Fellowship Terms and Conditions

General terms and conditions for all Brain fellowships

  1. Applications should be submitted as specified in the advertisement and supplementary information. Abbreviations should not be used unless given in full at the first mention together with the abbreviation.  
  2. The Supervisor or Sponsor of the Fellowship holder will normally hold a senior post in a UK or Irish Higher Education Institution and/or within the NHS.
  3. Co-operating institutions will also be expected to complete the relevant undertakings.
  4. Applications should be submitted in electronic format by the publicized deadline date.
  5. Concise details of the research proposal for the Fellowship should follow the guidance provided by the Guarantors of Brain (see Website for details)
  6. The Fellow will use his/her best endeavours to complete the project within the agreed period and the overall grant awarded, and will make no material change to the description of the project without prior approval of the Guarantors of Brain.
  7. The Fellow would as soon as possible after appointment advise the Guarantors of Brain of the starting date of the Fellowship. The Guarantors of Brain reserve the right to withdraw the offer if the Fellowship has not commenced within 12 months of the offer.
  8. The Fellow may not be in receipt of emoluments or financial assistance from any other source. The Fellowship is therefore full-time, unless the fellow is by agreement only working part time (for example, fellows with substantial carer responsibilities).
  9. The Guarantors of Brain do not act as an employer and therefore, in all cases where support is provided for the employment of staff, the host Institution undertakes to issue a contract of employment in accordance with the provisions of the Employment Protections (Consolidation) Act 1978, and any other relevant Act relating to the conditions of employment. The Guarantors of Brain will not be responsible for claims under any statute or at common law, nor will it indemnify the host Institution against any claim for compensation or against any other claims for which the host Institution may be liable as an employer. The host institution is responsible for ensuring eligibility to work in the UK.
  10. The host Institution will arrange for its Finance Department to submit to the Guarantors of Brain quarterly in arrears suitable invoices on the Institution's printed paper, detailing all costs incurred during the quarter within the limits agreed in this Offer of Award. No other method of payment will be permitted.   The Guarantors of Brain will not reimburse any expenditure which is not claimed within 12 months of being incurred.
  11. The Guarantors of Brain will add to the salary costs proposed by the applicant an additional sum calculated to include anticipated cost of living increases in nationally agreed pay awards only.
  12. It is anticipated that the Institution would pay the Fellow's salary on a monthly basis. The Guarantors of Brain will not meet the invoice from the Institution in connection with the Fellowship costs for the final quarter of the Fellowship until it has received the Fellow's final report.
  13. The Fellow's salary will be at an appropriate point on a recognised UK or Irish University Scale or equivalent UK or Irish national pay or award structure which prescribes pay, superannuation, London Weighting (if appropriate), annual increments, on a nationally agreed basis. Pay "on-costs" would include the employer's share of UK or Irish National Insurance and superannuation contributions. The Fellow would be responsible for ensuring that arrangements have been made to cover his/her own UK or Irish National Insurance and superannuation contributions. The maximum award per annum, pro rata, inclusive of on-costs will be confirmed in the award.
  14. Additional costs relating to travel, equipment and other expenses will not be paid.
  15. The Fellow will supply the Guarantors of Brain with an annual report on the progress of the work, including if appropriate details of the research plan for the next year. The annual report will be reviewed by the Guarantors of Brain for adequacy of research to date and will enable the Guarantors of Brain to determine whether the grant should be continued.  The Fellow will provide a final report including a lay summary within three months of the termination date of the project.   The final payments due under this Agreement will be withheld pending the receipt of a final report satisfactory to the Guarantors of Brain.  
  16. The Fellow will assist the Guarantors of Brain in their policy of publicising as widely as possible its grants and progress in scientific research supported by them. The Fellow will provide a lay summary of the scientific research, which will be posted on the Guarantors website.
  17. In any publication resulting from work funded by the Guarantors of Brain, the support of the Guarantors of Brain must be acknowledged, in a form acceptable to the Guarantors of Brain, either in the text or in a footnote. Where the work funded by the Guarantors of Brain does or might give rise to a potential patentable invention, the agreement of the Guarantors of Brain must be obtained before the work is published.
  18. The Guarantors of Brain will under no circumstances agree to meet any indirect costs or other administrative overheads imposed by a University or other Institution and these must not feature in the application.
  19. The Fellow and his/her Supervisor or Sponsor should keep under continuous review the question of whether the work has potential commercial applications. If such exists, the Guarantors of Brain shall be informed.
  20. The Guarantors of Brain reserve the right to terminate the award for good reason, with due notice, at any time.
  21. In the event that money claimed is underspent, the Guarantors of Brain reserve the right to reclaim part or all of this.
  22. Should the work terminate before the end of the Fellowship, or the Supervisor ceases to be actively concerned with the Fellowship, the Guarantors of Brain must be notified without delay.
  23. The Applicant and the Supervisors at the UK or Irish Institutions agree to the appropriate undertakings when submitting the application.
  24. The Guarantors of Brain will consider applications before the consent of the relevant ethics committee is obtained, but the applicant undertakes that all necessary ethical and legal consents will have been obtained prior to commencing the proposed research. If the research cannot proceed because of lack of ethical and regulatory approvals, the Guarantors of Brain will be notified and reserve the right to terminate the award.
  25. The Guarantors of Brain will not be prepared to consider an application which does not comply with these regulations.

IN SIGNING THE APPLICATION FORM THE APPLICANT UNDERTAKES THAT, IN RELATION TO A FELLOWSHIP RESULTING FROM THE APPLICATION, THE APPLICANT WILL:

Take all reasonable actions to ensure that the Guarantors of Brain’s contribution to the funding of the research is suitably acknowledged in all publications.

Not benefit personally from any equity interests (substantive or rights, options or otherwise) as a result of the commercial exploitation of the research to be funded, other than the terms agreed between the employing Institution and the Guarantors of Brain.

Not enter into any arrangements with any commercial enterprise that will, in any way, allow the commercial exploitation of any knowledge gained as a result of the research to be funded without, first, obtaining the authority from the Guarantors of Brain in writing.

Not accept appointment as a consultant, or enter into confidentiality agreements or use materials or compounds (not obtained commercially), where any other party would place restrictions on the publication of, or obtain prior knowledge of, research findings excluding those relating specifically to the material or compounds supplied.