Research Support Grants

Research Support Grants are specifically designed for scholars to support the expenses incurred in visiting collections, libraries, archives or historic sites within the United Kingdom or abroad.

These grants are offered for specific research visits and individuals may claim for the following costs in line with the limits given below:

• standard class fares (in full)
• accommodation (up to a maximum of £100 per night)
• daily subsistence (£40 per day)

Additional costs relating to specific requirements (including childcare, or specific transport requirements for example) may be supported by the PMC on a case-by-case basis. Please contact the Grants & Fellowships Manager to discuss. Such specific requests will not be recorded in the application paperwork considered by the Advisory Council.

Research Support Grants are offered for up to a maximum of £2,000; applications for less than £2,000 are also eligible.

The award will be paid directly to the individual as a lump sum only.

Our funding programme supports research, educational activities and the dissemination of knowledge in the fields of British art and architectural history, from the medieval period to the present day and across the spectrum of relevant geographical and cultural contexts. Our remit is broadly defined and adapts as the interests of those working in our field change. It encompasses art made in Britain or by British artists, but is not solely limited to art made, or artists from, within the geographical boundaries of the British isles. Rather we understand the field of British art studies to encompass a broad range of subjects and topics related to the artistic and cultural histories of Britain, past and present.

We do not offer grants and fellowships in field archaeology, the current practice of architecture or the performing arts. Applications in the fields of photography, performance, film and digital media will need to demonstrate their relevance to British art studies.

Academics, scholars, postgraduate students and independent researchers are eligible to apply in the Research Support Grant category, with the stipulation that their research is in the field of British art or architectural history and is of a scholarly nature.

Conference attendance, costs of photography, photocopying, computers, cameras or other equipment DO NOT come within the scope of this award and such costs must not be included in any application.

For further questions on eligibility please contact the Grants & Fellowships Manager at [email protected].

Research Support Grants are offered in both our autumn and spring rounds of funding.

Applications are currently open, closing date for applications is 31 January 2024 at 11:59pm. Closing date for referees is 11 February 2024 at 11:59pm.

To apply for a Research Support Grant, you must use our online system at grants.paul-mellon-centre.ac.uk. Once registered you will be able to fill out the online application form (an example of which can be downloaded below) and provide the details of one referee. The option to provide the referee details will be available once the application is submitted. We will contact the nominated referee with details on how they can submit their reference which must be completed through our online system and must be no more than five hundred words.

The referee should have first-hand knowledge of the applicant’s academic career and/or the subject area for which funding is being sought. The Advisory Council would like to be informed of the originality of the subject matter and the applicant’s suitability to pursue such research.

Applications and nominated referee details must be received by 31 January 2024, referees have until 11 February 2024 to submit their references.

• Payment of the grant must be claimed within twelve months of the award being made and the research trip(s) must be taken within eighteen months.
  
  
• On completion the recipient must submit a comprehensive written report: this would typically be around 500 words (1 page) but may be longer if required. The report should detail the research activity undertaken during the funded period and the impact of this work on the larger project. The report must be submitted within three months of the completed project, this will then be shared with the Advisory Council. If there are any further future outcomes of the project outside of the funding period (eg. publication, exhibition, academic papers) then the recipient should send the details of these to the Grants and Fellowships Manager.