STFC Leadership Fellow in Public Engagement Funding Panel: member vacancies

• Closing date: 18 May 2025
• Number of positions: Up to five
• Length of term: Three years
• Time commitment: Members recruited during 2025 will be called upon in late 2025 to early 2026
• Remuneration: £170 per day for panel members
• Outcomes communicated: September to November 2025

The STFC Leadership Fellow in Public Engagement (LFiPE) funding panel assesses and provides funding recommendations to the STFC public engagement team.

Leadership fellows are expected to:

• act as academic leaders for public engagement in your organisation
• raise the profile of public engagement in your institution and professional communities
• encourage and develop capacity and networks for public engagement activities in your organisation

LFiPE operates a dual track award with one stream focused on early career applicants and the other on more established researchers. The full economic cost of each fellowship can be up to £225,000.

Who we’re looking for

You should have extensive experience in developing and delivering public engagement projects or programmes and their evaluation. Applicants with experience of supporting others to do this, such as those in public engagement professional roles in universities or other contexts, are also encouraged.

Knowledge of the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) engagement landscape is essential. Expertise in an area of STFC science or experience of capacity-building approaches within public engagement is advantageous.

We welcome applications from individuals across all career stages, subject to demonstrating expertise proportionate to your career stage.

What you’ll be doing

Members of the LFiPE Funding Panel will be asked to:

• assess, score and rank received proposals
• attend shortlisting and interview panels (held virtually)

They may also be asked to recommend appropriate expert peer reviewers.

Panel members will be expected to:

• meet the commitments and attendance requirements of the panel
• be able to assess public engagement plans across research disciplines and separate from personal biases
• adhere to UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and STFC’s equality, diversity and inclusion policy and procedures

LFiPE funding supports:

• talented people, at different career stages, from STFC’s communities to lead extended programmes of high-quality public engagement that support capacity building within the host organisation and relevant networks
• making a substantial contribution as a leader of public engagement to the wider community of highly skilled practitioners and networks that are under the STFC umbrella
• highlighting the achievements of STFC science, technology and facilities, demonstrating the excitement of research and the value of science, technology, engineering and mathematics to the UK
• inspiring and involving colleagues, students and members of the public with STFC science, technology and facilities

Priority is given to proposals working with Wonder audiences – those living in the 40% most deprived socioeconomic areas across the UK, particularly those aged eight to 14 and their families and carers.

Our handbook for members of STFC’s advisory bodies will help you to understand our expectations of a panel member. The handbook also includes useful information on other topics, such as:

• equality and diversity
• conflicts of interest
• confidentiality
• our policy on travel, subsistence, and remunerated meeting fees

How to apply

Read the application guidance documents, which include:

• a preview of the application form
• questions and answers from a webinar we held in 2021
• testimonies from members of STFC panels, boards and committees

Apply using the online form on the UKRI Engagement Hub.

How we’ll assess your application

Demonstrate in your application how you meet at least one of the following criteria:

• expertise in the planning, delivery, and evaluation of a range of public engagement programmes or public engagement capacity-building
• expertise in supporting public engagement delivery in academic or public-facing contexts, or both (for example, those in ‘public engagement professional’ roles)
• expertise in the planning, delivery, participation and evaluation of a range of community or youth engagement programmes, or both

In addition, also demonstrate in your application how you meet at least two of the following criteria:

• wide-ranging knowledge of the public engagement and STEM inspiration landscape in the UK (essential) and beyond (desirable)
• knowledge of the STFC public engagement strategy and wider STFC strategies and priorities
• knowledge of one or more areas of STFC-funded science
• appreciation of the range of STFC activity

Further information

For questions about the panel contact Jenni Chambers.
Email: jenni.chambers@stfc.ukri.org

See details about the current membership

We are committed to the principles of fair and transparent decision-making, promoting equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI). In addition to UKRI principles on EDI, STFC continues to develop a range of measures and objectives around EDI. We have undertaken an equality, diversity and inclusion impact assessment for this opportunity, see application guidance documents.

Appointments to this panel are made on merit. However, we are keen to maintain diversity in its membership. Applications from women, those with a disability or members of minority ethnic groups are therefore especially welcome.

We will use diversity of membership as part of our selection

Last updated: 11 April 2025