ACED funding FAQs

Frequently asked questions for researchers applying for an ACED project award.

Can I apply for my own salary? 

CRUK only fund direct research costs and all ACED applications are subject to CRUK policy relating to funding the salaries of investigators.  

In general if you are a full or part-time member of academic staff or funded by another research grant as principal investigator you are unlikely to be eligible. CRUK will pay salary costs for early career researchers (as defined here) as named investigators or co-investigators dependent on specific criteria. Salary for NHS staff to dedicate time for research may also be considered.  

Where eligible, requests for investigator salaries are considered on a case-by-case basis, please request confirmation from CRUK via Dan Kelberman, d.kelberman@ucl.ac.uk, UCL ACED Programme Manager or Karolin Kroese, Karolin.Kroese@cancer.org.uk, CRUK ACED Programme Manager, in the first instance. 

US Centres are not funded by CRUK and therefore US Investigators may be required to include salary costs to count toward the total amount requested. Please check details with any US collaborators on your application. 

What is the process for submitting an application? 

1. Read the guidelines for the scheme that you are applying for. 
2. Complete the short 'Intent to Submit' online form no later than one month before the Application submission deadline.
3. By the submission deadline you must

• Liaise with your Departmental Research Administrator to submit your completed finance information on Worktribe for Research Services approval, remembering to attach the application form. 
   
• Submit the completed application form to d.kelberman@ucl.ac.uk. You do not need to have the form signed at this stage. 
   
• Note – for Project Award Expressions of Interest only, you do not need UCL Research Services approval, calculate your estimated costs as a Standalone Project on Worktribe. You will need to submit your full costings for Research Services approval if invited to submit a Full Project Award application. 
• Note - For ACED Pathway Awards you must have all approvals and signatures in place for your applciation before the submission deadline.

4. Inform Dan Kelberman d.kelberman@ucl.ac.uk when you receive Research Services approval (this should be within 10 working days). In the UCL Host Institution Approver box in Section 7 of the application form enter the name of the Approver with the following text “Approved electronically by UCL Research Services” and your Worktribe ID number. 

5. If you are Lead Applicant #1, you will need to ensure all co-applicants have added their signatures and Institutional approvals. Once these have been obtained liaise with Dan Kelberman for final approval by Prof Mark Emberton, UCL ACED Centre Director - this is only required where UCL is the Lead Centre. 

6. The Programme Manager of the Lead #1 ACED Member Centre will submit the final signed application form in pdf format to CRUK. 

Do I need to submit costs for my collaborator Centres for approval on Worktribe? 

Detailed salary, running expenses and equipment costs for research undertaken at UCL must be submitted via Worktribe for financial approval by UCL Research Services, and according to CRUK costs guidance. Costs for other UK ACED Centres (Cambridge and Manchester) should be included in total on Worktribe as 'Partner Costs.' 

If UCL is the submitting Centre (you are Lead Applicant #1) any named Affiliates external to ACED receiving funding for the project will also need to be included as UCL costs. If another Centre is Lead on the application, affiliate costs should be included by them. 

You do not need to include costs for US Centres on Worktribe, but they do need to be detailed on the application form. CRUK are only directly funding research carried out in the UK Centres. There should be no need to calculate currency exchange beyond making sure the total cost of the grant is within the Award funding limit. 

What approvals do I need for my application? 

You must have Institutional Authorisation from UCL Research Services for your application via Worktribe. This can be submitted at the time of the submission deadline, with the exception of Pathway Awards much must have approval at the time of submission. Other Centres will seek approval for their finances from their own host Institution.  

If you are submitting a Project Award Expression of Interest (EoI), you do not need Research Services approval from UCL. If successfully invited, you will need to submit your full UCL finance information for Research Services approval when completing the Full Project Award application. The costs detailed on your full application are expected to be within ±10% of the costs on the EoI.  

What signatures do I need on my application? 

All Lead Applicants sign in the relevant box in Section 7 of the application form. 

For UCL, the relevant “Host Institution Approval” box is to confirm that you have received approval from UCL Research Services via Worktribe. Add the name of the approver and the date together with the following text “Approved electronically by UCL Research Services” and your Worktribe ID number. You do not need a physical signature. Other ACED Centres involved will need to sign their respective Host Institution Approval boxes according to their Centre processes. 

The ACED Centre Director for Lead Applicant #1 only will need to sign the application. If Lead Applicant #1 is from UCL then liaise with Dan Kelberman to obtain approval and sign off from Prof Mark Emberton. 

You do not need to have the form signed by the submission deadline date; there is a period of time to complete all the signatures before applications are submitted to CRUK. You do not need to collect all the signatures required on the same page. 

When will I receive a decision on my application? 

All applications will be considered for funding by the Alliance Executive Board at their next meeting following submission to CRUK. A decision will be made at the meeting unless the AEB requires further clarification or information on a case-by-case basis. CRUK will then inform all applicants of the outcome of their applications within 6 weeks of the Board meeting with feedback from the AEB.