Published on 24 February 2023
Changes to the Royal Society’s Newton International Fellowship Scheme
We would like to make you aware that the Royal Society has announced some major changes to the Newton International Fellowship this year (deadline 28th March 2023).
Fellowships awarded in the 2023 round will be awarded for three years' duration instead of two and they will move to a Full Economic Cost model. For researchers at higher education institutions, the Royal Society will provide funding at 80% of the FEC for Directly Incurred staff costs, Directly Allocated costs and Indirect costs - this is part of the Society’s wider changes to their costing policy.
There will no longer be capped limits under each of the different budget headings for this scheme, instead, there will be a total maximum grant value for applicants to work within which has been set at £350,000 over three years. Indications are that this budget cap may not be sufficient to cover the staff and research costs anticipated for projects costed over three years and so Departments are encouraged to carefully consider what financial support they would need to provide to supplement these awards.
We are actively discussing our concerns with the Royal Society about the restrictions that this financial cap imposes on the projects and should there be any changes as a result of these discussions, we will circulate further guidance.
In addition, Newton International Fellows will no longer be visiting researchers on a stipend, but salaried employees in receipt of a reasonable salary set by the host institution. This change is significant and Departments should carefully consider the implications of these Fellowships now being offered as employed positions (e.g. associated redundancy costs etc.).
If you have any questions or would like to discuss this scheme in further detail, please contact your Research Development Team in the ROO.
The Cost of Living Payment (COLP) and Grants
The COLP is a non-consolidated pay award that has been awarded to all staff and is an integral element of the salary of staff members. Therefore, the assumption is that this is an eligible cost on a grant for our major research funders that allow salary costs to be claimed in full.
There may be some instances where these costs can’t be met by the grant and the University has established a contingency fund which is available according to criteria around affordability. Further details can be found on this topic which was discussed at the Research Grants User Group meeting on 23rd February.
Researchfish Funder Submission - Deadline 16th March 2023
The deadline for PIs to submit their research outcomes into Researchfish is Thursday 16th March at 4pm for most major funders including UKRI, CRUK, BHF and NIHR. Reporting outcomes are a requirement of accepting an award and PIs who do not comply maybe subject to sanctions from their funder.
Please encourage your PIs to complete their Researchfish submission in good time before the deadline. Further information about Researchfish is available on the ROO website.
Grant Audits - training sessions now available
Our internal auditor for grants is offering some online training sessions for research support staff and PIs for the following funders
| Monday 27 March 9:30am -12noon | Financial Audit of EC Grants |
| Wednesday 29 March 10am -11:15am | Financial Audit of Innovate UK Grants |
| Wednesday 29 March 1pm - 2:15pm | Single Audit of US federal grants (including NIH) |
Topics will include how to prepare for an audit, what documentation you need to support expenditure and the opportunity for Q&A. Once you register for the training, you will be sent an email with the joining link for the session.
Recovering costs for University Secure Research Computing Platform (SRCP) on research grants
When costing your project in X5, please put SRCP under the Non-staff tab as an ‘Other directly incurred’ type cost. Then specify in the description field how many years and how many studies the cost covers. Input VAT can be left at zero rate since this is an internal charge.
Contact your Research Development Team at the Research Operations Office for any queries regarding SRCP that may arise during costing. For any general enquiries about the SRCP not related to costing please contact victoria.hollamby@admin.cam.ac.uk
RGUG Meeting 23rd February - recording and presentations now available
Thank you to those who were able to attend the Research Grants User Group Meeting (RGUG) on 23rd February 2023. The recording and slides are now available. The meeting included an introduction to UKRI’s The Funding Service (TFS) which will replace Je-S, EU updates including guarantee funding and audit updates.
Cambridge Libraries Survey 2023
The Cambridge Libraries Survey is running until Friday 3 March. Give feedback on how you find accessing information, resources, help and training opportunities, as well as what you think about library spaces. Services provided by libraries include online access to journals and databases, and we invite your views whether you use services online or in person at library sites.
All users of libraries at the University are encouraged to respond to the 10-minute survey, and you’ll have the chance to win one of ten £50 Love Cambridge vouchers.