Sussex scientists awarded millions of pounds for research

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The University is among 21 universities to receive a share of £129 million in research grants, it was announced in April.

Two applications for new science buildings on campus were successful in the latest round of awards from the Joint Infrastructure Fund (JIF), an initiative between the Wellcome Trust, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), together with major research councils.

Of the 163 bids made by higher-education institutions in this round, only 27 "of the most outstanding quality" were accepted. Vice-Chancellor Professor Alasdair Smith said: "The awards continue to demonstrate the high calibre of research work at Sussex and are a remarkable achievement for a university of this size."

Totalling £18 million, the two projects are:

1. To build new laboratories to expand the University's research into the links between DNA damage, genetic diseases and cancer. The new building will be called the Sussex Genome Damage and Stability Centre. An artist's impression of the new building is pictured left.
2. To create a centre of excellence in science and technology research by bringing together the staff of SPRU (Science and Technology Policy Research) at Sussex and CENTRIM (Centre for Research in Innovation Management) from the University of Brighton under one roof. The building is to be named the Freeman Centre in recognition of Professor Christopher Freeman, a world-leading scientist at SPRU.

Commenting on the genome project, Pro-Vice-Chancellor Professor Anthony Moore said: "This funding will allow us to continue the very important studies on why people with certain genetic diseases are more prone to cancer. By looking at the nature of these diseases, we can gain an insight into how cancers arise."

SPRU's director Professor Benjamin Martin said: "This award means we can now become one of the world's top five centres for research into innovation. The joint expertise of our two universities will bring major benefits to the region well as to international debates."

The awards, announced by Science Minister Lord Sainsbury at a ceremony in London, are part of a £750 million programme of funding for university science projects. In the previous round of JIF funding, Sussex was successful in its bid for £5.2 million to refurbish neuroscience and physics laboratories.

Marie Curie Training Sites

The University has been awarded a total of £646,722 from the EU research funding programme to set up eight "Marie Curie Training Sites" on campus.

The purpose of this new initiative is to promote and encourage a trans-national aspect to the training of young EU postgraduates, by selecting internationally renowned research groups that can demonstrate an excellent track record in the training of postgraduates.

European Liaison Officer Rossana Dowsett said: "The idea is to improve the quality of doctoral research studies, to encourage the mobility of postgraduate students across the EU and to encourage a trans-European academic culture."

Each site is awarded a budget and a maximum number of fellow months for hosting young postgraduates for short stays of between three months and one academic year. For the first call for proposals (there will be a second and final call in 2001) a total of 463 applications were received, of which 203 have been selected for funding (53 of them in the UK alone).

Sussex submitted 11 applications and eight were successful. CPES will be the base for three of the Marie Curie Training Sites, with two in SPRU and one each in SMS, SEI and the CDE. In his annual address to the meeting of Court in March, Vice-Chancellor Professor Alasdair Smith welcomed news of the awards: "This once more demonstrates Sussex's excellence in the quality of its research and the provision of excellent postgraduate training across the disciplines and speaks to the strength of our international reputation."

The Sussex Training Sites are expected to advertise vacancies in the late spring and summer, with a view to hosting the first batch of Marie Curie fellows from the autumn term 2000.