Updated research FAQs: Research awards
03 Apr 2020
Frequently asked questions are updated regularly
This advice is correct at the time of publication of this news article.
If you have health concerns then you should refer to the NHS website as recommended by Public Health England, however to make other queries regarding the current situation you can email coronavirus-info@manchester.ac.uk.
The following question has been updated:
What should I do if I have recently received an award to carry out my research, or will receive one before the end of June 2020?
Please consider if starting the project now is absolutely necessary given the circumstances. Main UK research funders have indicated that they will take a pragmatic approach to project timescales and researchers are advised to delay the start of a project for at least two to three months or until the national picture is clearer.
There will be some awards where it is beneficial to continue with setup/start and Research Services will prioritise support for these. Examples are provided below:
Awards that focus on lone scholar work, where the researcher is already in post and the early months of the project can be conducted remotely.
Awards where an existing PDRA or staff member will be transferring to the project and this ensures continuity of service for these staff. Note that the early stages of the project may need to be re-planned to take account of remote working.
Where an award is currently in the process of being started, or due to be, via the purchase of equipment researchers should pause the start process and follow the latest guidance from procurement before proceeding further.
Where a new award requires the appointment of a new staff member, recruitment should be deferred in line with the funder’s position on start and finish dates for recent awards and the University’s position on approval of new appointments. Research Services will prioritise support for award set-up to those which do not require the recruitment of external staff in the next three months.
Where a no-cost extension would mean the project will run beyond the contract end date for project funded staff, the PI must contact their local Research Services team to establish if the funder will meet these staff costs. Where the funder has not agreed to meet these additional staff costs, the Research Services team will establish the additional cost likely to be incurred by the University and the Dean of Faculty will need to approve.