Introduction
The University of Southampton has applied for an Engage Watermark which is assessed and awarded by the National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement (NCCPE).
Acting in a similar way to a charter mark - the Engage Watermark is an award granted to institutions, faculties or research centres for strategic support for public engagement and a commitment to improve the support offered by the institution. Just as a watermark runs through the fabric of a document, the Engage Watermark indicates that engagement runs through the fabric of the institution.
The NCCPE defines public engagement as the myriad ways in which the activity and benefits of higher education and research can be shared with the public. For universities this covers a range of types of engagement, for instance 'civic' or 'community' engagement, patient involvement, collaborative research or student engagement, which are part of the same family. Engagement is by definition a two-way process, involving interaction and listening, with the goal of generating mutual benefit.
We would be grateful if you would complete the following survey to share how well you think the University of Southampton supports public engagement. The survey will take around 15 minutes to complete (or longer if you choose to provide more detailed feedback). You will need to complete the survey in one go as you are unable to save your answers before they are submitted. The results of this survey will be synthesised and considered alongside the other sources of evidence. This will inform the level of award granted to your institution, as well as providing useful intelligence to improve your institution's support for public engagement.
Data Protection and Consent
Please read carefully before continuing.
As part of the survey, we will ask for some details that could, in some circumstances, be used to identify you (e.g. your job title or your area of work at the University of Southampton). This information is needed so that we can occasionally consider the broader perspectives of different professions and areas of work within the University of Southampton.
We will store all your responses securely in password-protected files held on a server hosted by the University of the West of England, Bristol. Your responses will be stored for ten years from the closing date of the survey, after which time they will be permanently destroyed.
Responses that could be used to identify you will be de-linked from the rest of your responses (including any information you choose to give concerning protected characteristics) and stored separately. Only members of the NCCPE will be able to access data that could identify you.
Any information you give will be handled in accordance with the provisions of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Please see our Privacy Notice for further information
If you have any concerns about the survey, please contact Dr Ben Littlefield (b.t.r.littlefield@soton.ac.uk), Head of Public Engagement . If you would prefer to speak to someone who was not directly involved in the organisation of the survey, please email nccpe.enquiries@uwe.ac.uk
To receive your survey response, the NCCPE requires your consent for us to process your data in these ways.