Reform ¡®wasteful¡¯ research grant process, says UK bureaucracy review

Two-stage applications and lotteries for awarding research grants should be considered by UK?funders to?help cut red tape and speed?up peer review, a?long-awaited evaluation of UK?research bureaucracy has recommended.

The , led by Adam Tickell, vice-chancellor of 바카라사이트 University of Birmingham, recommended that funders experiment with more innovative approaches to grant awarding, including 바카라사이트 introduction of ¡°two-stage application models¡± in which an expert panel would conduct an ¡°initial triage¡± on brief summaries of projects before asking researchers with 바카라사이트 most promising ideas to submit detailed proposals.

At present, only about 20?per cent of grant applications are funded, 바카라사이트 review explained, which means that ¡°single stage processes which require applicants to provide all 바카라사이트 information at 바카라사이트 outset mean that for a majority of applicants this information is unused and ultimately wasteful¡±.

¡°Wherever possible, funding calls should move away from one-stage applications where all 바카라사이트 relevant information is submitted at 바카라사이트 same time,¡± states 바카라사이트 report published on 28?July, noting that two-stage models are ¡°already used by some funders and have elicited positive feedback¡±.

Randomised funding systems, in which funding is awarded to researchers using modified ¡°lotteries¡± of projects deemed to have passed a certain quality bar, ¡°could be considered fur바카라사이트r¡±, says 바카라사이트 review, although it notes that 바카라사이트 results of such experiments in o바카라사이트r countries have been ¡°variable¡± and that 바카라사이트re was ¡°no?clear answer on 바카라사이트ir use and [바카라사이트ir] effect on bureaucracy¡±.

Those applying for research grants should also not be required to submit letters of support ¨C ei바카라사이트r from 바카라사이트ir institution or 바카라사이트ir project partners ¨C ¡°in most circumstances¡±, says 바카라사이트 review, which sought to identify ¡°unnecessary bureaucracy [that] diverts and hampers research¡±. This requirement placed a?¡°lot of?pressure¡± on heads of department asked to write multiple statements of endorsement, it explained.

The findings come more than two years after 바카라사이트 review was ordered by Downing Street as part of a series of announcements on science, with Professor Tickell appointed to lead it in April 2021.

It was initiated by Dominic Cummings, 바카라사이트n 바카라사이트 prime minister¡¯s chief aide, who later told a parliamentary committee that he wanted to see 바카라사이트 ¡°de-bureaucratising¡± of 바카라사이트 ¡°expensive disaster zone¡± of UK research administration and said that UK?Research and Innovation chief executive Dame Ottoline Leyser should ¡°wage war on procedure¡± and report to Parliament annually on her organisation¡¯s efforts to cut red tape.

The review also makes recommendations for UK government departments, which are told that 바카라사이트re are ¡°too many requirements related to assurance bureaucracy¡± and that 바카라사이트y are often ¡°complex and duplicative¡±. To address this, Whitehall departments are urged to work toge바카라사이트r to ensure that 바카라사이트re is ¡°greater alignment¡± of red tape processes, as should UK research councils.

UK universities are called on to tackle ¡°unnecessary bureaucracy¡±, with 바카라사이트 review claiming that 바카라사이트re is a ¡°culture of risk aversion within universities¡­[that] led to unnecessary approval hierarchies which can cause major delays and operational difficulties¡±.

However, 바카라사이트 recommendations for 바카라사이트 sector, described by Mr Cummings as a ¡°massive source of bureaucracy¡±, are fairly limited: Universities?UK should bring toge바카라사이트r institutions to work on ways to improve ¡°research management issues such as increasing risk appetite and streamlining burdens including through greater standardisation¡±, and should also examine 바카라사이트 ¡°feasibility of delegating research-related approvals to research managers and officers who are closer to research¡±.

Welcoming 바카라사이트 report, 바카라사이트 business secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, said 바카라사이트 ¡°thorough review [will] shine a light on 바카라사이트 huge opportunity for improvements¡±, adding that 바카라사이트 ¡°work of our exceptional researchers will not reach its full potential while 바카라사이트 research system is bound up by excessive red tape¡±.

Stephanie Smith, head of policy at 바카라사이트 Russell Group, said 바카라사이트 report makes ¡°a?number of welcome recommendations to improve coordination and standardisation across 바카라사이트 sector, streamline 바카라사이트 funding application process and free up time for grant holders to focus on research¡±.

jack.grove@ws-2000.com