UKRI

Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence 2027-2030 – invite only

The questions, word limits and assessment criteria below are the funder’s own, taken from the published competition material. You still submit through their service; this is where the writing happens first.

10 questions, straight from the funder

Their word limits are on every box, counted live as you type, and what the assessor is told to look for sits beside it. All of that is free. The pre-sift check — every mechanical rule that rejects a proposal before anyone reads it, run over what you have written — comes with the pass.

Application questions

Q1 Summary

0 / 550 words

In plain English, provide a summary we can use to identify the most suitable experts to assess your application. We may make this summary publicly available on external-facing websites, therefore do not include any confidential or sensitive information. Make it suitable for a variety of readers, for example: opinion-formers policymakers the public the wider research community

Q2 Vision

0 / 500 words

What are you hoping to achieve with your proposed work?

What the assessor looks for

  • is of excellent quality and importance within or beyond the field(s) or area(s)
  • has the potential to advance current understanding, or generate new knowledge, thinking or discovery within or beyond the field or area
  • is timely given current trends, context, and needs
  • impacts world-leading research, society, the economy, or the environment

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q3 Approach

0 / 2500 words

How are you going to deliver your proposed work?

What the assessor looks for

  • is effective and appropriate to achieve your objectives
  • is feasible, and comprehensively identifies any risks to delivery and how they will be managed
  • uses a clearly written and transparent methodology (if applicable)
  • summarises the previous work and describes how this will be built upon and progressed (if applicable)
  • will maximise translation of outputs into outcomes and impacts
  • describes how your, and if applicable your team’s, research environment (in terms of the place and relevance to the project) will contribute to the success of the work
  • provide a detailed and comprehensive project plan including milestones and timelines
  • clearly describe both the framework and specific analysis methods proposed and explain the reasons for their choice. You should particularly mention any innovation in this or how different methodologies or methods may be combined
  • explain what steps you will take to provide opportunities for users to benefit from your research, and to ensure that your research has maximum economic and societal impact

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q4 Applicant and team capability to deliver

0 / 1650 words

Why are you the right individual or team to successfully deliver the proposed work?

What the assessor looks for

  • the relevant experience (appropriate to career stage) to deliver the proposed work
  • the right balance of skills and expertise to cover the proposed work
  • the appropriate leadership and management skills to deliver the work and your approach to develop others
  • contributed to developing a positive research environment and wider community
  • contributions to the generation of new ideas, tools, methodologies, or knowledge
  • the development of others and maintenance of effective working relationships
  • contributions to the wider research and innovation community
  • contributions to broader research or innovation users and audiences and towards wider societal benefit

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q5 Resources and cost justification

0 / 1000 words

What will you need to deliver your proposed work and how much will it cost?

What the assessor looks for

  • project staff
  • significant travel for field work or collaboration (but not regular travel between collaborating organisations or to conferences)
  • any equipment that will cost more than £25,000
  • any consumables beyond typical requirements, or that are required in exceptional quantities
  • all facilities and infrastructure costs
  • all resources that have been costed as ‘Exceptions’
  • are comprehensive, appropriate, and justified
  • represent the optimal use of resources to achieve the intended outcomes
  • maximise potential outcomes and impacts

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q6 Ethics and responsible research and innovation (RRI)

What are the ethical and RRI considerations, implications and issues relating to the proposed work? If you do not think that the proposed work raises any ethical or RRI issues, explain why.

What the assessor looks for

  • the relevant ethical and RRI considerations, including both the research or topic area itself and the design and delivery of the project
  • the wider implications of the proposed work, and how you will maximise the positive societal, environmental, and economic benefits arising from the project, while minimising unintended negative impacts, such as research misuse or accidental harm
  • how you will manage these considerations throughout the lifecycle of the project

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q7 Project partners letters or emails of support

Upload a single PDF containing the letters or emails of support from each partner you named in the Project Partner section. These should be uploaded in English or Welsh only.

What the assessor looks for

  • confirm the partner’s commitment to the project
  • clearly explain the value, relevance, and possible benefits of the work to them
  • describe any additional value that they bring to the project
  • be no more than one A4 page in length

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q8 Facilities

0 / 250 words

Does your proposed research require the support and use of a facility? The ARCHER2 service will end on 21 November 2026, and UKRI is currently transitioning to a new compute landscape. Until details of new compute provision are confirmed, applicants who require HPC resources beyond November 2026 have been advised to select ARCHER2 at application and to describe their compute requirements in full. Other compute investments to be aware of include: EPSRC Tier 2 facilities ended in March 2026 Isambard 3 is currently funded until March 2027 National Compute Resources will come online in 2026 (Recen

What the assessor looks for

  • name of facility, copied and pasted from the facility information list (DOCX, 43KB)
  • proposed usage or costs, or costs per unit where indicated on the facility information list
  • confirmation you have their agreement where required

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q9 Data management and sharing

0 / 500 words

How will you manage and share data collected or acquired through the proposed work?

What the assessor looks for

  • plan for the research through the life cycle of the award until data is accepted for archiving by the UK Data Service (UKDS) or a responsible data repository.
  • demonstrate compliance with ESRC’s Research Data Policy and Framework for Research Ethics . This should include confirmation that existing datasets have been reviewed and why currently available datasets are inadequate for the proposed research.
  • cover any legal and ethical considerations of collecting, releasing or storing the data, including consent, confidentiality, anonymisation, security and other ethical issues.
  • include any challenges to data sharing (for example, copyright or data confidentiality), with possible solutions discussed to optimise data sharing.

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

Q10 Governance

0 / 500 words

How will you manage the award to successfully deliver its objectives?

What the assessor looks for

  • will be effectively governed, including details about advisory structures and how the Funders Group will represent each of the funding organisations and how it will be established
  • will be effectively and inclusively managed, demonstrated by a clear management plan
  • will involve the Funders Group in the decision of programmes of work and projects within them
  • has clear leadership team roles and responsibilities
  • will manage and encourage partnerships with non-HEI organisations across government, industry and civil society
  • has plans for monitoring your progress as well as self-evaluation throughout the lifetime of your award
  • will put in place appropriate governance and administration to deliver the range of devolved funding opportunities
  • has equality, diversity and inclusion embedded in plans for convening and engaging with their community and the allocation of the awarded funds

A filled dot only means your answer mentions that ground. It is not a judgement of how well.

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