What Works Centre for a climate resilient UK
What Works Centre for a climate resilient UK supports an independent centre to generate, synthesise and mobilise evidence for practitioners and decision-makers to accelerate effective UK climate adaptation.
Funder: UK Research and Innovation
Due Dates: December 15, 2026, 4:00pm UK time (Application deadline) | August 1, 2027 (Latest grant start)
Funding Amounts: Up to £21.1 million funder contribution for one 44-month award
Summary: Establish an independent centre that generates, synthesises and mobilises evidence to accelerate effective climate adaptation across the UK.
Key Information: Applications must include at least one UK business, third-sector or government project co-lead.
Description
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) are co-funding an independent What Works Centre, delivered through the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). The Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) are formal partners. The centre will turn evidence into practical adaptation action across the UK.
Its programme must cover healthy natural environment and food systems, thriving places, and services and infrastructure. It must convene stakeholders, identify evidence needs, generate and synthesise trusted evidence, test and scale effective actions, advance evaluation practice, and strengthen practitioner and decision-maker capability. Priorities include place-based adaptation, co-production, equity and vulnerability, investment value for money, governance, and overcoming implementation barriers.
