Open Activities
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Feedback survey: NQCC SBRI testbed participants' welcome & networking event
Thank you for your participation in the NQCC SBRI testbed participants' welcome & networking event. To improve future events and assess the impact of this event, we would like your feedback. We will not collect any personal information through this survey, and the analysis of responses will be...
Closes 26 April 2024
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UKRI Future Leaders Fellowships 2024 Annual Conference – Feedback Survey
On behalf of the FLF (Future Leaders Fellowships) Team, we hope you enjoyed the conference. As a team we are always keen to build on the success of our last event and make improvements for the next conference, and your thoughts will help us to achieve this. We would be incredibly grateful if you...
Closes 26 April 2024
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Technologies of the Future - 2024 edition
Identifying the UK's important future technologies Thank you for taking the time to engage with our survey – on behalf of Innovate UK and UKRI we really appreciate and value your time and participation. Innovate UK in collaboration with our UKRI colleagues would like to draw on the...
Closes 28 April 2024
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UKRI Southeast Asia regional funding collaboration on infectious diseases EOI
Introduction UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is partnering with leading funders in Southeast Asia to support research focused on infectious diseases with epidemic or antimicrobial resistance (AMR) potential. The funding partners are: ARDA Thailand (Agricultural...
Closes 29 April 2024
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ESRC survey: Social science research skills
ESRC is embarking on a new approach to how it supports research skills training and capacity building. We are undertaking a phase of community engagement to help shape this, including this survey, through which we want to: understand priorities for researchers ensure our...
Closes 30 April 2024
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Internal Controls Engagement Survey
The UKRI Internal Controls team (previously known as the Operational Governance team) are seeking to strengthen our level of engagement across UKRI. We are conducting a short survey to improve our knowledge and understanding of the teams and roles with whom we share common interests, and those...
Closes 30 April 2024
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2024 MRC Fellows’ Symposium Internal Attendee Information Form
BMA House, London, Tavistock Square, WC1H 9JP 2024 MRC Fellows’ Symposium, will be held on May 10th, 2024. We aim to start the day at approximately 10 am and close at 5 pm. There will also be an option to remain at the venue after 5 pm for further networking. ...
Closes 30 April 2024
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The use of deadlines for applications
The Simpler and Better Funding programme is reviewing UKRI’s approach and process for responsive mode funding across the organisation. The ambition is to increase consistency in how UKRI approaches applicant-led opportunities in the responsive mode. One area is specifically looking at the use of...
Closes 1 May 2024
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Transforming health through prediction and early diagnosis in the community
This is a funding opportunity for engineering and physical sciences research to develop tools and technologies for patient-specific prediction, early and accurate diagnosis of physical and mental health conditions for use in the community.
Closes 2 May 2024
Closed Activities
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Joint Conference on Research Outputs - MRC, Greener NHS and NIHR (hybrid) Virtual registration only
The Medical Research Council, Greener NHS at NHS England and National Institute for Health and Care Research, have joined together to showcase a number of research projects that seek to find solutions for a more sustainable health research and healthcare sector. ...
Closed 24 April 2024
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UK - Singapore EO Workshop Feedback Questionnaire
Thank you for attending the UK - Singapore EO Workshop on 19th Feb 2024. To continue improving our events and ensure they are impactful, we would appreciate your feedback.
Closed 23 April 2024
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2024 MRC Fellows’ Symposium External Attendee Information Form
BMA House, London, Tavistock Square, WC1H 9JP 2024 MRC Fellows’ Symposium, will be held on May 10th, 2024. We aim to start the day at approximately 10 am and close at 5 pm. There will also be an option to remain at the venue after 5 pm for further networking. ...
Closed 22 April 2024
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23RM3 Feedback - Applicants
This is a short survey following BBSRC’s Responsive Mode 23RM3 round to understand the experience of the applicant and seek feedback regarding the current assessment process, as well as future changes to the UKRI funding service.
Closed 22 April 2024
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FEIF Event planning March 23
Innovate UK are considering running an event in the autumn of 2024 for FEIF Innovation Centres project holders to network, share learnings and look to the future. Planning is in the early stages (partners and other stakeholders may be brought in) but we are keen to develop something that will be...
Closed 19 April 2024
We Asked, You Said, We Did
See what we've consulted on. See all outcomes
We asked
For opinions on the definition and scope of a categorisatino of UKRI funding as either 'Investigator-led' or 'Directed'.
You said
Only 8 responses were received, and there was no clear consensus on many questions. Most respondents were from universities.
We did
In the absence of opinion to the contrary we will continue to develop and apply the indicator to all UKRI funding. It will be applied as a binary indicator.
We asked
In April 2022, we asked for feedback on the new MRC expectations on the inclusion of sex in experimental design of studies involving animals, tissues, and cells. We also asked what MRC could do to aid researchers in implementing these requirements.
You said
We received 91 responses from researchers and research staff, with many constructive and detailed suggestions. We also received a written submission from the Academy of Medical Science, on behalf of their fellows.
We were pleased that many were already using both sexes in their experiments or were ready to begin doing so (32% and 5% of respondents, respectively). We recognise that many (57%), even though they were very often supportive in principle, felt barriers existed to implementing this in their research.
One of the most commonly mentioned concerns was a likely increase in grant costs. Respondents sought clarity from MRC as to how this would be handled. Ensuring animal welfare standards and the logistics of single housing male animals were also mentioned as barriers.
Roughly a third of respondents had questions about the changes, particularly around:
- When the new expectation would begin to apply and how compliance would be ensured
- How and when MRC would grant exceptions for single sex studies
- How MRC would handle grants where costs were significantly increased due to using both sexes of animal
The support from MRC that was identified as being most helpful was:
- Advice from MRC Head Office about applications
- Training in statistical design and analysis
- Written guidance
- Case studies or worked examples
We did
As a result of this feedback, we have been working to make more information available about the upcoming change and to ensure the research community receives the necessary support. We have:
- Updated our Guidance for Applicants with details about how to comply with these new expectations
- Made it clear that there is no retrospective application of this requirement for grants that have already been awarded
- Clarified that the requirement of including both sexes does not mean ‘balancing’ or using equal numbers of both sexes, as for many experiments this would result in unnecessary use of animals, but including both sexes as appropriate for the experimental design
- Made the cases where MRC will consider single sex studies clearer both on our website and in our Guidance for Applicants
- Planned a webinar for applicants together with NC3Rs to be held on 21 July 2022, in which animal handling and statistical design will be discussed, and applicants can ask questions
- Made it clearer on our website that there is no cap on MRC awards, and researchers should submit grant costings based on the cost of performing the work, and justified by the importance and potential of the work
In the coming months, we will:
- Update our guidance to Peer Reviewers to ensure proposals submitted to the deadlines starting from September 2022 are reviewed in accordance with the new requirements
- Develop case studies to show the level of information that would be required in applications, including examples of where single sex studies would be appropriate
- Ensure that MRC Programme Managers are available to support applicants that have further questions
- Look into what other support we can provide
We asked
In November 2020 we asked for input on which funders UKRI should recognise as an endorsed funder under the Global Talent Visa.
The Global Talent Visa is an immigration route provided by the UK Government to provide a fast and efficient visa offer to those working in science and research. Under the scheme, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) can recognise other funders as an ‘Endorsed Funder’.
We want to increase the number of endorsed funders. Endorsed funders may be based in the UK or internationally.
You said
We have had nine responses with a total of 27 funders suggested to UKRI.
66 percent of you said that this tool was ‘Good’ or ‘Very good’.
We did
This was an expression of interest stage and was the first step in the process to becoming a recognised funder. We will now review the organisations that have been nominated and will decide whether or not to take these forward via our due diligence process.
We will update this section in January 2021 to update on progress. Thanks to your feedback we will look to use this tool again in Spring 2021 to ask for more input of who UKRI sound recognised as an endorsed funder.