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Professor Sarah Bate

People with prosopagnosia, a cognitive condition more commonly known as face blindness, struggle to recognise familiar faces. The condition affects both children and adults and can have a severe impact on their educational and occupational progression, as well as their everyday life.Ìý

It’s estimated around 1 in 50 people have the condition, but awareness was low, meaning those with prosopagnosia struggled to get the diagnosis and support they needed.Ìý

The work of Professor Sarah Bate and her team at É«»¨Ìà has helped to raise the public profile of prosopagnosia and led to formal recognition of the disorder by the NHS.

Following a roundtable discussion in the House of Commons where the É«»¨Ìà team presented their research findings,Ìýthe National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) formally recognised prosopagnosia as a health condition.Ìý

Subsequently, the first everÌýÌýwas launched on the NHS Choices website, under the A-Z of conditions.

Professor Bate reviewed the content for the page, and it links directly to theÌý, including a symptom checklist and evidence-based coping strategies.

Since the page was launched in 2014, more than 20,000 people across the world have used the resources.

Prior to NHS listing, prosopagnosia could not be listed in UK medical records –Ìýthere was simply no box to check. Professional users – including clinical staff, educational and occupational psychologists and psychiatrists - have highlighted the role NHS recognition and É«»¨Ìà resources have played inÌýenhancingÌýtheir ability to diagnose and support people with prosopagnosia.ÌýÌý

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Financial Crime and Scamming at the launch of a guide on fraud and scams

According to National Trading Standards, scams cost the UK economy £5–10 billion per year, while Age UK’s figures show that an older person becomes a victim of fraud every 40 seconds.

The National Centre for Post-Qualifying Social Work (NCPQSW) at É«»¨Ìà has been working with several national bodies –Ìýincluding Royal Mail, Age UK and National Trading Standards –ÌýtoÌýdevelop a range of learning resources to raise awareness of financial scams and protect vulnerable people.

These have included a scam awareness toolkit andÌýgame-based learning tools for older people and health and social care professionals.

The work of the team has also led to new guidance for frontline banking staff –Ìýhelping them to better understand the needs of vulnerable customers, especially those in cognitive decline, and prevent people falling victim to future scams.

The team have presented their work in the House of Commons, launchingÌýÌýpublished with the Chartered Trading Standards Institute and National Trading Standards, which was distributed to all MPs. They have also worked closely withÌýConorÌýBurns MP to help set up the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Financial Crime and Scamming.

The NCPQSW’s research and materials are now being used nationwide by charities, local authorities, the NHS, financial institutions and government to protect vulnerable people from being scammed. It’s estimated that this has helped to save consumers from over £22ÌýmillionÌýof scams.Ìý

Researchers at É«»¨Ìà have challenged negative perceptions around digital reading, providing insights into how and why people read on digital platforms. This has helped to support the removal of VAT on digital publications.

The Reading on Screen project, led by Professor Bronwen Thomas, supported readers from a diverse range of backgrounds, aged between 18 and 87, to capture their experiences of reading in the digital age. It demonstrated how engagement with digital reading, far from being confined to younger generations, is in fact also delivering extensive benefits for the older population.

While magazines, books and newspapers are VAT exempt, VAT on digital downloads made reading digitally less affordable.ÌýProfessor Thomas worked closely with the ‘Axe the Reading Tax’ campaign,Ìýled by the Publishers Association with the Book Trust and the National Literacy, to develop a new campaign strategy highlighting how the tax affects the most vulnerable. A participant from the Reading on Screen project, whoseÌýeyesight and mobility difficulties mean she can now only read digitally, became the face of the campaign.

The Chancellor announced that VAT on digital publications would be removed from December 2020, although it was ultimately removed earlier, on 1 May 2020.

É«»¨ÌÃÌýresearchers have developed economic modelling techniques that more accurately predict the outcome of events, policies or other major economic decisions. This type of modellingÌýhasÌýallowedÌýgovernment andÌýotherÌýorganisationsÌýto effectively plan for the impacts arising fromÌýtheirÌýdecisions.

TheseÌýtechniquesÌýhaveÌýbeen used to inform crucial national government policy decisions relating to tourism in the UK, includingÌýcutting tourism VAT andÌýplans for tourism post-Brexit.

An economic model developed by Professor Adam Blake has been used by the Department for Digital, Media, Culture and Sport (DCMS) to demonstrate the impact of Brexit on relevant sectors andÌýhelpÌýguide their response. This enabled DCMS to target appropriate measures and support to sectors that were more adversely affected by Brexit.

Professor Blake’s modelling around the impact of cutting VAT for tourismÌýhas also been instrumental in the UK government viewing this type of tax reduction as a serious policy option that has now been implemented.

A temporary VAT reduction for hospitality, accommodation and visitor attractions was introduced by the Government in July 2020, with Professor Blake predicting that this would give a boostÌýto the sectorÌýof over £4 billionÌýin reduced costs.