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AHDB SOILS PROGRAMME
Call for Research Partnership: Management for Soil Biology and
Soil Health
Frequently Asked Questions
* Updated 19/04/2016
* Can AHDB (sectors) or BBRO be named as a partner in an application to this call?
No, this would represent a conflict of interest. However, it is anticipated that the successful
partnership would work with AHDB and BBRO to ensure delivery of the outputs to industry.
* What is the outcome of the previous call for a Research Partnership on “Management
of Rotations, Soil Structure and Water”?
This Research Partnership has now been awarded, and will be a 5-year programme running
from April 2016 - March 2021, with a potato emphasis but also including other crops in the
rotation. The Research Partnership has four core partners: NIAB-CUF (Lead organisation),
Rothamsted Research, the James Hutton Institute and Lancaster University. A further 15
industry and academic collaborators are involved in the programme.
The research programme will comprise 4 projects covering:
i.
Grower platform project which will underpin the entire management of rotations
programme by being a source of historical data and providing an evaluation of existing
rotations and for testing further hypotheses and innovations.
ii.
Applications of precision farming technologies to enhance rotations.
iii.
Optimisation of rotation strategies for a range of soil types used for crop production
(e.g. length, composition, soil amendments, cover crops, cultivations).
iv.
Linking soil physical characteristics, root distribution and function, irrigation and crop
performance.
* Can letters of support be included in the application?
Yes, letters of support can be included as part of the application.
* A point of clarification on components of research and knowledge exchange within
the Research Partnership:
It is expected that the successful the Research Partnership will deliver on both the research
and knowledge exchange elements of the proposed programme, addressing the priority areas
identified in the call specification document. We do not anticipate funding knowledge exchange
work separately.
In Table 1 of the call specification, reference is made to “intractable soil-borne
diseases”. Can you clarify this?
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Intractable soil-borne diseases are considered to be those that are particularly difficult to
manage, for example due to the causal agent having a wide host-range, producing long-lived
resting structures in the soil, or having the ability to also survive as a saprotroph.
A point of clarification on the question below:
Can PhD students be used to deliver some of this work? If so, can we add
studentships as part of the proposal?
Yes, studentships may be added as part of the application; please identify that this is the
case on the short proposal, including any co-sponsorship if applicable. Involvement in the
research programme from PhD students working in related research area but funded outside
of AHDB would also be acceptable.
AHDB is not looking to solely support a doctoral training programme through this call.
However, PhD studentships can be included as an element of the overall research and KE
programme to deliver on the areas identified within the call specification.
Can you clarify the eligibility of international collaborators for this call?
International collaborators are eligible to participate in a consortium application. Specific
details of their involvement should be provided on the Research Partnership Proposal Form,
indicating their contribution to the programme. All Research Partnership and Project proposals
will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and should demonstrate a strong case for
involvement of named collaborators, as well as the benefit to UK levy payers.
Why are you taking the Research Partnership approach to carry out a programme of
research?
The partnership approach is considered to be an efficient mechanism to deliver research in
this area as it will not only integrate expertise over a range of research areas and across
disciplines, but will also build additional research capacity. Specifically, it will facilitate
synergies not only between the projects in the AHDB programmes, but also related projects
sponsored by other bodies e.g. Innovate UK, SARIC, UK Research Councils. In this way, it
will provide a research platform upon which knowledge, skills and resources can be shared
and exploited. Moreover, the research partnership could elicit complementary projects funded
outside of AHDB.
How do you see the new partnership working with the existing soils and water projects?
AHDB has established routine meetings that include all the centres involved with the current
Soils and Water programme. It is expected that the partnership members will also be engaged
in those meetings. The partnership should also identify and exploit synergies with existing
collaborations.
How will the Research Partnership interact with AHDB?
There will be a lead AHDB project manager assigned to monitor the partnership. Depending
on the projects within the programme, other AHDB sector and/or BBRO representatives will
also monitor progress and outputs. Regular meetings and progress reports of each of the
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projects will be required as specified in the AHDB Research Funding Agreement. Knowledge
exchange is to take place as part of or outside the programme.
What if the proposed programme doesn’t meet all the priorities?
We would expect that all or at least the majority of the priorities will be addressed. Although,
the assessment will take place in the context of the proposals received, and the quality of the
projects proposed.
Is there any preference of the research priorities given?
The relative importance of the research priorities to the AHDB divisions and BBRO is indicated
in Table 1 in the call specification document.
If a project is highly scored in the assessment process and/or strongly preferred, but
is not proposed by the preferred Research Partnership, can the project still be funded?
In this eventuality, the project may be considered for funding by AHDB outside of this scheme.
This may apply to projects which fulfil the research priorities for all divisions, but which are not
proposed by the favoured partnership.
You have stated that you assessing the strength of the Research Partnership
Proposals and the Short Proposals separately. How do you intend to bring these
aspects together?
It is only the quantitative assessments of the Research Partnership and those of the
proposed projects will be conducted individually. In assessing the entire application we take
account of the resulting scores together with the qualitative feedback, which will all be used
to inform the final decisions.
Is it expected that the partnership proposal that is successful in the previous call on
Management of Rotations, Soil Structure and Water will be the preferred option in the
soil health call?
No. These are two separate calls and there is no expectation either way. We are looking to
get the most appropriate partnership proposal, to deliver against the tender specifications.
Collaboration with international groups working on the same area - can this include
academic & research institutions, and industry?
Yes, this can include collaborators from any of the groups stated.
What are the options for exploitation of the IP generated from the programme?
The work commissioned will be subject to the standard AHDB Research Funding Agreement
a set out in the tender (Section 11).
Can a research organisation be part of more than one Research Partnership
application?
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Yes, this would be acceptable. We appreciate that some research organisations may have a
range of expertise, and may be submitting different project proposals into separate
partnership applications.
You have indicated funding of circa £200K p.a. How much flexibility is there on the
annual budget costs?
We can be flexible with regards to the distribution of funds as to when they are required
during the programme. The funding quoted per annum is indicative only.
Is there a preferred approach to contract administration for a partnership/multi-project
programme?
A multi-party agreement with the payment schedule will be arranged. Please indicate as
much as possible at this stage, the in-kind and cash funding requested for each of the
projects. Purchase orders will be set up in order to invoice each contractor.
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