Research news

A man with white hair does his finances with a calculator

Costs for minimum retiree needs have fallen while moderate and comfortable standards see modest rises

The latest update of the Retirement Living Standards (RLS) shows a decrease in the cost of the minimum retirement lifestyle, down to £21,600 per year for a two-person household, due to the impact of lower energy prices and changes in the public’s expectations for this standard.
Front view of Hazlerigg Building on a sunny day.

Four Loughborough academics appointed to lead REF 2029 Sub-Panels

The four UK higher education funding bodies, working with the REF Main Panel Chairs and Advisory Panel members, have appointed four deputy chairs from Loughborough University for sub-panels that will assess research in REF 2029.
A UK oil rig

UK oil and gas firms face hidden risks in net zero transition

Smaller companies with ageing North Sea assets were especially vulnerable to financial losses, researchers found.
Materials pressured between two graphene layers melt in complex ways. Illustration: Ville Heirola/Aalto University.

Physicists use artificial intelligence to reveal how layered gases and metals melt

A team of physicists – including a Nobel Prize winner – has used artificial intelligence to uncover how layered materials melt and shift between physical states when confined to two dimensions.
Primary age children sitting around a teacher

It costs £1,000-a-year to send your child to state primary school and £2,300 for secondary school - new report

New research reveals that families in the UK must now cover minimum annual education costs of over £1,000 for a primary school child and nearly £2,300 for a secondary school pupil – a sharp rise that far outpaces inflation and earnings growth since 2022.
Graphic of a glowing blue brain surrounded by blue lines.

Loughborough set to play pivotal role in new UK Multidisciplinary Centre for Neuromorphic Computing

Loughborough University researchers are set to play a pivotal role in the new UK Multidisciplinary Centre for Neuromorphic Computing, established to pioneer brain-inspired, energy-efficient computing technologies.
A digital image of three hands holding jigsaw pieces signifying team working

Leicestershire’s universities join Nottingham in ambitious research project where communities can shape research to solve real-life problems

Loughborough University, the University of Leicester and De Montfort University are joining forces with Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham in an unprecedented ambitious project which brings together academia and the community to support growth and development, broaden prospects, drive change, and improve wellbeing.
Graphic of a brain inside a pint glass labelled 'Pint of Science' alongside text reading '19-21 May 2025, 4pm-7pm, #pint25'.

Pint of Science festival returns to Loughborough

Quench your thirst for knowledge and come along to a series of local science talks led by doctoral researchers and academics from across the University. 
athlete richard whitehead in a mask

Richard Whitehead’s 100 marathon challenge – with a little help from Loughborough University (VIDEO)

For many, completing just one marathon in a lifetime is a huge achievement.
A person pointing at x-ray images of a human brain.

Loughborough lecturer awarded funding from Academy of Medical Sciences

Dr Amanda Pearce, a lecturer in the Department of Chemistry at Loughborough University, has been awarded funding by the Academy of Medical Sciences to tackle dementia, as part of its initiative to support early-career researchers.
a child, head bowed, with phone in hand

Hit TV series Adolescence: “your child could receive these types of online messages. It's not out of the ordinary” – Loughborough University expert says (VIDEO)

The hit Netflix series, Adolescence, which delivers a hard-hitting storyline around a social media-fuelled killing and the influence of incel subculture, has highlighted the very real concerns children and young people face navigating the online world. 
A group of people are sat around a table discussing work and projects

New study aims to reveal the true costs of fixed-term contracts for early career researchers to help improve working conditions and broader research cultures in higher education

C-DICE, the UK’s largest postdoctoral researcher development programme - led by Loughborough University, has launched a new study to explore the wide-ranging impacts of researchers holding fixed-term positions, aiming to foster a supportive and dynamic research community.
five people sat on stools having a panel discussion

Loughborough University selected as a UK Sport Social Impact Partner

Loughborough University has been announced as one of UK Sport’s first-ever Event Social Impact Partners with the aim of using major events to drive positive change.
shadows of people playing football in the sunset

The world’s first global thematic report on sport trafficking unveils critical insights into exploitation

Loughborough University, in partnership with Mission 89 and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association UK Branch of the British Parliament, has released the first-ever comprehensive global thematic report on sport trafficking.
Group photo at ZCIC opening

Loughborough University joins The University of Nottingham to open the Zero Carbon Innovation Centre

Loughborough University, in partnership with East Midlands Freeport, Research England and The University of Nottingham, is playing a key role in the newly opened Zero Carbon Innovation Centre (ZCIC). The centre will deliver innovation in transport technology, green hydrogen production, and power solutions for industry and create jobs for the regional economy.
hundreds of clothes on hangers

New study challenges circular fashion’s economic and environmental claims

A new study reveals that circular fashion (CF) – the practice of recycling, reselling, and renting clothing to reduce waste – might not be the green solution it claims to be.
Children line up in a school canteen waiting to be served their lunch by a dinner lady.

Labelling food with the physical activity required to burn off calories reduces sugary food purchases in secondary school pupils, study finds

A trial at English secondary schools of alternative food labelling – which displayed the number of minutes of physical activity needed to burn off calories – reduced the purchase of sugary foods by a small amount, new research has found.

Illustration of a brain wearing glasses inside a pint glass labelled 'Pint of Science'.

Share your research at Pint of Science Loughborough

The international science outreach festival Pint of Science is returning to Loughborough in May and doctoral researchers, technical and research staff from across the University are encouraged to get involved.
two female athletes compete for the ball in wheelchair rugby

Loughborough research leads to rule change in World Wheelchair Rugby

Research conducted by Loughborough University has led to a rule change in World Wheelchair Rugby (WWR), increasing female participation in the sport.
Delegates at the event

Loughborough University researchers are leading the way in enhancing ethnic diversity and inclusion in sport senior leadership

Dr Steven Bradbury and colleagues from Loughborough University’s School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences have collaborated with 18 Loughborough-based sports bodies to conduct an innovative research project examining ethnic diversity and inclusion in sports leadership.
a close up of a petridish in a lab setting

New research will tackle the global threat of antimicrobial resistance

A Loughborough University-backed research project investigating the development of new treatments for drug-resistant bacterial infections is set to launch.
The team at Loughborough's Centre for Research in Social Policy

Loughborough’s research into living standards secures four more years of funding from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation

Loughborough’s Centre for Research in Social Policy (CRSP) has secured a further four-year partnership with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) to continue its work defining socially acceptable standards of living.
steak cooking on a grill

Processed red meat isn’t just bad for your heart, it’s also associated with dementia

Less red meat is good for the planet and a growing number of people have started the new year resolving to pursue a meat-free diet.
a worm eye view of hands joined in a circle

Health research funding confirmed

Millions of pounds of government cash to help carry out wide-ranging research to identify the health needs for people in Leicestershire has been confirmed.
A sundew carnivorous plants digesting a fly

Sundews’ secret to survival: Study reveals how carnivorous plants adapt to microhabitat challenges

Scientists have uncovered how sundews, Charles Darwin’s favourite plant, become more carnivorous in certain habitats.