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Research at UEL

Our dynamic research community is organised into Institutes, Centres and Groups. These provide a focus for our cutting-edge research. Many of our academics are world leaders in their fields. They have a well-deserved reputation for delivering innovative, high impact projects. These range from health, education and environmental sustainability to architecture, digital industries and social sciences. At UEL, we excel at attracting funding and developing partnerships. We work with organisations in the academic, public, private and voluntary sectors to combine expertise and achieve strong outcomes.

Research Institutes

  • Sustainability Research Institute
  • Institute for Connected Communities
  • Rix Research & Media

Interdisciplinary Research Centres

  • Centre for Migration, Refugees and Belonging
  • Centre for Creative Cultural Practice
  • Centre for Social Justice and Change

Further information regarding our research can be found here.

Research at the Royal Docks School of Business & Law

Research at the Royal Docks School of Business & Law (RDSBL) is underpinned by innovative inter-disciplinary enquiry into emerging areas in business, management, political economy, international relations, law and criminology. The main objective of the school is to create an inclusive and vibrant research environment that enables staff to produce high quality and impactful research output. Staff are committed to producing work of the highest academic rigour and quality while remaining mindful of the relationship between theory, policy and practice. Our research strategy is influenced by the following factors:

  • Our location: The University of East London’s (UEL) Royal Docks School of Business and Law (RDSBL) is home to a diverse, inter-disciplinary community of scholars and academics. The RDSBL is located in the London Borough of Newham, adjacent to the London Docklands regeneration area and Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. This area is one of the most culturally mixed and socio-economically challenged areas of the UK. It is also host to a diverse and multifaceted business infrastructure from small to medium-sized enterprises to global multinational corporations in Canary Wharf.
  • Our diverse staff and students: The diverse ethnic, religious and national backgrounds of our staff, students and many of our external stakeholders shapes our approach to research and the nature of our collaborative partnerships and external public engagements.
  • Our long-standing collaborations and partnerships with our local communities and businesses: The RDSBL has close ties with the local authorities, SMEs and local communities through various inter-disciplinary projects, consultancy work and professional support work that we engage with. Our Legal Advice Centre and our Tax and Accountancy Clinic  support the local businesses and communities and have been particularly active during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are involved in the ARENA project through the Sustainability Research Institute  at UEL to provide business consultancy to SMEs working in green and innovative projects. We have been working with the local authorities of Newham and Tower Hamlets to support and advise on their COVID-19 initiatives.
  • Our international collaborations: Staff at the RDSBL work with a wide range of international partners on global projects. These collaborations include advising and informing government and global policy in a variety of areas such as youth unemployment and outbound migration, land rights, cyber security, fin-tech and cryptocurrency, political economy of tourism, Balkan, European and Middle Eastern Studies, political economy of US-China conflict, human rights and right-wing extremism and terrorism, hate groups and hate crimes and racism.

Research Centres

Centre for the Study of States Markets and People (STAMP): Launched in 2013, STAMP is a major inter-disciplinary research centre in the RDSBL whose members are drawn from across the school and the University. Its primary focus is the study of global and European political economy and the forms of governance and regulation required to address socio-economic/financial issues and geo-political conflicts and crises. The Centre hosts the Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies (Routledge, eight issues annually since 1998).

Noon Centre for Equality & Diversity in Business: The Noon Centre was funded by Lord Noon (Kt. MBE) in 2012 and supported by the Noon Foundation. Its original focus was to provide both a research base and a platform for engaging UEL students with industry, career development and self-employment through three student development programmes: Global Scholars and Civic Engagement, Elite Scholars, and Young Black and Ethnic Professionals. In 2019, the Centre expanded its focus and aligned its activities with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the UK’s 2018 Diversity and Inclusion Strategy. The Centre has established several collaborative partnerships and a portfolio of UN funded projects on gender and land development, climate change and human rights, and gender and age. It has carried out consultative services for several international organisations and governments. At local level, it supports key collaborative projects in Newham Council, such as ’50 steps to a Healthier Newham’ and is developing work on the economic impact of COVID-19 in East London.

Centre for Innovation Management & Enterprise (CIME): CIME was relaunched in autumn 2020 with support from an international advisory board drawn from business and academia. CIME brings together an inter-disciplinary group of scholars to promote and develop interdisciplinary impactful research, business-relevant teaching and practitioner engagement in the areas of technology, industry and society. CIME’s principal focus relates to the theory and practice of innovation and enterprise, including but not limited to the following research themes: sustainability; finance; innovation in business and management.

Centre for Mediation and Conflict Management (CMCM): CMCM is a collective of professionally trained, staff mediators from multiple disciplines in the University. We aim to widen understanding of mediation and conflict resolution practices in the workplace, contribute to academic debates and provide a knowledge platform to share information and mediation good practices.

Centre of FinTech:  The Centre of FinTech has been created with the aim of building a pipeline of FinTech talent that ultimately facilitates the global digital economy and will work in collaboration with a number of industry partners who are part of the Strategic Development Board of the Centre.

Centre on Justice, Law and Society (CJLS): CJLS’s main objective is to support and develop scholarly activity, research and research-led teaching in the School focusing on the study of law, institutions and governance in the context of current societal issues and challenges and adopting a critical and multidisciplinary perspective and a local, regional and global focus. CJLS aims to be an inclusive forum that brings together scholars from across the institution, who are at different stages of their careers, to develop individual and collaborative projects. CJLS provides support for the development of PhD, early and mid-career researchers and aims at fostering external links.

The Institute of Government and Public Policy (IGPP): IGPP is a pan University of East London institute based within the Royal Docks School of Business and Law. The Institute aims to be a pre-eminent think tank with the goals of making governance and policy-making more inclusive and open to a broad coalition of stakeholders.

The Legal Advice Centre: The Legal Advice Centre is a learning facility for students in our Royal Docks School of Business and Law. Law students offer free written legal advice to members of the public who are unable to pay or obtain legal aid for such legal advice.

Policing Innovation, Enterprise and Learning Centre (PIEL Centre): PIEL has formed a new approach to policing research that encapsulates the original Peelian Principles of 1829 but explores how to bring them up to date in a 21st century context has begun: to make policing by consent a contemporary reality. The purpose of the new international collaboration is to drive progressive change in policing, inspired by the founding Peelian tenets of community-led policing by consent, with a mission for a renaissance of policing in a 21st century context: to reset the best of the past within a more progressive future.

The Tax and Accountancy Clinic: The Tax and Accountancy Clinic is a hub for tax and accountancy services to our local businesses and the local community. The Clinic networks with practitioners, employers, academics and professional accounting bodies to provide necessary services for business growth and support to individuals on a low income. In doing so, the process supports students in their career development and provide a practical module for students on the BSc Accountancy & Finance level 5. This is in line with the University’s strategy of building long term relationships with local businesses and providing students with employment prospects.

Further information regarding research at the Royal Docks School of Business and Law can be found here.