All funding applicants whose proposals will include fieldwork in the Antarctic (or at Signy Island, or at the subantarctic Bird Island) must complete a ‘Pre Award Operational Support Planning Questionnaire (OSPQ)’. The questionnaire should be submitted no later than three months prior to the submission deadline of the intended call.
Proposals which involve experimental investigations on any aspects of Antarctic fauna during the fieldwork may be referred to the Animal Welfare and Ethics Review Body, if the funding is successful. In such cases, Animal Welfare and Ethics Review Body approval is a prerequisite to BAS consenting to support the fieldwork. The Antarctic Access Office at BAS (afibas@bas.ac.uk) will manage the approval request process.
If your project is completely ship-based there is no need for you to submit a Pre Award OSPQ. Applications should be made through the NERC Marine Facilities, details are given below. If your activity is both field and ship-based you will need to complete the Antarctic logistic support form (for field) and the NERC Marine Facilities forms.
Pre Award OSPQs are considered by a Logistics Panel, convened at the BAS, with representation from BAS Operations and Logistics; NERC Head Office; and the NERC Antarctic Access Office based at BAS. Feedback is supplied to applicants by the Antarctic Access Office.
Please note: Once approved, the Antarctic Access Office will issue you with a feedback letter and a PDF version of your Pre Award OSPQ to confirm the outcome of your fieldwork request. If submitting a funding application to NERC through the Joint electronic System (Je-S), you must attach your feedback letter and submitted OSPQ to your proposal. If submitting a proposal through the UKRI Funding Service, applicants should not upload their feedback letter or OSPQ, however, they should indicate that their project requires Antarctic Logistics Support and that they have received confirmation from the Antarctic Access Office that their OSPQ has been approved.
Approved requests will be valid for a period of 12 months only from the date of application.
Pre Award Operational Support Planning Questionnaire (OSPQ)
To complete a new questionnaire:
Email the Antarctic Access Office at BAS (afibas@bas.ac.uk) stating your name and institution. They will send you a link to the OSPQ portal along with instructions on how to complete your Pre-Award OSPQ.
Pre-Award OSPQ Deadlines:
NERC deadlines are shown in the table below. Note that the submission deadline is 4 p.m. on the given date.
Applications for BAS Antarctic logistics support are welcome on other NERC/ UKRI/ Other Research Council funding calls (e.g. Directed calls), the Pre-Award OSPQ deadline will be 3 months before the proposal deadline, unless stated otherwise in the call.
Applications are also welcome on certain non-UKRI funding calls, including EU, ESA and the Leverhulme Trust. For further information on non-UKRI funding calls please contact the Antarctic Access Office.
| Funding call application deadline | Deadline for submission of Pre-Award OSPQ |
|---|---|
| Large grants – Outline proposals 7th March 2024, full proposals – 12th November 2024 | 7th March 2024 |
| Pushing the Frontiers – 16th July 2025 | 2nd April 2025 |
| NERC Independent Research Fellowships – 3rd April 2025 | 3rd January 2025 |
| UKRI Future Leaders Fellowships – 18th June 2025 | 18th March 2025 |
| Collaborative Antarctic Science Scheme – 27th March 2025 | 27th March 2025 – OSPQ not required, see CASS application form |
| Other NERC/ UKRI/ Other Research Council/ Other eligible non-UKRI funding calls (e.g. EU, Leverhulme) | 3 months before full proposal submission deadline |
Please see the NERC website for further information and guidelines.
Ship-time and Marine Equipment application
Applicants should contact the NERC Marine Planning Officer, Natalie Powney (email: natalie.powney@nerc.ukri.org) at an early stage – before commencing the Ship-time and Marine Equipment application – to discuss project planning requirements.
Application process:
- Create a user account
- Complete the SME application form
- Submit the full proposal, using the online Je-S form, including the profile number generated from the SME form
Note that the requested length (days) of a marine science cruise should include:
- sailing time from a departure port, such as Stanley (Falkland Islands);
- time for mobilisation and demobilisation;
- the actual number of days during which scientific operations will be conducted.
If NERC Marine Facilities (NMF) Sea Systems technical support and/or equipment from the National Marine Equipment Pool is required, then Principal Investigators must include an estimate of the associated costs in their full proposal application. Applicants should contact the NMF Sea Systems Programme Manager, Colin Day, (email: cdy@noc.soton.ac.uk) to discuss their requirements, so that an estimate of the total technician and/or equipment support cost can be determined.
Spares and consumables will be provided by BAS to keep on-board equipment operational. However, all project personnel are responsible for the provision of consumables needed for acquisition of scientific data for their project. For example: provision of XBTs, standard seawater, salinity bottle inserts and scintillation counter vials.