Specialist training services

Tender description

UK Research and Innovation are looking to take advantage of the unique opportunities presented by the cohorts of Future Leaders Fellows by making an FLF Development Network available. It is envisioned that the activities associated with this network will be accessible to all FLFs, and that where capacity is available will also be opened up to wider participation by other Early Career Researchers and Innovators supported by UKRI. This network should: • create a strong cohort experience; • develop the leadership of the fellows; • enable the cohorts to play a leadership role across the research and innovation community; • create deep links with UKRI and its investments. In order to deliver this, it is expected that the network will provide a series of networking and development workshops that provide each cohort of participating fellows with the tools to think creatively and to develop and lead new and imaginative thinking that spans disciplinary boundaries. UK Research and Innovation are looking to take advantage of the unique opportunities presented by the cohorts of Future Leaders Fellows by making an FLF Development Network available. It is envisioned that the activities associated with this network will be accessible to all FLFs, and that where capacity is available will also be opened up to wider participation by other Early Career Researchers and Innovators supported by UKRI. This network should; • create a strong cohort experience; • develop the leadership of the fellows; • enable the cohorts to play a leadership role across the research and innovation community; • create deep links with UKRI and its investments. In order to deliver this, it is expected that the network will provide a series of networking and development workshops that provide each cohort of participating fellows with the tools to think creatively and to develop and lead new and imaginative thinking that spans disciplinary boundaries. In addition to this, activities should be in place that support and enable the development of skills and leadership in; communications and media, public engagement with research, collaboration and cross-sector working, and Impact. Furthermore, it is expected that the network will enable fellows to engage with and receive mentoring from influential research and innovation leaders and will support engagement with key challenges facing the research and innovation environment. The proposed network should provide these opportunities for up to 250 fellows, including those funded through rounds one to three of the FLF, and ensure that each intake of fellows into the network is able to access opportunities over a 2-year period. The FLF Development Network will last for 3 years, and up to GBP 3 million is available to support this. The objectives of the network are to: (a) deliver a series of events that meet the needs of all fellows, regardless of the kind of organisation that hosts them (business, university, IRO etc.) or their discipline, and which address the areas as set out in the Aims a to i; (b) over the 3-year period of the network provide opportunities, as set out in aims a to i, for each fellow to take up over a 2-year period. Opportunities should be offered to all FLFs and other UKRI ECRs and innovators as appropriate and as demand allows; (c) facilitate the mentoring of FLFs and their participation in UKRI Peer review training activities such as mock panel exercises, as sent out in aims h to i; (d) hold and administer flexible ‘plus funds’ to enable fellows to act on opportunities presented by the cohort themselves. These could include additional self-defined events, small collaborative research projects, policy or practice development, and impact acceleration and innovation projects.