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What can I request funding for?

Through the Fund we aim to support projects or programmes that: 

• Develop chemists’ public engagement and science communication skills - building capacity and opportunities for chemists and chemical scientists to engage with schools and public audiences
• Engage with school students - inspiring and raising aspirations of student audiences to nurture a future generation passionate about the chemical sciences
• Engage with public audiences - involving a wide range of people in relevant contemporary issues in the chemical sciences
• Provide under-represented audiences, communities and places with inspiring chemistry engagement opportunities, delivered or coordinated by skilled people

We are currently prioritising funding for projects that have one or more of the following outcomes:

• Under-represented audiences are better connected with or represented by chemical science
• RSC members have opportunities to develop and/or use their engagement skills
• The project or partnership supports positive social outcomes such as an increase in wellbeing, improved confidence, and/or an increased sense of belonging
• Families and intergenerational audiences connect with chemistry in fun, creative and participatory ways
• Adults engage with chemists and chemistry to empower them to access, connect and respond to chemistry and societal issues

"Without this funding from the RSC, the project simply would not have been possible. Although it was rejected initially, your team saw potential in our application.

"The opportunity to revise and resubmit our application with further details and clarifications in some areas was appreciated. Few grant applications offer such feedback and opportunity, so this in itself was hugely helpful."

Mhairi McCann, Founder & CEO, Youth STEM 2030

Eligibility

Applicants/applications to the outreach fund must:

• be aged 18 and over
• be a UK or Republic of Ireland (ROI) resident (with a UK or ROI address and bank account), or are applying on behalf of an organisation registered in the UK or ROI
• not resubmit an unsuccessful Outreach Fund application unless invited to do so
• be submitted in line with the specified deadlines for consideration in a particular funding round. If an application deadline is missed, it may still be submitted in the instance that the fund remains open to applications, but will not be reviewed by the assessment panel until after the next submission deadline
• have a significant aspect which is related to the chemical sciences

For further details please read our application guidance.

Eligible audiences

Our The Future ÀË»¨Ö±²¥ Workforce and Educational Pathways report (2024) has highlighted that there is a shortage of STEM skills and subject expertise in the UK. The Public Attitudes to ÀË»¨Ö±²¥ study (2015) found that while overall the public is positive about chemistry’s contribution to society, they lack confidence and have an absence of an emotional connection with chemistry.

This fund aims to address this by funding grants for schools and public groups without restriction on the type of audience, to connect communities from all backgrounds with the chemical sciences.

"The outreach fund is well set up and administered to allow small organisations to run innovative and meaningful projects that deliver strong outcomes for young people."

Dr Virginia Crompton, CEO, Big Ideas

Funding for under-represented audiences

Further research done to inform our Inclusion & Diversity strategy has highlighted that many groups face barriers to entering and staying in chemistry, and are under-represented compared with the general population.

This includes women at senior levels (Breaking the Barriers, 2018); members of the LGBT+ community (Exploring the Workplace for LGBT+ Physical Scientists, 2019), disabled people (Disability in the chemical sciences, 2023), people from Black and minoritised ethnicities (Missing Elements, 2022) and people from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds (Is chemistry accessible for all?, 2020).

You can find all these reports in our inclusion and diversity policy section.

The Chemists’ Community Fund provides the Outreach Fund with ring-fenced additional funding to support initiatives that closely align to the CCF’s guiding principles – projects that engage directly with under-represented groups and audiences and enable them to participate in chemistry-based engagement activities. We are particularly interested in funding work with audiences including people with disabilities and people facing social, economic and educational disadvantages. Under-represented audiences may include, but are not limited to:

• Individuals/groups from low socio-economic background/status
• Individuals/groups from minoritised / minority ethnic backgrounds
• SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities)/SEMH (Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties)/ASN (Additional Support Needs) students
• LGBT+ individuals/groups
• Disabled individuals/disability groups
• Children in care/care leavers
• Young carers
• Individuals/groups in rural locations

How to apply

Before you begin an application, please ensure that you have fully read and understood the eligibility, criteria and restriction guidelines above.

The following will all help with your application:

• Please make sure you have read our application guidance before you apply
• See a list of resources to support you in the development of your project and strengthen your application
• View the example application questions before applying online

Apply now

All applications must be submitted online.

Our expectations of a grant holder

Successful applicants:

• will initially be asked to sign an agreement regarding the grant
• will then be asked to raise an invoice for 80% of the total grant
• must submit an evaluation within two weeks of the completion of a project
• will be awarded the final 20% of the grant following a review of the evaluation

Evaluations offer us an insight into the impact, the challenges faced and the legacy of projects which helps keep us informed of the effectiveness of varying science engagement strategies.

We are aware that projects may encounter unforeseen challenges, as exemplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the off-chance that this does occur, we ask that you consult us regarding any changes to a project as laid out in the original application.