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Annual Report and Accounts, 2009-2010 ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2009-2010 ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2009–2010 Presented to Parliament pursuant to s. 2 (2) of Schedule 1 of the Science and Technology Act 1965 (c.4) Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed on 13th January 2011 HC 624 London: The Stationery Office £19.75 © Crown Copyright 2010 You may re-use this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit http://www. nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government- licence/ or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or e-mail: [email protected]. Any enquiries regarding this publication should be sent to us at: [email protected]. This publication is also available on http://www.official-documents.gov.uk/ ISBN: 9780102966411 Printed in the UK for The Stationery Office Limited on behalf of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office ID 2369098 12/10 Printed on paper containing 75% recycled fibre content minimum. CONTENTS 05 CHAIRMAN’S FOREWORD 06 CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S INTRODUCTION 08 HEALTHY RESEARCH BASE 10 SUPPORTING EXCELLENCE 20 NEXT GENERATION SKILLS 22 ACCESS TO THE BEST FACILITIES 26 ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL IMPACT 28 IMPACT FROM EXCELLENCE 37 SKILLS FOR THE ECONOMY 39 CHALLENGES FOR SOCIETY AND THE ECONOMY 47 FACTS AND FIGURES 57 CORPORATE ACTIVITIES 65 ACCOUNTS 66 REMUNERATION REPORT 69 STATEMENT OF ACCOUNT 79 NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS OUR VISION is for the UK to be the most dynamic and stimulating environment in which to engage in research and innovation. PIONEERING THE FUTURE JOHN ARMITT CHAIRMAN In accordance with Schedule 1 to the This year we have invested over £800 million in pioneering research for Science and Technology Act 1965, the Engineering and Physical Sciences the future. As the Government’s agency for funding world-class research, Research Council submits the following report on its activities for the period innovation and skills development in engineering and the physical sciences, 1 A pril 2009 to 31 March 2010. our focus continues to be on the many global challenges that face the UK. A high proportion of our investment this year is making an impact on big issues that affect all of us – the future health of the economy, the need for secure and sustainable energy, the impact of climate change, the needs of healthcare and the consequences of an ageing population. The future of the UK‘s economy is clearly of particular concern following the recession and the need for a more diversified and balanced economy is widely recognised. This emphasises EPSRC’s pivotal role in delivering the science and engineering innovations and highly skilled people that can help stimulate economic growth. We already have much to be proud of. Around half of the PhDs we fund move straight into employment in business or the public services, many in key sectors for the UK like pharmaceuticals, aerospace, computing, telecommunications and finance. Also very positive is the recent confirmation that the research communities we fund are judged to be amongst the best in the world based on international benchmarking. And, as we showcase in this report, our portfolio of investment in research is paying off in a wide range of industry and service sectors. EPSRC’s programmes this year show how we are targeting major investment for research which will sow the seeds of potential new industries and jobs for the UK. A new generation of centres to develop innovative manufacturing in industries from healthcare to telecommunications was launched this year, for example. And the creation of a ‘Digital Britain’ was boosted by significant new funding for research programmes that promise to transform the way technology improves our everyday lives. Our ambition of shaping research capability to deliver excellent research was demonstrated this year by our injection of major new funding for mould-breaking research which opens up the prospect of ground-breaking advances in areas such as sustainable energy and super-fast computers. We are underlining our commitment to supporting the flow of world leading researchers through further expansion of training centres across the UK, as well as enabling more researchers to deploy their skills in business environments to pave the way for economic benefit. Our strategy has always been to remain responsive to the future needs of the UK. EPSRC’s Strategic Plan published this year sets out how we propose to keep the UK at the leading edge of global research and innovation. It is ambitious and I am confident that we are on course to provide the knowledge and skills that are vital to a healthy, sustainable and prosperous society. John Armitt Chairman ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH COUNCIL 05 ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2009 – 2010 DELIVERING GREATER IMPACT DAVID DELPY CHIEF EXECUTIVE Few doubt that the UK now faces challenges on EPSRC funding of £70 million I emphasised an almost unprecedented scale – economically and their importance for the future health of the UK environmentally – and that we must deliver ever economy. They will focus on areas of pioneering greater impact in response. EPSRC’s greatest research that promise to spearhead the impact continues to be through the highly skilled creation of new industries and new employment people that we support and the fundamental opportunities in the UK. For example, the first knowledge they generate, both of which are three we have announced will develop essential to business, government and other sustainable solutions through recycled metals, research organisations. This Annual Report harness light to revolutionise the internet and highlights the many investments we have made telecommunications and help save lives through this year to support cutting edge science and developments in regenerative medicine. engineering that will meet the needs of the Our ongoing drive to ensure that EPSRC economy and society. investment in research achieves maximum The focus is on major challenges such as the impact was given a further boost in 2009. We requirement for a low carbon future for energy, awarded funds of £55 million for 25 knowledge digital technologies that can improve peoples’ lives transfer awards which will help to realise and create new businesses, advances in healthcare our ambition that the UK is as renowned for that meet the demands of an ageing population knowledge transfer and innovation as it is for and a highly competitive manufacturing sector for a research breakthroughs. In practice these balanced economy. The report also includes telling awards mean that university groups will focus case studies of how our past investments in basic on such valuable targets as facilitating the results research have borne fruit in new breakthroughs of research engineers to be applied commercially with huge potential and how spin-out companies to the health sector, or honing the skills of a are reaping the rewards of successful application. new ‘brand’ of people equipped with the technical and business skills to succeed in an increasingly Vision for the future entrepreneurial environment. It has never been more important for the One of the key measures of how EPSRC’s engineering and physical sciences community to strategy is succeeding in delivering the impact work together to produce solutions for the future that our economy and society needs is the benefit of the UK. Our current Delivery Plan runs success of new business start-ups that emerge until 2011 when we will be launching its successor. as a result of EPSRC supported research and This is why we published our Strategic Plan in training. Over the past four years 179 such 2010, developed following broad consultation spin- out companies have been reported on our with our partners and communities. It has been grants. One spin-out, Critical Pharmaceuticals, informed by government strategy, the wider a biotechnology company spun out from the international research landscape and the global University of Nottingham, secured an order from economic situation. This is an ambitious high-level the Wellcome Trust to develop a nasal spray of statement of EPSRC’s long term vision and goals Human Growth Hormone using its proprietary for the next three to five years and sets out how CriticalSorb technology as an alternative to we will achieve them. injection. The drug is a leading biological treatment for growth disorders that had global Achieving impact sales of around $2.8 billion in 2007. Another At this year’s launch of a new generation of EPSRC highlight is that the giant offshore wave energy Centres for Innovative Manufacturing with major converter called Oyster began supplying power Key highlights of the year £78 MILLION FOR NEW PROGRAMME THREE NEW CENTRES FOR 41 NEW FELLOWSHIPS £55 MILLION FOR NEW KNOWLEDGE GRANTs – fROM SUSTAINABLE ENERGY DOCTORAL TRAINING (CDTs) IN AWARDED FOR NEXT GENERATION TRANSFER AWARDS. TO SUPER-FAST COMPUTERS. MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES WHICH RESEARCH LEADERS. BOOST THE CDT TOTAL TO 52. ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH COUNCIL 06 ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS 2009 – 2010 to the national grid. Based on EPSRC funded will need. Three new centres focused on creating research, this technology could make a significant a new generation of advanced mathematicians contribution to the UK’s requirement for more announced this year all have close links to industry sustainable energy. and their students will be highly employable in commerce and industry. EPSRC’s greatest impact Staying world class Our innovative vision also includes developing continues to be through the Further evidence that the UK research a range of strategic partnerships with research highly skilled people that we communities we support are world beaters was intensive organisations. I was delighted when, in support and the fundamental revealed in a newly published study, summarised 2009, EPSRC and Rolls-Royce linked up in a new knowledge they generate, in this report on page 11.
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