The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is committed to managing all real, potential, or apparent conflicts of interest with integrity, impartiality, honesty and openness.
Dual roles (being a seconded member of staff at EPSRC and their role at their home institution), has many benefits. In order to manage potential conflicts we have robust policies and procedures are in place.
The following measures outline our approach for secondees into EPSRC, with some more specific approaches for executive secondees.
Measures for all secondments
All secondees should:
- comply with UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) conflicts of interest policy via an annual declaration of interests
- not use or communicate any confidential information relating to UKRI that they create, develop, receive, or obtain during their secondment period in their non-UKRI role
We will also ensure that minutes of meetings clearly record any declarations of interest and any actions taken to mitigate a conflict.
Executive Secondees Framework
Executive secondees will follow this framework when there is a discussion of topics in which they have an interest.
We follow frameworks set out by UKRI and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.
We want executive secondees to be able to take part in the development and implementation of our strategic objectives. As a guide we have defined three levels where executive secondees can contribute.
Level 1: high-level discussions
High-level discussions cover a broad and general perspective or overview of a topic. They are strategic and provide big-picture understanding. Our high-level discussions include:
- our strategy for working with business
- positioning of artificial intelligence (AI) in the UKRI spending review bid
- positioning of emerging technologies as a strategic theme
- our skills strategy
Mitigations
The mitigation for this level is sharing up to date declarations of interest. Extra mitigations are not put in place for this level of strategy development or implementation.
Level 2: thematic strategy
This level includes the strategy for thematic areas or missions for which interventions are made, for example interventions to support AI research and innovation.
We may use the expertise and experience of executive secondees when developing our thematic strategies, including work on business cases.
Mitigations
This level requires a selective approach to mitigating conflicts of interest. This means that we will not involve executive secondees in formal decision-making that benefits or could be perceived as benefiting:
- themselves
- their institutions
- other relevant organisation
- people connected to them (for example, collaborators, formal project partners, co-investigators or similar)
Level 3: funding delivery
This level covers the details and decisions related to funding opportunities, both during development and when awarding funds.
Mitigations
Work on funding delivery related to an executive secondees area or areas of expertise need strong mitigations. This can be a perceived or direct interest and includes the development and delivery of investment areas and the allocation of funding.
Mitigations in these circumstances will include separating the secondee from influencing and decision-making processes.
This does not prevent executive secondees from sense-checking the clarity of language in funding opportunity documents in their areas of expertise.
Wider considerations
Outside of their areas of expertise, other perceived or actual conflicts of interests (including, for example institutional conflicts) also need mitigations for executive secondees.
We will manage mitigations for conflicts of interest outside of secondees’ areas of expertise on a case-by-case basis.
Declaring conflicts of interest
This framework is used in discussions with executive secondees to identify perceived or actual conflicts of interest. It is also used to develop corresponding mitigations.
We register conflicts of interest in an annual declaration of interest statement for executive secondees.
For more information on how to declare conflicts of interest, executive secondees should refer to the conflicts of interest policy.
Applying for funding as an executive secondee
Applications from executive secondees for funding from EPSRC, as well as wider UKRI, are handled on a case-by-case basis. To aid this, executive secondees must declare applications for funding as soon as they can to:
- the EPSRC Chief Operating Officer
- the EPSRC Executive Chair Office
- the Head of Theme responsible for the funding opportunity
Last updated: 30 April 2024