Good news emerging from the Brexit trade and cooperation deal is that the UK can look forward to associating with Horizon Europe, the EU’s new €95.5bn framework programme for funding research and innovation.

While there remains a formal process to finalise association over the coming months, UK organisations will be able to fully take part in Horizon Europe alongside EU states, and it is anticipated we will be able to respond to the first calls in spring.

Horizon Europe offers some fantastic opportunities, many of which are similar to those we saw under Horizon 2020, including:

• funding for excellent, large-scale, ambitious ‘frontier’ research under the European Research Council (ERC)
• mobility of early career researchers and doctoral training as part of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie programme
• top-down, collaborative research projects with European and international partners under specific global challenges

There is also scope for engagement in partnership with SMEs and large industry.

Nottingham is keen to encourage academic engagement with Horizon Europe. Research and Innovation includes a team of research administrators with huge experience of the financial, legal and administrative aspects of EU funding, and you can expect to hear from EU Development Manager Matthew Rackley, who is planning a programme of events to advise on the detail of the new funding programme and the support available, which includes expert external proposal preparation support and subscription to a Horizon Europe-facing virtual networking platform. Support will be delivered in collaboration with the research development function within schools and faculties.

The ongoing, long-term nature of the programme, with calls repeated on an annual basis, combined with the large-scale or collaborative nature of many strands and calls, means that a strategic approach on the part of individuals, teams or schools and faculties is advised. Please get in touch with Matt with any queries.

Professor Dame Jessica Corner, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research and Knowledge Exchange, welcomed the UK’s association with Horizon Europe, adding: “Being able to participate on a level playing field and as an equal partner with fellow European research institutions is wonderful news and tremendously important in these challenging times.

“We urge our researchers to continue dialogues and open up new conversations with our European colleagues. By staying alert to opportunities we will build our profile as an adventurous, European-facing university, and secure further successes, such as the  €2million European Research Council Consolidator Grant awarded to the School of Medicine’s Dr Stam Sotiropoulos at the end of last year to develop new MRI technologies for mapping the human brain.”