Career-Launch Research Grants

Social Policy Association, Summer 2026

Deadline for applications: 27 July 2026 (Decisions to be communicated by 21 August 2026.)

Webinar for prospective applicants: 6 July 2026, 12 noon – contact Gideon Calder for details (see below)

For the second time, the SPA has opened a grants scheme specifically aimed at Early Career Researchers (ECRs).  This scheme is dedicated to the facilitation of research.

Its aim is to create space for ECR SPA members to sustain their research momentum and secure concrete achievements at a stage in their career when these things can be especially challenging, due to other pressures and demands, and an increasingly competitive research funding environment.

  • Funds up to £1000 may be applied for, with the possibility of follow-up funding in subsequent rounds.
  • Grants received should be spent in the period September 2026-July 2027.
  • We anticipate that this scheme will run again in similar form in the summer of 2027.

 

WHO MAY APPLY?

Applicants must be:

  • An SPA member at the time of applying
  • An ECR, according to at least one of the following definitions:
    • Within 5 years of PhD graduation date, or completion of equivalent research qualification
    • On a temporary or fixed-term contract, without yet having occupied a permanent academic role
    • Within 2 years of returning from a career break

NB: details on how the applicant fits the relevant definition(s) should be explicitly stated in the application.

Applicants will be assigned a mentor, and may nominate a preferred candidate for this role (see below).

 

SCOPE

This scheme will support research in any area which directly pertains to Social Policy.  For examples of how the SPA interprets the scope of Social Policy as a subject area, see: https://social-policy.org.uk/what-is-social-policy/

 

WHAT MAY CLR GRANT FUNDING BE SPENT ON?

Typical uses of Career-Launch Research Grant funding will include costs incurred in the carrying out of key aspects of the research in question, on items such as:

  • Travel
  • Subsistence
  • Equipment
  • Incentives for research participants, in line with NIHR guidelines

It may not be used

  • for paying staff, employing research assistants or other colleagues
  • as a complement to existing funded projects. (This award must be for a personal research project, independent of any work which is already supported under other research schemes.)

In case of any queries on appropriate use of funds, please contact the SPA Grants Officer – see below.

 

WHAT NEXT?

This is the second iteration of this scheme; the current plan is for it to be reopened each year.  Those successful in previous rounds are eligible to make follow-up applications, to allow the projects in question to evolve and grow.  There is an ultimate limit of £5000 awardable per applicant.  All applications – whether from first-time applicants or previous award-holders – will be assessed simply on their merits, with no automatic priority given to either category.

 

APPLICATION AND ASSESSMENT 

Applications should consist of:

  1. A description of what the funding would be spent on, of no more than 1000 words. The description should include details of
  • The context, focal points, aims and research questions of the work in question
  • Items of proposed spending, with costs outlined as precisely as possible
  • The potential benefits of this work, including any outputs, forms of impact or opportunities for further research it can be expected to generate
  • Evidence that for any relevant aspects of the research to be undertaken, either that ethical approval has already been granted by a host institution or other body as appropriate, or that concrete plans are in place for gaining such approval. In the latter case, evidence of any necessary institutional ethical approval will be required to be provided to the SPA as a condition of the release of awarded funds. (Please note that the SPA are not in a position to provide ethical approval, and cannot be held responsible for actions taken in the course of the work in question.)
  • How dialogue with the mentor will inform the work undertaken. (And a suggested mentor, should the applicant have one in mind.)
  1. A 2-page academic CV

 

REQUIREMENTS FOR SUCCESSFUL APPLICANTS

Recipients of SPA Career Launch Research Grants will be expected to

  • Provide a profile for the SPA website, of themselves and the work in question
  • Write a short report on completion of the work, for the SPA website
  • Share the outcomes of their event via blogs, podcasts and other appropriate media
  • (Where appropriate), provide an article based on their work for the Social Policy Review, or the SPA website.

Translate the research as appropriate into a contribution to the SPA’s annual conference.  (2026-27 CLR grant holders will be eligible for a reduction to the registration fee for the 2027 SPA Conference.)

 

TO APPLY

Please send your application or any enquiries to the SPA Grants Officer, Gideon Calder, via email: g.j.calder@swansea.ac.uk.  Applications should be received by 23:59 (UK Time) on Monday 27 July 2026. Gideon will be very happy to discuss ideas and give feedback on what may be most suitable for the scheme, as well as receiving applications.