University Research Funding: RETF Open Call

A fund that supports colleagues to work on ambitious research projects is now accepting applications.

The University Committee for Research and Innovation (UCRI) invites proposals to the Research Endowment Trust Fund (RETF) Open Call for ambitious and strategic research projects led by academic staff.

The Open Call funds projects between £10,000 and £50,000 for a maximum of two years.

The purpose of the Call is to support ambitious projects that have the potential to lead to larger projects and associated funding bids. Proposals must meet all of the ‘core’ RETF criteria and at least one of the ‘strategic’ criteria.

Core RETF criteria

Applications must meet all of the following:

• Support research excellence at any career stage;
• Deliver value for money with potential to leverage external funding;
• Align to strategic priorities of the University and/or Research Theme.

Strategic RETF criteria

Research proposals must address at least one of the following:

• Demonstrate ambition to achieve growth measured in terms of, for example, research income, scale, methodologies, partnerships, reputation, audiences, etc.;
• Enable high-risk research, for example providing proof of concept to inform external grant applications;
• Support innovation and the translation of research into products and processes, for example through supporting pilot projects.

Eligible costs include salaries (and on-costs) for research, technical and professional staff, and/or teaching replacement as buy-out for academic staff to complete the project.

How to apply

For further information on costings, please contact Research Services: James Church for Agriculture, Food & Health and Environment Research Themes on james.church@reading.ac.uk, or Colin Bulpitt for Heritage & Creativity and Prosperity & Resilience Research Themes on c.d.bulpitt@reading.ac.uk. 

Please ensure all costings for submissions have been reviewed and confirmed by Research Services prior to submission. 

Please note that applicants are expected to adhere to the Researcher Development Concordat, particularly with regard to employing Postdoctoral Research Associates on short-term contracts.

Applicants should demonstrate that funding for the proposed project is not available from other sources, and/or they should specify match funding from internal or external sources. If match funding is not available, applicants should explain why.

The deadline for applications is 17:00, Friday 28 April 2023. Proposals will be considered by UCRI on 6 June.

Applications should be submitted using the online form. Details of the Call can also be accessed via the Research Services Internal Research Funding page.

Any queries may be sent to Dawn Cobbold: d.b.cobbold@reading.ac.uk.