BELMAS offers a Research and Development Grant, available to all BELMAS members, and opportunities to apply for the grant are announced at various points of the year. All grant applications are reviewed by sub-panels selected by the Awards, Bursaries & Grants Committee (ABG) as a sub-committee of the Board of Trustees.
Information on our grants can be found below.
APPLICATIONS FOR THE 2026 RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT GRANT ARE NOW CLOSED.
The deadline for applications was Monday 1st December 2025.
Could you benefit from a BELMAS Research and Development Grant?
BELMAS wants to encourage innovative and dynamic approaches to enhancing the understanding and development of educational leadership and management. Research and Development Grants to support this objective are open to working school and college leaders and academics who are BELMAS members.
Grants are available to support any member or members to complete a project that researches and/or develops and improves educational leadership and management at any level. BELMAS is keen to encourage and approve a wide variety of projects and approaches, especially those that are collaborative and involve both school/college leaders and university staff.
Successful applicants will be awarded a grant of up to £3,000.
Projects will be judged on the potential to contribute to the understanding, development and improvement of educational leadership and management and the wider benefits to the BELMAS community.
The following are examples only of the kinds of activities that might be supported; it is not an exhaustive list:
Projects would be expected to have specific objectives along with an evaluation design to ascertain the extent to which these objectives had been met. The Society welcomes particularly applications where there is additional, or matched, funding from another organisation or institution.
What can the funding be used for?
The grant can be used in various ways, including data gathering and transcription, printing, meeting costs, supply cover, travel costs and costs of dissemination, but not, normally, staff salaries or researcher fees. Applicants are advised to limit travel and conference costs as far as possible in order to maximise the amount available for the substantive activity of the project.
How do I apply?
Research and Development Grants are open to all BELMAS members. If you are not yet a member, join here.
Please use the following BELMAS Research Development Grant Application Form to submit your grant. Please make sure to read the full application form guidance, which regards all key considerations you need to make when developing your application form.
Please note, BELMAS Trustees are not permitted to apply for BELMAS Grants and Bursaries in line with the Charity Commission’s Guidance.
BELMAS is delighted to announce that it is providing a new opportunity for colleagues from the Global South, as part of the organisation’s commitment to develop research within the field in a wide range of contexts, and to support a wide range of scholars in their work. Colleagues from the Global South can apply for a £3000 grant to support new research initiatives.
The Grant application round will be open to all colleagues from the Global South, with the aim to support new initiatives and projects. This round will be available from September 2025 – October 2025.
Could you benefit from a BELMAS Research and Development Grant?
BELMAS wants to encourage innovative and dynamic approaches to enhancing the understanding and development of educational leadership and management. Research and Development Grants to support this objective are open to working school and college leaders and academics who are BELMAS members in the Global South.
This specific grant is available to support any member or members in the Global South to complete a project that researches, develops and improves educational leadership and management at any level. BELMAS is keen to encourage and approve a wide variety of projects and approaches, especially those that are collaborative and involve both school/college leaders and university staff.
To ensure that you qualify for this award, please check the list provided here.
Colleagues from low-income countries, or countries where there are significant challenges or needs can apply. If you are in a country that does not appear on the list, and you believe it to be a low-income country, where there are potential challenges or areas of high deprivation, you will be required to make a clear case for your focus, to ensure that you are eligible for the grant.
Successful applicants will be awarded a grant of up to £3,000.
Projects will be judged on the potential to contribute to the understanding, development and improvement of educational leadership and management in the Global South, and the wider benefits to the BELMAS community.
The following are examples only of the kinds of activities that might be supported; it is not an exhaustive list:
Projects would be expected to have specific objectives along with an evaluation design to ascertain the extent to which these objectives had been met. The project’s budget outline needs to be detailed, to reflect how the project is carefully considered, and it needs to include considerations regarding the dissemination of the work. BELMAS will require of applicants to consider how work will be shared with Research Interest Groups via Webinars, blogs and potential submissions via the organisation’s journals. The Society welcomes particularly applications where there is additional, or matched, funding from another organisation or institution.
What can the funding be used for?
The grant can be used in various ways, including data gathering and transcription, printing, meeting costs, supply cover, travel costs and costs of dissemination, but not staff salaries or researcher fees. Applicants are advised to limit travel and conference costs as far as possible in order to maximise the amount available for the substantive activity of the project. No additional BELMAS support will be provided beyond the grant for conference attendance.
How do I apply?
Research and Development Grants are open to all BELMAS members. If you are not yet a member, join here
Please use the following BELMAS Grant Application Form to submit your grant. Please make sure to read the full application form guidance, which regards all key considerations you need to make when developing your application form.
Please note, BELMAS Trustees are not permitted to apply for BELMAS Grants and Bursaries in line with the Charity Commission’s Guidance.
All applications are subject to a peer review process.
APPLICATIONS TO THE GLOBAL SOUTH GRANT ARE NOW CLOSED. The deadline for applications was Friday 31st October 2025.
