About the Research Council
The Research Council of the Velocity Interoperability Network is responsible for research programmes and research integrity across the Velocity Interoperability Network. It funds research carried out by member organisations, administers the awards made under its programmes, requires the results of that research to be openly available, and sets and upholds the standards of research integrity that apply to every researcher it funds.
The Council was established on 6 September 2026. Before that date, member organisations funded research separately and to their own standards; there was no common register of what was being funded, no shared procedure for assessing proposals, and no single body to which a concern about the conduct of research could be brought. The Council was established to provide all three.
Responsibilities. The Council's work falls into five areas.
- Funding research
- The Council designs and maintains the programmes under which research is funded, runs open calls for proposals, and decides which proposals are funded on the recommendation of its programme panels.
- Administering awards
- The Council issues award agreements, pays awards quarterly against statements of expenditure, receives annual and final reports, and maintains the register of awards made, varied and closed.
- Upholding research integrity
- The Council sets the standards of research integrity that apply to all research it funds, receives concerns about funded research, and reports each year on the concerns raised and how they were resolved.
- Requiring open research
- The Council requires the results, data and code produced under its awards to be deposited and made available, and maintains the repository in which those outputs are held.
- Advising the Network
- The Council advises the departments of the Network on questions of evidence within its programme themes, and reports to them on what the research it funds has established.
The Council at establishment. The figures below record the position on 6 September 2026.
- 9
- Members of the Council, including the Chair
- 3
- Offices: Programmes, Awards and Integrity
- 6
- Programme panels advising on the funded programmes
- 12
- Member organisations holding one or more awards
Membership. The Council consists of a Chair and eight members. Members are appointed by the Network from among researchers and research administrators nominated by member organisations, and serve a term of four years, renewable once. Of the eight members, five are practising researchers, two are research administrators and one is appointed to represent the interests of the departments that commission evidence from the Council. A member who holds, or whose organisation holds, an award under a proposal before the Council takes no part in the decision on that proposal, and the abstention is recorded in the minutes.
Offices. The Council's day-to-day work is carried out by three offices and a Secretariat, all based at Eastfield Campus.
| Office | Functions | Answerable to |
|---|---|---|
| Programmes Office | Programme design, funding calls, assignment of reviewers, programme panels | Council, through the programme panels |
| Awards Office | Award agreements, payments, annual and final reports, the register of awards, open research deposits | Council |
| Integrity Office | Standards of research integrity, concerns about funded research, investigation panels, the annual integrity report | Council, directly |
| Secretariat | Meetings and minutes of the Council, publication of decisions, correspondence and this website | Chair of the Council |
The Integrity Office answers to the Council directly rather than through the offices that award funding, so that a concern about research funded by the Council is not assessed by the office that funded it.
How the Council reaches decisions. Funding decisions are taken by the Council on the recommendation of a programme panel, which in turn considers the reports of at least three peer reviewers for each proposal. The Council may decline to fund a proposal the panel has recommended, but may not fund one the panel has not; where it declines, it records its reasons. Decisions on the variation or termination of an award are taken by the Council on a report from the Awards Office.
| Business | Frequency | What is published |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary meetings of the Council | Quarterly | Minutes published within fifteen working days |
| Programme panel meetings | Twice a year, and after each call closes | Recommendations reported to the Council |
| Investigation panels | Convened as required | Findings reported to the Council and the member organisation |
| Annual report on research integrity | Once a year | Published in the first quarter |
For the Council's origins and the milestones since its establishment, see History. Announcements are published in the Newsroom, and answers to common questions on the frequently asked questions page. General enquiries may be sent to contact@research.gov.vin.