British universities are to prosper from grants under the European Commission Connect initiative, which will spend E8.4 million (Pounds 5.3 million).

Sixty selected projects are supposed to combine culture with education and training, particularly in connection with research and new technologies.

The theme of 23 of the projects is the promotion of European citizenship, "via education in civics, democratic values and a spirit of tolerance". The theme of 31 projects is how to bridge the gap between education and society, with an emphasis on combating violence and failure in schools and tackling social exclusion.

The British schemes include:

Goldsmiths College, 51¹ú²úÊÓƵ of London: a study into understanding and intervening against violence in EU schools

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Weekend Arts College: studying and providing innovative programmes in informal education settings, helping "socially excluded" young people succeed academically

Telford College, Edinburgh: a survey of training for disadvantaged young people

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51¹ú²úÊÓƵ of Hull: curriculum development for its European Product Network.

The EC will fund on average half of each project's budget, provided that administrative and financial procedures are properly completed.