British universities – the sleeping giants of place-based leadership?

The Civic University Commission, launched by the University Partnerships Programme (UPP) in March 2018, is an important effort to lift the quality of debate about the changing role of British universities in modern society.  In this Alternatives Paper, published in the online journal People, Place and Policy in September 2018, Robin Hambleton suggests that, while many British universities now see themselves as ‘civic universities’, few can claim to be world leading in this regard.  The article examines the changing role of universities in cities and offers a number of suggestions on how universities can become much more active local leaders.