Responsive mode priorities

BBSRC has a set of Council-wide strategic priority areas, described in our Strategic Plan. The responsive mode priorities reflect topics or activities within these broader strategic areas that we particularly wish to encourage and promote. They are:

Building partnerships

There are three additional priorities that encourage working with partners to improve the effectiveness of research and the realisation of impact. They are not specific to particular areas of science or application.

Whilst we welcome applications across the whole of our remit, we particularly encourage proposals that pursue partnership in the areas of the responsive mode priorities.

Use of priority areas in appraisal of responsive mode grant applications

Excellence is the overriding criterion in the assessment of research grants, and we are committed to the support of world-class bioscience across our remit. However, it is expected that competitive applications that address a responsive mode priority will have some advantage in competition.

"Relevance to BBSRC Strategy" is one of the seven assessment criteria for research grant applications (Paragraph 4.43 of our research grants guide).

The extent to which a proposal addresses one or more of the responsive mode priorities, in the terms described for that priority area is, therefore, a factor in the appraisal and ranking of the application.

To be considered under a responsive mode priority any application must explicitly address the priority as set out in the priority description (see above for links to each priority web page). Applications that are generally relevant to topics mentioned e.g. in our Strategic Plan or other BBSRC documents are not within strategic priorities, but such relevance may be taken into account in peer review depending on the circumstances.

Pathways to impact and responsive mode priorities

Many of the responsive mode priorities aim to increase the impact of science funded by BBSRC by encouraging focus on particular problems, developing capacity and capability in the science base or strengthening links with partners and knowledge exchange.

Consequently, the Pathways to Impact section of the Je-S form is particularly important if the application addresses a responsive mode priority. Applicants should ensure that activities appropriate to the exploration and encouragement of the potential impacts that priority seeks to promote form part of the research programme and are clearly set out as objectives in the Pathways to Impact section.

Some priority descriptions include specific guidance on expectations for Pathways to Impact within that priority.