GKE 2015-18 GUIDANCE NOTES
Glasgow KE Fund (2015-18) application guidance
The aims of the Glasgow KE fund are to:
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Support an informed and collaborative approach to the development, implementation,
adoption and exploitation of research outcomes, including technologies, processes,
evidence-based policy, community impact or creative outputs;
Support the building of sustained and strategic relationships with external partners,
deepening the engagement between our research base and research users in all sectors in
order to increase the opportunities for knowledge exchange and impact generation. This will
include pump-priming industry-led schemes such as Horizon2020 or Innovate UK, and
helping to leverage funds from the Innovation Centres, Catapults and other regional
development funds.
Make early-stage investment in technologies destined for commercialisation (i.e. technical
proof of concept and commercial proof of market) to support the de-risking of these
opportunities to for spin-out or co-development/licensing with existing companies;
Help develop a culture of public engagement with local, national and global partners, with a
particular focus on creating strong, well-evidenced potential case studies, underpinned by
appropriate research, as will be required for REF2020.
Nurture a sustainable pipeline of new impact case studies and success stories from across
the University.
Eligible Activities
It is recognised that the journey from research to impact is complex and rarely follows a standard
path and creative mechanisms for development are often required. The examples given below are
indicative only and we will consider all proposals that fit within the Fund’s overarching aims:
1. Impact Acceleration Activities
Funding is available to support a range of KE interventions, with a focus on small-scale investments
that pump-prime wider KE and impact-generating activities. Examples include:
 Flexible support for secondments (inward or outward) between the University and a nonacademic partner organisation, company or agency from any sector, ranging from weeks to
months.
 Support for the early stages of turning research outputs into a commercial proposition to
enable further external investment or development. Examples include:
 undertaking market and commercial assessments or surveys;
 developing toolkits;
 building prototypes or demonstrators;
 application-focussed feasibility projects; and
 proof-of-concept work.
 Support for developing early stage research outputs or engaging with policy-makers, other
user communities or the general public in order to generate impact in this areas. Examples
include:
 Community and policy-related engagements and events;
 Other public engagement events, providing they are structured in a way that
 The development of toolkits, guidance notes, workshops and websites etc., to
translate research outputs relevant and appropriate to partner organisations.
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 Staff buy-out, Fellowships and Internships to work on specific KE projects.
 Funding for engaging with businesses and other non-academic organisations (regional and
national, from any sector) to sow the seeds of new collaborations and more strategic
engagement.
2. Training and Networking Activities
These activities can be critical for the identification, creation and execution of KE opportunities. It is
a two-way process of us letting end-users know our skills and research expertise and for the
university to find out more about key business / end-user challenges, so that we can identify
appropriate partners and mechanisms for KE.
Examples of the types of activities we will support include:
 Knowledge exchange sandpits and events.
 Workshops to showcase research outcomes and help embed research outcomes into
practice.
 Attendance at key industry / end-users events to showcase KE opportunities.
 Targeted entrepreneurial and KE training for individuals and groups.
 The development of targeted KE plans for networks, groups, centres or institutes.
Process: We expect that these activities will generally involve groups or networks of academics and
therefore invite applications on behalf of networks, centres, institutes or schools. Where possible,
RSIO will support groups in developing and implementing activities.
Project Criteria and Review Process
All funded projects will be expected to meet one or more of the aims listed above. In addition to this
it is a requirement that projects build on prior research, the bulk of which has been carried out at
University of Glasgow. The scheme will not fund new research projects.
Applications will be assessed by a Review Group, with representation from across the University.
Bids will be assessed on their potential for impact generation and not on the original research and
applicants should focus on the work to be done and the likely impacts. The Head of School will need
to pre-approve applications prior to submission.
Assessment of the applications will take into account:
 The quality of the underpinning research and its potential for generating impact
 A clear explanation of how the funding will be used to progress the research output towards
impact
 The quality of the business case, including:
o evidence of demand from partner organisation, e.g. cash or in-kind contributions,
letter of support, etc;
o understanding of the requirements;
o a clear plan of activities, outcomes and next steps; and
o a clear route to market or application of the outputs (pathway to impact).
 The potential to secure or leverage additional funding.
 Value for money and justification of resources required.
The application process will be light touch, requiring a short application. Applications will be
reviewed and amendments may be requested prior to circulation to the panel. Normally the panel is
given 7-10 days to review and feedback on applications.
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It is expected that funded projects will be between 1-3 months in duration with a funding allocation
of up to £30,000. Projects will be expected to start within 2 months of the funding decision.
However, we recognise that some projects may be looking for approval to start planning for an
event beyond this period or to enable them to attract further matched funding which may take
longer and we encourage applications of this nature. Project leads will be expected to provide
regular short updates on progress against the pre-determined work-plan.
For collaborative projects with external organisations or companies, it would be expected that they
will make a significant contribution (up to 50% cash or in-kind) to the project. In-kind contributions
will include specific staff time undertaking part of the project, access to equipment, provision of
materials or other items. In addition, a collaboration agreement would need to be in place prior to
the project starting.
Eligible Costs
Project costs are expected to be in the region of £5,000-30,000 and typically not last more than 2-4
months. The funding is designed to be flexible and can cover items such as:
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Staff
Consumables
Small equipment
Travel
Workshops and seminars
Specialist sub-contract work
 Projects will not include FEC.
 The KE Fund has been set up to support the exploitation of existing research, and does not
cover new research costs.
Application Submission
You are strongly advised to contact a member of the RSIO team or a College-based business
development person, for advice and guidance prior to submitting your application:
College Resources
MVLS: Caroline Woodside or Jonathan Scott, Research and Business Development Office
Arts: Fraser Rowan, Knowledge Exchange and Impact Manager
Social Sciences: Carlos Galan-Diaz, Research Impact Manager, or Fiona Heatlie, Business
Development Manager
Science and Engineering: Lynne Brown, Business Development Manager, or David Nisbet, Research
Development Manager
RSIO Contacts
Rose-Marie Barbeau, Research Impact Manager
Gordon Meiklejohn, Business Development Manager (Innovate UK/KTP)
Jamie Gallagher, Public Engagement Officer
Completed applications should be submitted to Jaclyn McCann, tel: 0141 330 4881.
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Electronic submissions are acceptable for application review purposes but a signed paper application
should follow (signed and dated by all partners) and will be required prior to the project start.
Project Monitoring and Reporting
As the success of the project is based on the quality of the impact, we will work closely with all
projects to ensure progression. We will also monitor project progress against defined milestones. In
addition the development of impact case studies and a final report will be required, focussing on the
outcomes of the work undertaken.
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