Guidance Notes for Endowment Research Grants
NOTE: In this guidance document the numbering corresponds to the numbering of the application form for endowment grants
APPLICATIONS AND CONDITIONS OF GRANT
Value of funding
§ Applications should be for funds of no more than £12,000, please be advised that it is unlikely that applications which require funds of over £12,000 will be supported.
§ All projects should result in, or have the potential to result in, benefit to NHS Grampian and the NHS nationally.
§ This funding can be used for “pump-priming” activities that will bring more external funding to NHS Grampian, through subsequent applications to external bodies.
§ Projects that involve patients and/or patients’ samples are encouraged (please contact R&D or the Grampian Biorepository for help and advice regarding this).
§ Fees for a post-graduate degree are not funded but research costs for research contributing to a registered degree will be considered.
Eligibility
§ Grants are available to all medical, dental, scientific and clinical staff including nursing and Allied Health Professional’s (AHP).
§ Funding will only be awarded if funding is not available from another source.
§ Research undertaken with the grant awarded must have a potential importance to future NHS Grampian and the NHS nationally. Basic science and animal is not usually supported if potential to benefit NHS Grampian is not clear.
Responsibilities of the Principal Investigator (PI)
In accordance with the conditions of the grants it is the responsibility of the PI to ensure the following:
§ Funding will only be available for work to be completed within the NHS Grampian catchment area with some funding streams specific to work in specific hospitals.
§ A favourable opinion from Ethics and R&D management permission are in place for the project (if applicable) prior to any research starting. (NHS Grampian Endowment Grants is a funding process that is separate to and has no influence on the R&D management permission process).
§ A replacement PI is identified if the applying investigator is unable to complete the study in the timeframe or if he/she moves out the NHS Grampian catchment area.
§ Up to date contact details (i.e. email, work address for PI or co-applicants) are supplied.
§ Any alteration to the status of the project for any reason that affects the funding awarded (e.g. timeframe, staff changes, delays in obtaining samples / equipment, etc) are detailed in writing to the Endowments’ Administrator as soon as changes / problems are identified.
§ Funding is usually for a maximum of 12 months from the start of the award. Formal request for no-cost extension is required and needs to be approved if funding is required beyond this period.
§ A final report is submitted, on the forms supplied when requested.
§ The PI or one of their co-applicants presents a poster and oral presentation at the Annual Research Symposium.
1 Project Title
Please provide the full title of the project.
1.1 Principal Investigator
This should be the primary contact for the project and person responsible for ensuring that
the terms and conditions of the grant are adhered to.
1.2 Co-Applicants
Please list details of other individuals involved in the project.
1.3 Lay Project Summary
Please provide a lay summary of the project that should be no more than 200 words.
(This summary will be made available on the R&D website)
1.4 Proposed Project Duration
Please state the proposed project duration (in months) and the proposed start date.
2. Speciality Research Fund
Please tick the relevant box to indicate the specific fund to which you wish to apply
Speciality Research Funds (this list will be updated each funding year)§ Cancer
§ General Research
§ General - ARI
§ General - Woodend
§ Heart disease
§ Ophthalmology
§ Parkinson’s Disease
§ Fetal/Perinatal Medicine
§ Psychiatry
§ Thoracic Disease
3. Funding
a. Does this project link to any other project?
If yes please state any ethics reference and /or a linked project identification number.
b. External Funding
Please tick the relevant box that applies to this application with regards to
External Funding and give details of funding body/organisation, date and
reference numbers if known.
4. Research Proposal
Using a maximum of 3 sides of A4, excluding references, please provide information on the proposed research project as detailed below.
a. Background
In no more than 500 words please provide a short and concise explanation of
the relevance to healthcare and summarizing previous work in the field.
b. Aims
Give a brief description of the immediate and longer-term objectives of the research; its relevance to medical, social care and allied conditions should be highlighted.
c. Research Plan
In no more than 1000 words, and in language that is clear and understandable to a lay person, please provide an explanation of what work is proposed and how it will be carried out.
This should form the major part of the application and include information on:
§ Participants to be included in the study and how they will be recruited
§ Research methods to be employed
§ Study design
§ Data processing, management and analysis
d. Key References
References should be given in the text of each subsection of this question and listed in full under this subsection.
e. Diagrams/Charts
If the proposed project is supported by a diagram/chart please append this to the application.
5. Impact on Healthcare
Explain how you would anticipate the results of this study would impact on NHS Grampian and the NHS Scotland nationally.
6. Additional Resources
Please give details of any requirement for additional clinic visits, sample collection, laboratory tests, imaging, pharmacy, radiology or time for patient recruitment at e.g. outpatient clinics which are not included in the research costs of the project. The cost of degree course fees will not be covered by the research grant.
7. Detailed Costs
In the case of a named researcher, the actual salary should be given. Otherwise, salaries should be quoted at the midpoint of the scale in question. Any expenditure to be incurred in the appointment of staff, e.g.advertising, should be provided under ‘Other Staff Expenses’. Please note that NHS Grampian Endowments do not fund the ‘full economic costing’ model used by universities.
Details must be given of all items listed under Consumables, Equipment and the costs (including VAT) should be shown separately.
If an alternative source is not available to cover the cost of posters for presenting at the Research Symposium this should be incorporated into your costs.
Estimates of the financial support required should be based on current costs at the time of application.
8. CV and Publications
For each applicant and proposed member of research staff please attach a current single paged CV (dated & signed) including details of the 5 most recent publications.
9. UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN EMPLOYEES ONLY
Prior to submission applications MUST be checked and authorised by your Head of Division
or Head of School as appropriate.
10. Signatures
All named applicants are required to sign the signature page of the application form. Signatures can be submitted together or on separate pages.
Submission of Application
For queries please contact the Endowments’ Administrator on extension 51121
Checklist:
§ PI and co-applicant signature page(s) attached(can be sent separately in paper form following the initial application if signatories are not available when you are ready to submit) / r
§ CV’s are signed and dated for each applicant and proposed member of research staff / r
§ Appended diagrams/charts attached / r
§ Completed application sent electronically
(Please note if you are an University of Aberdeen employee applications MUST be checked and authorised prior to submission by your Head of Division OR Head of School as appropriate) / r
Completed applications and associated documentation should be submitted electronically to . The signature page can be sent separately in paper form if signatories are not available when application is ready for submission to:
Endowments’ Administrator
Research & Development
Foresterhill House Annexe
Foresterhill
Aberdeen
AB252ZB
Funding Decisions
All funding decisions will be made by a committee comprising of local researchers. The Committee will evaluate the projects and grade appropriately and come to a funding decision.
§ Scientific basis of the investigation
§ The significant importance to future health and social care in NHS Grampian and in Scotland
§ Likelihood of leading onto to further grant application
§ Whether finances are justified
§ Feasibility within the time-scale
Notification of Award
The Principal Investigator for the project will be informed by email whether or not the application has been successful.
Updated September 2017 / Page 3 of 5