British Academy Innovation Fellowships 2026-2027 – Route B: Policy-led
Notify Faculty of intention to apply by: 24 June 2026
Deadline: 5 August 2026
The British Academy is inviting applications for funding for a policy-led Innovation Fellowship (Route B), through which applicants must apply to work with one of the listed call partners on a specified theme:
- 'Valuing and mapping cultural infrastructure' (Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS))
- 'Understanding access to justice for individuals and families' (Ministry of Justice (MoJ))
- 'Applying frameworks to value community infrastructure' (Local Policy Innovation Partnerships (LPIP) Hub, City-REDI, University of Birmingham)
- 'Social and cultural infrastructure for community resilience and emergency preparedness' (Government Office for Science (GO Science))
- 'Consumer protection, innovation and regulation in a data-driven, AI-enabled economy' (Digital Regulatory Cooperation Forum (DRCF))
- 'Place and People Focused AI Upskilling for Growth and Opportunity' (Department of Work and Pensions (DWP))
Applicants should note that the Fellow would finalise the outline of a work programme with the partner after being awarded the Fellowship, and therefore applicants are not required to submit a research proposal as part of the application.
Eligibility
Applicants must be an early or mid-career researcher ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom with a current long-term appointment that will continue for at least as long as the period of the award at a UK-based research institution.
Applicants should be open-minded, and willing to explore new perspectives and innovative approaches. They will be
prepared to develop their programme of work with the partner, allowing them to work in a collaborative manner, as opposed to undertaking an isolated programme of work.
Fellows for all partners, with the exception of LPIP, will need to receive security clearance before the final arrangements for a Fellowship can be confirmed.
Applicants are required to obtain a statement of support from their Head of Department as part of this application. This must be received before the application can be formally submitted for approval, and it is strongly advised to ensure that the Head of Department submits the statement well in advance of the formal application deadline.
Please see the scheme guidance notes for more details.
Duration and Value
Awards are for a period of 12 months, with a maximum award value of £120,000 on an 80 per cent Full Economic Costing (FEC) basis. The Applicant must commit between 0.4 and 0.8 FTE time to the Fellowship. Awards are expected to commence no earlier than 1 March 2027 and no later than 31 March 2027. Innovation Fellowship funds can only be used for existing contracted time, and academics are not able to use fellowship funds to extend their contracts. Research assistance, equipment purchases and open access fees are not eligible to be included in the Fellowship budget.
How to Apply
Applications can only be submitted online using the British Academy Flexi-Grant® Grant Management System (GMS). The deadline for submissions and UK host organisation approval is 5 August 2026 (17:00 GMT).
Internal Deadlines
Research Services: 29 July 2026
Notify Faculty of intention to apply by: 24 June 2026