Freedom of information (FOI) releases from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)

This is a disclosure log of UK Research and Innovation's responses to freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) requests that might be of wider public interest.

If you can't find the information you're looking for, you can make a new FOI request.

Filters

Clear filters

  • Keywords filters

  • Year filters

  • Month filters

1,317 disclosures

  1. FOI2025/00876: Smart Grant applications supported by Grantify UK

    Request Received: 28 September 2025

    Can you please tell me the success rate of all 'Smart Grant' applications assisted by the grant writing company, Grantify UK, in 2022, 2023 & 2024.

    If there is no recorded data on 'success rates', can you please tell me what percentage of submissions were assisted by Grantify UK.

    Published: 2 December 2025

  2. FOI2025/00692: Communication & Funding between UKRI and ARIA

    Request Received: 31 July 2025

    Following your response indicating that my original request was directed at ARIA as an organisation, I am submitting a revised request focusing on UKRI’s own involvement with ARIA.

    Under the Freedom of Information Act, I request the following:

    1. All communications (emails, meeting minutes, briefings, memos) between UKRI and ARIA staff, officials, or associated organisations concerning: The Exploring Climate Cooling programme Any projects relating to geoengineering, atmospheric intervention, or solar radiation management (SRM)

    2. Details of any funding, grants, partnerships, or contractual arrangements between UKRI and ARIA since January 2020, especially relating to climate manipulation or climate research.

    3. Internal UKRI discussions referencing ARIA’s role in experimental climate control, weather modification, or balloon-based research trials.

    Clarification Received: 13 August 2025

    1. All email correspondence (including attachments) between UKRI and ARIA, dated 1 August 2023 to 31 July 2025, containing either of the following terms:

    “Exploring Climate Cooling"

    “SPICE" (Stratospheric Particle Injection for Climate Engineering)

    This search should include all correspondence that contains these terms in any part of the email or attachment, including draft documents, internal discussions, and working papers.

    Published: 2 December 2025

  3. FOI2025/00835: Funding Allocated to Animal Experiments Involving Dogs

    Request Received: 22 September 2025

    Please provide the total amount of public funding allocated to animal experiments involving dogs for the period 2020–2024.

    Published: 1 December 2025

  4. FOI2025/00638: UKRI Business Case Summaries and Impact Assumptions for Spend Review 25

    Request Received: 11 July 2025

    1. Copies of the business case summary documents submitted by UKRI to DSIT and/or HM Treasury as part of the latest Spending Review (SR2025).

    2. Any supporting documentation detailing the economic impact assumptions or cost-benefit analyses, particularly relating to societal impacts, employment growth, and productivity.

    3. Internal or external documents explaining the modelling methodology behind such impact estimates.

    4. Correspondence between UKRI and DSIT or HMT that discusses or supports these figures

    Published: 1 December 2025

  5. FOI2025/00622: Misconduct over the last 3 years

    Request received: 08 July 2025

    Number of staff within your organisation who were formally disciplined for misconduct over the last three years (broken down by calendar year).

    I’d also like to know the outcomes of the disciplinary action e.g.

    • 14 staff dismissed

    • 12 staff issued a written warning

    • 16 staff given a final written warning

    Published: 1 December 2025

  6. EIR2025/00752: NERC/FAAM Aircraft & Private Contractor Involvement

    Request Received: 23 August 2025

    Under the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, please provide the following information held by NERC (Natural Environment Research Council) in connection with the FAAM Airborne Laboratory (BAe-146 aircraft) for the period 1 January 2022 – present:

    1. A list of all contracts, agreements, or funding arrangements involving BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce, Airbus, or European Astrotech.

    2. Copies of any grant applications or awards relating to FAAM flight campaigns where those companies were named as partners.

    3. A list of email subject lines or correspondence references (not full bodies) between NERC/UKRI staff and the above companies containing the terms “FAAM”, “SRM”, or “geoengineering.”

    Published: 1 December 2025

  7. FOI2025/00801: Trans Inclusive Culture Guidance for Museums

    Request received: 09 September 2025

    ES/X004732/1

    978-1-898489-52-8 -

    https://cultureactioneurope.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Trans-Inclusive-Culture.pdf

    To whom it may concern,

    One of your bodies has funded a report which is illegal and looks to force transgender ideology upon the UK arts and culture world. This nonsensical and biased report is being challenged legally, thankfully.

    I hereby make an FOI request in regard to your funding of this ideological and biased piece of fake ‘guidance’ which ultimately seeks to impose the opinions of a very small minority of politically driven activists.

    I would like to know:

    1. How much funding did you give?

    2. What criteria you used to decide to fund this piece of political action

    3. How did it meet the UK’s needs for “Research and Innovation”?

    4. Who agreed to it?

    5. What checks and balances were applied to ensure you aren’t wasting public funds?

    6. As it is illegal, what will you be doing to recover the wasted funds?

    7. What disciplinary action will you be taking against the staff involved in this egregious, biased and illegal waste of public money?

    Published: 1 December 2025

  8. FOI2025/00875: STFC Internship Statistics

    Request Received: 26 September 2025

    This is a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. I am requesting the following information, covering the Science and Technology Facilities Council:

    1) The number of year in industry placement students requested, broken down by department and site

    2) The number of year in industry placement students approved, broken down by department and site

    3) The number of year in industry placement students funded by central STFC funding, broken down by department and site

    4) The number of year in industry placement students funded by any other funding source, broken down by department and site

    I would like this information for students expected to start in the 2026/27 academic year.

    Published: 1 December 2025

  9. FOI2025/00978: DEFRA Project VM02117 2001-2003

    Request received: 2 November 2025

    Please can you provide me with the follow up findings mentioned in the final report of DEFRA project VM02117 2001-2003 ‘Characterisation of non- acetylcholinesterase actions of OPs by identification of novel protein targets - VM02117’ ‘Contractor / Funded Organisations Medical Research Council’,

    1. as shown in the final report, namely the OP targets identified and their and relevance to human health - ‘Further work Assuming that there are no further hold ups, in the next six months the OP targets in the brain will be identified by mass spectrometric analysis and then fully characterised and their relevance to human health ascertained.’

    2. In addition, please can you advise what further work has been conducted in relation to this statement and provide me with the findings of any further studies:

    ‘Conclusions This study has confirmed our original hypothesis: that there are previously unrecognised proteins present in the brain that are adducted by organophosphates to which humans are currently exposed at dose levels which are low enough not to induce warning cholinergic signs. Furthermore, we have shown that, of the six organophosphates tested, each adducts a different spectrum of target proteins. Just one of them (chlorpyrifos) reacted only with the conventional target, acetylcholinesterase. This variability across structures has one important consequence: if the non-cholinesterase mediated actions of organophosphates are mediated by these proteins, then organophosphates must be assessed on a compound by compound basis - not as a homogenous class.’

    Published: 28 November 2025

  10. FOI2025/00453: Information on UKRI employees

    Request received: 28 April 2025

    Please could we request the following under the Freedom of Information Act:

    1. Suspension Patterns and Characteristics

    Please provide a breakdown of all UKRI employees suspended from 1 January 2022 to the present date. For each case, please include:

    • Band level or equivalent grade

    • Gender

    • Whether the individual had a recorded disability or adjustment need - Length of suspension

    • Whether the suspension followed a whistleblowing report

    • Whether the process resulted in disciplinary action or no case to answer

    2. Overlapping Grievance and Disciplinary Investigations

    How many employee grievance cases raised between 1 January 2021 and the present were handled concurrently with disciplinary or whistleblowing investigations? For each case, please indicate:

    • Whether the grievance or disciplinary process was paused or prioritised

    • Whether the grievance involved allegations of discrimination, bullying, or harassment

    • Outcome of each process (if known)

    3. Application of the Whistleblowing Policy

    Please provide:

    • The number of complaints handled under the UKRI Whistleblowing Policy since 1 January 2021

    • How many of those complaints related to staff conduct or interpersonal conflict (e.g. bullying or harassment)

    • How many were made anonymously

    • How many resulted in suspension of the individual subject to the complaint and if so, whether their suspension was in whole or in part of their duties and their gender?

    4. Neurodiversity and Disability Support Framework

    Please provide copies of all policies, internal guidance, or training materials used by UKRI between 2020 and 2025 relating to:

    • Support for neurodivergent employees (including ADHD)

    • Implementation of reasonable adjustments

    • Managerial training or expectations around disability inclusion

    5. Innovate UK and IUK Business Connect Staff Surveys & Verbatim Feedback (2021–Present)

    Please provide the following in relation to employee feedback, leadership culture, and workplace experience, with responses clearly disaggregated for:

    • Innovate UK employees

    • IUK Business Connect employees

    a. Copies or summaries of any staff surveys, engagement surveys, or pulse check surveys conducted at either Innovate UK or IUK Business Connect between 1 January 2021 and the current date.

    b. Any free-text responses or anonymised verbatim comments submitted by staff in either organisation during those surveys, specifically those referencing:

    • Senior leadership or executive team behaviour

    • Organisational culture, psychological safety, or employee voice

    • Bullying, exclusion, or fear of retaliation

    • Trust in HR, grievance or whistleblowing processes

    • Mental health, burnout, or wellbeing concerns

    c. Any internal reports, dashboards, PowerPoint presentations, or summaries prepared by or for UKRI, Innovate UK, or IUK Business Connect leadership or HR interpreting the above data (e.g. trends, themes, or risks flagged).

    6. Suspension – Internal Guidance

    Please provide any internal HR or legal guidance documents circulated between 2021 and 2025 that explain:

    • The standard process (and safeguards) for suspending an employee under the Managing Performance and Conduct Policy

    • How suspension is communicated internally

    • The treatment of governance roles or public-facing duties during suspension.

    (Question 7 was withdrawn on 17 June 2025 following clarification discussions)

    Published: 18 November 2025