The South West Research Cooperative funding call is currently closed.
About the SWRC
The SWRC is a student-led venture that gives PhD students from all SWDTP institutions support for collaborations with small charities and community and social enterprise groups.
The Coop has two main aims:
- Creating a community of research, and offering support and input for small, resource-limited organisations
- Creating opportunities for students to apply their research expertise in non-academic environments
Such groups often have very limited resources, and may benefit from focused research projects undertaken over a short time period. Students can apply for up to five-days funding and submit a brief application explaining the proposed project. The Coop Council considers each application on its merits, makes the funding decisions and manages ongoing collaborations. It is made up of students from Bath, Bristol and Exeter Universities and Jude Hill, SWDTP Collaboration Facilitator.
Collaborations do not have to involve ‘research’ per se. They could, for example, come in the form of a half day at a local Carer’s Centre, advising them on incoming government legislation, to a five day stint facilitating focus groups for a community initiative.
External organisations are also invited to submit requests for up to five days of student support. The request is considered by the Coop Council, if it is given the go ahead, an advertisement is sent out to the student body and applicants are selected on their merits and suitability for the collaboration. If you are an external organisation that is interested in engaging with the SWRC please email swrcooperative@gmail.com
The SWRC has also entered into a collaboration with the University of Bristol’s Brigstow Institute to offer Bristol-registered postgraduate students the opportunity to work in collaboration with a range of organisations across the city and beyond.
The criteria are the same but projects should fit with Brigstow’s key values where the focus is on new ideas, experimentation and new ways of working within the theme of human experience and living well. The projects funded fitted particularly well within the theme of ‘living well with difference’.