Aspect: Empowering Social Sciences for Real-World Impact

Aspect (A Social sciences Platform for Entrepreneurship, Commercialisation and Transformation) is a network of Universities designed to unlock commercial and business opportunities from social sciences, humanities and arts research (SHAPE – Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities for People and Economy). Since its inception in 2018, Aspect has grown from just 7 founding members to a 39-strong network, bringing together universities and organisations committed to enhance SHAPE commercialisation, in the UK and beyond. Aspect is the first network of its kind, and has since proven its place as the leading authority on SHAPE commercialisation knowledge and best practice in the UK. Oxentia has been an integral part of Aspect since its very beginnings, owing to a long-standing partnership with its lead institution.

Our Role

Oxentia has served as programme manager for Aspect, being instrumental in convening the network, advicing its governance structures, and providing strategic advice on the network’s evolution. As such, Oxentia has notably supported and operationalised Aspect’s transition from a publicly funded (CCF-RED) network to  a membership-funded organisation in late 2023.

Oxentia currently manages the Aspect community, convening monthly Knowledge Share sessions with external experts, and providing ad-hoc member support. The team manage and organise a thrice-yearly training programme that is delivered exclusively for the membership and has proven a big value-add. In addition, Oxentia also supports the Aspect Testbed, an internal funding mechanism to provide new and exciting SHAPE initiatives with the capital to advance and provide benefits for the whole membership.

What ASPECT Achieved

• Network Growth: Aspect has expanded from 7 to 39 members in just five years, reflecting the growing appetite for SHAPE social sciences commercialisation.
• Project Support: Whilst receiving public funding, the team managed funding and project monitoring for approximately 18 funded initiatives, helping to deliver tangible outputs and foster innovation. Since the transition to a self-sustained network, the Testbed fund has allocated £30,000 to collaborative initiatives across the membership that provide new insights into SHAPE commercialisation, e.g. the SHAPE Ventures Directory (add a link).
• Capacity Building: The Aspect team has developed toolkits and resources to support professional services and  researchers, strengthening knowledge exchange and commercialisation expertise across the sector. Since 2024, the team has been implementing the new ‘pillars’ of Aspect – Community, Training, Testbed and Advocacy. Specifically, the training and community support has focused on supporting capacities across the network, whilst the Testbed has provided the financial means for support.
• Sector development: ASPECT played a key role in launching the lead HEI’s technology transfer office and provided strategic support for the Aspect Research Commercialisation Accelerator (ARC) funded by Research England (RE)
• Advocacy: Since its inception, Aspect has been a strong advocate for SHAPE commercialisation. The team supports the yearly reSHAPE event, which brings together practitioners, investors, and policy makers in the space to highlight key achievements in SHAPE. Aspect has also become a strong reference point for international efforts in SHAPE commercialisation, inspiring the beginnings of similar networks around the world.

Cmmunications & Engagement

Working closely with Aspect’s marketing team, we’ve collaborated on website development and driven communications activity, ensuring that the programme’s achievements and opportunities are shared widely. For more details, visit the Aspect website.

Join Us

Aspect is more than a network—it’s a movement to raise the profile and significance of social sciences commercialisation. If you’re interested in learning how Oxentia can help your organisation unlock the potential of social sciences research, get in touch with us today to find out more about our services and how we can support your journey.