Opportunity status:
Open
Funders:
Funding type:
Grant
Total fund:
£18,200,000
Maximum award:
£18,200,000
Publication date:
21 August 2025
Opening date:
3 September 2025 9:00am UK time
Closing date:
25 September 2025 4:00pm UK time
Apply for funding to host and manage the central programme delivery hub for the Distributed System of Scientific Collections (DiSSCo) UK programme. In partnership with the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC). You will deliver support, training and central management for the digitisation of UK natural science collections.
This is a closed funding opportunity, for application by invitation only.
The full economic cost (FEC) of your proposal can be up to £18.2 million to cover the ten-year duration of the programme (1April 2026 to 31 March 2036). AHRC will fund 100% of the FEC.
This is a closed funding opportunity, for application by invitation only, owing to the conditions required for successful delivery of the programme within the time and budget available.
To lead a project, you must be based at an eligible organisation. .
Who is eligible to apply
This is a closed funding opportunity – only those invited to apply are eligible.
Equality, diversity and inclusion
for all funding applicants. We encourage applications from a diverse range of researchers.
This funding opportunity is closed, with respect to the organisations able to apply. However, within the organisation, we strongly encourage leadership and participation from a diverse range of people.
We support people to work in a way that suits their personal circumstances. This includes:
* career breaks
* support for people with caring responsibilities
* flexible working
* alternative working patterns
for UKRI applicants and grant holders during the application and assessment process.
Aim
This is a funding opportunity for the team who will partner with the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) to deliver the Distributed System of Scientific Collections (DiSSCo) UK research infrastructure programme over ten years.
This infrastructure will unlock the enormous potential of Natural Science Collections (NSC) to support research on climate change and biodiversity loss, deliver a step change in the capability and capacity of the UK collections sector, and drive economic growth through technological innovation.
The aim of this funding opportunity is to create a central delivery hub to provide support, training (including in digitisation and data mobilisation), oversight and management of the DiSSCo UK digitisation programme.
We expect the grant holder to work closely with AHRC to explore and capitalise on the opportunities to expand the benefits of cultural data, and AI in cultural heritage, to the wider sector
Scope
The funding opportunity is for a single ten-year grant, spanning the duration of the DiSCCo UK programme.
The application should provide details as to how available funding will support the work of three to six digitisation hubs in the first two years, and how that could be expanded to more hubs as the programme progressed. It should include details for the following:
* advertise development opportunities and deliver cohort training in digitisation and data mobilisation
* maintain training resources for example, workflows
* work with AHRC to monitor the progress of the digitisation hubs
* provide leadership to the digitisation hubs
* publish data and apply data standards
* support users of the infrastructure
The application should outline how the requirements of the digitisation hubs will be identified and how they will be supported over the ten years.
The application should provide details of the central delivery programme’s management and governance structure. The structure should enable the participation of the wider DiSSCo UK consortium in the shape and direction of the overall programme.
You are expected to work with AHRC-funded digitisation hubs to ensure resources provided through DiSSCo UK (for example, workflows) are suitable for their needs. It is also expected that resources will be maintained throughout the life of the programme.
The application will need to articulate how you will work with us, to ensure you are delivering support that is responsive to regional digitisation hub needs.
You are not expected to provide a full ten-year programme of work at the application stage as the central hub will need to be responsive to programme needs. You are asked to outline the principles that it will use to decide on activities throughout the period of the award. It should include an indication of the type of activities it will provide.
For more information on the background of this funding opportunity, go to the Additional information section.
Duration
The maximum duration of this award is ten years, and this grant will end by 31 March 2036. There will be a gateway review in 2027/28, and likely two additional reviews at later stages in the programme, with continued funding conditional on approval.
In the event of programme funding being discontinued, we will work with the grant holder to manage continued service provision where possible. Beyond the end of the ten-year programme grant, we will work with the grant holder to develop a sustainable funding model for the infrastructure.
Please note that the planned start date of 1 April 2026 is subject to business case approvals, and the actual earliest start date could be later.
Funding available
The FEC of your project can be up to £18.2 million.
AHRC will fund 100% of the FEC.
Supporting skills and talent
We encourage you to follow the principles of the and the .
Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I)
UKRI is committed in ensuring that effective international collaboration in research and innovation takes place with integrity and within strong ethical frameworks. Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I) is a UKRI work programme designed to help protect all those working in our thriving and collaborative international sector by enabling partnerships to be as open as possible, and as secure as necessary. Our set out UKRI’s expectations of organisations funded by UKRI in relation to due diligence for international collaboration.
As such, applicants for UKRI funding may be asked to demonstrate how their proposed projects will comply with our approach and expectation towards TR&I, identifying potential risks and the relevant controls you will put in place to help proportionately reduce these risks.
, including where you can find additional support.
We are running this funding opportunity on the new UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Funding Service so please ensure that your organisation is registered. You cannot apply on the Joint Electronic Submissions (Je-S) system.
The project lead is responsible for completing the application process on the Funding Service, but we expect all team members and project partners to contribute to the application.
Only the lead research organisation can submit an application to UKRI.
To apply
This funding opportunity is by invitation only. When received, please click on the invitation link to start your application. This will take you to the Funding Service.
1. Confirm you are the project lead.
2. Sign in or create a Funding Service account. To create an account, select your organisation, verify your email address, and set a password. If your organisation is not listed, email
Please allow at least 10 working days for your organisation to be added to the Funding Service. We strongly suggest that if you are asking UKRI to add your organisation to the Funding Service to enable you to apply to this opportunity, you also create an organisation Administration Account. This will be needed to allow the acceptance and management of any grant that might be offered to you.
3. Answer questions directly in the text boxes. You can save your answers and come back to complete them or work offline and return to copy and paste your answers. If we need you to upload a document, follow the upload instructions in the Funding Service. All questions and assessment criteria are listed in the How to apply section on this Funding finder page.
4. Allow enough time to check your application in ‘read-only’ view before sending to your research office.
5. Send the completed application to your research office for checking. They will return it to you if it needs editing.
6. Your research office will submit the completed and checked application to UKRI.
Where indicated, you can also demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant.
When including images, you must:
* provide a descriptive caption or legend for each image immediately underneath it in the text box (this must be outside the image and counts towards your word limit)
* insert each new image on a new line
* use files smaller than 5MB and in JPEG, JPG, JPE, JFI, JIF, JFIF, PNG, GIF, BMP or WEBP format
Images should only be used to convey important visual information that cannot easily be put into words. The following are not permitted, and your application may be rejected if you include:
* sentences or paragraphs of text
* tables
* excessive quantities of images
A few words are permitted where the image would lack clarity without the contextual words, such as a diagram, where text labels are required for an axis or graph column.
For more guidance on the Funding Service, see:
* * *
References
References should be included within the word count of the appropriate question section. You should use your discretion when including references and prioritise those most pertinent to the application.
Hyperlinks can be used in reference information. When including references, you should consider how your references will be viewed and used by the assessors, ensuring that:
* references are easily identifiable by the assessors
* references are formatted as appropriate to your research
* persistent identifiers are used where possible
General use of hyperlinks
Applications should be self-contained. You should only use hyperlinks to link directly to reference information. You must not include links to web resources to extend your application. Assessors are not required to access links to conduct assessment or recommend a funding decision.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI)
Use of generative AI tools to prepare funding applications is permitted, however, caution should be applied.
For more information see our policy on the .
Deadline
AHRC must receive your application by 25 September 2025 at 4:00pm UK time.
You will not be able to apply after this time.
Make sure you are aware of and follow any internal institutional deadlines.
Following the submission of your application to the funding opportunity, your application cannot be changed, and applications will not be returned for amendment. If your application does not follow the guidance, it may be rejected.
Personal data
Processing personal data
AHRC, as part of UKRI, will need to collect some personal information to manage your Funding Service account and the registration of your funding applications.
We will handle personal data in line with UK data protection legislation and manage it securely. For more information, including how to exercise your rights, read our .
Sensitive information
If you or a core team member need to tell us something you wish to remain confidential, email
Include in the subject line: [the funding opportunity title; sensitive information; your Funding Service application number].
Typical examples of confidential information include:
* individual is unavailable until a certain date (for example due to parental leave)
* declaration of interest
* additional information about eligibility to apply that would not be appropriately shared in the ‘Applicant and team capability’ section
* conflict of interest for UKRI to consider in reviewer or panel participant selection
* the application is an invited resubmission
For information about how UKRI handles personal data, read .
Institutional Matched Funding
There is no requirement for matched funding from the institution(s) hosting the project lead, project co-leads or other staff employed on the application, beyond any 20% FEC contribution. UKRI advises reviewers and panel members not to consider the level of matched host institution funding as a factor on which to base funding recommendations. Any project partners are expected to contribute to the project, either with cash or in-kind contributions.
Publication of outcomes
If your application is successful, we will publish some personal information on the.
Summary
Word limit: 550
In plain English, provide a summary we can use to identify the most suitable experts to assess your application.
We usually 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
Guidance for writing a summary
Clearly describe your proposed work in terms of:
* context
* the challenge the project addresses
* aims and objectives
* potential applications and benefits
Core team
List the key members of your team and assign them roles from the following:
* project lead (PL)
* project co-lead (UK) (PcL)
* specialist
* grant manager
* professional enabling staff
* technician
Only list one individual as project lead.
UKRI has introduced a new addition to the ‘Specialist’ role type. Public contributors such as people with lived experience can now be added to an application.