Nigel Perry MBE FREng is to become our new Chair of University Council from 1 August 2026.  Nigel takes over the role from Caroline Johnstone, who has decided to take up an external professional role with a significant supplier of the University which would cause a conflict of interest that does not allow her to continue as Chair of Council.

Dr Veronica Heney from our Institute for Medical Humanities and Department of Sociology has been awarded a Wellcome Early Career Award to re-configure understandings of self-harm.

Professor David Alexander from our top-rated Physics Department has been elected as a trustee of the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS), one of the UK's leading organisations for astronomy and geophysics.

Our Business School has again performed strongly in the Financial Times Masters in Finance 2026 ranking, placing 60th globally and 11th in the UK.

Professor Carlos Frenk – who is behind one of the foremost theories of the evolution of the Universe – has been knighted in The King’s Birthday Honours.

Durham alumnus David Sproxton, CBE – co-founder and trustee of the animation studio behind Wallace & Gromit – has been knighted in The King’s Birthday Honours.

England’s Chief Medical Officer praised a pioneering new research institute we’re helping deliver that could transform the early detection and prevention of disease.

North East England’s five universities are joining forces with North East Mayor Kim McGuinness to help transform academic research into high-growth new businesses.

With Korea’s recent association to Horizon Europe, Professor Claire O’Malley, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Global), recently visited Seoul where she met with university leaders, research funding agencies, our alumni community and the National Museum of Korea to further enhance our research, academic, and cultural partnerships.

Professor Claire O’Malley, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Global), visited Japan to strengthen further our research partnerships. In line with the outcomes of the January 2026 UK-Japan Summit, the visit focused on advancing our research collaborations in clean energy and hydrogen, biotech, agriculture, and food security. 

We are one of 24 universities from 112 applicants to have secured funding from the Government, enabling us to introduce a defence-technology pathway for UK students across five of our degree programmes.

Durham University has announced an exciting partnership with Microsoft to help shape the future of AI skills, education, and opportunity. The collaboration was announced at London Tech Week 2026 by Darren Hardman, Corporate Vice President & CEO, Microsoft UK and Ireland, as part of wider discussions on how artificial intelligence is transforming the future of work across the UK.