Research project funding

Through a programme of academic research funding from the ICAEW’s charitable trusts, we aim to fund the highest quality accounting and finance academic research and events.

In turn we aim to bring that research to the attention of key people including practitioners, regulators, standard-setters, businesses, investors and opinion-formers. All our reports are published under the Charitable Trusts logo.

We support academic research which relates to our thought leadership work. Please visit out Thought Leadership page for more details of our thought leadership programmes and topics. If you are interested in applying for funding for a project or event then take a look at our web pages on project funding. The latest research catalogue also gives details of our thought leadership programmes and reports and our published research.

The core areas in which the ICAEW currently wishes to promote academic research and debate fall within the ICAEW Thought Leadership initiatives. These include topics such as audit, corporate governance, management accounting, financial services and tax.

You should make it clear which thought leadership initiative and research question your project deals with and how.

Grants are available to both ICAEW members and non-members. We also accept applications from overseas researchers but the research must have some relevance to the UK market and we normally expect a UK academic partner to be involved.

Before completing an application form, we ask that researchers send in a synopsis of their proposed research on which we can make an initial assessment and indicate whether or not we are likely to fund such research.  New ideas for research may overlap with other ongoing projects or need refining.  We may also encourage you to discuss your idea for research with an ICAEW technical staff member who can comment on the link with our thought leadership work.

There is no set format for pre-proposals but you must begin with a clear title for the project and a 200 word abstract summarising your proposed research.  A pre-proposal should be no longer than 4-5 pages in length.

Please try to address the following questions in your outline as precisely as possible:

• What research question or hypothesis is being addressed?
• Which one of the ICAEW’s thought leadership initiatives does the proposed research deal with.  Which of the issues raised by or discussed in this particular thought leadership initiative does it address and how?
• What research methods will be used?
• How is it different from or how does it add to any other similar research which may have already been done (what is the relevant literature)?
• Does the research fit in with any planned changes in regulation or reflect any other external events and when might be the best time to publish the results?
• What will be the benefit to the accounting and business community (this might include policy implications)?
• What benefit or interest will the research offer to ICAEW members in general, or to any particular sector of the membership?
• Who will be doing the research and what expertise do they bring?
• Approximately how much money will be needed for the project?
• How long will the project take?
• What are the intended outputs and will any of these outputs be aimed specifically at ICAEW members either in business or in practice?

Following discussion of your pre-proposal, if you are asked to go to formal application stage you will need to fill and send an application form.

• Research project application form 
• Guidance notes