Lump-sum funding ‘perceived as better’ by EU grant winners

Survey of piloted funding system found positive reactions but need for tweaks to avoid drawbacks

Winners of EU R&D grants that were given lump-sum funding as their work progressed rather than the traditional reimbursement of expenses generally view the funding system as positive, according to a study.

But the study’s authors say that using lump-sum funding for the EU’s entire Horizon Europe R&D programme would be “unsuitable” and would “jeopardise the overall quality of the research results”, due to drawbacks with the funding system.