House of Commons - Science and Technology

Select Committee on Science and Technology Fifth Report

THE ROYAL ACADEMY OF ENGINEERING

17. In 1965 the Council for Engineering Institutions was set up by a group of major engineering institutions to promote the interests of the profession. The lack of an elite body in this area was felt to be a problem but progress was slow. On 11 June 1976 the Fellowship of Engineering was finally founded. The founding Fellows had either been nominated by the chartered engineering institutions or were drawn from engineer Fellows of the Royal Society. Fellows thereafter were elected and a ceiling of 1,000 imposed, with a maximum of 60 to be elected each year. This ceiling was revised to 1,500 in 1994. The Fellowship of Engineering carried out its first activities in 1977 and issued its first publication in 1978. By 1980 it had raised £1 million through fundraising. It acquired a Royal Charter in 1983 and received its first parliamentary grant-in-aid in 1984. In 1992 the Fellowship became the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Work

18. The Royal Academy of Engineering carries out work similar to that of the Royal Society. It gives independent advice to Government, feeding into consultations whilst also producing its own reports. It has an educational programme for schools and universities. Its engineering research fellowships are the major part of its work, with awards ranging from Personal Research Chairs to postdoctoral awards. There are strong links with industry and an industrial secondment scheme. The Royal Academy of Engineering organises public lectures, industry conferences and has a quarterly journal.

Funding

Table 5: Royal Academy of Engineering funding as set out in the Science Budget 2001-02 to 2003-04

£ million	2001-02	2002-03	2003-04
Total	4,270	4,770	5,270

Source: Science Budget 2001-02 - 2003-04

19. Table 5 shows the allocation of government funding to the Royal Academy of Engineering under the 2000 Spending Review.[17] Again expenditure for 2003-04 may be revised in the light of the 2002 Spending Review. The grant-in-aid forms one quarter of the Royal Academy of Engineering's direct income. It expected to have a total income of around £16 million in 2001-02. Although grant-in-aid forms only 26.7%of direct income, it acts as powerful leverage. The Royal Academy of Engineering estimates that grant-in-aid funded programmes attract private sector funding of over £6.5 million. It divides its income into two parts: direct income from the grant-in-aid and other sources, and third party income (in support of programme funding).

Table 6: The Royal Academy of Engineering's direct income 2001-02

Source	Funding £000	Percentage of income
Grant-in-aid	4, 270	26.7
Gatsby Charitable Foundation	1304	8.1
Income from investments	429	2.7
Events and facilities hire	244	1.5
Donations and direct sponsorship	218	1.4
Subscriptions	150	0.9
Other	265	2.3
Total	6,980	43.6

Source: The Royal Academy of Engineering [18]

Table 7: The Royal Academy of Engineering's third party income in support of programmes 2001-02

Purpose	Funding £000	Percentage of income
Grant-in-aid funded programmes	6,540	40.9
Gatsby funded programmes	2,276	14.2
Other programmes	208	1.3
Total	9,024	56.4

Source: The Royal Academy of Engineering [19]

The OST told us how the Royal Academy of Engineering's grant-in-aid for 2001-02 was allocated.

Table 8: Allocations in the Royal Academy of Engineering's grant-in-aid, 2001-02

Programme	Allocation £000
Personal Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships	574
Postdoctoral Research Fellowships	337
Engineering Professional Development Awards	237
International Travel Awards	389
Visiting Professorships in Design and Sustainable Development	441
Industrial Secondments	290
Engineering Foresight Awards	387
Engineering investigations	416
Education studies and support	374
Public communication and overseas representation	828
Total	4,270

Source: OST [20]

20. We commend the Royal Academy of Engineering for its use of its parliamentary grant-in-aid to lever private income. It estimates it receives £2 of private money for every £1 of public funding. We note that it attracts a higher proportion of public funding than the Royal Society, although we realise that engineering is a far more commercial area than academic science.

Grants and awards

FUNDING

21. The Royal Academy of Engineering makes awards on a smaller scale than the Royal Society, as is commensurate with its income.

Table 9: Grants and schemes supported by the Royal Academy of Engineering's grant-in-aid 2001-02

Award	Funding £000	No.
Personal Research Chairs	574	7
Senior Research Fellowships		3
Post-doctoral fellowships	337	5
Industrial secondment	287	25 by 2004
Engineering Foresight Awards	387	13

Source: The Royal Academy of Engineering [21]

FEATURES

22. The awards have a variety of features although all benefit from mentoring by Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering -

Personal Research Chairs and Senior Research Fellowships - with funding from a sponsor company, a higher education institution and the Royal Academy of Engineering, researchers carry out research of interest to the company.

Post-doctoral fellowships - five years of full funding.

Industrial secondment - allows engineering lecturers to take a secondment in industry for three to six months. Pays the cost of a replacement lecturer.