Image of two Queen Mary colleagues, each holding a booklet in their hands and one standing on either side of a TV screen, with a brick wall behind them.
Launched today (14 October 2025) at the annual CiviCon conference, the toolkit was developed by Queen Mary's Civic Engagement team as part of Research England's National Civic Impact Accelerator programme (NCIA), led by Sheffield Hallam University.
Titled 'Equitable Partnerships for Civic Engagement: A Toolkit for Civic, Community and University Partners', the resource was co-created with individuals from higher education, civic organisations and community partners, and draws on workshops held in London, Sheffield and online in 2023 and 2024.
Its aim is simple – to help make partnerships, which are at the heart of civic engagement, have more impact, and be fairer and more sustainable.
Speaking on the new resource, Dr Philippa Lloyd, Vice-Principal for Policy and Strategic Partnerships at Queen Mary, said: "More than ever, universities need to build partnerships with other civic organisations, such as local authorities, NHS Trusts and community groups, which are rooted in place and people, because we know that partnerships are at the heart of civic engagement activities.
"Through such partnerships, universities can work with others to support development of the local economy, social cohesion, build trust and tackle local and more wide-ranging needs and problems. But too often, these collaborations can feel unequal, with differences in resources, expertise and expectations creating barriers to trust, action and impact.
"At Queen Mary University of London, we are working hard to ensure that all collaborations we carry out in our civic engagement work and beyond, are fair and equal. As pioneers in doing so, we were asked by the NCIA to develop this toolkit, which we hope will support other universities and civic organisations to form equitable partnerships, which achieve greater impact with and for their place and the people who live there."
The toolkit provides practical guidance and support to other organisations carrying out civic engagement activities in building equitable relationships that value all contributions, share credit fairly and achieve stronger outcomes for communities. Included in the toolkit are principles for equitable partnership; interactive exercises and resources to use when carrying out your own workshops; real-world examples of effective civic partnerships from across the UK; and other resources and tools.
It is one example of how Queen Mary is responding to the unique opportunities and challenges that come with being a Russell Group university in East London. The University also carries out a vast amount of work through its Civic University Agreement, internally and locally with strategic civic partners. It does this through research, education, and strategic initiatives, and by offering services, building networks, tackling health inequalities, boosting economic growth, developing skills, supporting the creative industries, and more.
