Keele Academic Returners' Fund

Keele Academic Returners' Fund

Through maternity and adoption cover, and the Academic Returners’ Fund, Keele aims to create a working environment, for maternity and adoption returners, which encourages excellence in both research and scholarship and allows individuals to flourish professionally, thus benefitting the University.

Example uses of the fund are available in the guidance notes.

Eligibility: To be eligible to apply for funding, the returning member of staff must fulfil the following criteria. They must:

  • be an existing member of academic staff on an Education & Scholarship, Education & Research or Research Fellow contract with a clear set of agreed research or scholarship goals.
  • have 6 months remaining on their contract following their return from maternity, adoption or shared parental leave , if they are on a fixed term contract, and be able to benefit from the expenditure before the end of their contract.
  • not have handed in their notice, unless they have given a longer notice period (i.e. having 6 months or longer remaining as above)*. 
  • be/have been entitled to statutory maternity/adoption and less than 12 months has passed since they returned from their leave period (including any shared parental leave).

*If the applicant has handed in their notice please discuss eligibility with Hannah Barjat before making an application. 

The fund is envisaged to help address existing gender inequalities at Keele, as we would envisage that most applicants will be women. 

If you feel you do not meet all the eligibility criteria but would like to discuss your circumstances with us, please contact your HR Link Advisor to discuss your case further.

Application Process:  Please contact Hannah Barjat for a link to access the application form. 

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