For all funding streams, the funds can be used for any activity that falls within the UKRI/EPSRC eligibility criteria that can be found here, noting the following UKFin+ specific criteria:
Equipment over £10,000 (including VAT) will not normally be funded.
Intangible assets can be funded e.g. datasets, subscriptions as long as they are critical to the project delivery. The same expectation applies to equipment that costs over £10,000 including VAT will not normally be funded.
For Impact and Education/Engagement projects only directly incurred costs will be funded.
International investigator costs cannot be covered.
All projects must include at least one applicant with a substantial relationship with a higher education provider or an approved research organisation eligible for UKRI funding, and at least one industry, charity, trade and/or cluster body or policy partner (non-HEI partner).
All projects must include at least one HEI applicant and at least one industry, charity, trade and/or cluster body or policy partner (non-HEI partner).
Applicants must be a member of the UKFin+ network, and potential members can sign up here. Funding can only be awarded to eligible applicants as defined in the UKRI guidance for applicants.
Expectations for the collaboration between the Research Organisation and Industry, Charity, Trade and/or Cluster Bodies and Policy Partner (non-HEI partner)
For all funding streams, there must be a collaboration between a research organisation (Higher Education Institution or Independent Research Organisation) and an industry, charity, trade and/or cluster or policy partner (non-HEI partner).
Benefits to researchers include:
- having the opportunity to work on real-world applications
- seeing their research deliver tangible socio-technical impact
- learning new skills and research methods
Benefits to collaborating non-HEI partners include:
- extending the capabilities and expertise available to them
- gaining access to funding for activities
- sharpening their competitive advantage by combining theory and practice.
- improving their performance through developing new technologies
- reducing the risk of investing in research
The expectations for the collaborative arrangement are:
Research projects will be aligned with key priorities for the non-HEI partner, so that there is a shared agenda and research findings have the potential to solve real life challenges facing the UK Financial Services sector.
Both parties will be seeking to use the project funding as a catalyst to grow a long-term mutually beneficial relationship with transformative potential.
The partner support letter should cover the following headings
Confirmation that the partner involvement is supported at a senior level in the partner organisation, and the period of support
Brief overview of partner purpose and vision
Few sentences describing how the proposed project aligns with the partner’s strategic priorities, and how the partner will benefit from the collaboration.
A statement of the in-kind and/or matched support including but not limited to staff time, access to equipment, provision of data, software and materials
How the partner will commercialise the technology beyond the project (where relevant)
The following pledges as relevant:
- Deliver the proposed joint project for the benefit of partner and researcher.
- Facilitate access for the researcher to partner resources as necessary to deliver the project.
- Engagement in workshops and dissemination to share the outcomes.
- Sharing of project outcomes for the benefit of the UKFin network (respecting commercial confidentiality)
The support letter should be on headed paper and signed by a senior manager at the partner organisation. The letter should be on A4 and no more than two pages in length.
It is an aim of the UKFin+ programme to develop the talent pipeline and accordingly, applications that include an opportunity for an early career researcher to learn from an established researcher are encouraged. Early career researchers can apply as the Principal Investigator and applicants should ensure they describe the mentoring and support arrangements in their case for support.
UKFin+ is committed to Equality, Diversion and Inclusion, and welcomes applications from teams which are diverse in every way, particularly regarding protected characteristics and career stage. The requirements from applicants relating to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion are as follows:
- Explicitly stating what actions, they will take to support inclusion
- Individuals from across the range of career levels in the research team
All funded organisations are to have published commitments to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, including procedures to for dealing with harassment or complaints.
Upon receipt of a proposal, we will ask the applicant to voluntarily complete an anonymous EDI monitoring form for their team to enable us to evaluate the diversity of our funding. Processing of this data will be done anonymously and separately from the funding panel.
All projects are expected to approach their research in line with the expectations for Responsible Research and Innovation and adhering to the EPSRC’s AREA principles to anticipate, reflect, engage and act.
All funded projects will be expected to:
- Participate in UKFin+ network events, and present project updates (costs to attend UKFin+ network events can be included in the application)
- Produce a three-minute film for dissemination at UKFin+ events and via the project web site.
- Provide updates for the project web page of UKFin+ and our social media communications when requested. UKFin+ will also promote its work across the financial services sector, and occasionally project leads might be asked for short quotes or other information to demonstrate the activities that are taking place.
- Ensure that the work is acknowledged as being supported by EPSRC and UKFin+ when promoting projects, either through articles, papers, presentations, or interviews. Both EPSRC and UKFin+ branding should be visibly included on any presentations.
- Report all outcomes from the funded project to the Principal Investigator for up to five years from the project end date.
- Plan projects realistically including lead times for project set-up (recruitment, contract negotiation, ethical approval, and procurement), realistic outcomes for the time and resources requested.
- Extensions will be given to enable inclusion e.g., for approved sick leave, parental leave, compassionate leave, adoption leave so long as the activity will still end before the UKFin+ funded period ends on 30.9.2027. Extensions for other reasons will only be given in exceptional circumstances, to ensure that the available funding is fully allocated and spent by the end of the UKFin+ funded period.
Funding selection criteria are based on the EPSRC criteria adjusted to reflect the scale of the UKFin+ commissioning framework. Please see full details on the selection criteria here.
Allocation of funding
Decisions to fund projects will be made based on fit with the published selection criteria for each funding stream. There is no quota of projects for each funding round. Projects that are a strong match to the funding stream criteria will be funded subject to their being sufficient funds remaining in the funding stream. There will be no more than 6 Feasibility projects funded across all funding panels, with the final deadline being November 2025 to allow sufficient time for project delivery by 31st August.
The funding streams available may vary over the duration of the funding period. Communications on available funding streams will be via social media and the project web site.
Re-submission
Applicants may only re-submit if they are invited to do so.
Panel composition
The funding panel for Agile, Pilot, Education and Impact will consist of the investigator team, plus an independent Equality, Diversity and Inclusion panel member.
Feasibility applications that progress to the full panel will initially be reviewed by the investigator team and provided with peer review comments. Applicants will have one week to respond to peer review comments. The application and peer review comments will be considered by a panel including independent members and a member for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. Feasibility applications will take up to four months to receive a decision, and will need to commence with six months.
Applications for Feasibility projects will first be considered by the same panel to assess if they are suitable to progress to the main panel. This decision will be based on the scale and ambition of the proposed project.
| Deadline | Streams | Panel | Feasibility panel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 14th November 2023, 5 pm | All streams | Friday 1st December 2023 | Friday 26th January 2024 |
| Tuesday 9th April 2024, 5 pm | All streams | Friday 26th April 2024 | Friday 5th July 2024 |
| Tuesday 12th November 2024, 5 pm | All streams | Friday 6th December 2024 | Friday 24th January 2025 |
| Tuesday 29th April 2025, 5 pm | All streams | Friday 16th May 2025 | Friday 4th July 2025 |
| Tuesday 11th November 2025, 5 pm | All streams (final deadline for pilot and feasibility stream) | Friday 28th November 2025 | Friday 25th January 2026 |
| Tuesday 14th April 2026, 5 pm | Impact and Education streams only | Friday 8th May 2026 |
Application Notes:
- Funds, award documentation and contracts will be issued to the Principal or Lead Investigator only. Therefore, project teams must identify an eligible Principal Investigator for their proposal. It is then the responsibility of the lead institution to manage the award and any subcontracts with collaborating institutions and non-academic organisations if appropriate. This procedure is in line with standard UKRI funding practices.
- All applicants including Co-Investigators must have written approval from their institution before an application is submitted (the lead HEI is expected to check this before submitting)
- All costs should be inclusive of VAT (where applicable).
- Costings mut be prepared according to the financial rules and regulations of the host institution
- One diagram only can be included in the case for support, within the word limit. No additional attachments are allowed.
- Applicants can provide confidential information to the panel in relation to any Equality, Diversity and Inclusion considerations. This should be done via separate e-mail to [email protected], or to the Project Directors leading on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Professor John Vines (john.[email protected]) and Professor Jing Chen ([email protected]).
Sources of help:
- HEI research support offices
- British Academy Early Career Researcher Network open to early career researchers who work in the British Academy subject remit, and who wish to collaborate with researchers who work within this remit. The network is open to researchers in the Midlands, Scotland and South West, and will expand nationally over the next three years. The network offers a range of support for early career researchers including online grant development training and grant writing retreats. If you are eligible you can sign up to the network here
- Vitae (realising the potential of researchers) offer advice on writing a research proposal for staff and students of member organisations
- UKRI top tips for writing a grant application
Ready to Apply?
Download application documents
Application Form Checklist
Applications must be sent with the following attachments:
| Document | Attached? |
| Completed application form, signed by HEI lead | YES/NO |
| Resume for Research and Innovation (R4RI) | YES/NO |
| Partner support letter of no more than two A4 pages, sent as PDF | YES/NO |
Additional attachments will not be passed to the selection panel.
Applicants can discuss any specific requirements to enable participation in our funding schemes confidentially at any time during the application and funding process by e-mailing [email protected].