All communities are listed below in date order (newest first), and can be searched using key words or fund type.
Our “Featured Communities” are from the most recent round of Generator funding.
Our Communities
Our communities
The GW4 Building Communities Programme aims to build research and innovation communities of scale and capability, delivering a step change in world-class research that could not be achieved by one of the institutions alone. The Programme has two funding schemes:
- The annual Generator Fund which awards GW4 communities up to £20K for 6 month projects (launched in 2020). This replaced the Initiator (up to £20K for 5 months) and Accelerator (up to £75K for 8 months) funding schemes, which ran from 2014 – 2019.
- The Development Awards which support new, and advance existing, collaborations across GW4 by funding single activities or resources with up to £5K. This is a rolling scheme, with no closing date.
More details of both schemes, and how to apply, can be found at the links above.
Building Communities funding supports both the creation of new GW4 communities and the development of the strongest ideas emerging from our existing communities, and is open to any academic area. To date, the GW4 Alliance has invested over £3.4M in 125 collaborative research communities, which have generated £87M in research income. This means that for every £1 GW4 spends on collaborative research communities, GW4 captures an impressive £25 in external research awards.
Research integrity
The GW4 Alliance has adopted the Russell Group Research Integrity Statement of cooperation in cross-institutional research misconduct allegations, which aims to support the efforts of researcher communities to foster research integrity (also known as good practice in research or the responsible conduct of research).
Explore our communities
Featured Communities
All-solid-state lithium-ion batteries with cellulose enhanced solid polymer electrolytes (ALLIANCE)
STEM
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Young people’s self-harm and suicidal behaviour: Developing qualitative research to understand the influence of context and culture
HASS
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Fabrication and Testbed Network for Next-Generation Optical Brain Computer Interfacing
STEM
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Physical, psychological and social factors influencing musculoskeletal injury and wellbeing in Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professional students
STEM
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177 results found
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Funds
Types
GW4-BCR (Brain Cancer Research) From Daffodils to Drugs
Accelerator
Overview
From Daffodils to Drugs – this community investigated synthetic analogues of compounds found in daffodil bulbs to treat brain tumours.
Community lead
University of Bath: Lorenzo Caggiano (PI) and Julien Licchesi
University of Bristol: Kathreena Kurian
Cardiff University: Chris Marshall & Stephen Paisey
University of Exeter: Jacqueline Whatmore
Awarded
September 2018
Investigating GBV Intersectional (Dis)Advantages & Legal Duties – A Scoping Study of UK Universities
Accelerator
Overview
The Network has identified a clear research opportunity to construct an ecological, theoretical model of gender-based violence (GBV) relevant to UK universities.
Community lead
University of Bath: Tina Skinner
University of Bristol: Geetanjali Gangoli & Marianne Hester
Cardiff University: Kirsty Hudson
University of Exeter: Rachel Fenton (PI) & Cassandra Jones (co-PI)
Awarded
September 2018
The GW4 Pay Equality Research Consortium (PERC)
Sustaining Communities Initiative
Overview
The aim of the project was initially to investigate how gender pay gap reporting regulations could be strengthened, and to look critically at the Equal Pay Act 1970 and Equality Act 2010 in order to identify gaps in the legislation and ways to strengthen it. In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic caused a major disruption to the labour market, with negative impacts for women. The project therefore redirected its focus to examine the impact of the pandemic and identify lessons for policy.
Community lead
University of Bath: Susan Milner (PI)
University of Bristol: Susan Harkness
Cardiff University: Melanie Jones, Alison Parken
University of Exeter: Emma Jeanes
Awarded
January 2019
Circular Economy for Affordable, Low Carbon, Secondary Raw Materials
Initiator
Overview
The project focused on materials, processes, technologies and systems to enable up-cycling of industrial waste and agricultural co-products into valuable components, fostering circular economic solutions for sustainable building products.
Community lead
University of Bath: Pete Walker, Stephen Allen
University of Bristol: Steve Eichhorn, Rinat Nigmatullin
Cardiff University: Eshrar Latif, Marianna Marchesi
University of Exeter: Raffaele Vinai (PI), Matt Eames, Peter Hopkinson
Awarded
February 2019
Family Component of School Approaches to Promoting Mental Health
Initiator
Overview
We will form an interdisciplinary collaboration to develop an intervention to strengthen the family component of a Health Promoting School approach in secondary schools.
Community lead
University of Bath: Janet Goodall
University of Bristol: Judi Kidger
Cardiff University: Jeremy Segrott (PI)
University of Exeter: Katrina Wyatt
Awarded
February 2019
GW4 Nanoevade: Smart Design of Nanoparticle-Drugs to Evade the Immune Response
Initiator
Overview
This GW4 initiator grant brought together experts from different disciplines, ranging from nanoparticle chemistry & toxicity to mathematical modelling & immune system biology to address this complex problem.
Community lead
University of Bath: Karen Edler
University of Bristol: Ash Toye
Cardiff University: Mark Young, Riccardo Bonsignore, Andreia De Almeida
University of Exeter: Charlie Jeynes (PI), David Richards
Awarded
February 2019
The Imaging Arthritis Consortium
Initiator
Overview
The Imaging Arthritis Consortium leverages leading experience and facilities for musculoskeletal imaging that exist across the GW4 to promote new collaborations in the field of musculoskeletal imaging.
Community lead
University of Bath: Elise Pegg, Richie Gill
University of Bristol: Flossie Carpenter, Mike Whitehouse
Cardiff University: David Williams, Cathy Holt
University of Exeter: Ben Sherlock (PI)
Awarded
February 2019
Moving Through Motherhood
Initiator
Overview
The GW4 Moving Through Motherhood Community comprises researchers from different disciplines with a shared interest in supporting physical activity during pregnancy by establishing a regional multidiscipline and multisector network to steer research and resource development.
Community lead
University of Bath: Peter Rouse
University of Bristol: Charlie Foster
Cardiff University: Lucie Warren
University of Exeter: Richard Pulsford (PI), Victoria Salmon, Lauren Rogers
Awarded
February 2019
Recurrence Analysis for the Characterisation & Classification of Epileptic Patients
Accelerator
Overview
We will consolidate the methodology based on “recurrence analysis” and apply it to data recorded from the brain of individuals affected by epilepsy.
Community lead
University of Bath: Tiago de Paula Peixoto
University of Bristol: Naoki Masuda (PI)
Cardiff University: Jiaxiang Zhang
University of Exeter: Lorenzo Livi
Awarded
February 2019
South West Regional Centre for Secrecy, Security & Society Research
Initiator
Overview
The GW4 community aims to establish a regional, national and international centre of excellence in the innovative research area of secrecy and ignorance.
Community lead
University of Bath: Brett Edwards
University of Bristol: Elspeth Van Veeren (PI)
Cardiff University: Claudia Hillebrand
University of Exeter: Brian Rappert
Awarded
February 2019