Welcome to the United Kingdom Occupational Therapy Research Foundation
About UKOTRF
The United Kingdom Occupational Therapy Research Foundation (UKOTRF) is a division of the College of Occupational Therapists. The College is a registered charity - and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the British Association - that represents the profession nationally and internationally.
The UKOTRF was launched in 2007 to build an evidence-base for occupational therapy, to increase research capacity within the profession and to raise public awareness of the valuable contribution of occupation to people's health and wellbeing. Grant-awarding activities of the UKOTRF are overseen by an advisory group of experienced researchers from occupational therapy and other relevant academic backgrounds.
Mission and goals
The mission of the UKOTRF is:To build an evidence-base for occupational therapy by supporting research into the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of occupation-focussed interventions to:
- Promote, maintain and restore health
- Inform service design and delivery
- Develop evidence-based occupational therapy practitioners
- Support the next generation of occupational therapy research leaders
The goals of the UKOTRF are to:
- Award research grants for projects to meet the identified research priorities of the profession
- Develop occupational therapy research leaders
- Build research capacity and capability to create a cadre of research-skilled occupational therapists
- Obtain donations for grants to fund occupational therapy research
Research priorities
The priority areas for occupational therapy research are detailed in a College publication entitled Building the evidence for occupational therapy: priorities for research. BAOT members can access a free download of the publication from the College website.
Hard copies are also available for purchase at a cost of £10 for BAOT members and £15 for non-BAOT members.Click here to access the COT publications list and order form.
The current priorities were identified from three sources:- The urgent research priorities identified by the College of Occupational Therapists
- Professional priorities from all domains of occupational therapy practice identified by conducting a nationwide consultation with members from the British Association of Occupational Therapists
- The research priorities identified by the College's Specialist Sections
The current research priorities should remain valid for five years. However, these priorities may change and be updated, depending on changing political and professional demands.
If you are aware of any priority areas for occupational therapy research that cannot be located within the recommendations contained in Building the evidence base for occupational therapy: priorities for research, we would be grateful if you could alert the UKOTRF in order to inform future calls for proposals. For the 2009 round, information must be sent by email to: researchfoundation@cot.co.uk, by the end of September 2008.
Research grants
Major grants
The UKOTRF invites research proposals to be submitted for two categories of grants to be awarded on an annual basis:
- One grant up to a maximum of £80,000 for a project designed to meet an identified research priority
- Two grants of £10,000 each to support doctoral studies or post-doctoral activity undertaken within five years of completing a PhD for occupational therapists who intend to pursue a research career.
Application packs for the 2009 grants will be available on the website from 1st November 2008. The closing date for outline proposals for the research priority grant and for full proposals for the research career development grants will be Friday 30th January 2009.
The Institute of Social Psychiatry Scholarship
The UKOTRF is delighted to announce a new scholarship scheme funded by the Institute of Social Psychiatry. This scheme offers a grant of up to £10k to support doctoral or early post-doctoral activity (up to 5 years after achieving a PhD or similar) for members who identify a need for such opportunity to develop their research career pathway. The topic area of the research must demonstrate relevance to occupational therapy and social psychiatry; research that relates to a professional priority area will be preferred.
The lead applicant must have been a member of the British Association of Occupational Therapists for two consecutive years immediately prior to the date of application. Project collaborators may include non-occupational therapists.
Click below for the proposal form and supporting documentation. Please ensure that you download and read all the supporting documents before completing the proposal form.
- ISP scholarship letter (59KB
*) - ISP scholarship call for proposals (135KB *)
- ISP scholarship guidance notes (147KB *)
- ISP scholarship proposal form (336KB
)
The closing date for applications is 5.00pm on Friday 12th September 2008.
For enquiries about the UKOTRF please contact the R&D Office on 020 7450 2323, or email researchfoundation@cot.co.uk
How you can make a difference
Your support for the UKOTRF will help us to ensure that occupational therapy continues to make a vital contribution to the health and wellbeing of the nation. You can support the UKOTRF in a number of ways, including:
- Funding a research grant or annual award
- Applying for a research grant or annual award
- Making a donation or leaving a legacy
- Supporting a research applicants as a supervisor or research collaborator
If you would like to leave a legacy, please click on 'Giving a donation' for more info.
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