Category / Funding opportunities

EU Radar – Societal Challenges – Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine and maritime and inland water research and the bioeconomy

Funding opportunities

The following EU Horizon 2020 Societal Challenges’ calls  are all closing after April 2015. If you are thinking of applying to any of these calls, please contact RKEO Funding Development Team as soon as you are able, so that we can help you with your submission.

The date given is the deadline with all closing at 17:00 Brussels local time unless stated otherwise

Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine and maritime and inland water research and the bioeconomy

 Innovative, sustainable  and inclusive  bioeconomy – 11/06/15

Sustainable food security – 11/6/15

Blue Growth: unlocking the potential of the seas and oceans – 11/6/15

 

General / Multiple Topics

Horizon 2020 dedicated SME instrument phase 1 and phase 2 –  deadlines – 17/6/15, 17/9/15 and 25/11/15

Please check the specific topics within this call which may meet your research funding needs.

 

For more information on EU funding opportunities, contact Paul Lynch or Emily Cieciura, in the RKEO Funding Development Team.

ESRC Changes to Research Grants funding thresholds

Funding opportunities, Guidance

ESRC are introducing changes to the funding thresholds for their Research Grants scheme. They currently accept applications between £200,000 and £2 million. Under the new arrangements the lower threshold will rise to £350,000 and the upper threshold will be reduced to £1 million at Full Economic Costs. These changes will come into effect from 1 July 2015. Current thresholds will continue to operate for any application submitted up to 30 June 2015.

To find out more about why these changes have been introduced, click here.

The ESRC has not withdrawn from the funding of projects under £350,000. They remain committed to schemes with projects below this threshold, such as the Secondary Data Analysis Initiative, the Transformative Research scheme, and – for Early Career Researchers – their Future Research Leaders scheme, where there is no lower limit on funding. All these schemes are essentially responsive mode, like the Research Grants Scheme.

They also remain committed to the funding of longer, larger responsive grants. They intend to introduce an annual open competition for grants between £1 million and £2.5 million and are currently considering how this will operate alongside our existing Centres and the Large Grants Competition.

They anticipate that these changes will reduce the volume of applications they receive through the Research Grants scheme. This will increase overall success rates for those who do apply as well as reducing the peer review requirements they need to place on the social science community.

If you are thinking of applying to the ESRC then please contact the Funding Development Team.

ESRC have updated their Research Data policy

Funding opportunities, Guidance

The ESRC has updated its research data policy .

The key points are:

  • it is the grant holder’s responsibility to incorporate data management as an integral part of the research project, and
  • data must be made available for re-use or archiving with the ESRC data service providers within three months of the end of the grant.

Please click on the link above for further information.

Research, Innovate, Grow – RCUK’s vision for future investment in the UK research base

Funding opportunities

Research Councils UK  (RCUK) has articulated its vision for future investment in the UK research base, adopting the slogan “Research, Innovate, Grow” as an encapsulation of its current and future purpose.

RCUK, the UK’s biggest investors in public sector research, are committed to ensuring the UK remains the best place in the world to do research, innovate and grow business.  “Strong, sustained investment in the UK research base is essential to strengthen and let fly the excellence, creativity and impact of the UK’s world leading researchers, innovators and businesses. Only by doing this will we be able to address the challenges facing our society today and create the opportunities for business growth in the future,” said Professor Rick Rylance, Chair of RCUK.

Going forward RCUK will:

  • shape a world-leading research base with strength across disciplines
  • accelerate innovation and impact from this excellent research base
  • collaborate and co-invest with Innovate UK and other partners in the research and innovation ecosystem
  • drive new multidisciplinary research programmes
  • work together to maximise impact and further drive efficiency

“The world-leading UK research base attracts and retains global businesses in the UK and establishes the positive environment to generate new businesses and enable them to grow. This drives industrial sectors and enables national and regional economic growth,” Prof  Rylance said. “The breadth, quality and richness of the UK research base is unique. It enables us to address society’s challenges and business opportunities across the spectrum. It is a very precious resource and a superb advantage for the UK. We need to invest now to secure its future. We will be investing not just for now but for our children.”

RCUK is determined to build on this position through: 

  • sustained long-term investment in the research base
  • leveraging the UK’s position at the centre of the global research network
  • realising the full potential of the UK innovation ecosystem

“RCUK will continue to invest in the creation of new knowledge and drive innovation,” said Professor  Jackie Hunter, RCUK Impact Champion. “The collective ambition of the Research Councils is to maintain and further enhance the UK’s leading position as THE best place in the world to do research, innovate and grow a business. Only by doing this can the benefits of the research investment already made be secured, maximizing the UK research base’s contribution towards the creation of a strong economy and societal benefit now and in the future.”

The UK has 1% of the global population and only 3% of global funding for research yet produces 16% of the world’s most highly cited papers. Almost half of research articles published by UK researchers have international co-authors. Four of the world’s top 10 universities are in the UK. The Research Councils drive and enable researchers, business and partners to create knowledge and innovation for society, industry, Government and the third sector. RCUK funded researchers are more likely to collaborate with business than those funded through any other route.  The Research Councils co-deliver research and innovation with more than 2,500 businesses.

If you would like to contribute to the Nurse review of research councils, please see the blog post setting out BU procedure and deadlines.

£7m funding competition open for registration

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, Knowledge Exchange

 

Wave Energy Scotland (WES) is launching four new SBRI funding competitions with up to £7m funding available.

The aim of this funding competition is the development of new innovative energy conversion solutions that are applicable to the wave energy sector. More information on this funding opportunity.

Competition Briefing event, 31 March 2015.

This event is an excellent opportunity for you to receive first hand information about the competition – its scope, application process, key dates etc. More information on the briefing event.

£4m collaborative R&D funding now open ! – Protecting data in industry

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Transfer

£4m collaborative R&D funding now open ! – 23 March 2015

Innovate UK is to invest up to £4 million in collaborative research and development (R&D) projects that tackle the growing risks of disruption to internet-enabled businesses and their digital supply. More information on this competition.

Competition Briefing Events – 25 March onwards at several locations

The event is an excellent opportunity for you to receive first hand information about the competition – its scope, application process, key dates etc. as well as meet and network with peers, potential partners, market leaders & innovators in the industry. More information & event registration page.

For queries about this competition, please contact support@innovateuk.gov.uk

MRC removes PhD eligibility criteria for fellowships and launches career framework

Funding opportunities, Guidance

Until now, the period within which someone could apply for an MRC fellowship has been different for different fellowships. The restrictions will be removed on 18 March, coincident with the launch of the career framework.

The MRC Interactive Career Framework was constructed following broad consultation with medical research groups and a review of medical research careers comprising interviews with nearly 400 non-clinical medical researchers, the MRC said. 

The interviews were conducted with MRC award winners, and focused on the ten to 20 years following their receipt of funding. One finding of the review was that 44 per cent of interviewees finished their PhD “with either no idea or only a general idea of what they wanted to do next”, the MRC said. In addition, 60 per cent said they had not received enough careers advice. 

The removal of the restriction on when researchers can apply for a fellowship was an outcome of the review. “Many of those who contributed to the review spoke of the lack of flexibility in making research career choices resulting from the fact that researchers have only a certain number of years after their PhD in which to apply for fellowships, after which point they’re ineligible,” the MRC said. 

The MRC is seeking feedback on the framework, which it says will be developed further with additional career routes, case studies and tools.

EPSRC launches a science and engineering blog

Funding opportunities

A new science and engineering blog will provide debate and opinion pieces from leading thinkers on research, innovation and science funding policy.

The blog, launched by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), will seek contributions from scientists and engineers as well as EPSRC staff.

Announcing the launch, Professor Philip Nelson, Chief Executive of EPSRC says; ‘We want the EPSRC blog to host debate, share thinking and provide different perspectives on topics affecting the engineering and physical sciences community.  It is vital that as a community we remain engaged on developments and issues. I hope the EPSRC blog will prove an additional and very useful tool in doing just that.’

Within the first blog post Professor Nelson sets out EPSRC’s strategic plan and outlines discussions around how research is best supported, the university eco-system and opportunities to support innovation.

Dr Nick Hawes, from the University of Birmingham, argues why scientists working in robotics and artificial intelligence need to engage with the public. His blog post sets out tips for public engagement, gives examples of robot demonstrations and tweeting robots, with data to demonstrate the worldwide online impact.

Latest Major Funding Opportunities

Funding opportunities

The following funding opportunities have been announced. Please follow the links for more information:

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council

FLexible Interchange Programme (FLIP). This fund supports the movement of people from one environment to a different one to exchange knowledge/technology/skills, developing bioscience research/researchers. Awards last up to 24 months, can cost up to £150k.  Closing Date: 15/7/15

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

Early Career Researchers bursaries. This fund covers travel expenses and accommodation costs to allow post-doctoral research fellows and academic staff in the first three years of their first academic appointment to attend Dial-a-Molecule events. Closing Date: Any time.

Funding for meetings. We welcome proposals for meetings to fund, or co-fund in relation to developing new collaborations. Closing Date: Any time.

Interdisciplinary mobility fund. The fund promotes collaborations by short term visits and exchanges. We expect a typical award to be £1-2000 and we aim to fund up to 40 exchanges over 3 yrs. Closing Date: Any time.

Medical Research Council
UK-Thailand: Joint Health Research Call. It is expected that this funding will support up to four joint projects at a level of up to £389k per project for infectious diseases, and three joint projects at a level of up to £444k per project for non-communicable diseases. Closing Date: 2/6/15 at 16:00

The Royal Society
Royal Society Research Professorship. The scheme provides salary costs, a one-off start-up grant and research expenses to world-class scientists. Appointments are usually made for up to 10 years. Closing Date: 3/11/15

Wellcome Trust

Health Innovation Challenge Fund. This fund aims to stimulate the creation of innovative healthcare products, technologies and interventions and to facilitate their development for the benefit of patients in the NHS and beyond for each £10m funding round. Closing Date: 5/5/15

Pathfinder Awards. This scheme, offering pilot funding to catalyse innovative early-stage applied research and development projects in areas of unmet medical need. The average award amount is envisaged to be in the region of £100,000, but up to £350,000 will be considered in exceptional circumstances. Closing Date: 29/6/15 at 17:00

Please note that some funding bodies specify a time for submission as well as a date. Please confirm this with your  RKEO Funding Development Officer

You can set up your own personalised alerts on Research Professional. If you need help setting these up, just ask your School’s/Faculty’s Funding Development Officer in  RKEO or view the recent blog post here.

If thinking of applying, why not add notification of your interest on Research Professional’s record of the bid so that BU colleagues can see your intention to bid and contact you to collaborate.

£4m funding for ‘Protecting data in Industry’

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Transfer

 

£4m collaborative R&D funding opening soon – 23 March 2015

Innovate UK is to invest up to £4 million in collaborative research and development (R&D) projects that tackle the growing risks of disruption to internet-enabled businesses and their digital supply. More information on this competition.

Competition Briefing Events – 25 March onwards at several locations

The event is an excellent opportunity for you to receive first hand information about the competition – its scope, application process, key dates etc. as well as meet and network with peers, potential partners, market leaders & innovators in the industry. More information & event registration page.

For queries about this competition, please contact support@innovateuk.gov.uk

If you are applying to the research councils soon, please note Je-S unavailability

Funding opportunities, Guidance

Please note that the Je-S system (the research councils e-submission site) will be unavailable from 16:00 GMT on Thursday 16th April 2015 until 08.30 GMT on Wednesday 22nd April 2015.  Further details are available on the Je-S Login page.

This is a significant amount of down time and so please bear this in mind if you are writing an application for funding to the research councils.

AHRC Advisory Board vacancies

Funding opportunities, Guidance

The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) is seeking expressions of interest from suitably experienced individuals in the academic and non-academic sectors to join the Advisory Board in 2015.

AHRC funds research and post graduate training across a wide disciplinary remit as well as facilitating opportunities for researchers to engage in international, knowledge exchange, partnerships and public policy activities. It is a non-departmental government body sponsored by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and is governed by the Council, which is responsible for the overarching strategic direction of the organisation.

The role of the Advisory Board is to advise AHRC Council and Executive on the development and implementation of strategic approaches to funding which reflect the challenges and opportunities arising for the arts and humanities research and those that engage with it.

The Board is looking particularly for expertise in the following areas:

  • Classics and/or Archaeology
  • Design
  • Digital Humanities
  • Performing Arts
  • Music
  • Theology
  • Modern Languages
  • Voluntary Sector

Please see the Terms of Reference for the Advisory Board (PDF 35KB, opens in a new window) and the Role and Person Specification (PDF 90KB, opens in a new window), which outline the skills and experience AHRC require for potential Board members.

If you are interested in becoming a member of the Board please submit an Expression of Interest form (Word 37KB, opens in a new window) (no longer than 500 words) outlining (in no more than 500 words) how you meet the criteria required, together with a short CV (no longer than 2 sides of A4) and the Equal Opportunities form (Word 41KB, opens in a new window) (which is not seen by the panel) to Rose Easton (r.easton@ahrc.ac.uk) by the deadline of 4pm on 20 April 2015.

Interviews will take place at Medical Research Council, Kemble St, London on 14 May 2015.

AHRC will seek to ensure a healthy balance of institutional and regional representation on the Board. AHRC is committed to openness and transparency of process and to provide equal opportunities to all, irrespective of age, gender, race, disability, marital status, religion, sexual orientation, transgender and working patterns.

If you have any question concerning the vacancies, please contact Rose Easton on 01793 416014 or email r.easton@ahrc.ac.uk.

Creative and Digital Business Briefings are out now!

Funding opportunities

The March edition of the  monthly creative business briefing for the UK’s creative industries is now live!

This is a monthly publication that provides a digest of useful information about funding, financing, support and events to assist creative entrepreneurs with their innovation and growth agendas. This month’s edition offers edited highlights of a number of public funding programmes from leading organisations supporting our sector including: Innovate UK, IC tomorrow, Nesta, British Film Institute, Creative England, Creative Scotland & more.

Now in it’s sixth month of publication, feedback from you the community continues to inform us that this is a valued resource.

Please click here for the digital business briefing.

£6m funding – ‘Creating smart products from smart materials’

Funding opportunities

 

£6m funding opening soon for registration – 16 March 2015

Innovate UK in partnership with Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) will invest up to £6 million in collaborative research and development (R&D) projects. Information on briefing events.

 The aim of  this funding competition is to encourage the development of smart products that use a combination of functional, hybrid and multiple materials. More information & Competition registration page. 

Competition Briefing & Consortia Building Events, 9th March onwards at several locations

The event is an excellent opportunity for you to receive first hand information about the competition – its scope, application process, key dates etc. as well as meet and network with peers, potential partners, market leaders & innovators in the industry. More information & event registration pages. 

For queries about this competition, please contact support@innovateuk.gov.uk. For queries about the events, please contact steve.morris@ktn-uk.org or Andy Sellars – andy.sellars@innovateuk.gov.uk
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