Conclusion 3

The dispersed nature of research infrastructure is inefficient and creates particular challenges for researchers outside the ‘Greater South East’ of England. It can be difficult to identify what research infrastructure exists in the UK, and access is often uneven and unnecessarily complicated. The current VAT framework for research infrastructure, along with other barriers, discourages researchers from using facilities outside their own institution. We also heard that UKRI has focused on large investments and paid less attention to whether the overall landscape is balanced, efficient and resilient. The issue is more acute for researchers and innovators in regions outside the ‘Greater South East’ (the London, South East and East of England regions) which receives half of all UKRI funding. While UKRI does consider the impact of its spending decisions on regional growth, it has not set specific targets for the regional distribution. However there has been an improvement over the last five years: 20% of its spending now takes place in the north of England (up from 12% previously). The Department attributes this to the increased quality of research taking place outside the ‘Greater South East’ as a result of targeted programmes like Strength in Places. recommendation UKRI should determine how much funding should be allocated to different regions of the country and set targets to ensure this occurs, while also ensuring that the overall outcomes benefit researchers across the whole of the country. 4