In IT Services we have a strong commitment to reducing our impact on the environment. In a move to support local youth and promote digital equality, IT Services at the University in partnership with IT Provider, Stone Group, has donated laptops to the RAFAC 1263 (Rochdale) Squadron.

The Bicentenary inclusive recruitment campaign is an initiative contributing to our social responsibility objectives by diversifying the talent pools we recruit from. Designed to reduce unemployment and promote regional socio-economic development, this initiative reflects our commitment to creating a meaningful and lasting impact within Greater Manchester.

We have partnered with Enviromena to supply up to 65% of the University’s electricity demand through the Medebridge Solar Farm in Essex, advancing our commitment to a zero-carbon future. This initiative will reduce the University’s carbon emissions by 12,000 tonnes annually. Built entirely on brownfield land, the solar farm underscores our dedication to sustainable land use. The site’s central field will feature a dedicated biodiversity zone, with enhancements to hedgerows, native grasslands, and wildflower meadows. 

We have an employee volunteering policy which provides all employees with the opportunity to request up to three days paid leave to participate in a volunteering activity of their choosing. We understand how important it is for staff to be able to give back to the wider community, whether that’s here in Greater Manchester, or further afield.

We have partnered with leading UK clean energy firm, Environmena, to purchase electricity generated from its solar farm based in Medebridge, Essex.  

The Corporate Power Purchase Agreement (cPPA) commits the University to purchase 80% of Medebridge’s total annual generation capacity for the next decade. This commitment significantly reduces our carbon emissions and helps us towards achieving our zero-carbon ambitions by 2038. 

The University of Manchester was named the UK’s most sustainable University at the QS EduData Summit 2024. We were awarded the title of ‘Sustainability Champion’ in celebration of our standout achievements within the area of environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance.

The Purple Wave is a UoM Sport initiative designed to bring our community together to celebrate physical activity and shared experiences. It’s all about participation, not elite performance – just having fun, making friends, and being active with like-minded people. As part of this, people can become a Purplewave fundraiser, raising money at events like the Great Manchester Run. Over the years, hundreds of wonderful fundraisers have raised tens of thousands of pounds to support good causes right here on campus. From rebuilding the Paterson Cancer Research building to providing disadvantaged students with scholarships – brilliant Purple Wave fundraisers have helped make some amazing things happen for our community.

We’re unique among UK universities in having social responsibility as a core goal in our strategic plan, Our Future. Our vision for prosperous communities is to increase economic well being, develop new sectors, innovate, and improve productivity for all people and all areas of our city region. We’re using our knowledge and discovery to enhance innovation in key economic sectors of the national and regional economy through initiatives and also working in partnership and sharing our knowledge and expertise locally and nationally to advance prosperity by prioritising University engagement on national and regional economic policy developments.

Each year, we host the Making a Difference Awards to celebrate the incredible and inspiring work of our University community. The awards highlight the extensive range of social responsibility initiatives of our staff, students, alumni and external partners, and covers categories such as benefit to research; widening participation; environmental sustainability and equality, diversity and inclusion.

Examples of our civic partnerships include:

• those with Manchester City Council on education, planning and the environment;
• the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and other local universities on a new Civic University Agreement to enhance regional social, economic and environmental wellbeing;
• a Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership and Health Innovation Manchester to drive local health improvements;
• the Greater Manchester Local Enterprise Partnership to deliver growth, jobs and prosperity for the area;
• Innovation GM to catalyse inclusive economic growth, level up the north, and increase global trade.

We also prioritise global partnerships to advance our work towards the SDGs. These include:

• our Engaged Member status of the global Talloires Network;
• as a founding member of the global University Social Responsibility Network;
• as a member of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) and the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI).

We signed the international SDG Accord as part of our ongoing commitment to social responsibility and environmental sustainability. Our Alliance Manchester Business School also signed the Principles for Responsible Management in Education (PRME). We are a founding member of the UK’s Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN).

The University has pledged to support Manchester’s climate change target for zero carbon by 2038.

This involves reducing carbon emissions from a 2018 baseline of 54,000 tCO2 to at least 21,000 tCO2 by 2025 and placing carbon impact at the heart of strategic decision making in the University’s new strategic plan.

We’ve become the first higher education institution in the UK to adopt the Social Value Portal, the leading online tool that helps organisations prioritise and measure their social value when they procure, or pay for, major services.

Our Equity and Merit Programme supports the brightest minds from some of the least developed countries in Sub-Saharan Africa – Ethiopia, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe – to develop skills for sustainable development in their home countries.

Thanks to funding by the University and the generosity of our donors, more than 300 international students have completed master’s programmes with us.

Health Innovation Manchester works to develop and deploy new solutions that improve the health and wellbeing of Greater Manchester’s 2.8 million citizens.

We work in partnership with other regional institutions, authorities and health experts to respond to healthcare challenges across Greater Manchester, and drive national and global innovation agendas in frontline care.