UKRI DRI: Championing knowledge exchange for UK computational science

This funding opportunity is being led by EPSRC on behalf of UKRI. Before applying for funding, check the following:

• Eligibility as an individual
• Eligibility as an organisation

Business and international organisations are not eligible to apply.

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.

Who is eligible to apply

For this funding opportunity we specifically welcome applications led or co-led by RTPs involved in the delivery of digital research infrastructure.

Holders of postdoctoral level fellowships are not eligible to apply, but we encourage applications to reflect how they can be involved in the network’s activity.

We encourage submissions from consortia of research organisations to ensure the team has the ability to reach out across a breadth of disciplines and across domain communities in the UK.

The project lead of the proposal should have a collaborative and inclusive mindset, alongside excellent leadership and management abilities.

You may be involved in no more than two applications submitted to this funding opportunity. Only one of these applications can be as project lead.

International applicants

Individuals based in non-UK countries that could make valuable contributions to the NetworkPlus can be involved in the grant as project partners, members of advisory boards or collaborators but they are not eligible to be investigators.

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 project co-lead (international).

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.

Aim

Through this funding opportunity, the UKRI DRI programme aims to enhance the application of large-scale computational science knowledge and broaden the engagement and participation of a diverse user base in computational science practices, while showcasing UK strengths internationally, to ensure more people benefit from scientific advancements.

The objectives of this funding opportunity are to:

• ensure co-ordination of the existing large-scale compute software community as well as integrating new communities in computational research
• ensure effective knowledge exchange across the communities
• provide leadership and maximise the opportunities for collaboration between national and international initiatives

Scope

Through Phase two of the UKRI DRI programme, funding is available to support one Knowledge Exchange and Communications NetworkPlus (KEC NetworkPlus).

As the UK progresses its capabilities in advanced and accelerated compute, the KEC NetworkPlus will play a key role in bringing together and promoting the developments occurring across the UK digital research infrastructure landscape and its investments. The NetworkPlus will drive activities that will bring the diverse community together, onboard new user communities and represent UK software, algorithm and people at national and international initiatives. The NetworkPlus will facilitate dissemination of lessons learned between communities and the sharing of good practice. This investment will identify sustainable approaches to highlight the diverse scientific code, algorithms, hardware and skills landscape within the UK.

The KEC NetworkPlus should build upon the knowledge exchange network introduced to the Exascale Computing: Algorithms and Infrastructures Benefiting UK Research (ExCALIBUR) programme.

The project lead of the proposal should have a collaborative mindset, and excellent leadership and management abilities. The leader of this network is expected to engage closely with various stakeholder including users, academics, industry and policymakers. They should be an equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) role model for the community.

The KEC NetworkPlus will be expected to:

• develop a communications and stakeholder plan that will guide the engagement approach for the NetworkPlus with the wider community
• maintain a schedule of knowledge exchange events and activities
• develop a roadmap for knowledge exchange to drive collaboration within and across communities in UK large scale compute
• implement a network of KEC champions representing the range of UK science, which will act as advocates within existing and new user communities
• co-ordinate across UK representation and participation at international conferences including ISC, Supercomputing and HPC Asia as a minimum, ensuring that the UK community is maximising its impact on the global stage
• ensure representation and participation with national events and conferences of importance, including RSECon and CIUK as a minimum
• utilise lessons learnt from previous activities, for example ExCALIBUR Knowledge Exchange
• monitor and inform UKRI of its risk management and governance structure, inviting a UKRI representative to attend meetings
• establish an appropriate management and governance model with effective monitoring and evaluation
• develop a clear EDI policy for the management of the NetworkPlus

Activities could include but are not limited to managing social media for the NetworkPlus, developing guidance on communications and knowledge exchange, training, shared communications resource, working groups, facilitators, science writers and community events.

The required outputs are:

• strategic oversight for events, networking and communication to maximise the synergies between
• blog posts, case studies and materials that communicate breakthroughs in advanced compute
• an annual report from the champion or advocates of new user communities engaged and their science ambitions with advance compute, demonstrating the impact the of the communications plan and the network of advocates in expanding the user communities across large scale compute during the period of funding
• a knowledge exchange and communications NetworkPlus website
• an annual workshop in co-ordination with the prospective digital RTP hubs, which could be co-located at existing UK event

Duration

The duration of the Knowledge Exchange and Communications NetworkPlus award is three years.

Projects must start by 1 April 2025.

Funding available

The 80% FEC of your NetworkPlus can be up to £1.5 million including indexation.

What we will fund

We will fund:

• one Knowledge Exchange and Communications NetworkPlus will be funded at £500,000 per year
• project lead and co-lead costs
• estates and indirect cost

The Knowledge Exchange and Communications NetworkPlus can request the following ‘directly incurred’ costs in their award:

• administrative support
• flexible funding
• knowledge exchange
• organisation of activities and networking
• Other eligible costs

Administrative support

This should include a sufficient level of administrative support to support the NetworkPlus throughout the duration. This cost should ensure the co-ordination, management, monitoring and operation of the NetworkPlus is effective.

Knowledge Exchange

These costs should enable engagement and dissemination with new and emerging communities on software development in advanced compute.

This should support attendance, exhibition space and participation at national and international conferences, included but not limited to CIUK, RSECon, HPC Asia, Supercomputing and International Supercomputing. This includes marketing materials.

This may include travel and subsistence enabling members of the NetworkPlus to meet to exchange ideas and expertise.

These costs should be used facilitate the virtual NetworkPlus, whether this is through secondments to support training development and delivery, expertise sharing or to enable a cohort approach.

Costs may include visits by or to experts overseas.

Where possible, collaborators should meet their own travel costs.

Flexible funding

Flexible funding will allow the NetworkPlus to remain adaptive in the landscape. The flexible funding may be used for secondments, training or other activities beyond networking.

Flexible funds can be allocated to individuals at any organisation currently eligible for UKRI funding. You will need to think carefully about how any budget for external distribution will be commissioned through a robust peer review process, and how you will ensure processes for the allocation of funds are fair and transparent within the framework of the UKRI principles of assessment and decision making.

Please note that any activities commissioned by the NetworkPlus using the flexible funds will be restricted to UKRI current research organisation eligibility. It is the project lead’s responsibility to ensure ongoing governance to ensure correct usage and accountability of the funds. Progress and outcomes of the funded activities should be expected to engage with the wider programme of activity and report their progress and outcomes to the grant holder. These outcomes should be reported as part of the wider NetworkPlus reporting.

Flexible funds may not be used for studentships or the kind of student costs that would be funded through a training grant.

These funds must be reported on the final expenditure statement (FES) as awarded on the offer letter and a breakdown of the expenditure must be submitted along with the FES. Flexible funds are funded at 80% FEC by UKRI.

Organisation of activities and networking

Funding can be requested for:

• networking and events
• workshops
• Birds of a Feather sessions
• lectures
• working groups
• collaboration and stakeholder engagement
• an annual DRI workshop
• co-ordination with other UKRI DRI awards and relevant existing UKRI investments
• attendance and activities at international conferences
• public engagement

Other eligible costs

Funding can be requested for:

• support for technical posts
• support for communications such as a science writer
• research consumables
• travel costs

What we will not fund

We will not fund:

• research projects
• research software for desktop or institutional compute
• equipment over £10,000 in value (including VAT). Smaller items of equipment (individually under £10,000) should be in the ‘Directly Incurred – Other Costs’ heading

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.

Further guidance and information about TR&I, including where applicants can find additional support, can be found on UKRI’s website.

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.

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

Select ‘Start application’ near the beginning of this Funding finder page.

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. We strongly suggest that if you are asking UKRI to add your organisation to the Funding Service to enable you to apply to this opportunity, you also create an organisation Administration Account. This will be needed to allow the acceptance and management of any grant that might be offered to you.

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:

• how applicants use the Funding Service
• how research offices use the Funding Service
• how reviewers use the Funding Service

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. Applicants should use their 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 12 November 2024 at 4:00pm UK time.

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 account on the Funding Service 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 EPSRC Funding Application Outcomes.

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 project 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
• professional enabling staff
• research and innovation associate
• technician
• visiting researcher

Only list one individual as project lead.

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

Application questions

Outline Vision

Word limit: 1,000

What are you hoping to achieve with your proposed work?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Explain how your proposed work:

• is of excellent quality and importance within or beyond the field(s) or area(s)
• has the potential to advance current understanding, generates new knowledge, thinking or discovery within or beyond the field or area
• is timely given current trends, context and needs
• impacts world-leading research, society, the economy, or the environment
• meets the strategic aims of the funding opportunity

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

References may be included within this section.

Outline Approach

Word limit: 1,000

How are you going to deliver your proposed work?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Explain how you have designed your approach so that it:

• is effective and appropriate to achieve your objectives

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

References may be included within this section.

Outline Applicant and team capability to deliver    

Word limit: 500

How will the application team deliver the proposed research programme?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

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

• relevant experience and skills to develop and deliver the proposed programme
• planned to identify and embed additional expertise where gaps in the team exist

The core leadership team should consist of the project lead and the project co-leads (co-investigators) identified on the outline proposal. There will be scope to expand this team and include new collaborators on the full application and you will be able to add further detail.

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.

UKRI has introduced new role types for funding opportunities being run on the Funding Service.

For full details, see Eligibility as an individual.

Outline costs

Word limit: 500

What are the expected costs of the proposed work?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

• provide the approximate total values in GBP (£) for the expected directly incurred, directly allocated, indirect costs and exceptions
• view the guidance on the costs you can apply for

Assessment process

We will assess your application using the following process.

There will be a two-stage assessment process for this funding opportunity:

• stage one: outline application
• stage two: full application

Stage one: outline application

Applications submitted to this funding opportunity and which UKRI deems to be in scope will be considered by a panel in November 2024.

Any outline proposals we consider to be outside the scope of the funding opportunity will be rejected prior to assessment, without recourse to panel.

The outline panel will evaluate applications against the assessment criteria given below. UKRI will then decide which proposals to invite to submit a full application based on the panel recommendation.

Please note that the vision for each application must not change significantly between the outline and full application stages. The total cost must not change by more than 10% and must not exceed the maximum value allowed under this funding opportunity.

Upon completion of the outline stage, titles of applications that are invited to interview will be published online along with summary and details of the application team, including their names. We encourage the addition of further collaborators and project partners between outline and interview stage.

Assessment areas for the outline applications

The assessment areas we will assess your application against are:

• Outline Vision
• Outline Approach
• Outline Applicant and team capability to deliver

The Outline cost section is indicative only and will not be subject to assessment at the outline stage.

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

Stage two: full applications

Only invited applicants will be eligible to submit a full application via a separate funding opportunity. An expert panel will then conduct interviews with applicants after which the panel will make a funding recommendation.

Interview panel

The interview will be considered by an expert panel against the full opportunity assessment criteria listed below. We expect the interviews to be held in February 2025.

The project lead should attend along with up to two other members of the team (this could include project partners).

UKRI will make a final decision based on the recommendation of the panel.

Full details of the interview process will be sent to candidates before the interviews.

In the event of this funding opportunity being substantially oversubscribed as to be unmanageable, UKRI reserve the right to modify the assessment process.

Feedback

Feedback will be given on successful outline proposals. Feedback on unsuccessful outline proposals will be provided only if specifically requested by the panel.

All applicants interviewed will be given feedback from the panel on their proposal.

A funding decision is expected in March 2025

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.

Assessment areas for the full applications

The assessment areas we will assess invited full application against are:

• Vision and approach
• Applicant and team capability to deliver
• Stakeholder engagement
• Resources and cost justification
• Governance, including leadership and considerations of equality, diversity and inclusion
• Ethics and responsible research and innovation (RRI)
• Flexible funds

We reserve the right to amend these assessment criteria and further details will be provided to applicants invited to the full stage.

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 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 and include ‘KEC NetworkPlus Call’ in the subject line.

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.

For further information on submitting an application read How applicants use the Funding Service.

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.

Research and innovation impact

Impact can be defined as the long-term intended or unintended effect research and innovation has on society, economy and the environment; to individuals, organisations, and the wider global population.

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 will hold a webinar on 30 September 2024. This will provide more information about the funding opportunity and a chance to ask questions.

Register for the webinar 

Passcode: 862871

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 documents

Equality impact assessment (PDF, 195KB)