JISC

New emphasis on supporting institutions’ engagement with business and the community

Central to successful education and research sectors and therefore to a successful UK economy is an ICT infrastructure of the highest quality as well as innovative programmes to exploit the full potential of technology. 

This is the starting point for JISC’s updated strategy, published today, which reaffirms its commitment to the support of institutions in realising their goals in the digital age while broadening its focus to include for the first time the support of institutions’ activities to engage with business and the community.

Innovation, integration, sustainability and working in partnership continue to be the cornerstones of JISC’s strategy, part of a longer term ambition to support the enhancement of the UK's competitiveness and the contribution of HE and FE to society and the economy. ‘the new strategy equips us with the means of identifying new opportunities and meeting fresh challenges'

The strategy specifies a range of priority activities which JISC will be undertaking with partners in the coming years. These include: the continued development of the UK’s e-infrastructure; the development of a freely available content layer of academic and scholarly resources; the support of the research community through e-science, the semantic grid and virtual research environments; encouraging the further use and take-up of e-resources; the support of the management, business and administrative processes of institutions; further exploration of the benefits of e-learning and its contribution to widening participation, and an investigation into the ICT skills and expertise capacity within institutions.

With one of its six objectives being the improvement of its own working practices, the strategy provides a means by which JISC’s activities in support of institutions can be measured and its progress monitored. The three-year strategy has been updated after a period of close consultation with institutions and partner organisations and will continue to be revised during the coming years to reflect the evolving needs of the education and research sectors. 

Introducing the JISC Strategy [2007-09], JISC Chairman Professor Sir Ron Cooke writes that the new document represents a natural progression of the approach and vision identified three years ago, in 2004. ‘But,’ he continues, ‘the new strategy also equips us with the means of identifying new opportunities and meeting fresh challenges, something of vital important in our rapidly changing education and research environment.’

To read the JISC Strategy [2007-09], please go to: JISC Strategy 2007-09

Email this page Bookmark & share this page