Requesting a change to your project

Contents

If there’s an unexpected change in circumstances

For any changes to your project, you should first speak with your organisation’s administration authority – for example a research development manager, post-award manager or someone with a similar role in a research office.

How to request a change

Raise a request through the Joint Electronic Submissions (Je-S) system. Most requests will be a type of grant maintenance request in Je-S.

If your project is funded by Innovate UK, contact your monitoring officer if you need to make a change.

Funding from MRC

You must follow a separate process to make a complex change to a Medical Research Council (MRC) funding award.

Who can make a request

The person who makes the request must be a research development manager, a post-award manager or someone with a similar role in a research office.

If you’re not sure who the right person is, contact the Je-S helpdesk.

When you can make a request

You can make a request:

  • once the grant has been accepted – depending on the change type this can either be before or after a project has started
  • at any other point in the grant lifecycle, up to one calendar month before the grant end date.

In almost all circumstances you should raise your request at the time the change happens. If the change is because of staff absence through parental leave or gaps in recruitment, you should:

  • wait until after the person returns to their post and you know the actual time taken – if the absence is on a research grant
  • ask for the grant to be suspended – if the absence is on a fellowship, the fellow will be on leave for more than a few weeks and no other activity is taking place on the project.

What happens if you do not request a change

If you do not request a change to us:

  • your project may not be completed successfully, for example it might not be finished on time or could run out of funds
  • you may face a penalty such as your funding being stopped – check the specific change request on this page for more details.

What changes you need to request

There are different requests to make depending on what you want to do.

You can find full details of the request types and how to raise them on the system in the Je-S handbook.

You will need to meet both:

Always give a reason for making your request for a change.

An extension because of a staff reason

You can request a funding extension related to people working on a project. For example, an extension because of:

  • a break or delay in appointing suitable staff
  • parental leave, including maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave
    paid sick leave
  • extended jury service
  • a change in working patterns, for example from full to part time.

You can only request the time that is actually required. When appointing new members of staff, this can include recruitment and training.

An extension because of an unexpected delay not related to staff

You can ask for an exceptional extension if you experience an unexpected delay not related to staffing.

This could be:

  • a major piece of equipment failure
  • issues with the laboratory or building where your project is being carried out
  • unexpected problems in collecting specimens, samples or data
  • unexpected problems in getting ethical approvals or permits
  • changes to research involving human or animal participants
  • not able to access specialist facilities essential for the project.

You can only request the time that is actually required.

If project work or funding needs to stop temporarily

You can make a grant suspension request if:

  • work needs to temporarily stop on a funded project and it is not clear when it will begin again
  • work is continuing but funding needs to temporarily stop.

The could be:

  • because nobody is actively working on the project, for example, a member of staff has gone on parental leave or left the project
  • a major building problem, such as a fire, which has put a stop to work and is unlikely to be resolved quickly.

You must not incur any costs relating to the project during a grant suspension. During this time you will need to make other arrangements for any staff usually funded by the award.

When the work is ready to start again, you will need to make a grant resumption request.

If project work is restarting

You can make a grant resumption request if your project is restarting following a suspension.

You must make this request before work starts again.

You will need to select the date when the grant should start again and give a reason why.

You will not be paid until your request has been approved.

If someone on a project cannot continue with the research

You can make a termination request if the project is:

  • no longer viable due to an irreplaceable person leaving
  • failing

You can request to terminate a grant before the end date. You must choose a date for the termination.

Changing the name of the person who holds the grant

You can make a request to change the named grant holder. For example, if the person leaves the organisation or cover is needed for parental leave.

You will need to provide evidence that the replacement grant holder:

  • meets the eligibility criteria of the funding opportunity
  • has the necessary expertise and experience to lead the project to a successful conclusion.

Funding for individuals, such as fellowships, cannot be changed to another named grant holder.

If a principal or co-investigator moves to a new organisation and the grant goes with them

You can make a grant transfer request if the principal investigator of a funded project moves to a new organisation and the grant goes with them.

To be able to transfer a grant to a new organisation, that organisation will need to:

  • be eligible for UKRI funding – check if your organisation is eligible
  • have the required facilities to carry out the research.

Some councils may require you to:

  • agree this transfer with us, or we may terminate your grant
  • allow at least four months for the process to be completed.

Grant transfer requests between organisations in the UK should be raised through Je-S in the same way as other grant maintenance requests.

Grant transfer requests to an organisation not based in the UK may be allowed through the Money Follows Researcher scheme if the receiving organisation is in an eligible European country.

Find out how to transfer your grant to another country.

Transferring consolidated grants

Some research councils allow you to transfer part of your consolidated grant if you move to another research organisation and are continuing with your research project. Your current research organisation and the new organisation will need to agree on the amount.

Contact the research council that is funding your award.

If your principal investigator moves to another research organisation and is not continuing with the project, you will need to appoint another principal investigator to your project. You will need to get agreement from the research council funding your award.

Requesting additional funding

In rare circumstances, we may give additional funding to a project. You request this through the grant generic change request.

Only directly incurred costs are eligible.

You must explain:

  • the exact amount you are requesting
  • how the shortfall in funds will affect the delivery of a significant portion of the project put forward in the funding opportunity application
  • why the project needs to continue and the risks of it not doing so, relative to the aims put forward in the funding opportunity application
  • the work carried out to date
  • why the shortfall was not anticipated and any action you have taken to correct it.

Extending a due date

You can request a deliverable extension to extend the due date of something your research project is doing or producing. For example:

  • a start confirmation letter – if you want to start the grant later than the date specified in the offer
  • a final expenditure statement.

You will need to provide a new date for when the outstanding document will be delivered. This must be later than the current due date.

If multiple documents need to be delayed, you may be able to apply for an extension to more than one deliverable in the same request.

If you believe you do not need to provide a deliverable

You can make a deliverable waiver request if you believe you do not need to supply us with a deliverable we’ve asked for.

You can only make a deliverable waiver request for documents that have not already been received by the research council that provides your funding.

Delaying a grant that has not started yet

You can make an exceptional slippage request to delay a grant that has not started yet.

You must provide a new start date for the grant – this must be later than the current due date.

The research council that provides your funding will assess your request and discuss the terms with you.

Slippage requests must follow the terms and conditions of the funding opportunity. Some funding opportunities do not allow slippage requests.

Updating an organisation reference

The organisation reference is a unique reference given to an awarded grant. It is different to the reference that you would have provided when you submitted your application.

You are able to change the organisation reference at any point in the award lifecycle.

You can do this:

  • as a separate request type
    within another grant maintenance request type.

If it’s something not covered by other types of request or extension

You can make a grant generic change request for changes not covered by the more specific request types. For example, changing the grant title or description.

You must give a reason for the change and include any evidence.

Ask a question about requesting a change

Email: grantspostaward@funding.ukri.org

Telephone: 01793 867 121

Last updated: 19 June 2024

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