Apply for ESRC support for the Centre for Longitudinal Studies, React pilot awards and an EPSRC Network Rail PhD studentship

Explore how to apply for invite-only CLS funding, prepare for the ESRC React pilot awards and consider the EPSRC FIBE3 CDT PhD studentship with Network Rail, including eligibility, key dates and submission advice

Three funding and research opportunities for UK researchers and postgraduate applicants

The following summary consolidates three connected opportunities and guidance relevant to UK researchers and postgraduate applicants. It covers an invite-only funding stream to support the Centre for Longitudinal Studies (CLS), a pre-announcement for the ESRC React pilot awards aimed at time-critical policy research, and an EPSRC-funded PhD studentship in partnership with Network Rail focused on embankment desiccation mechanisms.

Each item includes core facts, eligibility cues and procedural reminders drawn from the funders’ guidance to help potential applicants prepare.

Who this affects

UK-based researchers, research organisations and prospective PhD applicants with relevant technical or social science backgrounds. Institutions that host longitudinal data expertise, rapid-response policy teams or civil engineering and geotechnical research groups will find the opportunities most relevant.

What is being offered

Three distinct streams are outlined:

• Invite-only funding for CLS: targeted resource intended to support the Centre for Longitudinal Studies’ programmes and related research activities.
• ESRC React pilot awards (pre-announcement): a notice of forthcoming opportunities for time-critical, policy-relevant research designed to deliver rapid evidence to policymakers and stakeholders.
• EPSRC-funded PhD studentship with Network Rail: a studentship focused on the mechanisms and impacts of embankment desiccation, combining engineering research with industry partnership.

When and where

The summary provides timeless guidance rather than application deadlines. Specific timelines and submission windows will be published by the respective funders. Interested parties should monitor the funders’ official channels for formal announcements and application instructions.

Why these opportunities matter

The streams address three strategic needs: sustaining longitudinal cohort infrastructure; accelerating evidence generation for policy decisions; and advancing applied engineering knowledge to improve rail infrastructure resilience. Each funding route links academic capacity to operational or policy impact.

Key eligibility and procedural reminders

• Invite-only streams typically require institutional endorsement from the funder or a designated lead. Institutions should verify invitation status before preparing proposals.
• React-style pilot awards prioritise rapid delivery and policy relevance. Applicants should demonstrate feasible timelines, stakeholder engagement plans and clear pathways to impact.
• The EPSRC studentship with Network Rail will expect alignment between candidate training goals and Network Rail’s operational needs. Supervisory arrangements and data access plans should be explicit.
• Applicants must consult original funder guidance for definitive eligibility, costing rules and submission procedures. Preliminary planning should include institutional research services and any required approvals.

Next steps for potential applicants

Confirm invitation or eligibility with the funding body. Engage institutional research offices early. Prepare concise proposals that emphasise timelines, impact and partnership arrangements. Watch funders’ announcements for formal calls and application deadlines.

Practical reminder: rely on the funders’ published guidance for final criteria and process requirements. Further details will appear in each funder’s formal call documents.

UKRI procedural recommendations are referenced where appropriate to reduce the risk of avoidable errors at application stage. This guidance is intended as a practical companion to the official opportunity pages and to the detailed council guidance that accompanies each call.

Centre for Longitudinal Studies: invite-only funding to manage ESRC cohort portfolio

The Economic and Social Research Council has launched an invite-only funding exercise to secure management for its longitudinal cohort portfolio. The exercise aims to ensure continuity and high-quality stewardship of long-term cohort data held by the Centre for Longitudinal Studies.

Who and what

The funder is seeking a designated delivery team to oversee data curation, participant engagement, and access provision for multiple cohort studies. The activity will include governance, metadata maintenance, and measures to preserve data integrity over time.

Why this matters

Longitudinal cohorts provide unique insights into social, economic and health trajectories across the life course. Sustained, high-quality management protects the value of those datasets for researchers and policy makers.

Key points for invited organisations

1. Applicants should align proposals with UKRI submission guidance to minimise avoidable administrative and compliance errors.
2. Proposals must set out clear plans for data governance and participant confidentiality, with measurable delivery milestones.
3. Evidence of technical capacity for secure data storage and user access is essential.
4. Budget proposals should detail sustained operational costs rather than short-term project spend.
5. Applicants should demonstrate experience in cohort maintenance and stakeholder engagement.

The information in this section continues the overview of linked funding opportunities. Further details will appear in each funder’s formal call documents.

Esrc opens invite-only competition to fund CLS oversight

Further details will appear in each funder’s formal call documents. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) has opened an invite-only competition to fund the Centre for Longitudinal Studies (CLS) to oversee its life-course cohort portfolio.

The competition is a grant intended to protect the long-term availability of high-quality longitudinal data for UK social science research, policy development and applied practice.

The publication date for the opportunity is 23 February 2026. The call opened on 3 February 2026 at 9:00am UK time and closes on 31 March 2026 at 4:00pm UK time.

Because this is an invitation-based process, organisations and individuals should only respond if they have received a formal invitation from the ESRC.

The primary objective is to maintain continuous, accessible cohort datasets that support longitudinal research across disciplines.

ESRC React awards (pilot): pre-announcement and key features

Who: The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) has pre-announced a pilot funding strand titled React pilot awards. These awards target researchers based at UK organisations eligible for ESRC funding.

What: The pilot will fund time-sensitive, applied research that produces urgent, actionable evidence for public sector partners. Projects must produce outputs that frontline services will use directly in service delivery.

When: The pre-announcement was published on 23 February 2026. Opening and closing dates for the call are to be confirmed in subsequent ESRC documentation.

Where: Eligible applicants must be affiliated with a UK organisation recognised by ESRC funding rules and must have a confirmed public sector partner committed to using the research findings.

Why: ESRC describes the pilot as a mechanism to accelerate evidence use in public services by funding short, targeted studies that address urgent operational questions.

Funding profile and eligibility

The React pilot is listed as a grant with a total fund of £1,500,000. Individual awards will range between £50,000 and £100,000.

Applicants must demonstrate a confirmed commitment from a public sector partner. That partner must intend to use the research outputs in live service delivery or policy implementation.

Projects should be designed for rapid delivery and clear, implementable outputs. ESRC expects proposals to include realistic timelines, defined deliverables, and measures of impact for service partners.

What applicants should prepare now

Confirm public sector partner buy-in and secure a short statement of commitment from that partner. Letters of support should state how outputs will be used in practice.

Draft a concise project plan with milestones that match front-line decision cycles. Show how evidence will be translated into operational change.

What: The pilot will fund time-sensitive, applied research that produces urgent, actionable evidence for public sector partners. Projects must produce outputs that frontline services will use directly in service delivery.0

Implications and next steps

What: The pilot will fund time-sensitive, applied research that produces urgent, actionable evidence for public sector partners. Projects must produce outputs that frontline services will use directly in service delivery.1

What: The pilot will fund time-sensitive, applied research that produces urgent, actionable evidence for public sector partners. Projects must produce outputs that frontline services will use directly in service delivery.2

EPSRC FIBE3 CDT PhD studentship with Network Rail: research on embankment desiccation

Projects funded under the pilot mechanism must deliver outputs usable by frontline services. The University of Cambridge is offering a four-year (1+3 MRes/PhD) studentship. The award is funded by the EPSRC FIBE3 Centre for Doctoral Training in partnership with Network Rail.

Research aims and scope

The project will examine the effects of alternating wet and dry climatic cycles on railway embankment stability. Researchers will investigate how repeated desiccation cycles influence slope steepening, failure mechanisms and progressive track degradation. The work seeks to link field observations, laboratory tests and numerical modelling to clarify causal pathways from climate stress to operational risk.

Methods and expected outputs

The programme will combine controlled laboratory experiments with field monitoring of embankment profiles and moisture regimes. Numerical models will be calibrated against observed deformation and failure events. Outputs are expected to include validated process models, risk maps for embankment sections and guidance for inspection and maintenance regimes.

Requirements for applicants

Because this is a pilot mechanism for rapid evidence needs, applicants should emphasise clear impact pathways, realistic timelines and robust public sector engagement in their proposals. Proposals must make explicit how findings will translate into operational practice for infrastructure managers and frontline delivery teams.

Research scope and methods

The studentship will investigate whether embankment failures occur by rotation, translation or combined modes. It will quantify the risk of catastrophic collapse and identify when embankments are most vulnerable—immediately after rewetting or after prolonged winter saturation. The project combines laboratory experiments, numerical simulation and analysis of field data supplied by Network Rail. Laboratory work will centre on Beam Centrifuge model testing to reproduce stress and pore-pressure conditions in scaled embankments. Numerical models will extend experimental findings to real-world geometries and material variability.

Expected outputs and operational relevance

Findings must be presented in formats usable by infrastructure managers and frontline delivery teams. Outputs will include risk metrics, failure-mode characterisations and guidance on monitoring and intervention timing. The emphasis is on translation to practice so that design and maintenance regimes can adapt to periods of heightened vulnerability.

Candidate profile and funding

Applicants should hold, or expect to hold, at least a high 2:1 undergraduate degree, preferably supplemented by a Masters, in Civil Engineering. Candidates must demonstrate a strong interest in geotechnical engineering and laboratory experimentation. The studentship covers fees and maintenance for eligible home students initially; a limited number of international candidates may be considered later in the recruitment cycle.

Candidates with project-specific questions should contact Professor Stuart Haigh at [email protected]. General enquiries about the centre for doctoral training may be directed to [email protected]. Applications must be submitted through the University of Cambridge Applicant Portal. Applicants should note there is a non-refundable application fee of £20. Early applications are encouraged to secure consideration in the initial recruitment phase.

Practical submission and compliance reminders from ukri

Applicants to UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) or Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) calls must consult every applicable guidance document. These include the opportunity-specific guidance, the general UKRI guidance for applicants, and any council-specific notes. Requirements remain dispersed during a transition to standardised guidance; some calls still require multiple documents.

Mandatory requirements—including permitted start dates, project durations, funding caps, required attachments and eligibility rules—are strictly enforced. Failure to meet any mandatory condition will normally result in rejection at the administrative check stage. Applicants should therefore verify every checklist and attachment before submission.

Institutions often carry additional compliance checks. Supervisors and departmental administrators should confirm institutional endorsements and letter templates early. Retaining versioned copies of completed forms and submission receipts is prudent for audit and appeals.

Where eligibility depends on funding residency or fee status, applicants should align their statements with the supporting documentation required by the funder. The studentship offers support for eligible home students initially; a limited number of international candidates may be considered later in the recruitment cycle. Prospective applicants who anticipate eligibility questions should raise them with admissions contacts well before the deadline.

Submission rules, late applications and use of generative AI

Applicants must not submit duplicate proposals to multiple UKRI councils. Submitting the same proposal to non-UKRI funders may be allowed only if those funders permit simultaneous or duplicate applications.

If you intend to pursue parallel funding routes, you must disclose that circumstance in your proposal or before any public announcement. Transparency is required to avoid conflicts and ensure eligibility checks are accurate.

Late applications are normally not accepted. Exceptional circumstances require the research office manager to complete a late submission request form and email it to [email protected]. Do not assume late acceptance without formal approval from the research office.

The use of generative AI tools to draft or edit application material is permitted but should be approached cautiously and in line with UKRI policy. Applicants remain responsible for the accuracy, originality and appropriate attribution of all content submitted.

For queries about a specific funding call, contact the named programme manager listed in the funding opportunity for tailored guidance. Prospective applicants with eligibility or procedural questions should seek advice well before the deadline to avoid jeopardising their submission.