Category / pre-award

AHRC Peer Review College call for nominations

BU research, pre-award, Research news

The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) is seeking nominations for new members to be appointed to its Peer Review College (PRC).

Peer review lies at the heart of the AHRC’s operations, and they are fully committed to the principle of peer review for the assessment of applications to our schemes and programmes. PRC members provide expert quality reviews of applications within their areas of expertise, which inform the AHRC’s decision making processes. Members can also be called upon to sit on assessment or moderation panels. As well as making an important contribution to the AHRC’s peer review processes, the experience gained by membership of the College provides benefits to individuals, departments and higher education institutions.

This is an open call for membership to the AHRC Peer Review College; nominees can also apply for membership to any of our individual colleges in addition to the Academic College. The Call for Nominations is open to any organisation that has eligible staff (including organisations from the charitable, third and private sector) and who can supply eligible nominators.

The nomination process must be centrally managed and supported by the institution (not the nominee), with all nominations being submitted by institutions rather than individual nominees.

Please refer to the PRC Recruitment 2019 Call Document (PDF, 282KB) and the FAQ Document (PDF, 182KB) for further information and application guidance. Whilst the deadline for nominations is 16:00 on 15 October 2019, the internal BU deadline is 8th October 2019. Nominees must create a Je-S account to complete the process and nominators must complete their case for support via the nominee. Once this is completed, Jo Garrad, RDS Funding Development Manager, will submit all nominations via the SmartSurvey, uploading one PDF document comprising of the CV, publication list (from the nominee), and Case for Support (from the nominator).

If you are considering applying to the AHRC peer review college than please make me (Jo Garrad) aware of your intentions by 25th September 2019. I will be happy to discuss this further with anyone who is interested in applying. Being an external peer reviewer comes with many benefits, such as networking with peers, direct contact with a funder, and visibility of world-leading research applications to name but a few.

If successful, College members will be appointed for one term (4 years) commencing 1 January 2020 and ending 31 December 2023.

New PRC members are required to attend an induction session. Induction training will run from January-March 2020 and invitations will be sent to successful nominees during December.

Newton and GCRF funding opportunities

BU research, ECR Network, Funding opportunities, pre-award, Research news, Uncategorized

The UUKi International Partnerships team have recently launched a new GCRF funding bulletin which sits alongside the existing Newton Funding bulletin.

If you haven’t already signed up to receive the GCRF funding bulletin, you can do so here: GCRF bulletin sign up.

Please also feel free to share the link to subscribe with your collaborators and partners in GCRF countries of focus too.

UUKi sub-Saharan Africa Policy Network update

BU research, ECR Network, Funding opportunities, international, pre-award, Research news

UUKi sub-Saharan Africa Policy Network

The next UUKi sub-Saharan Policy Network will take place at Woburn House, London on Wednesday 18 September, 1400 – 1630. The meeting will include a focus upon student recruitment in the region and will also include an update from the HMG cross Whitehall Africa Strategy team. Other speakers will be confirmed over the next couple of weeks. If you haven’t already, please do sign up via Eventbrite. https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/uuki-sub-saharan-africa-network-tickets-63104694841

 

RDS Research for Social Care Roadshow

BU research, Funding opportunities, pre-award

The NIHR will be investing in future social care research with annual funding calls via the Research for Patient Benefit (RfPB) programme.  The next call is planned to launch in September and will follow a similar format to the first call, however to give it a clearer social care identity it will be launched as Research for Social Care (RfSC). The RfSC call will have a budget of £3m and further information will be released shortly.

The Research Design Service (RDS) is running an event in Bristol on 30th September which offers an opportunity to gain a greater understanding of RfSC funding. Attendance at these events is FREE and refreshments will be provided.

More details can be found on the NIHR website or on our RDS South West website.

And don’t forget, your local branch of the NIHR RDS (Research Design Service) is based within the BU Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) on the 5th floor of Royal London House. Feel free to pop in and see us, call us on 61939 or send us an email.

Funding Call: Knowledge Frontiers – International Interdisciplinary Research

Funding opportunities, international, pre-award

The British Academy has opened Funding Call: Knowledge Frontiers – International Interdisciplinary Research 2020, funded by the UK’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. The deadline for submissions and UK institutional approval is 23 October 2019 at 17.00 (UK time), awards up to £200,000 for duration of 24 months, projects must begin on 1 April 2020.

The British Academy is inviting proposals from UK-based researchers in the humanities and social sciences wishing to develop international interdisciplinary projects in collaboration with colleagues from the natural, engineering and/or medical sciences. The Academy is looking to fund applications that break new ground in the collaborations – international and interdisciplinary. The purpose of each project will be to develop new international research ideas.

The Academy encourages partnerships with researchers in low-income countries, however applications focused on any country are welcome.

Applications must demonstrate an innovative and interdisciplinary approach yielding new conceptual understandings, developing ground-breaking research and energising innovative collaborations between the humanities and social sciences on the one hand, and the natural, engineering and/or medical sciences on the other, related to one or more of the following themes:

  • Hazard and Risk
  • Cultures of Forecasting
  • Meaning of Resilience

RDS is currently working with cross-disciplinary group of BU academics to develop a proposal. If you are interested either to join the existing group or willing to lead/create a new group, please contact Research Facilitator Ainar Blaudums for further details by the middle of August.

British Academy Small Grant Call – To Open and Internal Deadlines

BU research, ECR Network, Funding opportunities, Guidance, pre-award

The call for the next round of BA/Leverhulme Small Research Grants will open on 4 September and close at 5.00 pm on 6 November 2019.

We welcome Intention to Bid (ITB) forms from Early Career Researchers and/or for bids that deliver pump priming / seed corn funding purposes.

Due to the volume of bids that are received by RDS in every round, the internal deadlines will be strictly applied to ensure that the pre-award team can provide all interested academics with optimal support in a timely manner.

Where ITB forms are received after 18 September 2019, they will be moved automatically to the next round.

The British Academy will be visiting BU on 10 September from 11.00 am to 2.00 pm – this has been organised in place of a workshop; it is highly recommended that you attend this to hear them and ask any questions.

The British Academy has provided guidance and FAQs.They have stipulated that all applicants must read the documentation carefully before starting their application.

Timeline

The call closes at 5.00 pm on 6 November 2019.

Date Action
4 September Call opens – start reading guidance and FAQs.
10 September British Academy’s visit to BU.
18 September Intention to Bid forms to be submitted to your Faculty Funding Development Officer.

 

At this date, advise your referee that you will be sending them your completed application on FlexiGrant and they will need to provide their supporting statement by 22 October.

 
25 September If you are Grade 8 or below and you wish to use the support of an External Application Reviewer (EAR), you must submit a first draft of the application to RDS by this date.

 

An EAR will not be allocated to you if you send a draft to RDS after this date.

 
21 October Latest date for you to fully complete your application on FlexiGrant, so it is ready for your referee to complete the supporting statement via FlexiGrant.

 

Note that the earlier you complete you application on FlexiGrant, the more time the referee will have to review your bid and provide the supporting statement by 22 October.

 
22 October Latest date for referee to complete the supporting statement via FlexiGrant.

 
23 October Click ‘submit’ and the form will be sent to BU’s account for RDS checks.

 
23 October – 5 November Institutional checking process – RDS will work with you to ensure compliance with all funder’s requirements.

 
6 November Submission deadline – latest date to formally submit on FlexiGrant.

 

 

If you have any queries, please contact your Research Facilitator or Funding Development Officer.

British Academy Visit – Save the Date!

BU research, ECR Network, Events, Funding opportunities, PG research, pre-award, Research news, Research Training, RKE development framework, Training

September 10th 11:00 – 14:00 Talbot Campus

Members of the British Academy are visiting BU on Tuesday 10th September.

There will be a presentation late morning, looking at their portfolio of funding opportunities and providing useful information on their application and assessment processes, with some handy top tips. This will be followed by a networking lunch.

To book, please contact Theresa McManus.

Please put the date in your diaries!

Update on Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe

EU, pre-award

The European Commission published the updated 2018-2020 Work Programme of Horizon 2020, which includes details of the last calls for proposals launched under the programme. The last Work Programme is intended to be a bridge between Horizon 2020 and the next EU framework programme for research and innovation – Horizon Europe, which will start on 1 January 2021.

This Work Programme, with a total budget of more than €11 billion, will support the Commission’s political priorities in the following areas:

  • A low-carbon, climate resilient future: €3.7 billion;
  • Circular economy: €1 billion;
  • Digitising and transforming European industry and services: €1.8 billion; and
  • Security Union: €1 billion.

The updated Work Programme parts can be found in the ‘Reference documents‘ section of the Funding & Tenders Portal (to find necessary Work Programme part, use filter ‘Horizon 2020 Framework Programme (H2020)’ and select ‘Work Programmes’ from the menu).

The UK and the EU have agreed a flexible Brexit extension for six months to 31 October 2019. During the extension period, the UK will remain a member of the EU with all the relevant rights and obligations. This means that UK organisations can continue to participate in Horizon 2020 as a Member State, and remain eligible to apply for Horizon 2020 funding. This includes requesting the relevant part of the project’s budget as an EU contribution.

The government’s no deal guarantees remain in place to ensure continuity of funding in a no-deal scenario. The UK government has committed to underwrite competitive UK bids to EU funding submitted before exit, even if they are notified of their success after exit, for the lifetime of the projects.

The UK government Post EU Exit Guarantee Extension would cover funding for successful UK bids to EU calls open to third country participants from the date of exit until end of 2020. The guarantee would cover the lifetime of their projects, even if these last beyond 2020.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has been appointed to manage the UK government’s guarantee and post-EU exit extension.

H2020 Societal Challenge 5 Information Days in September

EU, Events, Info Days, international, pre-award

The Information Days on H2020 Societal Challenge five: “Climate Action, Environment, Resource Efficiency & Raw Materials” will take place on 16 and 17 September 2019 in Brussels. It targets applicants to the 2020 calls for project proposals; two individuals per organisation are allowed to register.

Registration closes on 8 September 2019. Once registered, attendees have the opportunity to design their own programme agenda as well as utilise a match-making facility that will enable them to schedule bilateral meetings and to present their interests, expertise and/or project ideas to possible project partners.

Further information is available on the Information Days website.

Canada-UK Artificial Intelligence Initiative: building competitive and resilient economies and societies through responsible AI

Funding opportunities, international, pre-award

The three Canadian federal research funding agencies and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) have announced an interdisciplinary joint call aimed at building competitive, resilient and healthy economies and societies through responsible AI. The call is now open and the deadline for applications is 12 September 2019.

This call is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the Medical Research Council (MRC), in collaboration with three Canadian federal research funding agencies – the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

Academics interested in applying or finding more details related to this call may refer to ESRC web page or RDS.

The Research Development and Support R&KE Application Timeline

BU research, Funding opportunities, Guidance, pre-award

The Research Development & Support RKE Application timeline is your ultimate guide to applying for external R&KE funding. The timeline guides you through all the necessary steps, procedures and processes involved, including navigating through all the requirements of the internal quality approvals, costing preparations, legal and finances approvals, faculty approvals, etc.

The R&KE timeline also provides helpful guidance in the time needed in preparing and finalising external funding applications, taking you through initial planning, the submission preparation processes, legal and finance approval processes and to the submission to funder process.

You can also find useful links and information, as well as your Funding Development Team contacts on this timeline document.

Please click on this link to access this useful guidance document.

Horizon 2020 information / brokerage events – SC1 & LEIT

EU, Events, pre-award

A number of EU-wide information events have been announced recently.

LEIT: ICT, Advanced Materials and Manufacturing

The Enterprise Europe Network, in partnership with Enterprise Ireland and the Spanish, Portuguese, Greek and British National Contract Points (NCPs), is organising an international partnering event on ICT, Advanced Materials and Manufacturing.

The event will take place on 4 July 2019 in Dublin and participation is free. The programme will include presentations from the European Commission, National Contact Points, CEO of the Irish Manufacturing Research Centre (IMR), and will provide a unique opportunity to pitch ideas and expertise in front of leading research organisations and cutting-edge innovators from across industry.

Registration will be open until 1 July 2019 and more information is available on the event’s webpage.

Societal Challenge 1 ‘Health, demographic change and wellbeing’

On 3 July in Brussels, the European Commission is holding an Open Info Day for the Horizon 2020 Societal Challenge 1 ‘Health, demographic change and wellbeing’. It will be a free, all-day event focusing on upcoming SC1 2020 calls for proposals, with an overall budget of €650 Million.

Draft agenda and registration are available on the event’s website.

Related to the Open Info Day, a free brokerage event is taking place on 4 July in Brussels. It is organised by the Health NCP Net 2.0 to provide the applicants with partnering opportunities. It is a separate event and requires registration by 31 May.

NIHR RDS Residential Research Retreat 26-28 November 2019 – Applications open NOW

BU research, Events, Funding opportunities, NHS, pre-award, Research Training

Do you have a great idea for a research project?

Are you planning to apply for research funding?

Do you need a dedicated period of quality time with support to develop your research project?

Dillington House, Somerset. 26 – 28 November 2019.

Applications NOW OPEN

The Residential Research Retreat provides protected time with expert coaching and support for you to develop your research proposal to the standard required to be competitive in seeking high quality research funding.

Register your interest with us by filling in the form here

And don’t forget, your local branch of the NIHR RDS (Research Design Service) is based within the BU Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) on the 5th floor of Royal London House. Feel free to pop in and see us, call us on 61939 or send us an email.

Charity Research Showcase

BU research, Events, Featured, Knowledge Exchange, pre-award

The Charity Impact Showcase is an opportunity to find out more about the research being undertaken across Bournemouth University with charities and third sector agencies.

The showcase will take place on Monday the 13th of May and run from 10am until 12 noon in Kimmeridge House, Talbot Campus, room K101.

Academic staff and post-graduate researchers are openly invited to the event to discover the innovative research taking place at BU and to learn about how to develop their own research with the help of charities. Attendees will also have the opportunity to network with other researchers as well as national and international charities to spark the possible future research collaboration.

The event will host a wide array of research tables, each dressed and accompanied by research academics from a variety of faculties, including Media and Communications (FMC), Science and Technology (SciTech), Management (FM) and Health and Social Science (HSS).

Dr Fiona Cownie, from FMC, and Professor Lee-Ann Fenge, of HSS, will be facilitating the event while presenting their own research. Professor Fenge is excited about event’s possibility for research fusion with attending charities.

“Colleagues from across all faculties will be sharing their research and it is an opportunity to informally discuss their projects whilst exploring ways of developing research with some amazing and willing charities.”

Some examples of attending academics include Professor Edwin van Teijlingen (HSS) who will be discussing his research in Nepal highlighting charities he has worked with there. From FMC, Dr Anna Feigenbaum will showcase info-graphics and invite participants to engage with developed board-games which relate to her charity involved research. Also from FMC, Dr Joyce Costello will talk about her work with two charities and showcase her published book ‘Public Service Motivation and Civic Engagement’.

Though not able to attend, Professor Michael Silk has provided a new video and a fresh look into the daily reality for Brazilian sex workers who are affected by major sporting events. This video will be shown throughout the event. Professor Silk’s project, ‘Sexual Spaces’, has collaborated with multiple charities (as listed in the video credits below) and is an excellent example of research partnership leading to real world impact.

Project ‘Sexual Spaces’ – ‘O que você não vê/What you don’t see ‘ video credits

It is also encouraged that you to please invite academic staff and post-graduate researchers to the event. We hope to see you there.

If you have any queries about attending the event, or you would like to showcase your own research, please email Connor Tracy at ctracy@bournemouth.ac.uk

Update on Brexit preparations

EU, Funding opportunities, Post-award, pre-award

The UK Government has produced a number of technical notices and provided details of the governmental Departments responsible for specific sectors and EU programmes. This has been done as part of no-deal Brexit preparations.

A number of Departments have drafted documents detailing plans to support UK researchers, universities and businesses who benefit from EU funding schemes, if the UK leaves the EU without a deal. Where applicable, the notices also set out how the Underwrite Guarantee, and the Post-EU Exit Guarantee Extension will operate if there is no deal.

More details are available on the ‘The Government’s Guarantee for EU-funded Programmes if the UK Leaves the EU Without a Withdrawal Agreement (No Deal)’ website. Website provides links to individual technical notices related to such programmes as Horizon 2020, Erasmus+, European Social Fund, European Regional Development Fund, Creative Europe, Europe for Citizens and some others. These are in addition to a wide range of other technical notices and announcements for specific sectors, which are available on the GOV.UK website.

Several submission portals have been developed by the UK Government to collect data of EU-funded projects. For example, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) launched a portal to collect basic information from UK beneficiaries of on-going Horizon 2020/FP7 projects (the RDS have populated this on behalf of all awarded projects to BU); the UK Cabinet Office has set up a portal for recipients of funds under such programmes as Health for Growth, Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme, Erasmus+, Competitiveness of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, Europe for Citizens and Creative Europe; the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport has a dedicated portal for recipients of funds under Creative Europe and Europe for Citizens.

With regards to applying for new Horizon 2020 grants, in a no deal scenario the UK will automatically be assigned a third country status. With calls open to the third country participation, those will also be open to the UK applicants to participate and even coordinate collaborative projects. However, this may not be a case for European Research Council (ERC) and Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions (MSCA) applications – there are restrictions for third country participation in these actions, for example, as regards ERC grants, the PI has to be hosted by an institution in a Member State/Associated Country (MS/AC) and 50% of their total working time has to be spent in MS/AC.

If a no-deal scenario takes place shortly after a call deadline, the approach that the European Commission will follow regarding eligibility and evaluation of ERC and MSCA proposals is currently unknown. The Government and involved institutions are aware of potential issues that could arise and are working closely in seeking a solution.

BU academics having concerns regarding their research funding after Brexit or questions before applying for a new EU grant are welcome to contact Ainar Blaudums, International Research Facilitator, Research Development & Support directly, or ask your Research Facilitator/Funding Development Officer for advice.

Update on Horizon Europe and Brexit

EU, Funding opportunities, pre-award

Horizon Europe

 According to the Research Professional, Governments in the Council of the EU reached an agreement on the specific programme for Horizon Europe on 15 April. Agreement describes the rules for the structure of new instruments such as the European Innovation Council, areas for R&D missions and the process of “strategic planning” that will produce detailed work programmes for allocating funding.

Much of the content of the specific programme had already been covered by the more overarching partial political agreement on Horizon Europe reached between the Commission, Council and Parliament in March. However, some areas remain to be decided, in particular those setting out the budget for Horizon Europe and the rules of association for non-EU countries.

Brexit

According to the information available on UKRO portal, the UK and the EU have agreed to extend Article 50 until 31 October 2019. During the extension, the UK is an EU Member State, and UK organisations can continue to participate in and submit bids to Horizon 2020 on a Member State basis. This includes requesting the relevant part of the project’s budget as an EU contribution.

If an agreement between the UK and the EU is reached, projects approved during this period will be able to continue with an uninterrupted flow of EU funding. In no-deal scenario, the UK Government has committed to underwrite competitive UK bids to the EU funding submitted before exit, even if they are notified of their success after leaving the EU.

The government is seeking discussions with the European Commission to agree the details of our continued participation in Horizon 2020 as a third country after the exit. BU has informed the UK Government and provided basic data about all on-going Horizon 2020 projects. This will support the continuity of funding flow in case the UK Government’s underwrite mechanism should be implemented.

Please send your questions and other queries related to BU participation in the EU funded grant applications over to Research Development and Support.

 

NIHR RDS Residential Research Retreat – 26-28 November 2019

Events, Funding opportunities, NHS, pre-award

Do you have a great idea for a research project?

Are you planning to apply for research funding?

Do you need a dedicated period of quality time with support to develop your research project?

Dillington House, Somerset. 26 – 28 November 2019.

Applications open on 20 May 2019

The Residential Research Retreat provides protected time with expert coaching and support for you to develop your research proposal to the standard required to be competitive in seeking high quality research funding.

Register your interest with us by filling in the form here

And don’t forget, your local branch of the NIHR RDS (Research Design Service) is based within the BU Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) on the 5th floor of Royal London House. Feel free to pop in and see us, call us on 61939 or send us an email.

2019 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Individual Fellowships call opens

EU, Funding opportunities, pre-award

The 2019 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Individual Fellowships (MSCA IF) call is now open. The call documents, including the Guide for Applicants, are available on the Funding and Tenders Opportunities Portal (formerly ECAS). The call deadline is 11 September 2019, 4 PM UK time. Individual Fellowships are aimed at individual researchers who possess doctoral degree or equivalent research experience; scheme involves international and intersectoral mobility.

There are MSCA IF bid writing support activities planned within the BU – more details will follow in due course. Please get in touch with International Research Facilitator Ainar Blaudums or any other member of Research and Development Support staff supporting your faculty. We would appreciate early expression of interest to help us in providing more focussed and efficient support.

The indicative call budget in 2019 is €294.49 million (compared to €273 million in the 2018 call) and it is distributed as follows:

  • €50 million is reserved for the Global Fellowships, and is distributed between the scientific areas based on the number of eligible proposals received in each of these areas.
  • €236.49 million is reserved for the European Fellowships, and is distributed between its panels (except for the Society and Enterprise panel) based on the number of eligible proposals received by each one. During the budget distribution, the Career Restart (CAR) panel will have a weighting of 2 times the weighting of the eligible proposals in the other panels. For the Reintegration Panel (RI) the weighting will be 1.5 times higher.
  • €8 million is reserved for the Society and Enterprise panel of the European Fellowships.

The general Individual Fellowship rules remain unchanged in comparison to previous calls. Applicants are reminded that there is now the option for part-time working arrangements on Individual Fellowships for professional reasons (starting a company, pursuing other funded projects or advanced study). However, that should only be requested at the implementation stage.

This article has been prepared based on information received from UK Research Office (UKRO). UKRO, in its capacity as UK National Contact Point for the MSCA, will be holding information sessions on the 2019 Individual Fellowships call. Participation is free of charge, but registration will be mandatory. We will share further information when the dates and locations are confirmed.