Programmes and Grants at the Nuffield Foundation Sharon Witherspoon Deputy Director

 Endowed charitable trust, annual spend £11 million  General objective: ‘the advancement of social well-being, particularly by means of scientific research’ The Nuffield Foundation

Main Areas of Activity  Social research, social science and social policy  Education  Science (mainly new capacity and some areas of science policy, especially Bioethics)

Research Funding by Charities  Picture is dominated by medical research funding.  Wellcome Trust £550m pa. (about £30m Social Science & Humanities)  Fund raising charities (eg Cancer Research UK at £200m pa; BHFn at £75m pa)  See AMRC website.  Only a few Foundations fund non-medical research, e.g., Nuffield, Leverhulme, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Esmée Fairbairn, Paul Hamlyn, Sutton Trust.  New context of government cuts in higher education, research councils, government social research spending.  For information on non-medical Foundations see ACF website.

Context I: Tough Times  Cuts in central spending on Universities (teaching and research) and research councils of uncertain magnitude but large (after decade of growth)  Concern over concentration in research: - Protection of infrastructure important (especially QM and empirical studies) - But social science excellence can be dispersed  Consideration of effects on research and on teaching/training

Context II: Social Science Evidence and Public Benefit  Impact Agenda: - Wider ‘public benefit’ - Incentives for institutional support, NOT every project - Longer-term benefit - Want vigorously to promote view that social science evidence matters: - for policy, practice, public understanding and debate  Important criteria for choice of funding: - Is it important? - What will be done with findings by whom: - Various models - But serious and concrete discussion expected

Grant Programmes For Social Research & Policy or Practice Innovation - Self-contained, usually larger grants - Implications for policy or practice in short or medium term - Grants of £10k - £300k (larger grants over more than one year)

Grant Programmes  Engagement with real world: - Implications for policy or practice – “Impact”  Both practical projects and research: - Critical synthetic reviews, pulling together evidence - Evaluation - Self-contained research projects  Methodological rigour: - NO preference for any one method - But methodology must be appropriate  Responsive – NOT REACTIVE – mode: - W e commission some projects - And have areas of special interest

10 Key Criteria: Questions Trustees ask  Is the topic important and of interest to the Foundation?  Are the results of wider interest, or ‘fancy that’ research?  Is the research design rigorous and appropriate? Methodology of highest standard, apt for questions being asked?  Is the right sort of team assembled?  Does project have implications for policy or practice?  Does the plan for communication back this up?

11  University overheads are NOT funded Except in exceptional circumstances (i.e. commissioned work)  Relatively flexible view of direct costs Includes secretarial support, 100 % of all directly-related costs, except estate costs for PIs  PI Costs (largely) included Want adequate senior time but no gaming of system  Budgets are scrutinised  No one way of working with grantholders: Often use advisory committees, have closer involvement, if we can add value Research & Innovation Funding

12 Full economic costs: PI salaries  Salary limit of £75k p.a.  Up to ½ day a week: not eligible  ½ day to 2 days: eligible, but describe what you will do (quantum judged by peer reviewers and Trustees)  Over 2 days: special case, including relief from teaching and administration  REMEMBER: The Foundation pays 100% of eligible costs but NO overheads (‘indirect costs’)

13 Areas of Special Interest  Social Research and Innovation  Children and families£1,000k pa  Law in Society£600k pa  “Open Door”£1,400k pa  Education £ 1,200k pa  Foundations for learning (language, maths in early years)  Science and maths curriculum and teaching  Secondary school transitions

14 Wide ranging interests : –Ensuring social policy takes account of what we know about child development, especially for vulnerable children –Child welfare in broader institutional context: child care; early years; education policy; –Children growing up in adverse conditions, including child protection and placement –Family law : Legal, financial and family aspects of divorce and separation, cohabitation, child support –Changing Adolescence Programme Children and Families Programme

15 Law in Society  Mainly empirical studies  Administrative justice  Tribunals, ombudsmen and non-court forms of dispute resolution  Enforcement: what happens after adjudication  Mental health and welfare law  Cross-national comparisons, especially European comparisons

16 Open Door Special Themes in:  Poverty, welfare and redistribution  Making better law: Scrutiny of law making, constitution  Older people: Financial circumstances and economic planning for later life (pensions and long-term care)  Independent reviews of current statutory provision across broad range of issues  In all areas, European comparisons are of special interest, as are cross-disciplinary approaches (e.g., cohabitation)

17 Grants for Research & Innovation: Application Procedure  Full details given in our Website  Procedure: - 3 page outline - In-house scrutiny of full application - Referees: independent and peer review but this may include experts other than academics - Decision by Trustees

II. Capacity-building programmes - Each has own particular purpose - Mainly social science, science, or Africa programme - Not linked to policy or practice - Changing context and concern over longer- term capacity

19  Science bursaries: - School bursaries -- summer placements in labs etc - Undergraduate bursaries – summer placements on research projects - Oliver Bird post-graduate awards in rheumatology research  Other programmes - Nuffield Africa Programme Capacity-building programmes

20 Social Science Capacity-building (Current)  Small grants ONLY to Dec 17 th : Awards up to £15,000  Aim to develop research capacity in areas of special interest to us: −Children and families −Education −Law and society −Older people and their finances −Government, law-making and constitutional change −Poverty and welfare, redistribution −Cross national comparisons −Reviews of government policy or practice

21 Social Science Capacity-building (2011)  New scheme under development for long-term capacity  Focus on QUANTITATIVE METHODS in areas OTHER than economics and psychology (social policy; family; law; etc)  Aimed at undergraduates and master’s students  Value added and innovation as key criteria  Centre funding: expect to spend £1.2m P.A. on 5-8 centres

22 ‘the advancement of social well- being, particularly by means of scientific research’