Research funding
In the UK, there are many organisations with responsibility for and interest in funding empirical research in law. The major ones are the research councils and government departments. However, there are others including charities of various kinds and the private sector. This section attempts to provide information and links to the main ones. Most funding bodies offer email alert services which allow users to register for regular updates informing interested parties of the approach of deadlines or new calls for proposals.
If you have any comments on this page or know of other sources of funding for empirical legal research, please contact Professor Angela Melville at the University of Manchester.
Research councils
There are seven research councils in the UK with a budget totalling £2.8 bn to invest in research. The two that are of interest to empirical legal researchers are the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
The AHRC was established in 2005 and has responsibility for funding a huge range of subject areas which specifically includes law under its Panel 8. According to its own guidance, the AHRC defines the type of legal projects that are eligible for funding as: ‘Law may include doctrinal, theoretical, empirical, comparative or other studies of law and legal phenomena. . . . The AHRC focuses on studies where the focus is on the content or procedures of the law.’ Exensive information about applying is available on the AHRC website including the 2007/08 Research Funding Guide. Schemes include Research Grants, Research Leave, Research Networks and Workshops plus three schemes for postgraduate awards.
The ESRC offers Research Grants and Research Fellowships on a regular cycle. In addition, there is a full list of current opportunities and open calls on the website plus information about support for postgraduates. The ESRC Research Funding Guide gives full details of all the schemes. In the research section of its website, the ESRC states: ‘Out of our budget of £119 million nearly two thirds is spent on research and just under one third on training. In any one year we fund more than 2,000 students ensuring future generations of skilled social scientists. Our research funding schemes enable individuals and groups to pursue world-class research in academic institutions and independent research centres throughout the UK. This can be through our research centres and groups, fellowships, research grants, programme and networks or research resources.’
Government departments
Most government departments have research budgets and legal research forms and important part of their research agendas. There is a clear need for much of this to be empirical research but departments differ in their approach to commissioning. Most departmental websites have sections where they describe and publish their research. However, it is unclear on many of them how they choose and commission researchers, whether they invite tenders or whether they have preferred suppliers. A full list of government departments is available at the Guide to Government.
The Department of Health commisions a great deal of research and details of calls for proposals are available in the Research and Development section of its website.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has three funding programmes: the Global Opportunities Fund (GOF); Conflict Prevention Pools (CPPs); and it also supports scholarships and fellowships. The GOF alone amounts to £70 m for 2007–08 and its priorities include counterterrorism and human rights. There is detailed information on all aspects of funding on the FOC website
The Home Office recently introduced a new Framework Agreement for suppliers. This is a closed list and all spaces have been filled. However, they do invite expressions of interest by researchers for future research priorities and it is possible to register for this on their website in order to be given the opportunity to tender when new opportunities occur.
In 2007, the Ministry of Justice replaced the Department for Constiutional Affairs. The website of the new department lacks some of the detail of its predecessor and some of the links relating to research funding still lead back to the old DCA website. In the autumn of 2007 the MoJ introduced a new system based on a Framework Agreement, similar to the Home Office system, and it seems that its list is also closed. Information about gaining access to information about the courts and contact details for the Research Unit can be found on Her Majesty’s Court Service website
Charities and other organisations
The British Academy is an independent fellowship of more than 800 elected scholars. One of its aims is to support postdoctoral research through its grants scheme. A full guide to funding opportunities is available on the BA website. These include fellowships, small grants, research development awards, research projects, conference grants and funding for a variety of international activities. The academy also adminsters a number of special private funds. According to the academy’s statistical information, 78 per cent of law applications in 2006–07 for small research grants and 67 per cent for larger research grants were successful.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation funds programmes of research and disseminates the findings to influence change in policy and practice. It has a wide range of interests ranging from child poverty to housing and publishes regular calls throughout the year.
The Leverhulme Trust has an extensive range of grants and fellowships covering all disciplines from a budget of approximately £40 m. Its website has comprehensive information on all projects and a hard copy of its guide for applicants is available on request.
The Nuffield Foundation’s purpose is to ‘advance social well-being’ and it does this through its range of programmes supporting research and disseminating the results. Relevant for empirical legal researchers are the Social Science Small Grants Scheme, the New Career Development Fellowships and Project Grants for larger or more innovative initiatives. Full details on all these schemes plus information on eligibility are on the Foundation’s website.
The SLSA runs a Small Grants Scheme which awards grants of up to £1500 to SLSA members to support socio-legal research in practical ways. Full details are in the prizes and grants section of the SLSA website.
