Impact Acceleration Funding

Impact Acceleration Account (IAA)

The Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) supports critical early-stage translation of UK research to real impacts, transforming public services, creating new jobs, attracting private investment and forging new partnerships with business and charities.

Funding allows UK teams to unlock the value of their work, including early-stage commercialisation of new technologies and advancing changes to public policy and services such as NHS clinical practice.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), a government body responsible for delivering £8bn research and innovation funding each year, is investing £118 million in the latest round of IAAs to translate research across 64 universities and research organisations.

Aims of the University’s IAA:

To increase the breadth and depth of collaborations with external organisations facilitating the adoption/uptake of new research.
To improve the exchange of knowledge and skills in both directions between the University and external organisations.
To support the development of academic awareness and understanding of impactful research through the provision of mentoring, networking, and training.
To provide support for early-stage development planning and validation of new products or processes to facilitate their progression/navigation along the translational pipeline.
To facilitate the early-stage commercialisation of technologies, products, processes, or services arising from research at the University.

UK Research and Innovation Impact Acceleration Account (UKRI IAA)

As part of the harmonised UKRI IAA the University has secured funding of £4m from the following research councils for the period April 2022 – March 2025:

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC IAA: £300k)
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC IAA: £2,460k)
Medical Research Council (MRC IAA: £1,242k)

Funding for projects is available through an open competition, for details please see the call schedule.

Science and Technology Facilities Council Impact Acceleration Account (STFC IAA)

The University has secured further IAA funding of £70k from STFC for the period April 2022 – March 2023.

Applications will be assessed on a rolling basis and we are currently accepting applications.

STFC expects that the IAA will be used to support impact emerging from a body of research undertaken over a significant time period.

Multiple funders may have been involved in this body of research but the applicant must be able to demonstrate a connection between IAA expenditure and funding previously awarded by STFC.

Economic and Social Research Council Impact Acceleration Account (ESRC IAA)

For details of the University’s ESRC IAA funding and opportunities please see the LSSI website.

Wellcome Trust Institutional Translational Partnership Award (iTPA)

The University has secured further iTPA funding of £300k from the Wellcome Trust for the period June 2022 – May 2023.

The iTPA builds on the University’s portfolio of biomedical research funding and offers focussed support on early-stage research translation for human health benefit. The iTPA has been designed to complement later stage translational programmes in the University by enabling effective early stage translation, amplifying the potential for longer term impact.

Aims of the University’s iTPA:

To establish early stage technical and commercial feasibility in promising areas of discovery science and technology development, and support the development of these projects so that they can access the range of later stage translational opportunities that are available
To extend and embed more fully a culture of translation across the University, sharing best practice and targeting researchers at key career stages and in areas typically focussed on earlier stage development