CSP250477 - UKRI Policy Fellowships Training and Mentoring Programme

Overview

Lots (2)

• Training

  Lot 1 Training Group training sessions offered to the whole cohort (circa 40 fellows) each year will enable the fellows to acquire knowledge and insights that will support their fellowships, increase impact, and support future career development. Two sessions must be delivered in person (at a minimum) to allow for networking and encourage the cohort approach. Where bidders suggest more in person sessions, they will need to demonstrate how they have considered the impact on accessibility given that fellows are based across the UK. The focus areas of this training programme are likely to include the following topics, but will not be limited to: • Policy making in the UK, actors, structure, cycles, streams • Networking and building relationships in policy • Communication training for policy, including writing and briefing • Supporting evidence use in government • Knowledge Exchange (KE) and science for policy in UK and international • Equality Diversity Inclusion (EDI) in KE • Wellbeing and mental health considerations during a fellowship • Developing effective impact case studies and using impact to support career progression • Data; Access, Use, Ethics and AI The training provider should demonstrate how the designed programme has been tailored to the phases of the fellowship. The provider will design and deliver sessions as well as coordinate with other parties delivering training, such as government bodies (e.g. POST, GoS, etc.) and UKRI investments (e.g. UKRI Policy Fellowship Alumni, ECO, METIUS). The training should be designed to support fellows during their fellowship in central and devolved government roles, and What Works Evidence Networks, and help develop policy engagement skills that will support their future career development. Training should take place as a combination of in person and virtual. Activities should be context-driven and offer experiential learning opportunities through a variety of interactive formats and session types.

  £209,775Won by Institute for Government

• Mentoring

  Lot 2 Mentoring In addition to complimenting the areas of focus covered by the training programme, the mentoring programme could focus on (but not be limited to) the following activities: • Identifying and building on fellows’ unique strengths and experiences • Creating and implementing individual development plans • Identifying potential career pathways • Agreeing individual outcomes and personal milestones • Supporting fellows to grow relevant contacts and networks • Develop specific plans for communicating their research effectively to policy audiences Mentoring will support and compliment the training programme (see above), accelerating the personal and professional development of mentees, providing tailored support to increasing their impact during the fellowship, but also informing their future career development. UKRI has strong ambitions for participants in its fellowship schemes and sees effective mentoring to support academics for key leadership roles in public policy e.g. chief scientific advisors. The mentoring provided is expected to draw from the full range of expertise and experience of key stakeholders (e.g. Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology, Government Office for Science, academic networks and ESRC/UKRI investments with expertise in Knowledge Exchange, policy engagement and evidence synthesis) and other relevant experts. Mentoring support will be tailored to meet the specific requirements of each individual fellow. UKRI is looking for bidders to offer mentoring opportunities to all fellows and therefore this will not be limited to those with "unique development potential". We would like bidders to suggest the number of hours/sessions/format that they feel would be suitable for the mentoring program noting that some form of the mentoring opportunity should be accessible to all UKRI Policy Fellows.

  £148,749Won by Zinc Ventures LimitedWon by Zinc Ventures Limited

Award outcome

Awarded value

£358,524

Award date

28 January 2026

Contract period

12 February 2026 → 29 March 2030

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