Nucleus Awards for Public Engagement with STFC’s Programme in the UK

Deadline: 10-Nov-22

The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) is seeking applications for Nucleus Awards to engage the public with STFC-supported science, technology or facilities.

Funding Information

• The maximum value that may be sought by organizations covered by full economic cost is £125,000 and the maximum payable by STFC is £100,000.
• For non-full economic cost organisations, the maximum that can be applied for (and awarded) is £100,000.

What are they looking for?

• Scheme remit
  • STFC Nucleus award holders undertake high quality programs of public engagement that inspire and involve target audiences with stories of STFC science, technology and facilities. Award holders may also use Nucleus awards to create and sustain public engagement networks that develop communities of practice.
• engagement programme
  • Proposed engagement programs must either:
    • Clearly focus on the remit of the STFC science programme
    • Clearly and demonstrably aligned to the science and technology work of STFC's national and international laboratories and facilities.
  • STFC's remits are:
    • astronomy
    • Solar and planetary science
    • Particle physics
    • particle astrophysics
    • cosmology
    • Nuclear physics
    • accelerator science.
    • Nucleus awards will not be awarded unless there is a strong and demonstrable link between the proposed activities and STFC science and technology.
• Network and capacity building programs
  • Nucleus awards may also be used for activities that are dedicated to developing community networks or capacity building in public engagement. This may be the sole purpose of a Nucleus award, or an application may combine engagement activities and networking into a coherent package.

Eligibility Criteria

• host institution
  • Organizations that apply must be based in the UK.
  • STFC can only fund organizations that have audited accounts. If this does not describe your organization, you must work in partnership with an organization that can receive the funding on your behalf.
• Applicant eligibility
  • Almost anyone can apply for a Nucleus award, including:
  • Grant-funded researchers
  • STFC scientists, technicians and engineers
  • facility users
  • Schools
  • museum
  • Science communicators
  • Universities
  • colleges
  • Community interest companies
  • libraries.
• The principal applicant must be eligible to apply on behalf of the organization that would hold the award.
• Every application must include a researcher in an STFC-funded area of ​​science or technology. While these researchers often play an active role in delivering the engagement activities, this is not mandatory. They may act as an adviser on the scientific content.
• Any application for digital content needs to include:
  • A demonstration of the 'evidence of need' for any proposed content, and gaps in current provision of such material
  • Evidence that the target audience for any content will be involved in the design and production of such content
  • A plan to facilitate audience participation and two-way engagement
  • A plan (and budget) for keeping the content sustainable in the future
  • Information on licensing in order to promote sharing and reuse of the digital content
  • Acknowledgment of web accessibility rules and regulations.

For more information, visit UKRI.

For more information, visit https://www.ukri.org/opportunity/nucleus-awards-for-public-engagement-with-stfcs-programme/