This initiative funds fellowships designed to bridge the gap between research and policy. Fellows will address key policy areas, including economic growth, public health, education and resilience to natural hazards, fostering innovation and knowledge exchange across government and academia.
Successful applicants will:
- co-design research with the relevant host organisation to inform policy on a priority area
- help improve the exchange of knowledge between policy and academic institutions
A total of 42 fellowships are available across three distinct categories:
Core policy fellows
Core policy fellows will be based within UK or devolved government, or an arm’s length body focusing on key public policy priority areas. Where applicable for Whitehall and arm’s length body hosts, these will align with the government missions of:
- kickstarting economic growth
- an NHS fit for the future
- safer streets
- break down barriers to opportunity
- make Britain a clean energy superpower
- building strong foundations
Hosts offering core policy fellowships:
- Cabinet Office
- Clean Energy Mission fellowship
- Economic Growth Mission fellowship
- NHS Fit for the Future Mission fellowship
- Opportunity Mission fellowship
- Safer Streets Mission fellowship
- Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
- Competition and growth economics fellowship
- Department for Business and Trade (DBT)
- Economy growth and productivity analytical fellowship
- Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)
- Economic growth impacts of European research & development partnerships fellowship
- Gambling advertising fellowship
- Land-based gambling fellowship
- Department for Education (DfE)
- Children and young people thriving analytical fellowship
- Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC)
- Empowering the government to use health and care data fellowship
- Securing better health through the prevention of gambling-related harms fellowship
- Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT)
- Building growth enhancing research and development and innovation systems economics fellowship
- Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
- Labour market analysis fellowship
- Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO)
- Growth mission economics fellowship
- Gambling Commission
- Research and statistics secondary analysis fellowship
- Government Office for Science
- Behavioural science and sociotechnical futures fellowship
- Emerging technologies and safer streets fellowship
- HM Treasury (HMT)
- Economy macroeconomic and growth fellowship
- Home Office (HO)
- Criminal justice system strategy analysis fellowship
- Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG)
- Growth and opportunity 1.5 million homes fellowship
- Ministry of Justice (MoJ)
- Improving outcomes fellowship
- Northern Ireland Executive
- DEFRA One health and climate change fellowship
- Department for the Economy post-school special educational needs policy fellowship
- Ofsted
- Inspection improvement evaluation fellowship
- Scottish Government
- Housing, systems thinking and evidence fellowship
- Technology-facilitated violence against women and girls analytical policy fellowship
- Welsh Government
- Defining and measuring quality in childcare research fellowship
- Using behavioural science to inform successful climate policies fellowship
Natural Hazards and Resilience policy fellows
Natural Hazards and Resilience policy fellows will be based within UK or devolved government, or an arm’s length body. The Natural Hazards and Resilience policy fellowships will enable early and mid-career researchers to work closely with policy makers to support preparedness for risks posed by natural hazards. For this opportunity, Natural Hazards and Resilience policy fellowships are defined as risks with a non-malicious cause. Natural Hazards and Resilience policy fellows will work closely with policy makers to help build resilience against natural hazards (i.e. extreme natural events or situations that could cause or threaten serious damage to human welfare). This would include a spectrum of potential natural hazards with a clear focus on human impact such as:
- health risks (including infectious disease)
- flooding
- loss of essential services like power, food, water, and telecoms
Hosts offering Natural Hazards and Resilience policy fellowships:
- Cabinet Office
- Resilience communications and citizen preparedness fellowship
- Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA)
- Oceanic climate risks fellowship
- Department for Energy, Security and Net Zero (DESNZ)
- Climate science fellowship
- Environment Agency
- Resilience and response to natural hazards fellowship
- Scottish Government
- Coastal change fellowship
- UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA)
- Social and behavioural science for health security and the changing climate fellowship
What Works Innovation fellowships
What Works Innovation fellowships are open to all career stages. Fellows will be based within the What Works Network to increase the supply of, and demand for, evidence to address priorities in the hosts’ policy areas of:
- educational achievement
- crime reduction
- children and families
- improving quality of life for older people
- higher education
Hosts offering What Works Innovation fellowships:
- Centre for Ageing Better
- Bridging the evidence gap in age-friendly environments fellowship
- College of Policing What Works Centre for Crime Reduction
- Behavioural systems mapping fellowship
- Education Endowment Foundation
- Post-16 education and training fellowship
- Foundations: What Works Centre for Children and Families
- Domestic violence and evidence-based interventions fellowship
- Centre for Transforming Access and Student Outcomes in Higher Education (TASO)
- Contextualised admissions in higher education
- Wales Centre for Public Policy
- Knowledge brokering and trialling tools to increase and capture the impact of What Works Centres fellowship
If not successful at obtaining the specific position you are applying to, you may be considered for up to two alternative positions advertised within this scheme. If you wish to be considered for potential alternative positions, please state the titles of these in your response.
Applicants are requested not to contact hosts until a fellowship has been awarded. However, they should still be able to articulate how they intend to co-design the fellowship.
ELIGIBILITY
This funding opportunity is open to academics who hold a PhD or equivalent research experience as well as relevant subject matter or methodological expertise. Applicants should also have a contract in place for the duration of the fellowship.
Core policy fellowships and Natural Hazards and Resilience fellowships are open to early and mid-career academics with an interest in learning more about connecting academic research with policy making. The following guidelines apply:
- An early career researcher is somebody who has yet to establish or transition to independence (where an independent researcher has submitted their own proposal and taken on the role of project lead). There are no eligibility rules based on years since PhD or whether you currently hold a permanent or open-ended job role.
- A mid-career researcher is somebody who has established independence – having, for example, taken on the role of project lead, published works of intellectual distinction, or established a significant track record as a ‘champion’ within their field. This would not ordinarily include professors but may include assistant or associate professors, where the applicant can make the justification that they meet the mid-career descriptor.
What Works Innovation fellowships are open to applicants of all career stages.
VALUE AND DURATION
The duration of this award is 18 months, comprising:
- three months inception phase for co-design and onboarding (0.4 FTE, based at home institution)
- 12 months main placement with host (full- or part-time, place of work detailed within each fellowship position)
- three months knowledge exchange phase for agreed engagement and publication activity (0.4 FTE, based at home institution)
Core policy fellowships: The Full Economic Cost (FEC) of your fellowship can be up to £180,000. UKRI will fund 80% of the FEC.
Natural Hazards and Resilience policy fellowships: The FEC of your project can be up to £280,000 (inclusive of an additional £100,000 budget for research and collaboration costs). UKRI will fund 80% of the FEC.
What Works Innovation fellowships: The FEC of your project can be up to £220,000 (inclusive of an additional £40,000 budget for research and collaboration costs). UKRI will fund 80% of the FEC.
With the fellowships being co-designed at the inception phase, all applications must include a mandatory budget of £15,000 flexible funding to support:
- additional placement-specific travel and subsistence costs
- placement-specific mentorship
- specific training requirements that are identified during the fellowship (including the inception phase)
KEY DATES
Deadline: 15 July 2025
Shortlisting outcomes: anticipated w/c 6 October 2025
Interviews: anticipated w/c 3 November 2025
Final decisions: communicated by January 2026
Fellowships start: February 2026
For detailed information about the fellowships available with each host, see PDF documents in the Additional Information section of the opportunity webpage. Here you will also find further details about the objectives/expectations of, and benefits for, fellows.