Funding opportunity

Funding opportunity: Strategic infrastructure for engineering and physical sciences: June 2024

Apply for funding to purchase strategic infrastructure including equipment, resources or both. The funding seeks to improve UK scientific capability and enable cutting-edge research of high priority to Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).

This funding opportunity is for invited applicants only.

You must be based at a UK research organisation eligible for EPSRC funding.

This funding is for either:

  • purchase and set-up of equipment
  • resources to support existing equipment

The cost of the equipment requested, including VAT, must be at least £400,000.

The resources only applications must have a maximum duration of two years.

Who can apply

You can only apply for this funding opportunity if we have invited you to do so following a successful outline application.

Before applying for funding, check the Eligibility of your organisation.

EPSRC standard eligibility rules apply. For full details, visit EPSRC’s eligibility page.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has introduced new role types for funding opportunities being run on the new UKRI Funding Service.

For full details, visit Eligibility as an individual.

International applicants

The UKRI-RCN Money Follows Cooperation Agreement does not apply to this funding opportunity. As such grants submitted to this funding opportunity cannot include a Norway-based international co-project lead.

Resubmissions

We will not accept uninvited resubmissions of projects that have been submitted to UKRI or any other funder.

Find out more about EPSRC’s resubmissions policy.

Equality, diversity and inclusion

We are committed to achieving equality of opportunity for all funding applicants. We encourage applications from a diverse range of researchers.

We support people to work in a way that suits their personal circumstances. This includes:

  • career breaks
  • support for people with caring responsibilities
  • flexible working
  • alternative working patterns

Find out more about equality, diversity and inclusion at UKRI.

What we're looking for

Scope

Strategic infrastructure is intended to enhance UK scientific capability and support cutting-edge research of high priority to EPSRC. The request should fit within the host institution strategy and enable research that predominantly falls within EPSRC’s remit.

Strategic infrastructure opportunity provides two funding routes:

  • route one: purchase and set-up of strategic infrastructure
  • route two: resources to support existing strategic infrastructure

These two funding routes have different scopes, but the application and assessment processes are via the same opportunity.

Route one: strategic infrastructure

Strategic infrastructure includes a wide range of capital infrastructure and justified non-capital costs. Examples include, but are not limited to:

  • equipment enabling technology that increases novel research capability; for example, capital infrastructure enabling transformative research of high importance to EPSRC and the UK, or capital infrastructure empowering the UK to become world leading as a result of the enabled research
  • equipment enabling research through increased capacity; for example, high-specification capital infrastructure that enables faster, higher resolution or more cost-effective results
  • non-capital costs where there is a clear requirement and should only be used to support the capital infrastructure requested

All strategic infrastructure requests should include:

  • justified cost
  • appropriate use
  • appropriate strategy

Please note, you will need EPSRC’s approval for application if your request is over £3,000,000.

Find more details on the scope of the strategic infrastructure funding opportunity.

Route two: resources to support existing strategic infrastructure

This funding route is only for invited applicants where strategic needs are identified. You must be invited by the relevant EPSRC theme lead to submit an application.

Resources to support existing strategic infrastructure is intended to maximise usage of existing equipment that has already been procured, delivered and installed. This funding opportunity supports improved access and approaches to enable a better sharing of existing capital infrastructure. We expect that funding will provide seed or invest-to-save funding to initiate increased use and sustainability of the existing infrastructure.

The existing infrastructure may have been funded by EPSRC or other sources. The research enabled by the infrastructure must be within the EPSRC remit.

We do not expect that you will need more funding through this funding opportunity after the first application. You must articulate clear plans for sustainability in your application. We will not accept further applications to support sharing of the same item or items of capital infrastructure.

Find more details on the scope of the resources to support existing strategic infrastructure funding opportunity.

Duration

Route one: strategic infrastructure

The duration of the award must reflect that this is an infrastructure grant and not a research grant, and should cover the procurement, delivery, installation and set-up of equipment.

If it is appropriate, the length of the funding can include:

  • the development of methods, protocols and access models
  • a small amount of time for pump-priming projects to maximise usage of the infrastructure

The duration should not include time for research projects.

Route two: resources to support existing strategic infrastructure

Resources to support existing strategic infrastructure applications should be for a maximum duration of two years, unless agreed otherwise with EPSRC.

What we will fund

Route one: strategic infrastructure

Strategic infrastructure includes both capital and digital infrastructure:

  • capital infrastructure includes capital equipment
  • digital infrastructure includes central processing units and computing hardware

Funding is available for items of infrastructure over £400,000, including VAT.

The £400,000 minimum threshold can be met by a single item of equipment or by several items that are clearly intended to be combined in a single asset. The threshold cannot be met by the accumulated total of a number of individual items of standalone equipment.

You can also request items of equipment under £400,000 that are essential to the running of the larger equipment.

You can request funding for up to 100% full economic cost (FEC) of the equipment. However, contributions from the host organisation forms part of the assessment criteria and would be expected to be in line with the scale of the proposal. The host institution should demonstrate the strategic importance and commitment to the proposed infrastructure.

Contributions do not have to be direct contributions to the cost of the equipment and can be towards non-capital costs. Further information on university contributions is available at the EPSRC strategic infrastructure web page.

Non-capital costs can be included where there is a clear requirement and should only be used to support the equipment requested. These will be funded at 80% FEC.

Eligible non-capital costs include:

  • staff time, including:
    • investigator time: this should be associated with the management of the equipment or promotion of the equipment to maximise its usage
    • research technical professionals time: as well as time associated with the management and promotion of the equipment, you should consider the professional development and sustainability of any technical staff associated with the equipment
  • impact-related activities, including:
    • travel costs to support engagement with existing partners
    • engagement activities: for example, workshops, seminars, networking events, exhibitions, meetings or people exchange to develop new partnerships. Engagement with expert staff can also be included, for example, knowledge exchange professionals, consultants, business planning support, commercialisation professionals or research software engineers
    • training for researchers, for example, public engagement, entrepreneurship or media
    • development or design input, for example, proof of concept, prototype or demonstrators
    • marketing design, video, web content
    • sharing of novel tools and techniques, For example where these could be applied in other disciplines
    • data management, for example, sharing of datasets

Quotes for equipment do not need to be included in your application, but please retain quotes for equipment costing more than £138,000 as we may ask for these at post-panel stage before releasing funds.

Read more about EPSRC’s approach to equipment funding.

Route two: resources to support existing strategic infrastructure

Funding via this route should provide additional underpinning infrastructure or staff support that improves the current use of infrastructure, or both. You will be required to demonstrate the added value of the funds for increasing equipment utilisation, and the strategic demand for this.

Examples of resources that you can request include, but are not limited to:

  • pump-priming funds
  • provision of training or research services, or both, not previously available through:
    • additional roles
    • increased technician time. For example, if a technician is currently allocated 20% time to the equipment and you wish to increase this to 100%, you should request 80% of their time
  • additional investigator or staff time associated with the running of the existing equipment or provision of general support for equipment users, including training where there is a clear requirement
  • improved booking software
  • improved advertisement of capabilities
  • impact related activities listed in the ‘Strategic infrastructure’ section

All non-capital costs will be funded at 80% FEC.

For both strategic infrastructure and resources to support existing strategic infrastructure routes, the overall cost of the proposed infrastructure should not change by more than 10% in either direction compared to the outline stage. If you believe that the total cost will increase by more than 10%, contact EPSRC as soon as possible at epsrcequipmentfunding@epsrc.ukri.org

What we will not fund

Route one: strategic infrastructure will not fund:

  • costs associated with the support of individual research projects: for example, project lead time for research and project specific consumables are not an allowable cost on this funding opportunity. It would be for the university to consider how best to cover research project consumables through usage and charging arrangements
  • laboratory refurbishment, modifications or redevelopment to install equipment: these costs are considered a host institution contribution and would be considered out of scope unless in exceptional circumstances. The exceptional cases would require discussion with EPSRC
  • underpinning equipment that we would expect to see in a well-found lab
  • software, research software development or cloud computing credits

You should submit any application focused on creating novel instruments or performing modifications to an existing instrument through standard mode as instrument development.

Route two: resources to support existing strategic infrastructure will not fund:

  • capital costs: for example, items of equipment over £10,000. Individual items with a value less than £10,000 are not considered to be equipment
  • long-term research projects: for example, we do not expect to see postdoctoral researcher effort requested as part of an application. Costs for individual research projects are only eligible when these are short-term seed projects to support new users. These costs should have been proposed at the outline stage
  • replacement of existing support, maintenance, service contracts, or capital costs: for example, current staff costs for time assigned to the equipment are not eligible. It is expected that awards will provide seed funding to initiate increased use

Supporting skills and talent

We encourage you to follow the principles of the Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers and the Technician Commitment.

Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I)

UKRI is committed in ensuring that effective international collaboration in research and innovation takes place with integrity and within strong ethical frameworks. Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I) is a UKRI work programme designed to help protect all those working in our thriving and collaborative international sector by enabling partnerships to be as open as possible, and as secure as necessary. Our TR&I Principles set out UKRI’s expectations of organisations funded by UKRI in relation to due diligence for international collaboration.

As such, applicants for UKRI funding may be asked to demonstrate how their proposed projects will comply with our approach and expectation towards TR&I, identifying potential risks and the relevant controls you will put in place to help proportionately reduce these risks.

See further guidance and information about TR&I, including where you can find additional support.

How to apply

We are running this funding opportunity on the new UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Funding Service. You cannot apply on the Joint Electronic Submissions (Je-S) system.

Applicants who are invited to apply to the funding opportunity will receive an application link when the funding opportunity opens.

The project lead is responsible for completing the application process on the Funding Service, but we expect all team members and project partners to contribute to the application.

Only the lead research organisation can submit an application to UKRI.

To apply

You can only apply for this funding opportunity if you receive an invitation from EPSRC. The start application link will be provided to you via email.

  1. Confirm you are the project lead.
  2. Sign in or create a Funding Service account. To create an account, select your organisation, verify your email address, and set a password. If your organisation is not listed, email support@funding-service.ukri.org
    Please allow at least 10 working days for your organisation to be added to the Funding Service.
  3. Answer questions directly in the text boxes. You can save your answers and come back to complete them or work offline and return to copy and paste your answers. If we need you to upload a document, follow the upload instructions in the Funding Service. All questions and assessment criteria are listed in the How to apply section on this Funding finder page.
  4. Allow enough time to check your application in ‘read-only’ view before sending to your research office.
  5. Send the completed application to your research office for checking. They will return it to you if it needs editing.
  6. Your research office will submit the completed and checked application to UKRI.

Where indicated, you can also demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. You should:

  • use images sparingly and only to convey important information that cannot easily be put into words
  • insert each new image onto a new line
  • provide a descriptive legend for each image immediately underneath it (this counts towards your word limit)
  • ensure files are smaller than 5MB and in JPEG, JPG, JPE, JFI, JIF, JFIF, PNG, GIF, BMP or WEBP format

Watch our research office webinars about the new Funding Service.

For more guidance on the Funding Service, see:

References

Applications should be self-contained, and hyperlinks should only be used to provide links directly to reference information. To ensure the information’s integrity is maintained, where possible, persistent identifiers such as digital object identifiers should be used. Assessors are not required to access links to carry out assessment or recommend a funding decision. You should use your discretion when including references and prioritise those most pertinent to the application.

References should be included in the appropriate question section of the application and be easily identifiable by the assessors for example (Smith, Research Paper, 2019).

You must not include links to web resources to extend your application.

Deadline

EPSRC must receive your application by 4:00pm UK time on 20 August 2024.

You will not be able to apply after this time.

Make sure you are aware of and follow any internal institutional deadlines.

Following the submission of your application to the funding opportunity, your application cannot be changed, and applications will not be returned for amendment. If your application does not follow the guidance, it may be rejected. If an application is withdrawn prior to peer review or office rejected due to substantive errors in the application, it cannot be resubmitted to the opportunity.

Personal data

Processing personal data

EPSRC, as part of UKRI, will need to collect some personal information to manage your Funding Service account and the registration of your funding applications.

We will handle personal data in line with UK data protection legislation and manage it securely. For more information, including how to exercise your rights, read our privacy notice.

Publication of outcomes

EPSRC, as part of UKRI, will publish the outcomes of this funding opportunity at Grants on the Web.

If your application is successful, we will publish some personal information on the UKRI Gateway to Research.

Summary

Word limit: 550

In plain English, provide a summary we can use to identify the most suitable experts to assess your application.

We usually make this summary publicly available on external-facing websites, therefore do not include any confidential or sensitive information. Make it suitable for a variety of readers, for example:

  • opinion-formers
  • policymakers
  • the public
  • the wider research community

Guidance for writing a summary

Clearly describe your proposed work in terms of:

  • context
  • the challenge the infrastructure addresses
  • aims and objectives
  • potential applications and benefits

Core team

List the key members of your team and assign them roles from the following:

  • project lead (PL)
  • project co-lead (UK) (PcL)
  • researcher co-lead (RcL)
  • specialist
  • grant manager
  • professional enabling staff
  • research and innovation associate
  • technician
  • visiting researcher

Postdoctoral research assistants should be included on the grant as research and innovation associate.

A research technical professional can be listed as a project lead or project co-lead (UK), provided that:

  • their appointment is resourced from the central funds of their institution at the time of application
  • their level of responsibilities and duties is appropriate to a person with substantial research experience
  • their contract extends beyond the duration of the project

Please do not add industry project partners in this category, as these should be added in the ’Project partners’ section instead.

Find out more about UKRI’s core team roles in funding applications.

Application questions

Purpose: strategic infrastructure funding route

Word limit: 825

Why is this infrastructure needed and why should EPSRC support it?

Use this section if you are applying for the strategic infrastructure funding route.

Enter ‘N/A’ in the text box and do not upload an attachment for this section if you are applying for the resources to support existing strategic infrastructure funding route, then move onto the next section.

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Explain how the infrastructure sought will:

  • meet national needs by establishing or maintaining a unique or world leading activity, or both
  • enhance and complement the existing regional or national research capability
  • evidence the strong demand and community need from a diverse and inclusive user base
  • meet the strategic aims of the funding organisation

Describe alternative plans for how the research would be achieved should the equipment not be funded. The plans should reflect:

  • host organisation strategies for this infrastructure
  • institutional commitment to the infrastructure landscape
  • how the infrastructure sought is different from what is already available in the wider research landscape

You should input your response to this section in the text box.

Within this section you also have the option to create a single document that includes support letters or emails from organisations that have shown a clear intention to use the infrastructure. This document should only include letters that are highly selective and demonstrating significant support.

Applicants are advised to only include letters from a cross-section of key users, rather than from every user. These may represent different universities within or outside any regional alliance or may indicate relevance to key collaborators within industrial sectors. Only one letter is permitted per organisation.

Each letter or email you provide should clearly explain the value, relevance and possible benefits of the work to users.

Please do not include letters of support from project partners in this section. We have a separate section for ‘Project partners: letters or emails of support’.

For the file name, use the unique Funding Service number the system gives you when you create an application, followed by the words ‘Purpose letters of support from key users’.

Save this document as a single PDF file, no bigger than 8MB. Unless specifically requested, please do not include any sensitive data within the attachment.

If the attachment does not meet these requirements, the application will be rejected.

References may be included within this section.

The Funding Service will provide document upload details when you apply.

Purpose: resources to support existing strategic infrastructure funding route

Word limit: 825

Why is this resource needed and why should EPSRC support it?

Use this section if you are applying for the resources to support existing strategic infrastructure funding route.

Enter ‘N/A’ in the text box and do not upload an attachment for this section if you are applying for the strategic infrastructure funding route, then move onto the next section.

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Explain how the resource sought will:

  • meet national needs by establishing or maintaining a unique or world leading activity, or both
  • enhance and complement the existing regional or national research capability
  • evidence the strong demand and community need from a diverse and inclusive user base
  • meet the strategic aims of the funding organisation
  • result in significant efficiencies, increased usage or greater capacity, or both, compared to the current situation

Describe alternative plans for how the research would be achieved should the request not be funded. The plans should reflect:

  • host organisation strategies for the infrastructure
  • institutional commitment to the infrastructure landscape

You should input your response to this section in the text box.

References may be included within this section.

Vision

Word limit: 1,650

What research will be enabled by this infrastructure?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Explain how the infrastructure sought will enable research that:

  • is high quality, novel and transformative
  • is timely, given current trends and context
  • is relevant to identified stakeholders, including users
  • will have a measurable impact beyond the immediate team, with an appropriate approach to achieving impact

You should input your response to this section in the text box.

References may be included within this section.

Approach

Word limit: 1,650

What are your plans to manage the proposed infrastructure?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Explain how your approach includes:

  • a credible work plan including milestones, deliverables and associated risks in the form of a Gantt chart or similar
  • a credible management plan including prioritising access to and maximising usage of the infrastructure. This should include any application and assessment processes and an estimate for the balance of users from the host institution, academics from external institutions and industrial users
  • an accessibility plan to demonstrate how you will consider and demonstrate your pathway to ensuring and improving accessibility of this infrastructure and its user diversity during and beyond the duration of this grant. This plan should include, but is not limited to:
    • how you will establish, monitor progress, maintain and report on user accessibility throughout the lifetime of the grant, for example through mechanisms such as Equality Impact Assessments, User Accessibility Surveys and Codes of Conduct, as well as acting as role models for the community on good practice
    • how you will establish, retain, and evolve a diverse and inclusive user base throughout the lifetime of the infrastructure
    • your approach to team inclusion, including how you will establish and maintain a universally accessible and inclusive environment where everyone can thrive and all voices in the team are valued, regardless of personal circumstances

Within the accessibility plan we would expect the inclusion of examples of the types of activities the applicant team would undertake, we expect these will evolve during the lifetime of the infrastructure.

An accessibility plan background and a questions and answers document from the February 2024 community webinar are available under the ‘Additional information’ section.

You should input your response to this section in the text box. Your response should include:

  • up to 500 words for project work plan, including milestones, deliverables and associated risks in the form of a Gantt chart or similar
  • up to 500 words for a detailed management plan including user prioritisation mechanisms
  • up to 500 words for a detailed accessibility plan for user base and team inclusion

References may be included within this section.

Sustainability

Word limit: 825

What are your plans for sustainability of the proposed infrastructure beyond the end of this funding?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Explain how your plans for sustainability include:

  • an appropriate cost recovery model
  • a plan for training and development of specialist technical staff
  • steps to enhance the environmental sustainability of the proposed infrastructure
  • a plan for the development or expansion of the user base after the initial period of funding

You should input your response to this section in the text box.

References may be included within this section.

Applicant and team capability to deliver

Word limit: 1,650

Why are you the right individual, team and place to procure and manage this infrastructure?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Evidence of how you, and if relevant your team, have:

  • the relevant experience (appropriate to career stage) to deliver the proposed work
  • the right balance of skills and expertise to cover the proposed work
  • the appropriate leadership and management skills to deliver the work and your approach to develop others
  • contributed to developing a positive research environment and wider community

You may demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. Further details are provided in the Funding Service.

The word count for this section is 1,650 words; 1,150 words to be used for R4RI modules (including references) and, if necessary, a further 500 words for Additions.

Use the Résumé for Research and Innovation (R4RI) format to showcase the range of relevant skills you and, if relevant, your team (project and project co-leads, researchers, technicians, specialists, partners and so on) have and how this will help deliver the proposed work. You can include individuals’ specific achievements but only choose past contributions that best evidence their ability to deliver this work.

Complete this section using the R4RI module headings listed. Use each heading once and include a response for the whole team, see the UKRI guidance on R4RI. You should consider how to balance your answer, and emphasise where appropriate the key skills each team member brings:

  • contributions to the generation of new ideas, tools, methodologies, or knowledge
  • the development of others and maintenance of effective working relationships
  • contributions to the wider research and innovation community
  • contributions to broader research or innovation users and audiences and towards wider societal benefit
Additions

Provide any further details relevant to your application. This section is optional and can be up to 500 words. You should not use it to describe additional skills, experiences, or outputs, but you can use it to describe any factors that provide context for the rest of your R4RI (for example, details of career breaks if you wish to disclose them).

Complete this as a narrative. Do not format it like a CV.

References may be included within this section.

UKRI has introduced new role types for funding opportunities being run on the new Funding Service. For full details, see Eligibility as an individual.

Resources and cost justification

Word limit: 1,500

What will you need to procure and manage the proposed infrastructure and how much will it cost?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Justify the application’s more costly resources, in particular:

  • the cost of the proposed infrastructure
  • any resources (for example staff or maintenance costs) associated with the infrastructure
  • any resources requested for activities to expand the user base, increase impact, for public engagement or to support responsible innovation
  • the nature and level of contributions from your partner organisations if applicable

Assessors are not looking for detailed costs or a line-by-line breakdown of all project resources. Overall, they want you to demonstrate how the resources you anticipate needing for your proposed work:

  • are comprehensive, appropriate, and justified
  • represent the optimal use of resources to achieve the intended outcomes
  • maximise potential outcomes and impacts

Note that due to limited functionality on the new Funding Service, you can only select the infrastructure requested at either 80% or 100% full economic cost (FEC) in the automated resource and cost form at this round of the application. For any percentages requested not at 80% or 100% FEC, you should input 100% FEC equipment costs under ‘Exceptions’ and ensure to explain in the text box the percentage FEC and value requested from EPSRC and contributed from elsewhere.

Within the ‘Resources and cost justification’ section we also expect you to provide a short summary of quotations from at least three suppliers for all items of equipment costing more than £25,000. If there are only one or two suppliers for any piece of equipment, state this and explain why.

Your organisation’s support

Word limit: 1,100

Provide details of support from your host institution.

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Provide a Statement of Support from your host institution detailing why the proposed infrastructure is needed. This should include details of any host institution contributions that will be provided to support the infrastructure and any support that might add value to the work.

The assessors will be looking for a strong statement of commitment from your host institution on:

  • how its contributions are in line with the scale of the proposed infrastructure, including evidencing the strategic importance of this infrastructure to the institution
  • why your host institution is the most appropriate place for the proposed infrastructure
  • how your host institution will use its existing inventory to best complement the proposed infrastructure
  • how your host institution will support the team to meet the proposal objectives
  • the plans to support sustainability and management of the proposed infrastructure

Applicants are encouraged to discuss this section with both the research offices and senior management team prior to submitting applications.

EPSRC recognises that in some instances, this information may be provided by the Research Office, the Technology Transfer Office (TTO) or equivalent, or a combination of both.

You must also include the following details:

  • a significant person’s name and their position, from the TTO or Research Office, or both
  • office address or web link

References may be included within this section.

Upload details are provided within the service on the actual application.

Project partners

Add details about any project partners’ contributions. If there are no project partners, you can indicate this on the Funding Service.

A project partner is a collaborating organisation who will have an integral role in the proposed research. This may include direct (cash) or indirect (in-kind) contributions such as expertise, staff time or use of facilities.

Add the following project partner details:

  • the organisation name and address (searchable via a drop-down list or enter the organisation’s details manually, as applicable)
  • the project partner contact name and email address
  • the type of contribution (direct or in-direct) and its monetary value

If a detail is entered incorrectly and you have saved the entry, remove the specific project partner record and re-add it with the correct information.

For audit purposes, UKRI requires formal collaboration agreements to be put in place if an award is made.

Project partners: letters (or emails) of support

Word limit 10

Upload a single PDF containing the letters or emails of support from each partner you named in the Project partners section. These should be uploaded in English or Welsh only.

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Enter the words ‘attachment supplied’ in the text box, or if you do not have any project partners enter ‘N/A’. Each letter or email you provide should:

  • confirm the partner’s commitment to the project
  • clearly explain the value, relevance, and possible benefits of the work to them
  • describe any additional value that they bring to the project

The Funding Service will provide document upload details when you apply. If you do not have any project partners, you will be able to indicate this in the Funding Service.

Ensure you have prior agreement from project partners so that, if you are offered funding, they will support your project as indicated in the contributions template.

For audit purposes, UKRI requires formal collaboration agreements to be put in place if an award is made.

Do not provide letters of support from host and project co-leads’ research organisations.

Facilities

Word limit: 250

Does your proposed research require the support and use of a facility?

If not, enter ‘N/A’ into the text box, mark this section as complete and move on to the next section.

What the assessors are looking for in your response

If you will need to use a facility, follow your proposed facility’s normal access request procedures. Ensure you have prior agreement so that if you are offered funding, they will support the use of their facility on your project.

For each requested facility you will need to provide the:

  • name of facility, copied and pasted from the facility information list (DOCX, 35KB)
  • proposed usage or costs, or costs per unit where indicated on the facility information list
  • confirmation you have their agreement where required

Facilities should only be named if they are on the facility information list above. If you will not need to use a facility, you will be able to indicate this in the Funding Service.

Ethics and responsible research and innovation (RRI)

Word limit: 500

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.

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Demonstrate that you have identified and evaluated:

  • the relevant ethical or responsible research and innovation considerations
  • how you will manage these considerations

You may demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. Further details are provided in the service.

If you are collecting or using data, identify:

  • any legal and ethical considerations of collecting, releasing or storing the data including consent, confidentiality, anonymisation, security and other ethical considerations and, in particular, strategies to not preclude further reuse of data
  • formal information standards with which your study will comply

Additional sub-questions (to be answered only if appropriate) will be included in the Funding Service. These will ask about numbers, species/strain and justification about:

  • genetic and biological risk
  • research involving the use of animals
  • conducting research with animal overseas
  • research involving human participation
  • research involving human tissues or biological samples

Data management and sharing

Word limit: 250

How will you manage and share data collected or acquired through the proposed research?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Provide a data management plan that clearly details how you will comply with UKRI’s published data sharing policy, which includes detailed guidance notes.

How we will assess your application

Assessment process

We will assess your application using the following process.

Peer review

We will invite experts to review your application independently, against the specified criteria for this funding opportunity.

You will not be able to nominate reviewers for applications on the new UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Funding Service. Research councils will continue to select expert reviewers.

We are monitoring the requirement for applicant-nominated reviewers as we review policies and processes as part of the continued development of the new Funding Service.

Shortlisting

We will review the comments and scores for each application.

Applications that do not receive sufficiently strong support from reviewers will be rejected at this stage.

Shortlisted applications will go to a panel who will make a funding recommendation.

If your application is shortlisted, you will have 14 days to respond to reviewers’ comments.

Panel

For shortlisted applications, an expert interview panel will conduct interviews with applicants after which the panel will make a funding recommendation.

We expect interviews to be held around week commencing 25 November 2024. The exact date and time for your interview will be confirmed in advance.

Shortlisted proposals submitted under the resources to support existing strategic infrastructure route will either be invited to an interview panel or a prioritisation panel, depending on the size and scope of the proposal. You will be informed whether you are required to attend an interview when you are invited to submit a full proposal.

Resources to support existing strategic infrastructure proposals that are invited to interview will be assessed using the same process as strategic infrastructure proposals but on a separate funding list. Funding decisions for resource only strategic infrastructure proposals are independent of funding decisions for strategic infrastructure proposals.

The EPSRC research infrastructure theme will make the final funding decision based on interview panel funding recommendation and budget available.

Feedback

If your application was discussed at interview we will give feedback with the outcome of your application.

Principles of assessment

We support the San Francisco declaration on research assessment and recognise the relationship between research assessment and research integrity.

Find out about the UKRI principles of assessment and decision making.

We reserve the right to modify the assessment process as needed.

Assessment criteria

The criteria we will assess your application against are:

Purpose: strategic infrastructure funding route

This section only applies to the strategic infrastructure funding route. A separate ‘Purpose’ assessment criteria section is available for the resources to support existing strategic infrastructure funding route.

To what extent has the applicant demonstrated that the infrastructure sought will:

  • meet national needs by establishing or maintaining a unique or world leading activity, or both
  • enhance and complement the existing regional or national research capability
  • evidence the strong demand and community need from a diverse and inclusive user base
  • meet the strategic aims of the funding organisation

To what extent has the applicant described alternative plans for how the research would be achieved should the equipment not be funded? The plans should reflect:

  • host organisation strategies for this infrastructure
  • institutional commitment to the infrastructure landscape
  • how the infrastructure sought is different from what is already available in the wider research landscape

Purpose: resources to support existing strategic infrastructure funding route

This section only applies to the resources to support existing strategic infrastructure funding route. A separate ‘Purpose’ assessment criteria section is available for the strategic infrastructure funding route.

To what extent has the applicant demonstrated that a resource sought will:

  • meet national needs by establishing or maintaining a unique or world leading activity, or both
  • enhance and complement the existing regional or national research capability
  • evidence the strong demand and community need from a diverse and inclusive user base
  • meet the strategic aims of the funding organisation
  • result in significant efficiencies, increased usage or greater capacity, or both, compared to the current situation

To what extent has the applicant described alternative plans for how the research would be achieved should the resource not be funded? The plans should reflect:

  • host organisation strategies for the infrastructure
  • institutional commitment to the infrastructure landscape

Vision

To what extent has the applicant explained how the infrastructure sought will enable research that:

  • is high quality, novel and transformative
  • is timely, given current trends and context
  • is relevant to identified stakeholders, including users
  • will have a measurable impact beyond the immediate team, with an appropriate approach to achieving impact

Approach

To what extent has the applicant demonstrated that their approach includes:

  • a credible work plan including milestones, deliverables and associated risks in the form of a Gantt chart or similar
  • a credible management plan including prioritising access to and maximising usage of the infrastructure. This should include any application and assessment processes and an estimate for the balance of users from the host institution, academics from external institutions and industrial users
  • an accessibility plan to demonstrate how they will consider and demonstrate their pathway to ensuring and improving accessibility of this infrastructure and its user diversity during and beyond the duration of this grant. This plan should include, but is not limited to:
    • how the applicant will establish, monitor progress, maintain and report on user accessibility throughout the lifetime of the grant, for example through mechanisms such as Equality Impact Assessments, User Accessibility Surveys and Codes of Conduct, as well as acting as role models for the community on good practice
    • how the applicant will establish, retain, and evolve a diverse and inclusive user base throughout the lifetime of the infrastructure
    • the applicant’s approach to team inclusion, including how they will establish and maintain a universally accessible and inclusive environment where everyone can thrive and all voices in the team are valued, regardless of personal circumstances

Within the accessibility plan we would expect the inclusion of examples of the types of activities the applicant team would undertake, we expect these will evolve during the lifetime of the infrastructure.

Sustainability

To what extent has the applicant demonstrated that their plans for sustainability include:

  • an appropriate cost recovery model
  • a plan for training and development of specialist technical staff
  • steps to enhance the environmental sustainability of the proposed infrastructure
  • a plan for the development or expansion of the user base after the initial period of funding

Applicant and team capability to deliver

To what extent has the applicant, and if relevant their team, demonstrated they have:

  • the relevant experience (appropriate to career stage) to deliver the proposed work
  • the right balance of skills and expertise to cover the proposed work
  • the appropriate leadership and management skills to deliver the work and your approach to develop others
  • contributed to developing a positive research environment and wider community

Resources and cost justification

To what extent has the applicant justified the following:

  • the cost of the proposed infrastructure
  • any resources (for example staff or maintenance costs) associated with the infrastructure
  • any resources requested for activities to expand the user base, increase impact, for public engagement or to support responsible innovation
  • the nature and level of contributions from your partner organisations if applicable

For each of these, to what extent has the applicant demonstrated how the resources they anticipate needing:

  • are comprehensive, appropriate, and justified
  • represent the optimal use of resources to achieve the intended outcomes
  • maximise potential outcomes and impacts

Note that due to limited functionality on the new Funding Service, you can only select the infrastructure requested at either 80% or 100% full economic cost (FEC) in the automated resource and cost form at this round of the application. For any percentages requested not at 80% or 100% FEC, you should input 100% FEC equipment costs under ‘Exceptions’ and ensure to explain in the text box the percentage FEC and value requested from EPSRC and contributed from elsewhere.

Host organisation’s support

To what extent has the Statement of Support from the applicant’s host institution detailed why the proposed infrastructure is needed. This should include details of any host institution contributions that will be provided to support the infrastructure and any support that might add value to the work.

To what extent has the host institution support demonstrated:

  • how its contributions are in line with the scale of the proposed infrastructure, including evidencing the strategic importance of this infrastructure to the institution
  • why the host institution is the most appropriate place for the proposed infrastructure
  • how the host institution will use its existing inventory to best complement the proposed infrastructure
  • how the host institution will support the team to meet the proposal objectives
  • the plans to support sustainability and management of the proposed infrastructure

Find details of assessment questions and criteria under the ‘Application questions’ heading in the ‘How to apply’ section.

Contact details

Get help with your application

If you have a question and the answers aren’t provided on this page

Important note: The Helpdesk is committed to helping users of the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Funding Service as effectively and as quickly as possible. In order to manage cases at peak volume times, the Helpdesk will triage and prioritise those queries with an imminent opportunity deadline or a technical issue. Enquiries raised where information is available on the Funding Finder opportunity page and should be understood early in the application process (for example, regarding eligibility or content/remit of an opportunity) will not constitute a priority case and will be addressed as soon as possible.

Contact details

For help and advice on costings and writing your proposal please contact your research office in the first instance, allowing sufficient time for your organisation’s submission process.

For questions related to this specific funding opportunity please contact researchinfrastructure@epsrc.ukri.org

Any queries regarding the system or the submission of applications through the Funding Service should be directed to the helpdesk.

Email: support@funding-service.ukri.org
Phone: 01793 547490

Our phone lines are open:

  • Monday to Thursday 8:30am to 5:00pm
  • Friday 8:30am to 4:30pm

To help us process queries quicker, we request that users highlight the council and opportunity name in the subject title of their email query, include the application reference number, and refrain from contacting more than one mailbox at a time.

You can also find information on submitting an application.

Sensitive information

If you or a core team member need to tell us something you wish to remain confidential, please contact tfschangeepsrc@epsrc.ukri.org

Include in the subject line: [the funding opportunity title; sensitive information; your Funding Service application number].

Typical examples of confidential information include:

  • individual is unavailable until a certain date (for example due to parental leave)
  • declaration of interest
  • additional information about eligibility to apply that would not be appropriately shared in the ‘Applicant and team capability’ section
  • conflict of interest for UKRI to consider in reviewer or panel participant selection
  • the application is an invited resubmission

For information about how UKRI handles personal data, read UKRI’s privacy notice.

Additional info

Background

For more information about our portfolio and strategies, visit:

We wish to encourage a culture of equipment sharing where appropriate to maximise usage within the research group, across institutions or across the UK. As such, strategic infrastructure should account for the national picture, both in terms of equipment available and research being undertaken.

The £400,000 threshold for items of equipment that you can apply for does not imply any consequences for university procurement and tendering rules.

Accessibility plan background

EPSRC’s goal is to make the infrastructure we invest in as accessible as possible. For everyone to be able to engage and participate, with information and environments, whether they are a user or part of the team supporting the infrastructure. The accessibility plan is focused on your pathway to removing barriers and enabling accommodations or customisations that might be needed for people with a disability or other individual needs, for example people with caring responsibilities.

Grant Additional Condition

Grants will be subject to the standard UK Research and Innovation grant conditions. The following additional grant condition will be added to this funding opportunity:

We consider the equipment over £400,000 purchased under this grant to be part of your university’s EPSRC capital equipment portfolio. You are required to provide information regarding this equipment as part of your university’s annual equipment report to EPSRC.

Additional disability and accessibility adjustments

UKRI can offer disability and accessibility support for UKRI applicants and grant holders during the application and assessment process if required.

Webinar for potential applicants

We held a webinar for potential applicants and research offices on 12 June 2024. At the webinar, we provided information about the opportunity details and a chance to ask questions.

Watch the webinar on Zoom.
Passcode: W?1d4NRE

Webinar presentation slides (PDF, 1MB).
Webinar questions and answers (PDF, 141KB).

Research disruption due to COVID-19

We recognise that the COVID-19 pandemic has caused major interruptions and disruptions across our communities. We are committed to ensuring that individual applicants and their wider team, including partners and networks, are not penalised for any disruption to their career, such as:

  • breaks and delays
  • disruptive working patterns and conditions
  • the loss of ongoing work
  • role changes that may have been caused by the pandemic

Reviewers and panel members will be advised to consider the unequal impacts that COVID-19 related disruption might have had on the capability to deliver and career development of those individuals included in the application. They will be asked to consider the capability of the applicant and their wider team to deliver the research they are proposing.

Where disruptions have occurred, you can highlight this within your application if you wish, but there is no requirement to detail the specific circumstances that caused the disruption.

Supporting links

Presentation from the strategic infrastructure outline stage webinar held on 12 February 2024 (PDF, 1,305KB)

Questions and answers document from the strategic infrastructure outline stage held on 12 February 2024 (PDF, 161KB)

Equality Impact Assessment (PDF, 149KB)

Updates

  • 22 July 2024
    Under 'Additional info' in the 'Webinar for potential applicants' section, have updated the content with the webinar recording, slides and question and answer document.

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