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The BCF Curriculum Investigation Grant is intended to support research led by schools and colleges’ with a focus on curriculum inquiry and investigation. Normally, the grant is worth up to £5,000 for the winner. This prize, awarded annually, acknowledges the importance of research led by schools and colleges.

In addition to the £5,000 award, the recipient will be able to claim support to attend one of the below to present their research:Ìý

• ½¿É«µ¼º½ Annual ConferenceÌý

• ½¿É«µ¼º½ Teacher ConferenceÌý

• Any other ½¿É«µ¼º½ eventÌýÌý

• AÌýnon ½¿É«µ¼º½Ìýevent if led by teachers in schools/colleges.Ìý

The lead applicant will also be given ½¿É«µ¼º½ membership for 2 years.

The BCF Curriculum Investigation Grant is for applicants who are based within schools and colleges.

Applications should include collaborative partnerships with HE institutions but the primary applicant must be be based in a school or college.

2026/2027 BCF Curriculum Investigation Grant

Navigating change: teacher agency in personal and social educationÌý

Curriculum development in personal and social education is a dynamic, context‑sensitive process shaped by educators’ professional judgement and enacted in relation to both policy frameworks and local conditions. In a period marked by rapid technological change (including developments in AI), the climate emergency, geopolitical instability, and widening economic inequalities, teachers are increasingly required to exercise agency in responding to complex and contested social issues.

This ½¿É«µ¼º½-funded project invites applications that explore how educators across the UK respond to contemporary issues (e.g., those related to mental health, relationships, identity, and citizenship) through curriculum development in Personal, Social, Health and Economic education (PSHE) in England, Health and Wellbeing in Scotland, Health and Well-being Area of Learning and Experience in Wales, and Personal Development and Mutual Understanding / Learning for Life and Work in Northern Ireland. We are particularly interested in how teachers navigate governmental policy shifts and local contexts to shape meaningful learning experiences for students.Ìý

Despite its centrality to students’ lives, this area of education is often marginalised in broader curriculum conversations. We welcome proposals that highlight the voices and practices of educators in schools and/or colleges, examine the interplay between policy frameworks and their local enactments, and show how this contributes to a richer understanding of curriculum-making in practice. Applicants may wish to consider interdisciplinary approaches, comparative perspectives across regions or phases, or focus on specific challenges such as inclusion, safeguarding or digital literacy.

Applications are scored out of 5 in each category and weighted against:

• (Potential) impact forÌýpolicy-makers, practitioners and other research usersÌý–Ìý25%Ìý
• Potential for impact on school/college curriculumÌý–Ìý30%Ìý
• Applicability of research to others in similar educational setting/sectorÌý–Ìý20%Ìý
• Research quality (rigour, transparency, validity, ethical conformity)Ìý–Ìý25%Ìý

Applications must also include a detailed budget of how the funds will be spent.

RigourÌýcan be defined as theÌýaccuracy and quality of research particularly in relation to the data collection tools, analysis and interpretation of findings. ThisÌýmight include ensuring that data collection tools are appropriate and consistent given the aim and research question/s, that data analysis methods have been used consistently and that conclusions drawn from data are reasonable.

TransparencyÌýrelates to the need for clear, complete and explicit presentation of the research design, participants, data collected, findings, and of the researcher’s beliefs and role in relation to participants. Transparency enables readers to gain a clear view of the research process and how the findings were reached.

ValidityÌýassesses the extent to which the research design and study addresses the issue that the research was intended to explore. In other words, to what extent does the research design measure what it set out to, or reflect the particular phenomena it claims to represent?Ìý ÌýÌý

Expected outcomes of the project and of the project team are:

• An external public-facing final report detailing key findings from the research project and how these findings might be taken forward (maximum 5,000 words). (A template for this report can be found at the bottom of this page)
• A short post project evaluation detailing proceedings from the project (i.e. events, studies, meetings). The template for these reports can be found at the bottom of this page.
• An article for the ½¿É«µ¼º½ Blog
• Abstract submission to present the research at a ½¿É«µ¼º½ Conference

½¿É«µ¼º½ and BCF support and opportunities:

• Complimentary ½¿É«µ¼º½ membership will be provided for up to 3 members of the project team working in the school or college. (Colleagues in HE institutions are not eligible for free ½¿É«µ¼º½ memberships)
• A member of BCF steering committee will act as a point of contact and support for the project. There is an expectation that the grant recipient will have regular meetings and updates with the assigned BCF mentor. Dates for these meetings will be outlined in an initial kick-off meeting.
• ½¿É«µ¼º½ will copy-edit, design, publish and market the public facing final report.
• ½¿É«µ¼º½ will lend events assistance for any key events led by the project team. The level of support may vary depending on discussions with the ½¿É«µ¼º½ events manager
• Budgetary support to present at the ½¿É«µ¼º½ conference, if a successful abstract is submitted

Before submitting an application, please ensure that applicants are able to meet the requirements on the following eligibility checklist:

• You must be currently employed/based at a school or college
• You can demonstrate that the research relates directly to curriculum investigation/inquiry
• You confirm you have read and will abide by the ½¿É«µ¼º½ ethical guidelines
• Applicants have sought the approval of their head teacher/principal.

ApplicationÌýDetails

Application for the award should consist of

1. A submitted application on the ½¿É«µ¼º½ website
2. A 1200 word proposal detailing how the grant will enable applicants to do the following:
   • Identify an issue impacting on the theme
   • Design, implement and evaluate a response to the issue identified;
   • Disseminate the processes and outcomes of the inquiry/investigation within the school/college;
   • Develop a strategy to sustain curriculum investigation/inquiry within the school/college;
   • Contribute to research and scholarship in the study of the curriculum;
3. A budget detailing how the funds will be spent.

Funded Projects (see above for reports)

2024/2025

Secondary school teachers’ preparedness to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) technologies into their practice

2022/2023

Nature connectedness through the Arts: Co creating a curriculum to support pupil wellbeing in primary schools

Towards Curriculum Design Coherence (CDC) in primary geography education for sustainability

Students as the Co-creators of the Sustainability Curriculum: Developing an Introductory Course on Climate Change, Social Justice and Sustainability

2021/22

‘Diversifying our narrative voices’ – decolonising our curriculum on three tiers

Can a whole school curriculum focus on Celebrating Diversity reduce the volume of racist incidents?

Sounding white, sounding right: interrogating language, race and curriculum in secondary education.

2020/2021

Play at the Heart of Scottish Early Years’ Family Learning

An empirical evaluation of ‘Big Questions’ as an organisational framework for interdisciplinary social studies in a Scottish high school

2018/2019Ìý

Local language, school and community: curricular innovation towards closing the attainment gap.

Learning from Variation: How can variation theory can be applied to the use of manipulatives to support understanding of early number?

Exploring task design as an enabler of leading teaching in secondary schools

2016/2017

Diversity and Resolving the Digital Skills Crisis