Background
Innovation of all kinds is needed to overcome the UK’s challenges. The Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) was formed in 2023, following machinery of government changes. It focuses on improving people’s lives by maximising the potential for science and technology. Its responsibilities include research and development and positioning the UK at the forefront of global scientific and technological advancement.
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is the UK’s largest public funder of research and innovation. An arm’s-length body of DSIT, it has an essential part to play in achieving the government’s ambitions for science and technology. UKRI’s support for research and innovation takes many forms, including funding to universities and infrastructure investments. It provides funding to thousands of researchers and innovators to explore and develop solutions, from life-saving medicines to ways to protect the environment.
In 2023-24, UKRI had a total annual budget of £9.6 billion, and assessed over 29,000 applications for research and innovation funding, resulting in over 6,000 awards.
Scope
This report will consider the extent to which UKRI’s management of its grants and loans is consistent with the principles of good funding support for research and innovation. We will have a particular focus on the actions UKRI takes both at a corporate and individual level to support well managed risk-taking. We will examine:
- UKRI’s funding priorities and strategy for its grant and loan portfolio
- UKRI’s mechanisms to support the delivery of grant and loan funding and harness opportunities, including whether its culture encourages the right behaviours and whether it has the right supporting processes
- arrangements for reviewing and evaluating progress, including whether UKRI has a culture of learning and improvement, and understands how far its grants and loans are fulfilling their intended purpose
NAO Team
Director: Charles Nancarrow
Audit Manager: Rebecca Jones