Appointment of Academic Director for Research Governance, Ethics and Integrity

11 Mar 2020

Professor Søren Holm has been appointed Academic Director for Research Governance, Ethics and Integrity

Professor Søren Holm has been appointed Academic Director for Research Governance, Ethics and Integrity. This is a new position within the University that will report to the Vice President for Social Responsibility.

Søren is a Professor of Bioethics based in the School of Social Sciences. He has been Chair of one of the University’s ethics committees for many years, as well as Chair of the University’s Research Ethics Oversight Committee and a long-standing member of the Research Compliance Committee. Søren has a background in medicine and philosophy and did his Masters in Health Care Ethics and Law at Manchester in 1989-90. He was first at the University 1999-2004 as Reader and later Professor of Clinical Bioethics; he returned in 2009 from Cardiff where he held a professorial research fellowship.

Professor Thakkar, Vice President for Social Responsibility says of the appointment. “I am delighted with Søren’s appointment to this role which is integral to the University’s values as set out in our new strategic vision - helping to ensure we act with integrity to benefit society.”

Professor Colette Fagan, Vice-President for Research adds: ‘I too am very pleased with Soren’s appointment to this new role. The highest standards of research ethics, integrity and conduct are a fundamental part of our research strategy to ensure we sustain a research environment which fosters research excellence’

Søren will be working closely with the Research Governance, Ethics and Integrity Team based within the Directorate of Research and Business Engagement which is responsible for developing and monitoring University policy and providing guidance and support to researchers in the area of research governance, integrity and ethics.

April Lockyer, the Head of Research Governance Ethics and Integrity states “Soren has been integral to the improvements we have made to our ethical review processes in recent years. We are very excited about working closely with him to deliver on our wider objectives.”

Søren’s appointment is timely as it coincides with the release of the University’s revised Code of Good Research Conduct which sets out the University’s commitment to the highest standards of research integrity and its expectations of those who conduct research in the University’s name. The procedures for investigating concerns about research misconduct have also been revised and can be found on the website of the Research Governance, Ethics and Integrity Team.

Søren said: “I am very happy to take on this new role. Ethics and integrity has to be integral to all of our research, not only in order to protect research participants, animals and the environment, but in order for our research to have proper societal impact. I have been fortunate to work with great colleagues from across the University in the research ethics committees for many years, and look forward to the opportunity to work with many new colleagues. The research governance landscape is changing quickly, for example, Universities UK and others have just published a revised Concordat on Research Integrity, and we want to keep Manchester as a leader in this area as we pursue our new vision and strategic plan.”