BBSRC collaborative training partnerships - Grant funding opportunity

Sep 11, 2026

Upload by Liam

Open grant opportunity for UK registered businesses to apply for funding to set up and run collaborative training partnerships with research organisations. Partnerships must tackle industrial research challenges and deliver integrated plans for research, innovation and training aligned to UKRI-BBSRC priorities. Up to 10 partnerships may be funded, supporting up to 75 four-year studentships per year across three consecutive intakes, with industry-led leadership and eligible candidate recruitment processes.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLetters

FormatPDF

Pages13

Reading Time5 min

AccessFree to download

Opportunity status

Programme aims

Who can apply

What we're looking for

Working in partnership

Capacity building across sectors and industries of the UK bioeconomy

BBSRC collaborative training partnerships Opportunity status: Open | Funders: | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research | | --- | --- | | | Council ( BBSRC) , UK Research and Innovation | | Funding type: | Grant | | Minimum award: | £22 ,500 ,000 | | Publication date: | 13 January 2021 | | Opening date: | 13 January 2021 | | Closing date: | 5 May 2021 16 :00 UK time | Last updated: 13 January 2021 Start application UK registered businesses can apply for funding to set up and run collaborative training partnerships, in collaboration with research organisations. These partnerships should address industrial research challenges. The programme aims to: build capacity address strategic skills challenges in the UK bioeconomy provide candidates with research, innovation and transferable skills. The lead applicant should not be eligible for UKRI or BBSRC grant funding. We will fund up to 10 partnerships to support up to 75 four-year studentships per year. There will be three consecutive intakes. The first cohort will be in 2022-23 and the final cohort will be in 2024-25. / Who can apply We are keen to see the training of doctoral candidates in centres of research excellence which promote and facilitate inter-and multi-disciplinary working and expose doctoral candidates to a wide range of expertise. Collaborative training partnerships must: be led by industry have a UK research and/or manufacturing base include a lead applicant who is not eligible for UKRI-BBSRC grant funding. CTPs may be led by a single company, but where relevant we encourage multipartner bids involving two or more companies, assuming collaborative agreements are in place. In some instances, it may be appropriate for a defined network to be awarded an allocation of studentships to distribute (either competitively or strategically) on behalf of a consortium of companies, providing that details of how the resultant cohort will be managed are acceptable. Through this approach, UKRI-BBSRC expects integrated plans for research, innovation and training which meet UKRI-BBSRC’s strategic priorities, address sector skills challenges and foster inter-disciplinarity. An industry organisation may only submit one proposal as lead applicant. There is no limit to the number of organisations within the partnership. Applicants are strongly encouraged to contact UKRI-BBSRC for advice if they are considering being part of more than one partnership. Managing a UKRI-BBSRC CTP is a significant undertaking and each potential applicant should consider carefully the benefits vs obligations. Those non-academic organisations not in receipt of CTP funding can still be awarded individual CASE studentships through collaboration with UKRI-BBSRC DTP organisations. What we're looking for Working in partnership We encourage applications from non-academic and academic organisations, including: partners from business academia charities / public sector research establishments ( PSRE) . You can apply to be a full partner or associate partner. Full partners will be expected to: make decisions contribute resources or advice as per an individual agreement. Associate partners will have fewer privileges than full partners, but may still contribute some resource or advice as per an individual agreement. Where associate partners are named on a CTP application, the partnership must demonstrate that there is significant added value from their inclusion. This may include (although is not limited to) : financial commitments to underwrite a number of studentships commitment to cover the costs of access to facilities or training that cannot otherwise be provided strategic links to an important stakeholder or user. Details of any degree-awarding research organisations ( i.e. universities) aligned with the partnership should be included in the application. Eligible research organisations can be included as ‘associate par

FAQs

Which organizations can apply for the BBSRC collaborative training partnerships grant?

UK registered businesses can apply in collaboration with research organisations. Applicants should lead a partnership and meet the eligibility requirements for the lead applicant’s grant status.

What must collaborative training partnerships deliver?

Partnerships must address industrial research challenges and provide integrated plans for research, innovation and training aligned to UKRI-BBSRC strategic priorities and sector skills needs.

How many partnerships and studentships may be funded, and what is the intake schedule?

Up to 10 partnerships can be funded, supporting up to 75 four-year studentships per year. There are three consecutive intakes, with cohorts beginning in 2022-23 and ending in 2024-25.

Sep 11, 2026

Upload by Liam