Deadline: 15-Jan-2026
The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) provides support to the creation of innovative, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary networks to advance the UK’s circular economy through the Reimagining Circularity NetworkPlus Programme.
The opportunity aims to build inclusive, collaborative UK networks that advance circular economy research and practice. Its key goals include fostering interdisciplinary communities, encouraging innovation and safe experimentation, identifying research priorities, enhancing knowledge exchange, and supporting early-stage feasibility studies.
It seeks to stimulate cross-sector collaborations, fund translational research and engage non-academic partners. Additionally, it promotes good research practices—such as responsible innovation, ethics, and equality—and aims to accelerate the real-world impact of circular economy solutions.
This joint EPSRC–Defra initiative seeks to establish three NetworkPlus investments within three specific challenge areas: built environment, data and metrics, and textiles. These networks are expected to deliver a “Plus” element that accelerates collaboration and translation through flexible funds, encompassing seed-corn funding, feasibility studies, and research-to-innovation activities.
Each network will function as a catalyst for advancing circular economy practices, fostering long-term partnerships among academia, industry, government, and third-sector organisations.
The three challenge areas focus on advancing circular economy practices across critical sectors. The built environment challenge promotes reuse, refurbishment, sustainable material use, and circular construction models.
The textiles challenge aims to foster sustainable design, durable manufacturing, and circular business practices throughout the textile value chain. The data and metrics challenge seeks to strengthen the development and use of circularity indicators, data frameworks, and traceability systems to measure and support circular economy progress.
Projects may request up to £5.41 million (100% full economic cost), with EPSRC providing up to 80% of this value for a duration of up to 36 months. At least 60% of total funds must be allocated to flexible funds, with half of that portion directed toward research-to-innovation or translational activities that accelerate the route to market.
Applicants must be based at UK research organisations eligible for EPSRC funding, such as higher education institutions, research council institutes, or approved independent research organisations.
Each NetworkPlus must adopt an inter- or transdisciplinary approach and include industrial partners as an essential component. Teams are also encouraged to engage early and mid-career researchers as well as professional enabling staff in leadership and management roles.
Each NetworkPlus must establish transparent governance and advisory structures, including an independent advisory board with EPSRC and Defra representation, and demonstrate robust management, evaluation, and stakeholder engagement strategies.
The networks will play a key role in supporting UK government strategies for achieving net zero, reducing avoidable waste by 2050, and promoting a resilient and regenerative economy.
Through cross-sectoral collaboration, evidence generation, and inclusive research practices, they are expected to build leadership capacity, stimulate innovation, and drive systemic change in circular economy policy and practice across the UK.
For more information, visit UKRI.