The Queen's Tower by Thomas Angus

 

 

The College’s external research funders require funding to be managed appropriately and expended for the purpose for which it is awarded. The Post-Award operational processes  are outlined below and include guidance and tools to support the sound management of research funding and clarify roles and responsibilities to ensure effective scientific, financial and ethical delivery of projects. 

The key responsibilities below are in line with the Post-Award Management Policy

Accordion Post-Award Responsibilities

The Role of the Principal Investigator

The Principal Investigator (PI) has overall responsibility for the scientific, technical and financial management of their research award. This includes: 

  • Adherence with the terms and conditions of funding and associated College policies
  • Overseeing project expenditure including salary charges, expenses and partner costs and supporting the preparation and timely submission of financial reports
  • Ensuring timesheets and absence records are completed by all eligible staff charged to the project when required by the funder’s terms and condition. 
  • Preparation and timely submission of scientific reports in a format required by the funder 
  • Continuing to meet funder obligations after the end date, e.g. research data management; open and unrestricted access to published research; reporting of research outcomes and outputs (e.g. Researchfish submissions) 

The Role of the Academic Department

The academic department is responsible for supporting the Principal Investigator (PI) with the scientific delivery and financial management of the research. This includes but is not limited to:

  • Supporting the PI with the preparation and submission of scientific reports 
  • Managing the non-financial aspects of recruiting and appointing research funded staff  
  • Management of timesheets if specified within the funder terms and conditions, e.g. facilitation of timesheet completion, quality-checking, submission, retention of supporting evidence of absence, and line management approval of timesheets  
  • Procurement and approval of non-staff expenditure in line with funder terms and conditions  and associated College policies
  • Identification and timely communication of requests for extensions and supplements  
  • Budget planning, expenditure forecasting and management of under/overspends 
  • Management of continuing obligations after the end date of the award, e.g. research data management; open and unrestricted access to published research; Researchfish submissions etc. 

The Role of Faculty Research Services

Faculty Research Services are jointly responsible (with Academic Departments) for the sound financial management of research funds and mitigation of risk. This includes but is not limited to:

  • Review, negotiation and formal acceptance of research awards on behalf of the College  
  • Initial award set-up on the College’s finance system (ICIS) and subsequent updates to award details, status and budget 
  • Financial approval of research funded staff adverts, appointments and contractual changes and the management of related staff charging processes 
  • Management of overheads and FEC journals (i.e. Indirect and Directly Allocated Costs)  
  • Regular account review and reconciliation of awards  
  • Preparation and submission of financial claims, invoices and expenditure statements to funders  
  • Coordination of research partner expenditure statements and payments  
  • Raising purchase orders relating to research collaborative agreements and subcontracts 
  • Management of the account closure process

The Role of the Research Office

The Research Office is responsible for establishing Post-Award policies and operational frameworks within which the Faculty Research Services teams operate, and providing governance and assurance mechanisms to underpin the sound management of external research funding.