Please note that progress reporting, final reports, open access and conference requests have moved to our Grants Management System.
If you have not yet accessed the system or have any queries, please contact the CSO Grants team.
A full payment schedule detailing the profiled grant instalments will be issued on receipt of a signed award letter, start certificate and ethical approvals.
- Award letter – On receipt of an award letter the Grantee has 28 days to return the signed letter by email to the CSO Grants team. CSO standard terms and conditions can be found in Schedule 2 of the award letter. An example of the award letter can be found by following the link – example award letter.
- Ethical approval – If a project requires ethical approval, it is the responsibility of the Grantee to ensure that all necessary research governance reviews and approvals are obtained. Confirmation of these approvals must be emailed by either the Grantee or the Lead Investigator to the CSO Grants team before any related research activities can begin.
- Start Certificate – When a Project commences, a Start Certificate must be completed by the Grantee’s Finance Office and returned to the CSO Grants team by email.
Progress reports and final reports will be scheduled in your online account and can be completed via the Grants Management System.
- 6 month progress report – An initial progress report using the template available on the grants management system, must be submitted to CSO by the Lead Investigator through the grants management system, 6 months from the start of the Project. No schedule 3 is required.
- 12/18 month progress reports – Depending on the length of the award either a 12 or 18 month report must be submitted by the Lead Investigator through the grants management system. Projects awarded from 2025 onwards should also include a completed Schedule 3. It is the Lead Investigators responsibility to ensure the completion of Schedule 3 by the Grantee and upload this alongside the progress report.
- Final report and project outcomes – A final report and funded project outcomes report, available on the grant management system must be submitted by the Lead Investigator through the grants management system by the end of the project for review and for subsequent publication on the CSO website. Examples of publish reports which have been published are available on the CSO website.
- Final reconciliation – The research finance office should complete and return a final statement of expenditure by email to the CSO Grants team within 4 weeks of the end of the funding period. The final reconciliation form is available here – Final Statement of Expenditure. Projects awarded from 2025 onwards should also include a completed Schedule 3.
- Open access requests should be applied for using the form found in the ‘Application Portal’ section of the Grants Management System. Alternatively, you can use the following link: CSO Open Access Application Form
- Conference funding: Research applications from 2025 onwards should include modest dissemination costs within the research proposal. Research applications submitted before the end of 2024 can apply for funding to attend conferences. Please contact the CSO Grants team to check eligibility and apply.