Collecting the outcomes of the research we fund is essential to UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) role as an investor of public money, enabling us to maximise the benefit to lives and livelihoods from the work we do.
We are now conducting a review of award holder reporting questions to minimise undue researcher burden, which was identified as a key criterion of the new contract alongside the innovative use of technology.
Community engagement
As part of this review, we will work with Researchfish and engage with community representatives, including the Research Organisation Consultation Group and the Association of Research Managers and Administrators, with the aim of:
- making reporting research outcomes easier and less unduly burdensome for researchers
- providing a refreshed and improved set of questions for award holders
- ensuring the service can draw on already available data, reducing the need for researchers to input the same data twice
The review is expected to be completed in autumn 2025 so that we can start implementing changes ahead of the next collection period.
To ensure that the service works as well as possible for everyone using it, the review implementation will involve researchers to test the refreshed set of questions and capture their perspectives and insights. Further information will be provided later in the year.
Performance and standards
UKRI has been working closely with Researchfish to ensure that all issues regarding data protection are governed to the highest legal standards.
We will closely monitor the performance of the service, with senior staff managing the contract, fully advised by UKRI’s legal, data and analytical teams.
Understanding the outcomes from research and innovation that we fund is essential to our role as a smart investor of public money.
Collecting this data allows us to improve how we award funding, increasing the benefits to lives and livelihoods from the research we fund.
Capture the benefits of UKRI-funded research
Changes to the service are intended to improve how we capture the benefits of UKRI-funded research to society and the economy.
They will allow us to capture better data and ensure that we are accountable for what we are doing with the data provided.
We use the data we collect through Researchfish to:
- provide evidence about the value and impact of UKRI and our investments and demonstrate that we are a responsible investor of public funds
- monitor the progress and performance of our funding and UKRI as an organisation
- understand what does and doesn’t work in research and innovation strategy and the delivery of funding
Most of the information we collect is publicly accessible through UKRI’s Gateway to Research site.
