Pre-announcement: ESRC applicant-led: grow awards

通知摘要

Funding opportunity Funding opportunity: Pre-announcement: ESRC applicant-led: grow awards Opportunity status: Upcoming Funders: Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Funding type: Grant Award range: £100,000 - £500,000 Publication date: 8 September 2026 Opening date: 5 November 2026 9:00am UK time Closing date: Open - no closing date Apply for funding to build the skills, experience and confidence to make a step-change in your research career. Grow awards support individuals at key career points to develop new capabilities or pivot in a new direction, strengthening the long-term capacity, adaptability and resilience of the UK’s social science research base. You must be based at a UK research organisation eligible for ESRC funding. The full economic cost (FEC) of your project can be up to £500,000. ESRC will fund 80% of the FEC. Projects can last between 18 months and five years. This is a pre-announcement and the information may change. More information will be available on this page when the funding opportunity opens. Who can apply This opportunity will be open to organisations with standard eligibility. Check if your organisation is eligible . Who can apply You can be at any stage of your career. Grow awards must focus on the development of the project lead. Other members of the project team are permitted if their contributions are required for the development project. There is no limit to the number of additional roles that can be added. All members of the project team must be fully justified and meet the requirements set out in the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) roles in funding applications . International researchers can apply as project co-lead (international) . You must include all other international collaborators (or UK partners not based at approved organisations) as project partners. Business, third sector or government body project co-leads based in the UK can also be included as a project co-lead. We welcome applications that take an interdisciplinary approach. Find out more about how UKRI supports research that spans different disciplines . The social sciences within ESRC’s remit must represent more than 50% of the research focus and effort. Complete and submit the remit query form , if you are unsure whether your proposed research falls within ESRC’s remit. 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 UKRI can offer disability and accessibility support for UKRI applicants and grant holders during the application and assessment process. What we're looking for Demand management We do not anticipate that demand management will be applied to this funding opportunity.  However, should the level of interest exceed what can be managed within the assessment process, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) may introduce limits on the number of applications that can be submitted. Further details will be clearly communicated where this is the case. UKRI encourages organisations to support applicants in preparing well-planned, high-quality applications that are competitive for funding relative to the funding opportunity. Aim A strong and internationally competitive social science research base is built on researchers having opportunities to develop new capabilities or pursue novel directions so they can maximise their full career potential. Grow awards enable researchers at three key career development and transition points to meaningfully strengthen or redirect their skills and experience: those establishing their independence as researchers those pivoting to a new social science discipline in a bold way those developing expertise in advanced or emerging methods, technologies or approaches needed to drive innovation in their field. This development of individuals will enhance the long-term capacity, adaptability and resilience of the UK’s social science research base Scope Grow awards support researchers to make a meaningful step-change in their skills, experience and expertise in ways that can open up new opportunities for their field as well as support their individual career development. You will be looking to establish independence at an early research career stage, move within or into social science disciplines in a novel way, or build methodological and technical capabilities to support innovation in their field. By unlocking your potential to lead work that is new to you at these key career development points, Grow awards will help build a dynamic, flexible and internationally competitive UK social science research base. You must set out a defined project through which you will develop, deploy and test the skills needed to meet your development objectives. There is no prescribed model, and we expect the mix of research, training and skills development proposed to be tailored specifically to your development needs, your project objectives, and its wider potential significance. We welcome proposals across a wide range of funding scales and award durations. You have the freedom to propose the approach that best achieves your aims. That could include a research or data analysis project, collaboration or mentoring, placement or other form of immersion, skills or methodological development activity, or another route. What a high-quality project involves will differ between those at the start of their research career and those at more established stages who are looking to significantly shift focus or upskill. What defines a Grow award is not the focus or form of the development activity proposed but its potential for meaningful impact on both the individual researcher’s skills and capabilities at a key career point and its potential for contributing to the wider capacity, adaptability and resilience of the UK’s social science research base. Duration The duration of this award is between 18 and 60 months. Funding available The FEC of your project can between £100,000 and £500,000. ESRC will fund 80% of the FEC. What we will fund You must set out plans for skills development appropriate to your objectives. You should propose a defined project through which you will develop, deploy and test those skills in ways that support your career progression and have potential to contribute to the wider capacity, adaptability and resilience of UK social science. There is no prescribed model for the development activity or project, and we expect the approach to be tailored specifically to the individual applicant and the project objectives. You have wide scope and freedom to propose the activities most suitable to meet your project’s objectives. Activities might include but are not limited to: basic or applied research projects that enable career development objectives secondary analysis and other forms of existing data reuse that enable career development objectives methodological or technical capability development and application interdisciplinary collaborations and transfer of insights or techniques across disciplinary boundaries discipline transitions within (or into) the social sciences placements, secondments or immersive development opportunities in both academic and non-academic contexts tailored mentoring or leadership development activities All activity funded under Grow must be accompanied by plans that articulate how the award will have a demonstrable effect on career progression, and how the wider potential benefit to the UK’s social science research base will be maximised. What we will not fund Applications cannot be accepted under this funding opportunity for: uninvited resubmissions of projects that have previously been submitted to UKRI. Find out more about UKRI’s resubmissions policy unspecified research work research already underway or carried out writing up previous research or completing previously funded research objectives general literature reviews not related to the proposed development project general conference attendance, not related to the proposed development project travel for general study not related to the proposed development project expeditions not related to the proposed development project requests to hold conferences, workshops or seminars where these constitute the primary project component. preparation of books and publications not related to the proposed development project preparation and production of materials such as curriculum materials and software development where these constitute the primary project component training courses or learning activities where these constitute the primary project component research, evidence synthesis, or knowledge exchange activity with no associated development component transitions to disciplines outside the social sciences transitions to research-focused or other roles in non-academic organisations transitions to non-research roles within academic organisations The following cannot be included in applications: flexible funding pots that enable subcontracting of further small research projects Host organisation support We expect the host research organisation to support the applicant in their individual development objectives as outlined in the application. This may include both mentoring support and a programme of research and skills development as appropriate to the proposed application outcomes. There is no prescribed model, and we expect the support package to be tailored specifically to the individual applicant and the application objectives. This will need to be fully articulated and justified in the application. There is no requirement for matched funding from the institutions hosting the project lead, project co-leads or other staff employed on the application, beyond the standard 20% FEC. 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 . Research ethics We require that the research we support is designed and conducted in such a way that it meets ethical principles and is subject to proper professional and institutional oversight in terms of research governance. We have agreed a Framework for Research Ethics that all submitted proposals must comply with. Read further details about the Framework for Research Ethics and guidance on compliance. ESRC data infrastructure We support a range of data infrastructure. You must carefully consider how your project can use, build on or contribute to existing data resources and infrastructures, where appropriate.  See Facilities and resources for information on finding and using ESRC datasets which are available across the UK. Data requirements We recognise the importance of data quality and provenance. Data generated, collected or acquired by ESRC-funded research must be well-managed by the grant holder to enable their data to be exploited to the maximum potential for further research. See our research data policy for details and further information on data requirements . The requirements of the research data policy are a condition of ESRC research funding. Where relevant, details on data management and sharing should be provided in the Data Management section. See the importance of managing and sharing data and content for inclusion in a data management plan on the UK Data Service (UKDS) website for further guidance. We expect applicants to provide a summary of the points provided.  The UKDS (email: datasharing@ukdataservice.ac.uk ) will be pleased to advise you on the availability of data within the academic community and provide advice on data deposit requirements. Equitable partnership principles When undertaking research and innovation activities outside the UK, you must recognise and address the possible impact of contextual, societal and cultural differences on the ethical conduct of those activities. Researchers should also follow the principles of equitable partnerships to address inherent power imbalances when working with partners in resource-poor settings. Applying the principles will encourage equitable access, especially in low and middle-income countries , while maintaining incentives for innovation. You should consider the principles from the start of the research and development cycle. Read UKRI’s guidance on research in a global setting . 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, so please ensure that your organisation is registered. You cannot apply on the Joint Electronic Submissions (Je-S) system. We will publish full details on how to apply when the funding opportunity opens. Institutional matched funding There is no requirement for matched funding from the institutions hosting the project lead, project co-leads or other staff employed on the application, beyond the standard 20% FEC. Expert reviewers and panels assessing UKRI funding applications must not consider levels of institutional matched funding as a factor on which to base recommendations. Direct and in-kind contributions from third party project partners are encouraged. This policy does not remove the need for support from host organisations who must provide the necessary research environment and infrastructure for award-specific activities funded by UKRI. For example, research facilities, training and development of staff. Summary Word limit: 550 In plain English, provide a summary we can use to identify the most suitable experts to assess your application. We may 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 overall aims and objectives the potential impact on your skills and capabilities at a key career point the potential for contributing to the wider capacity, adaptability and resilience of the UK’s social science research base Core team List the key members of your team and assign them roles from the following: project lead (PL) project co-lead (UK) (PcL) project co-lead (international) (PcL (I)) specialist grant manager professional enabling staff research and innovation associate technician Only list one individual as project lead. UKRI has introduced a new addition to the ‘Specialist’ role type. Public contributors such as people with lived experience can now be added to an application. Find out more about UKRI’s core team roles in funding applications . Application questions Vision Word limit: 750 What are you hoping to achieve with your proposed work? What the assessors are looking for in your response Explain how y

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