Using the new UKRI Funding Service for applicants

The UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Funding Service is being developed with applicants and other users’ needs at the heart of its design.

To continuously improve the service, it is being built iteratively, with new functionality and updates regularly released. During this phase, the new Funding Service will run in parallel to UKRI’s current online system for managing funding, the Joint Electronic Submission (Je-S) system.

In 2023, grant applications to research councils will start to be made via the new Funding Service rather than the Je-S system. This is part of the Simpler and Better Funding (SBF) programme’s work to develop a single, consistent user-centred funding service.

From January 2024, council opportunities will be launched and managed in the Funding Service.

Reducing research bureaucracy

We are contributing to UKRI’s work to reduce research bureaucracy. This work includes reducing the level of variation between opportunities and councils, to increase standardisation, and ensure requirements are simple and consistent. As such, our development is part of UKRI’s work to address the recommendations of the independent review of research bureaucracy, led by Professor Adam Tickell.

Find out more about how we are standardising questions and assessment criteria in the ‘Harmonising responsive mode application questions and assessment criteria’ section.

Find funding opportunities in 1 place

You can find all UKRI funding opportunities on our funding finder.

You can sort and filter funding opportunities from across UKRI, research councils and Innovate UK. Each opportunity is tagged to 1 or more council.

The listing for each opportunity contains all the information you need to apply. This includes:

eligibility criteria
application guidance
how your application will be assessed
a timeline for the opportunity

When you are ready to apply, the ‘Start application’ button will take you to the online application form.

Apply using the new Funding Service

The new Funding Service is designed to be simpler and more intuitive to use. It will provide consistent information requirements and assessment criteria, making it simpler for applicants and assessors.

Guidance on the application process will be supplied within the service, reducing the need to look for additional information in multiple places.

While we develop the new Funding Service, UKRI will continue to operate the existing system (Je-S), for application and award management. When applying for an opportunity on the UKRI funding finder, you will be taken directly to the correct application system.

Over time, opportunities will be transitioned to the new service.

Creating your Funding Service applicant account

If you have not used the Funding Service before, the first step is to create an account. The process is straightforward and quick, so you can get started on your application as soon as possible.

Before you can submit your application, we ask you to provide equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) information. You will only be asked to do this once when you first apply on the new service, but you can manage this information at any time. There is guidance provided for each EDI question.

The answers you provide are only used for monitoring purposes. The data helps us analyse participation in research funding activities accurately and ensure people are treated fairly.

Keeping up to date with your application status

Through the new Funding Service you will be able to monitor the progress of your application from submission to outcome. You will also be able to see each application, including funding opportunities on which you are a co-applicant.

We are also making research application processes more transparent and consistent. As part of this, we will introduce standardised assessment criteria and improved reviewer guidance.

Harmonising responsive mode application questions and assessment criteria

Funding the best ideas and people are at the heart of what we do, and we want to make applying for that funding simpler and better for researchers. Therefore, we are streamlining the application process across councils by, for example, simplifying and standardising the questions we ask researchers to explain their ideas.

We have developed these from question sets and assessment criteria previously used in opportunities across UKRI. When you use the new Funding Service, you will recognise many similarities in these new questions to those currently used by councils.

The first type of opportunity to reflect these changes will be councils’ standard responsive mode grant opportunities.

Further information about responsive mode will be announced in advance of changes being made to these schemes.

We are always interested in your feedback. Please send your comments on any of the new changes to support@funding-service.ukri.org

Core responsive mode (standard research) sections and application questions

Developing a core question set for standard research in responsive mode

The new Funding Service will use a more intuitive digital question and answer format, making it easier for you to explain your idea, and easier for assessors to review it. Central to this format is the ‘core question set’, which is a set of questions intended to be generic enough to apply to all councils and nearly all funding opportunity types.

The question set reflects the basic criteria against which the applications will be assessed. Applicants may also be asked to answer additional questions to provide supporting information, such as the make-up of the team, resources or references, where these are relevant.

To help you during the transition to the new Funding Service, councils may append specific guidance relevant to your area or field. Here we provide some information about areas of assessment and their corresponding questions.

Overview of areas for assessment

1. The vision of the project

What are you hoping to achieve with your proposed work?

2. The approach to the project

How are you going to deliver your proposed work?

3. The capability of the applicant or applicants and the project team to deliver the project

Why are you the right individual or team to successfully deliver the proposed work?

This will follow the Resume for Research and Innovation (R4RI) type format. R4RI is a flexible narrative CV template already being used across many funding opportunities that require track record information.

4. The ethical and responsible research and innovation (RRI) considerations of the project

What are the ethical or RRI implications and issues relating to the proposed work?

If you do not think that the proposed work raises any ethical or RRI issues, explain why.

Some council opportunities will have additional opportunity-specific questions that align with their disciplinary specific requirements. All assessment criteria will be published on the funding finder.

Support from your research office

Many research offices will have at least 1 member of staff with a Funding Service account with administrator status. If your organisation has a research office, the system will notify them when you create an application.

Your research office will be able to view your application while it is being created and can support you as you complete it.

Once your application is ready, you will send it to your organisation’s research office for final checking. They will then submit the application to UKRI.

If an application is started by someone from an organisation that doesn’t have a research officer with a Funding Service account, we will contact the relevant research office to set one up. If your organisation does not have a research office, you will be able to submit the application yourself.

Contact details

Contact the helpdesk for information and support using the new Funding Service.

Email: support@funding-service.ukri.org

Telephone: 01793 547490

Last updated: 9 February 2023