Building on the existing strength of the programme in delivering economic benefits, the updated direction will focus on delivery of the government mission of driving economic growth.
HEIF invests £280 million annually to drive underpinning and bespoke knowledge exchange activities in universities.
This enables world-leading research and expertise to be translated into real-world solutions that benefit economies and communities across the nation.
Leverage core strengths
As a structural fund, HEIF is integral to:
- supporting people capacity
- driving effective long-term institutional approaches
- de-risking innovation
A core strength of the programme is the flexibility, enabling universities to leverage their core strengths to meet the specific needs of local partners and respond to emerging opportunities.
Refreshed strategic direction
Research England has set out the refreshed strategic direction for HEIF by outlining the scope and phases of implementation in a circular letter to the sector.
This is set alongside updated HEIF policies and priorities for the 2026 to 2031 funding period which begins implementation of the shift in strategic focus.
The greater focus of the programme on economic growth will be implemented through two phases:
- a new outcomes-focused accountability framework for 2026 to 2027 allocations onwards building on 2024 evaluation approaches
- review and adjust the funding formula to better incentivise contributions to economic growth that will be introduced in 2027 to 2028 allocations at the earliest
Driving critical innovation
Professor Dame Jessica Corner, Executive Chair of Research England, said:
Our universities are driving critical innovation and growth across the nation. Through Higher Education Innovation Funding institutions are building partnerships that spark new inventions, products and services, strengthen local economies and boost productivity.
HEIF does this with exceptional value, currently returning £14.80 for every £1 invested.
As we review and evolve the programme, we want to build on this but increase our focus: ensuring that HEIF delivers even stronger outcomes that support the government’s mission for economic growth and that universities remain central to the UK’s innovation ecosystem by addressing the needs of the Post-16 Education and Skills white paper and the Modern Industrial Strategy.
Review phase one: driving HEIF contributions to economic growth
The latest HEIF policies and priorities sets a new outcomes-focused approach to how HEPs should consider their plans for HEIF, specifically that HEIF use should focus on delivering economic growth outcomes.
The updated government priorities includes those set out in the ‘Post-16 education and skills white paper’ and Modern Industrial Strategy, where HEIF is named as a key intervention.
This is alongside the economic growth mission in the government’s Plan for Change.
From 2026, HEIF-funded activity will be expected to make the most of institutions’ distinct strengths and capabilities to deliver measurable outcomes that contribute to driving economic growth.
Knowledge exchange mechanisms
It is recognised that this can be achieved through a variety of knowledge exchange mechanisms and that growth can be delivered nationally, regionally, locally or by creating opportunities for:
- students
- staff and
- the wider community
A novel framework for considering university knowledge exchange contributions to growth was published today by Research England’s national knowledge exchange metrics advisors, University Commercialisation and Innovation Policy Evidence Unit.
The framework dissects this challenge into four ‘dimensions’ of activity:
- strengthening growth drivers and easing bottlenecks in places and sectors
- commercialising and scaling knowledge and technologies
- supporting companies to innovate, compete and scale
- enabling people to engage productively in the economy
Revised accountability template
The final element of this first review phase is the introduction of a revised accountability template.
Requested approximately every five years, accountability statements set out plans from institutions for how they will use and manage their HEIF to contribute to the updated policies and priorities for HEIF.
The new design builds on insights from the recent HEIF evaluations, using an outcomes-based approach to further strengthen the evidence base for how institutions use HEIF to deliver desired economic outcomes.
For the first time, this framework also seeks information on institutional approaches to equality diversity and inclusion (EDI) in knowledge exchange, as set out in Research England’s EDI action plan.
HEIF’s proven value as a basis for improvement
Research England is committed to building on the exceptional value and strategic impact that HEIF has demonstrated since its inception in its current formula form in 2008.
The 2024 independent evaluations commissioned by Research England provides the most comprehensive evidence to date of HEIF’s effectiveness in delivering economic value.
Key findings include:
- £14.80 return for every £1 invested, up from £10.10 in the previous evaluation period
- 38% of knowledge exchange outputs and income would not have occurred without HEIF support
- 53% of student start-ups receiving formal business or enterprise support were directly attributable to HEIF, with a specific return of interest of £15.60 per £1 invested in student entrepreneurship
- the programme has proven especially valuable in helping institutions navigate economic uncertainty, respond to local and national priorities and unlock new opportunities for engagement
Building on success across regions
The refreshed focus will recognise and build on the previous successes of HEIF driving growth locally and across different regions, which will be integral to ensuring economic growth nationally.
HEIF supports a wide range of impactful initiatives that deliver benefit across England, reflecting the diversity of regional strengths and knowledge exchange mechanisms in the higher education sector.
Read about these initiatives in the Further information section.
Further information
GammaDelta Therapeutics, King’s College London
HEIF supported the intellectual property licensing and commercialisation of a life sciences spin-out aimed at developing potentially transformational treatments for cancer and autoinflammatory diseases.
GammaDelta was subsequently acquired by multinational pharmaceutical company Takeda.
Warwick Manufacturing Group small and medium sized enterprises (SME) Internship Programme, University of Warwick
Placing students in regional SMEs, boosting graduate employability and business innovation.
‘Rejuvenating the High Street’, The University of Sheffield
A civic engagement project using urban design and planning expertise to revitalise local retail areas and boost economic growth.
Student Startups Programme, University of Exeter
Offers a suite of programmes including a start-up incubator programme, workshops and mentoring to enable student entrepreneurship.
For example, the programme provided support for the founder of solar energy start-up Gryd Energy.
Civic approach to corporate partnerships, University of Nottingham
Developed a civic approach to corporate engagement, aligning university research with local government and public sector priorities, building new partnerships that strengthen local innovation ecosystems and public-private collaboration.
