Aim

This funding opportunity aims to build and develop networks of innovative interdisciplinary research communities and provide a foundation for impactful engineering and physical sciences research within the topic of engineering healthier environments. We are looking for networks to:

• facilitate collaboration and engagement across sectors and disciplines
• lead to the co-creation and co-design of research proposals between researchers and relevant stakeholders and end users
• develop a collaborative way forward for future research in the topic of engineering healthier environments from an engineering and physical sciences perspective

Scope

The environment is intrinsically linked with health and can have a significant impact on our physical and mental health and wellbeing. The built environment has a part to play, from the air we breathe, our travel choices, where we live and work and our interaction with each other and the natural world. How we plan, design, build and live in our cities and our buildings has important implications for our health and wellbeing.

We use a broad definition of environments as places where people live, work, and play covering both urban and rural settings. This can include:

• buildings, which include:
  • homes (for example, private residence, sheltered accommodation, social housing, care and nursing homes)
  • workplaces (for example, office buildings, factories, distribution centres, retail stores)
  • social infrastructure (for example, schools, healthcare facilities, recreational facilities, prisons, basic services, local shops, community centres)
• green spaces (for example, open spaces, parks, community gardens, allotments)
• sustainable infrastructure (for example, infrastructure for sustainable transport, smart cities, wastewater infrastructure)

We recognise the intersections in the built environments listed above. What one person considers a home others will consider a workplace (for example, care homes, prisons) and the interventions for staff and residents may be different.

Our definition of environments is wider than just the built environment and encompasses the social, cultural, and psychological spaces that are created through the built environment and the technologies that enable them. We encourage you to consider how technology designs inform and support the experience of environments through engagement with social scientists and other relevant stakeholders.

The following environments are out of scope for this funding opportunity:

• river, coastal and agricultural environments
• digital environments (such as virtual places accessed or created by technologies and digital devices, for example social media outlets, online communities, virtual reality spaces)

For this funding opportunity, we specifically encourage proposals in the following priority areas, however, we welcome any proposals that fall under the umbrella of engineering healthier environments. The priority areas are:

Designing and adapting outdoor environments to facilitate mental and physical health and wellbeing

This could include architecture for healthier living, promotion of community wellbeing, technologies to support smart and sustainable infrastructure and improving urban air quality.

Designing and adapting indoor environments to facilitate mental and physical health and wellbeing

This could include technologies to improve ventilation, thermal comfort, air quality as well as supporting smart homes.

Designing and adapting environments to help people be more active

This could include technologies to support physical activity and strength training.

Designing and adapting environments for an ageing society

This could include the development of technology to make public spaces more inclusive and not disabling.

This funding opportunity will fund two different types of grants:

• Micro Network grants
• Micro Network Plus grants

Both network grants can last up to 24 months.

We refer to these grants as ‘Micro Network’ and ‘Micro Network Plus’ to reflect the shorter duration of the network grant compared to standard EPSRC Network and Network Plus grants.

Micro Network grants

EPSRC is looking to fund a balanced portfolio of Micro Networks which will lead to new and innovative interdisciplinary collaborations and the development of existing networks.

Micro Networks should involve a breadth of expertise and experience. We expect Micro Networks to engage a broad range of disciplines and include stakeholders from relevant sector groups, such as:

• healthcare professionals
• industry
• charities
• end users, for example, patients and the public
• local authorities
• urban planners
• architects

Micro Networks should establish multidisciplinary teams and include relevant stakeholders to ensure that technologies are developed with user needs in mind.

The Micro Networks are expected to lead to new collaborations, research applications and inform ideas for future research themes. They will provide a foundation for addressing future research within engineering healthier environments.

To be successful, there needs to be a clear vision and demonstration of the added value arising from the network.

We expect the funded Micro Networks to be collaborative and not competitive, that is, they should work together where appropriate (for example, joint events, sharing learning and challenges). The Micro Networks should cover a range of approaches and aspects in the topic of engineering healthier environments.

Micro Network grants do not fund research (unlike Micro Network plus grants described below). Activities supported include:

• salary costs for time spent on setting up and managing the Micro Network
• travel and subsistence, including for members to meet to exchange ideas and expertise and to visit each other’s working environments. Industrial collaborators should meet their own costs where possible
• workshops
• administrative support to help coordinate the Micro Network
• communication costs and costs for additional equipment such as personal computers and web servers

Micro Network Plus grants

Micro Network Plus grants have the same expectations as Micro Network grants (as described above) with the addition that Micro Network plus grants also include funding for grant holders to deliver a sandpit(s).

Sandpits are expected to bring together a highly multidisciplinary mix of participants to drive lateral thinking and radical approaches to address a research challenge related to engineering healthier environments.

Sandpits are expected to fund feasibility, pilot, or proof of concept studies. Sandpit outcomes may also include networking activities and overseas visits.

Outcome activities delivered through the sandpits are expected to have concluded by the end of the Micro Network Plus grant, such as, any feasibility studies will need to have concluded by the end of the grant.

Costing for sandpits and feasibility studies

Sandpit costs can cover:

• costs associated with running the sandpit events
• funding for the feasibility studies which could include:
  • support for posts such as research and technical
  • research consumables
  • equipment under £10,000
  • travel costs
  • data preservation, data sharing and dissemination costs
  • estates and indirect costs

The feasibility study costing should be based on the numbers of projects you are proposing to fund through the sandpit, and the staff resource required to develop the research.

The network will be expected to distribute the feasibility funds to test approaches to research challenges identified by the network through the sandpit. Each feasibility study will typically be in the region of £30,000 to £100,000. A feasibility study may help to inform preparation for a larger project application to EPSRC.

It is expected that funds for feasibility studies are transferred at 80% of the full economic cost as normal.

These feasibility funds should be intended to support development of research ideas, generation of proof-of-concept data and identification of clinical or industry support for example.

You will wish to check with your research office, before applying, about the transfer of funds for feasibility studies and how you can ensure that costings and arrangements will be transparent for any recipient universities.

The collaboration agreements and fund transfers for feasibility studies are likely to be a call on staff time and we recommend bearing this in mind when developing your proposal.

There are some restrictions in that feasibility studies can only be the kind of research that EPSRC funds through its research grant route and the recipient organisation should be eligible for EPSRC funding.

The funds cannot be used for studentships or for the kind of training and support that would be drawn from a doctoral training grant.

Early career researcher involvement

We expect there to be early career researcher involvement in both the Micro Networks and Micro Networks Plus and encourage a breadth of career levels within the leadership teams, sandpits or both.

Follow on funding

The outputs of the Micro Networks and Micro Networks plus are expected to inform future strategic funding opportunities in this space.

EPSRC will actively engage with the networks to scope the follow-on funding opportunity (for example, via delivery of events and workshops bringing the networks together).

EPSRC expect the networks to be prepared to dedicate some of their time and expertise to the EPSRC led events which would inform further scoping activities.

Duration

The duration of this award is up to 24 months.

Funding available

The FEC of your project can be up to £600,000.

The following figures are indicative only:

• Micro Network grants (up to £350,000, 100% FEC)
• Micro Network Plus grants (up to £600,000, 100% FEC)

EPSRC will fund 80% of the 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.

Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I)

UK Research and Innovation (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.

Mandatory Intention to submit

The ‘Intent to submit’ stage is mandatory. You must submit an ‘Intent to submit’ declaration in order to submit a full application.

Applicants who intend to submit an application to this funding opportunity must complete the following declaration by 18 September 2024 at 4:00pm UK time.

Complete the intention to submit form

You are not required to have finalised all the details of your application by the time the intention to submit is made. We recognise that information provided in the full proposal, including the names of the partners, may differ from the information provided in the intention to submit form.

Information provided as part of the intention to submit will not be formally assessed. We will use this information to help plan the proposal assessment, for example to understand expected submission levels and the spread of applications.

Full application

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 funding 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. You should use your 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 2 October 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 Funding Service account 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 What EPSRC has funded.

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)
• project co-lead (international) (PcL (I))
• specialist
• grant manager
• professional enabling staff
• research and innovation associate
• technician
• visiting researcher
• researcher co-lead (RcL)

Only list one individual as project lead.

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

Micro Network type

Select the type of Micro Network you are applying for.

In the text box, copy the letter corresponding to your selected Micro network type.

A. Micro Network
B. Micro Network Plus

Vision and Approach

Create a document that includes your responses to all criteria. The document should not be more than seven sides of A4, single spaced in 11-point Arial (or equivalent sans serif font) with margins of at least 2 cm. You may include images, graphs, tables. References may be included but should not exceed one page of your document. You can have an additional page for a diagrammatic workplan, and an additional page for a data management plan.

For the file name, use the unique Funding Service number the system gives you when you create an application, followed by the words ‘Vision and Approach’.

Save this document as a single PDF file, no bigger than 8MB. Unless specifically requested, do not include any sensitive data within the attachment.

If the attachment does not meet these requirements, the application will be rejected.

The Funding Service will provide document upload details when you apply.

What are you hoping to achieve with and how will you deliver your proposed work?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

For the Vision, explain how your proposed work:

• aligns strategically to the funding opportunity aims and scope
• demonstrates a coherent strategic vision and establishes clear outcomes for the Micro network or Micro network Plus
• is of excellent quality and importance within or beyond the field(s) or area(s) of engineering healthier environments
• has the potential to advance current understanding, generates new knowledge, thinking or discovery within or beyond the field or area of engineering healthier environments
• impacts world-leading research, society, the economy or the environment

Within the Vision section we also expect you to:

• identify the potential direct or indirect benefits and who the beneficiaries might be
• identify key communities and future network members and collaborations

For the Approach, explain how you have designed your work so that it:

• will deliver against the expectations outlined in the funding opportunity
• is effective and appropriate to achieve your objectives
• is feasible, and comprehensively identifies any risks to delivery and how they will be managed
• will maximise translation of outputs into outcomes and impacts
• describes how your team’s research environment (in terms of the place, and relevance to the project) will contribute to the success of the work

Within the Approach section we also expect you to:

• evidence co-creation and user engagement
• provide clear plans for:
  • networking with relevant communities and stakeholders including how you will support, build and maintain equitable, diverse, inclusive and accessible communities
  • engagement with other key investments in the broader funding landscape
  • utilising flexible funds to commission sandpits if applying for Micro network Plus
• outline future plans for sustaining the partnership beyond this application, or for funding research which may develop from the partnership
• provide a project plan including milestones and timelines in the form of a Gantt chart or similar (additional one-page A4)
• include a detailed and appropriate plan for how you will acquire and manage data (additional one-page A4)

References may be included within this section.

Added value

Word limit: 550

What is the added value that this Micro Network or Micro Network Plus will enable that would not be possible otherwise?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Demonstrate how the Micro Network or Micro Network Plus will achieve the following:

• provide unique contributions to the research and community within engineering healthier environments space
• create new interdisciplinary research communities and topics
• provide a critical mass of researchers with a range of expertise and experience in an outlined area of need
• promote mobility between academia, industry and other sectors
• embed end users in the research activities
• achieve sustainability of impacts beyond the funding requested through collaborative working

References may be included within this section.

Applicant and team capability to deliver

Word limit: 1,650

Why are you the right team to successfully deliver the proposed work?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Evidence of how your team has:

• the relevant experience (appropriate to career stages) to deliver the proposed work
• the right balance of skills and expertise to cover the proposed work
• the appropriate leadership and management skills to deliver the work and your approach to develop others
• contributed to developing a positive research environment and wider community

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

The word count for this section is 1,650 words, 1,150 words to be used for R4RI modules and, if necessary, a further 500 words for Additions.

Use the Résumé for Research and Innovation (R4RI) format to 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 to deliver the proposed work. You can include individuals’ specific achievements but only choose past contributions that best evidence their ability to deliver this work.

Complete this section using the R4RI module headings listed below. Use each heading once and include a response for the whole team, see the UKRI guidance on R4RI. You should consider how to balance your answer, and emphasise where appropriate the key skills each team member brings:

• contributions to the generation of new ideas, tools, methodologies, or knowledge
• the development of others and maintenance of effective working relationships
• contributions to the wider research and innovation community
• contributions to broader research or innovation users and audiences and towards wider societal benefit

Additions

Provide any further details relevant to your application. This section is optional and can be up to 500 words. You should not use it to describe additional skills, experiences or outputs, but you can use it to describe any factors that provide context for the rest of your R4RI (for example, details of career breaks if you wish to disclose them).
You should complete this section as a narrative. Do not format it like a CV.

References may be included in this section.

UKRI has introduced new role types for funding opportunities being run on the new Funding Service. For full details, see Eligibility as an individual.

Programme leadership and management

Word limit: 500

How have you co-created and designed your research programme to maximise the impact of the Micro Network or Micro Network Plus?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Explain how your team intends to:

• manage and monitor the progress of the programme, including consideration of how the flexibility of resources will be managed
• embed creativity and agility into the plans for the programme in order to respond to a changing landscape
• embed considerations of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) at all levels and in all aspects of the programme

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

Project partners

Add details about any project partners’ contributions. If there are no project partners, you can indicate this on the Funding Service.

A project partner is a collaborating organisation who will have an integral role in the proposed research. This may include direct (cash) or indirect (in-kind) contributions such as expertise, staff time or use of facilities.

Add the following project partner details:

• the organisation name and address (searchable via a drop-down list or enter the organisation’s details manually, as applicable)
• the project partner contact name and email address
• the type of contribution (direct or in-direct) and its monetary value

If a detail is entered incorrectly and you have saved the entry, remove the specific project partner record and re-add it with the correct information.

For audit purposes, UKRI requires formal collaboration agreements to be put in place if an award is made.

Project partners: letters (or emails) of support

Upload a single PDF containing the letters or emails of support from each partner you named in the Project partner section. These should be uploaded in English or Welsh only.

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Enter the words ‘attachment supplied’ in the text box, or if you do not have any project partners enter N/A. Each letter or email you provide should:

• confirm the partner’s commitment to the project
• clearly explain the value, relevance, and possible benefits of the work to them
• describe any additional value that they bring to the project
• the page limit is 2 sides A4 per partner

The Funding Service will provide document upload details when you apply. If you do not have any project partners, you will be able to indicate this in the Funding Service.

Ensure you have prior agreement from project partners so that, if you are offered funding, they will support your project as indicated in the contributions template.

For audit purposes, UKRI requires formal collaboration agreements to be put in place if an award is made.

Do not provide letters of support from host and project co-leads’ research organisations.

Facilities

Word limit: 250

Does your proposed research require the support and use of a facility?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

If you will need to use a facility, follow your proposed facility’s normal access request procedures. Ensure you have prior agreement so that if you are offered funding, they will support the use of their facility on your project.

For each requested facility you will need to provide the:

• name of facility, copied and pasted from the facility information list (DOCX, 35KB)
• proposed usage or costs, or costs per unit where indicated on the facility information list
• confirmation you have their agreement where required

Facilities should only be named if they are on the facility information list above. If you will not need to use a facility, you will be able to indicate this in the Funding Service.

Resources and cost justification

Word limit: 1,000

What will you need to deliver your proposed work and how much will it cost?

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Justify the application’s more costly resources, in particular:

• project staff
• significant travel for field work or collaboration (but not regular travel between collaborating organisations or to conferences)
• any consumables beyond typical requirements, or that are required in exceptional quantities
• all resources that have been costed as ‘Exceptions’
• International collaboration costs
• all facilities and infrastructure costs
• any equipment that will cost more than £10,000

Assessors are not looking for detailed costs or a line-by-line breakdown of all project resources. Overall, they want you to demonstrate how the resources you anticipate needing for your proposed work:

• are comprehensive, appropriate, and justified
• represent the optimal use of resources to achieve the intended outcomes
• maximise potential outcomes and impacts

Management of the flexible fund for sandpit activities (Micro Network Plus applicants only)

Word limit: 1,000

How will you use and manage the flexible fund for sandpit activities?

This question is for Micro Network Plus applicants only. Please enter ‘N/A’ into the text box if you are NOT applying for Micro Network Plus.

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Explain how you will use and manage the flexible fund so that it:

• supports your objectives
• distributes funding appropriately across a diverse range of activities
• where appropriate, distributes funding through robust, transparent competitive processes
• builds capacity in key fields and career stages
• ensures appropriate processes for monitoring, reporting and governance of funded activities

Ethics and responsible research and innovation (RRI)

Word limit: 500

What are the ethical and RRI implications and issues relating to the proposed work? If you do not think that the proposed work raises any ethical or RRI issues, explain why.

What the assessors are looking for in your response

Demonstrate that you have identified and evaluated:

• the relevant ethical or responsible research and innovation considerations
• how you will manage these considerations

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

If you are collecting or using data you should identify:

• any legal and ethical considerations of collecting, releasing and storing the data (including consent, confidentiality, anonymisation, security and other ethical considerations and, in particular, strategies to not preclude further reuse of data)
• formal information standards that your proposed work will comply with

Additional sub-questions (to be answered only if appropriate) relating to research involving:

• animals
• human participants
• genetically modified organisms

Assessment process

We will assess your application using the following process.

Any applications that do not fit the remit of the opportunity will be rejected prior to assessment. Please note that the application must focus on building a research community, not a research project.

Expert panel

We will invite experts to review your application independently, against the specified criteria for this funding opportunity. These experts will then rank it alongside other applications at a panel meeting.

You will have the opportunity to respond to experts’ comments prior to the panel discussion.

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

Timescale

We expect the expert panel to be held in January 2025.

Feedback

We will give feedback summarising the key points from the expert panel discussion with the outcome of your application.

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 criteria

The criteria we will assess your application against are:

• vision of the project and approach to the project
• added value of the micro network or micro network plus
• capability of the applicant and team to deliver the project
• programme leadership and management
• resources requested to do the project
• management of the flexible fund (only applicable to micro networks plus)
• ethical and responsible research and innovation considerations of the project

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

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 UK Research and Innovation (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 healthcare@epsrc.ukri.org

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.

See further information on submitting an application.

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.

Webinar for potential applicants

We will hold a webinar on 6 August at 10:00am UK time. This will provide more information about the funding opportunity and a chance to ask questions.

Register for webinar

Background

Engineering healthier environments is a priority area identified in EPSRC’s health technologies strategy under the Improving Population Health and Prevention Challenge.

The topic also aligns with the Tomorrows Engineering Research Challenges (TERC) report. TERC brought together input from across the research landscape to identify how engineers and engineering has a vital role in addressing many of the world’s most important and urgent challenges during the next 10-15 years. Engineering healthier environments aligns a number of challenges within the report, in particular, the technological challenge of Health and Wellbeing.

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.

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.