform the future of KE.
A high-profile announcement
Significantly for the UK’s knowledge exchange community, Research England used the occasion to announce the appointment of Dr Simon Hepworth as their new Director of Knowledge Exchange.
Welcoming the appointment, Dr Stuart Wilkinson, CEO of Knowledge Exchange UK, said:
“We welcome the appointment of Dr Simon Hepworth to this pivotal role and look forward to building on our strong and productive relationship with Research England. At a time when the significance and impact of knowledge exchange are more widely recognised, this appointment reinforces the vital role KE plays in advancing the UK’s economic and social ambitions. The opportunities ahead are immense, and we are excited to continue working together to maximise the value KE brings across sectors. ”
Dame Professor Jessica Corner, Executive Chair for Research England, part of UK Research and Innovation, said:
“Dr Simon Hepworth joins Research England in April, bringing with him a wealth of experience from corporate, university and start up environments. He will provide strategic leadership of policy development and delivery of the knowledge exchange functions of Research England. As well as for how the research and innovation ecosystems delivered through higher education institutions in England contribute to knowledge exchange and commercialisation agendas along with the assessment of performance and outcomes.
Simon will have responsibility for Research England’s knowledge exchange programmes including the Higher Education Innovation Fund for England and Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF); vital activities that underpin the Government’s mission to the economy.”
What’s next for KEUK?
The launch of KEUK is just the beginning. Over the coming months, KEUK will be rolling out a series of networking events, policy discussions, and professional development opportunities to further engage with the sector.
For those who couldn’t join the event there will be plenty of opportunities to get involved, both in-person and online, as KEUK continues its mission to strengthen the KE community and its impact.
PraxisAuril, the UK’s leading association for Knowledge Exchange (KE) professionals, has rebranded as Knowledge Exchange UK (KEUK), marking an exciting evolution that reflects the organisation’s commitment to advancing knowledge exchange practices across the UK and beyond. With over twenty years of experience bridging the worlds of academia, industry, and society, KEUK will continue to be a trusted pillar of expertise and innovation in the sector, with a renewed emphasis on supporting KE practitioners in a dynamic and changing landscape.
The rebrand comes at a crucial time for the KE sector. The recent UK Budget, presented on 30th October, highlighted the essential need for economic growth and underlined the role KE can play in driving innovation, creating jobs, and building a resilient economy. The transformation to Knowledge Exchange UK reflects a strategic response to these shifting demands in both the economy, society, and the KE profession.
Amanda Selvaratnam, Chair of the Board, commented, “The rebrand to Knowledge Exchange UK signifies a deliberate, strategic shift towards a stronger focus on supporting our community of knowledge exchange professionals. Now is the time for us to meet the rising demands of a sector that is increasingly vital—not just within universities and research institutions, but as a cornerstone of the UK’s economic strategy. Our commitment is to empower KE practitioners with the resources, networks, and skills they need to flourish.”
The rebrand was first announced to members at the organisation’s annual conference in June, with strong support from key stakeholders within the KE ecosystem.
Alice Frost, Director of Knowledge Exchange at Research England, added: “PraxisAuril’s transition to Knowledge Exchange UK marks an important step forward, emphasising the essential role of knowledge exchange in fostering collaboration, innovation, and positive change across the UK.”
Adam Williams, CEO of the IPO, stated that the rebrand: “highlights the growing importance of knowledge exchange in today’s economy, helping organisations to harness IP for research and commercialisation.”
Joe Marshall, CEO of the National Centre for Universities and Business (NCUB), highlighted the collaborative aspects of the rebrand: “Collaboration between universities and businesses is vital for unlocking innovation and addressing the challenges of the future. Knowledge Exchange UK is a key organisation for the UK in developing the people who support making collaborations happen.”
Since its inception, PraxisAuril has been committed to promoting excellence in KE by delivering high-quality training, building professional networks, and advocating for the sector’s impact. Knowledge Exchange UK will continue these initiatives with renewed focus, helping members navigate challenges such as evolving funding landscapes, strengthening university-industry partnerships, and addressing the increased importance of research impact.
Stuart Wilkinson, CEO of Knowledge Exchange UK, added, “This is an incredibly exciting time for Knowledge Exchange UK as we rebrand and refresh our activities to provide the most relevant, forward-looking support for KE practitioners. We are preparing to launch new programmes, resources, and initiatives that will ensure every member has the tools they need to play a central role in building the UK’s innovation ecosystem.”
With this rebrand, KEUK will offer expanded programmes, more tailored training opportunities, fortified partnerships, and greater representation—all geared towards helping its members drive impactful knowledge exchange projects and achieve tangible results for UK society and the economy. KEUK remains committed to its core mission of nurturing a skilled, well-supported community of KE professionals ready to tackle tomorrow’s challenges and opportunities.
In late October I spent a week with other representatives from Knowledge Exchange (KE), Knowledge Transfer (KT) and Technology Transfer (TT) national associations around the globe. Sponsored by WIPO and AUTM, the International Knowledge and Technology Transfer Leadership Summit 2024 and the Cape Town Tech Transfer Week were designed to enable us to share our experience and knowledge but also to be inspired and challenged by our colleagues around the world.
PraxisAuril is one of the original national associations, alongside the European, Australian and US associations. AUTM the US association, who organised the week, are the oldest association and are celebrating their 50th anniversary year next year. In addition there were representatives from associations in Africa, Asia and South America. It was truly a global take on knowledge exchange.
Each of these national associations have been established to support their national research systems and enable the sharing best practice between institutions and ultimately to maximize the economic and societal impact from research .
The event was a great chance to reflect on how the UK system and our sector is similar and different to others across the world, and to be reminded in many respects how our system is looked upon as one to learn from.
Praxis’s development has been simultaneous with the development of the UK research system and its growing focus on maxismising impact from all disciplines, through many routes. That requires a wide variety of partnerships with diverse set of organisations that can assist and benefit from that impact. This has only been possible thanks to the support, engagement and encouragement from government for that approach, through initiatives like the Research Excellence Framework (REF), Higher Education Innovation Funding (HEIF) and of course the Knowledge Exchange Framework (KEF) alongside a variety of ways of funding and supporting impact. We are fortunate in the UK to have the close engagement government and funders, and the support for all disciplines of research to contribute to making the economy and society better.
The whole event was inspiring in terms of the efforts going on around the world, and reinforced the need for associations like ours to:
- Support community and networks of practice
- Train practitioners to do the best job they can
- Support assurance around the quality of our sector’s activities
- Showing the amazing opportunities KE presents to make things better
Something that our upcoming name change will embrace and enable us to continue to do for our members and the sector.
An example of this global collaboration in practice
“Praxis was asked to send a representative to the recent WIPO Standing Committee on the Law of Patents to give the UK perspective on inventorship and ownership legislation cross borders and the impact on the ability to commercialise university intellectual property. Rachel Grovenor, from OUI went as our representative spoke alongside Stephen Susalka from AUTM giving the US perspective and Anita Nel from Stellenbosch University giving the perspective of a developing nation. Each speaker gave a short presentation – the UK presentation focused on the environment created by REF in particular. Then the delegates from each nation were able to ask questions – there was interesting discussion on political impetus that can enhance the culture of technology transfer, as well as universities’ roles in improving access to health-tech in developing nations. The goal is for the Secretariat of WIPO to build up to a full study on best practices and challenges for TTOs.”
On Thursday, 21st November 2024, Bristol hosted the much-anticipated KE Awards 2024, a night dedicated to honouring excellence and innovation across the Knowledge Exchange sector. The event brought together professionals, organisations, and projects that exemplify the power of collaboration and the impact of knowledge exchange on society.
Ahead of each winner announcement, we shared powerful video stories of the shortlisted projects, which showcased the innovation, passion, and impact behind their achievements. These moments highlighted the extraordinary breadth of talent within our community. You can view the videos here.
Congratulations to Our Winners and Finalists
We extend our warmest congratulations to all the shortlisted nominees, whose projects exemplify excellence and commitment to advancing knowledge exchange. A special congratulations to this year’s winners, who have set a remarkable standard for the sector:
- Place-based KE initiative of the Year: Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland, Teesside and York Universities | Northern Accelerator – Collaborating for social, environmental and economic impact in the North East and North Yorkshire
- Sustainability Collaboration of the Year: Cranfield University | The Green Future Investments Ltd (GFIL) Funds at Cranfield University
- Outstanding KE Strategic Partnership: University of Dundee | Art at the Start – Improving Mental Health Outcomes for Infants and Caregivers
- Commercialisation Achievement of the Year: University of Oxford | Oxford University Innovation, Oxford R21/Matrix-M™
- Transformative Social Venture of the Year: University of Strathclyde | C2LI
- Innovation in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion through Knowledge Exchange: Queen Mary University of London | The Verbatim Formula “Creative Care”
- KE Team of the Year: National Physical Laboratory | Technology Transfer at NPL: 3-year transformation
- KE Professional of the Year: University of Salford | Dr Adnan Bayyat, Knowledge Exchange Fellow
- Highly Commended Entry: Imperial College Advanced Hackspace | White City Hackstarter
Thank You to Our Supporters and Sponsors
We are deeply grateful to:
- UK Research and Innovation, our overarching supporter
- Anchored In, our headline sponsor
- Category sponsors: EAUC, Withers & Rogers, Oxentia, TenU and the Economic and Social Research Council
Reflections on the Night
Stuart Wilkinson, CEO at PraxisAuril (Knowledge Exchange UK) remarked:
“The KE awards last night showcased an amazingly diverse array of knowledge exchange projects and people who have and are continuing to make a real impact economically and in society, all from a wide range of organisations and their KE partners. It truly was an inspiring snapshot of what is happening across the UK, as research and education organisations come together with partners of all kinds to collaborate and make a real difference to people’s lives.”
Ananay Aguilar, Head of TenU, added:
“Celebrating the commercialisation of academic research is key to demonstrating the value of university spinouts to the UK’s bottom line. TenU exists to further this agenda, so we must recognise and support those who have the drive and determination to take their ideas to market – creating jobs, attracting investment to the UK and ultimately addressing global, critical issues as part of the journey.”
Dr. Helen Henderson, Partner and Patent Attorney at Withers & Rogers, reflected:
“Withers & Rogers continues to support the KE Awards as we are passionate about knowledge exchange and supporting the development of research commercialisation. More than ever, the strategic importance of intellectual property is being recognised, as are the opportunities available through collaborative partnerships.”
Looking Ahead
This year’s KE Awards reminded us of the vital role knowledge exchange plays in creating a positive impact on society.
We look forward to celebrating more achievements at next year’s event and thank everyone who joined us for this unforgettable evening.
Explore more photos from the event here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/myYuSaXtHU5ApX4C9
VIEW THE FULL REPORT
“2019 has already been a fantastic year for PraxisAuril. With 173 member organisations and over 5000 people feeding into the PraxisAuril community, it has become the world’s biggest KE organisation outside of the US. With its growing pool of almost 400 volunteers, PraxisAuril continues to create and deliver world-leading training courses and has trained around 600 people in the UK, in this year alone.
There is no doubt that the UK is recognised as having one of the best approaches to knowledge exchange in the world. PraxisAuril has built on the increasing success of UK practitioners to elevate UK expertise around the world, and over the last 10 years has created and maintained a solid foundation for UK Knowledge Exchange. By taking its training to over 40 countries, including the China training programme which has trained 400 practitioners, PraxisAuril has demonstrated that the UK is a key player and influencer on the global knowledge exchange stage. With US organisations also coming to the UK to learn about university business relationships, it’s clear that the PraxisAuril influence is felt far and wide.
2019 has already been a fantastic year for PraxisAuril. With now 173 member organisations and over 5000 people feeding into the PraxisAuril community, it has become the world’s biggest KE organisation outside of the US. With its growing pool of almost 400 volunteers, PraxisAuril continues to create and deliver world-leading training courses and has trained around 600 people in the UK, in this year alone.
Diversity is a fundamental element to understanding the breadth of knowledge exchange activity that is happening across the world. Our members include professional organisations, system purveyors, catapults, government agencies, universities and businesses, and with their support we are achieving great things together. From volunteering, to policy, to sponsorship and programme development, our members are at the heart of everything we do.
This annual report is a summary of all that we have achieved together in the past 12 months.”
Sean Fielding
Director of Innovation, Impact & Business, University of Exeter
Chair, PraxisAuril 2019-2021
VIEW THE FULL REPORT
