Spin-out review: Public Statement of Adoption

Durham University is strongly committed to ensuring that its research programmes and intellectual property make a direct and substantial impact on our national and regional economy, and on key social and environmental challenges.

We have sustained a purpose-driven commercialisation programme within our institution since the early 2000’s and we have continued to build our institutional support through our Research Commercialisation team since then. We have worked in partnership with other regional universities to strengthen the number of spin-out businesses which we deliver into the economy over the last 6 years through the Northern Accelerator programme.

We welcome the publication of the Independent Review of University Spin-Out Companies which provides a balanced analysis of the current support available to encourage business creation and growth through University research and intellectual property, and of the issues and challenges that the sector should address. Its eleven recommendations provide a good framework for further supporting development impact through commercialisation. Durham University has substantively adopted the Review’s best practices.

The University continues to strengthen the support framework around commercialisation at Durham, including work to address distinctive opportunities and challenges for the North East. These actions include the ongoing development of our institutional support arrangements, our collaboration with North East universities to develop the regional commercialisation eco-system, and proposals to develop new investment funds to address the market failure in early-stage finance in our region.

Durham University will continue to review our approach within the framework of the recommendations of the Spinout Review.