Summary
The Society of Research Software Engineering (SocRSE) will support each of it’s Special Interest Group’s (SIG) with an annual allocation of up to £500 to support their activities.
The purpose of the funding is to enable SIGs to deliver activities that advance the Society’s charitable aims, support the RSE community and encourage engagement, collaboration and knowledge sharing.
This policy applies to all SIGs formally recognised by SocRSE.
The objectives of The Society of Research Software Engineering are;
- To advance education particularly but not exclusively amongst research software engineers; and/or
- To promote and advance research particularly but not exclusively in all aspects of research that relies on software engineering and to publish the useful results;
The funding period is from 1 July to 30 June each year.
Expectations
To follow our code of conduct and ensure that participants are signposted to this in advance of any events.
Eligible expenses
Examples of eligible expenditure include, but are not limited to:
- Costs associated with running events or meetings (e.g. room hire, reasonable refreshments).
- Online event or collaboration platform fees.
- Promotional materials to support SIG activities (e.g. posters, digital marketing).
- Speaker or facilitator expenses, such as reasonable travel costs.
- Travel bursaries for attendees.
- Materials or resources directly supporting SIG activities, these would then become the property of the Society of RSE.
Ineligible expenses
- Personal expenses not directly related to SIG activity.
- Activities that conflict with SocRSE’s values or charitable objectives.
- Costs already covered by other SocRSE funding.
- Payments that exceed the annual allocation or were incurred before approval was granted.
Spending and reimbursement
Eligible expenses (see numbered items under “Eligible expenses” above) may be paid either directly by the Society or reimbursed through the Society’s expense claims process, depending on the nature of the expenditure and what is most practical in the circumstances.
As a general guide:
- Items 1, 2, 3 and 6 will normally be paid directly to the organisation hosting or administering the activity, typically through an invoice submitted to the Society.
- Items 4, 5 and 6 will normally be reimbursed through the Society’s expense claims process.
Alternative arrangements may be agreed where appropriate.
Application and Approval
SIGs must submit a request for funding before incurring expenditure. Requests should include:
- A brief description of the activity/spend.
- The intended audience and expected benefit to the RSE community.
- A simple budget outlining the expected costs.
- Written approval from your SIG Steering Group
- The total amount requested (up to £500) – if you require additional funding, please apply to the Events and Initiatives Grant https://society-rse.org/policy-for-socrse-events-and-initiatives-grant/
Requests should be submitted to the SIG coordinator(s) [email protected] who will review the application, and a decision will be communicated to the SIG within a reasonable timeframe. We recommend submitting requests at least a month before the funding is required, to ensure enough time for the coordinators to review and respond.
Review and decision
Funding decisions will be based on:
- Alignment with SocRSE’s mission and charitable aims.
- Expected impact and benefit to the RSE community.
- Value for money and clarity of the proposed budget.
- Inclusivity, accessibility, and openness of the activity.
- Availability of Society funds.
SocRSE reserves the right to approve, partially approve, or decline requests.