13 March 2026

Professor Michele Dougherty
Executive Chair, Science and Technology Facilities Council

Professor Sir Ian Chapman
Chief Executive, UK Research and Innovation

Re: The Impact of STFC Budget Reductions on the Broader UK Research Community

Dear Professor Dougherty and Professor Sir Ian Chapman,

We write to you as researchers working across a range of UK science disciplines whose work depends critically on access to the large-scale national facilities operated and supported by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). We wish to draw your attention to an aspect of the proposed STFC budget reductions that we believe has so far received insufficient attention in the public discourse: the consequences for the substantial portion of the UK research community that relies on STFC facilities but is funded through other UKRI research councils.

Much of the reaction to these cuts has focused on researchers in particle physics, astronomy, and nuclear physics (PPAN), who depend on STFC for applicant-led grant funding. We fully support those concerns. However, STFC’s role extends well beyond funding a single scientific community. It operates and financially sustains world-class research infrastructure, including ISIS Neutron and Muon Source, Diamond Light Source, and the Central Laser Facility, and it manages the UK’s participation in major international collaborations such as the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Institut Laue-Langevin, European Spallation Source, European XFEL and European Molecular Biology Laboratory. These facilities serve researchers from all areas of UK science.

This breadth was illustrated clearly in the LinkedIn post by Prof. Alan Heavens https://www.linkedin.com/posts/alan-heavens-87b72817_drilling-down-into-the-diamond-light-source-activity-7434659576823664641-tcEv, which shows that at Diamond Light Source, over 90% of UKRI-funded research activity is supported not by STFC, but by EPSRC, BBSRC, MRC, and NERC. This pattern is not unique to Diamond. Researchers like ourselves, whose curiosity-led fundamental and applied research is funded by other funding councils, rely on STFC-operated facilities. Without continued access to these facilities, significant areas of UKRI-funded research simply could not proceed.

We understand the financial pressures facing STFC are genuine and, in part, structurally unique: the long planning timescales, the rising cost of electricity, and the exposure to foreign exchange fluctuations that come with operating large facilities and international partnerships. These challenges were acknowledged in Prof. Sir Ian Chapman’s open letter of 1 February, and we do not minimise them. However, we are concerned that the voice of the PPAN community may overshadow the important role of facilities that support research in other areas of science.

We therefore urge you, in developing and implementing any reductions to STFC’s budget, to:

• Ensure that the assessment of impact considers all user communities of STFC facilities, not only those receiving STFC applicant-led funding.
• Engage actively with EPSRC, BBSRC, MRC, and other relevant councils to quantify the dependency of their funded research programmes on STFC-operated infrastructure.
• Explore mechanisms by which the broader beneficiaries of STFC facilities, including researchers funded by other councils, can contribute to the political and financial case for protecting that infrastructure.
• Communicate transparently with all affected research communities, including those who may not yet have fully understood their exposure to the consequences of these cuts.

We recognise that these are difficult decisions made under significant constraints. Our intention in writing is not to oppose difficult choices, but to ensure that those choices are made with full visibility of who is affected. STFC’s facilities are a shared national asset, and their value to UK science extends far beyond the boundaries of any single research community.

We would welcome the opportunity to discuss these concerns further and to contribute evidence of the breadth of facility use across the research community.

Yours sincerely,

Andrew McCluskey, University of Bristol
Jem Pitcairn, University of Birmingham
James Cumby, University of Edinburgh
Claire Hobday, University of Edinburgh
Amanda Jarvis, University of Edinburgh
Matthew Potter, University of Bath
Euan Brechin, University of Edinburgh
Lingcong Meng, University of Edinburgh
Anita Jones, University of Edinburgh
Adam Michalchuk, University of Birmingham
Tim Snow Joshaniel Cooper, European Spallation Source
Antonia Mey, University of Edinburgh
Andrew Alexander, University of Edinburgh
Hannah Logan, University of Edinburgh
Neil Robertson, University of Edinburgh
William Sharratt, University of Liverpool
Colin Pulham, University of Edinburgh
Julia Rho, University College London
Alastair Lennox, University of Bristol
Alexander O’Malley, University of Bath
Eliza Dempsey, Trinity College Dublin
Petra Agota Szilagyi, University of Oslo
Keith Butler, University College London
James Hallett, University of Reading
Jin-Chong Tan, University of Oxford
Christoph Salzmann, University College London
Cuillaume Schweicher, Université Libre de Bruxelles
Lucy Clark, University of Birmingham
Peter Slater, University of Birmingham
Sarah Horswell, University of Birmingham
Louise Male, University of Birmingham
Stephen Fielden, University of Birmingham
Timothy Easun, University of Birmingham
Jarvist Moore Frost, Imperial College London
Andy Wilson, University of Birmingham
Stefanos Athanasopoulos, European Spallation Source
Matt Derry, Aston University
Timothy Barendt, University of Birmingham
Becky Greenaway, Imperial College London
Abbie McLaughlin, University of Aberdeen
Hamish Yeung, University of Birmingham
Simon Titmuss, University of Edinburgh
Matthew Cliffe, University of Cambridge
J. Paul Attfield FRS, University of Edinburgh
Geetha Balakrishnan, University of Warwick
Alexandra Gibbs, University of St Andrews
Duncan Bruce, University of York
Steven Bramwell, University College London
John Slattery, University of York
Simon Clarke, University of Oxford
Richard Douthwaite, University of York
Richard Walton, University of Warwick
Sian Dutton, University of Cambridge
Paul Goddard, University of Warwick
Phil King, University of St Andrews
Stephen Blundell, University of Oxford
Sean Giblin, Cardiff University
Finlay Morrison, University of St Andrews
Javier Castells-Gil, University of Birmingham
Mark Senn, University of Warwick
Michael Baker, The University of Manchester
Matthew Coak, University of Birmingham
Mingee Chung, University of Birmingham
Natalia Plechkova, Queen’s University Belfast
Andrew Boothroyd, Oxford University
Thorsten Hesjedal, University of Oxford
Anam Fatima ,University of East Anglia
Michael Parkes, University College London
Chris Sparling, Heriot-Watt University
Enrico Da Como, University of Bath
Matthew Tang, University of Oxford
Russell Minns, University of Southampton
Simon Bending, University of Bath
Nathaniel Hill, University of Liverpool
Daniel Wolverson, University of Bath
Jon Marangos, Imperial College
Roger Johnson, Durham University
Briony Yorke, University of Leeds
Matthew Streeter, Queen’s University Belfast
Lucia Corrigan, Queen’s University Belfast
Noel Kehoe, Queens University Belfast
Emma McBride, Queen’s University Belfast
Conor McAnespie, Queen’s University Belfast
Aidan Hindmarch, Durham University
Jimmy Weeks, Queen’s University Belfast
Anna Regoutz, University of Oxford
Jason Greenwood, Queen’s University Belfast
Andrew Burnett, University of Leeds
Daniel Molloy, Queen’s University Belfast
Gianluca Sarri, Queen’s University Belfast
Marco Borghesi, Queen’s University Belfast
Sir Richard Catlow FRS, University College London
Mark Yeung, Queen’s University Belfast
John Evans, Durham University
Ivana Evans, Durham University
Thomas Penfold, Newcastle University
Colm Fitzpatrick, Queen’s University Belfast
Adrian McCay, Queen’s University Belfast
Hannah Jager, Queen’s University Belfast
Silvia Ramos, University of Kent
Eva Los, University of Oxford
Andrei Sapelkin, Queen Mary University of London
Matthew Evans, University of Cambridge
Paul Saines, University of Kent
Ian Robinson, University College London
Sam Vinko, University of Oxford
George Williams, University of Southampton
Andrew Hector, University of Southampton
Richard Knighton, University of Southampton
Aileen Day, University of Southampton
Mark Light, University of Southampton
Andrew Beale, University College London
George Healing, University of Southampton
Simon Lane, University of Southampton
Derri Hughes, University of Southampton
Andrea Russell, University of Southampton
Roland Smith, Imperial College London
Jasper van Thor, Imperial College London
Temour Foster, Queen’s University Belfast
John Tisch, Imperial College London
Holly Huddleston, Queen’s University Belfast
Giovanna Fragneto, European Spallation Source
Katharina Edkins, University of Strathclyde
Fabrizia Foglia, University College London
Ralf Schweins, Institut Laue-Langevin
Mary Wood, University of Copenhagen
David Boldrin, University of Glasgow
John Wood, CERN
Nicola Kelly, University of Cambridge
Catherine Pappas, Delft University of Technology
Kit McColl, University of Oxford
David Walker, University of Warwick
Iain Oswald, University of Strathclyde
Derek Wann, University of York
Harry Richardson, University of Bristol
Thomas David Smith, Newcastle University
Daniel Rainer, University of Southampton
Catriona Crawford, University of Warwick
Anna Marie Davies, King’s College London
Camilla Di Mino, University of Oxford
Ashley Wooles, University of Manchester
Sacha Fop, University of Aberdeen
Radu Coldea, University of Oxford
Colin Seaton, University of Bradford
John Finney, University College London
Ulrich Baisch, University of Malta
Kacper Druzbicki, Centre of Molecular and Macromolecular Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences
Christopher Frampton, Brunel University London
Cameron Wilson, University of Warwick
Tony Bell, Sheffield Hallam University
Georgina Rosair, Heriot Watt University
Saskia Lindhoud, University of Twente
Farheen Sayed, University of Cambridge
Martin Ward, University of Strathclyde
Ellie Keil, The University of Southampton
John Helliwell, University of Manchester
Julia Payne, University of St Andrews
Sakil Awan, University of Plymouth
Graeme Blake, University of Groningen
Struan Simpson, University of Warwick
Hanna Boström, Stockholm University
Timothy Prior, University of Liverpool
Fanny Costa, University of Leeds
Claire Wilson, University of Glasgow
Maria R Conte, King’s College London
Peter Wells, University of Southampton
Charles Dewhurst, Institut Laue-Langevin
Jeremiah Tidey, University of Warwick
Joseph Bear, Kingston University
Simon Parsons, University of Edinburgh
Robert Bannister, University of Southampton
Karen Johnston, Durham University
Joao Muniz, University of São Paulo, São Carlos Institute of Physics
Michał Stękiel, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH
James Steele, University of Cambridge
Nathan Smith, University of York
Randy Read, University of Cambridge
Stuart Mangles, Imperial College London
Simon Bland, Imperial College London
Jacques Huot, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières
Mark Sanderson, Imperial College London
David Briggs, Francis Crick Institute
Maisoon Al-Jawad, University of Leeds
Indu Dhiman, TU Delft
Eddy Lelièvre-Berna, Institut Laue-Langevin
Robert Jackson, Keele University
Paula Salgado, Newcastle University
Kyle Gregory, University of Bath
Thomas McCorvie, Newcastle University
Ibon Bustinduy, ESS-BILBAO
Xiangqiang Chu, City University of Hong Kong
Andreas Stadler, Forschungszentrum Jülich
Joseph Ogar, Nottingham Trent University
Deborah Harrus, EMBL-EBI
Jeffrey Rust, UK Space Agency
Roger Pynn, Indiana University
Natalie Tatum, Newcastle University
Josh Makepeace, University of Birmingham
Laura Spagnolo, University of Glasgow
Simon Coles, University of Southampton
László Bottyán, Budapest Neutron Centre, HUN-REN Centre for Energy Research
Patricio Montecinos Munoz, Universidade de Sao Paulo
Yong Ma, University of Michigan
Andrew Wildes, Institut Laue-Langevin
Stephane Mouilleron, The Francis Crick Institute
Sebastian Busch, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon
David Blackman, ELI ERIC Beamlines Facility
Jose Luis Garcia-Muñoz, Barcelona Institute of Materials Science (ICMAB-CSIC)
Devon Sheppard, Francis Crick Institute
Michael Quin, Gothenburg University
Gavin John Irvine, University of St Andrews
Gianluca Gregori, University of Oxford
Nicolò Paracini, University of Copenhagen
Charlotte Palmer, Queen’s University Belfast
Mads Gabrielsen, University of Glasgow
Christopher Arran, Lancaster University
Gary Nichol, University of Edinburgh
Hannah Maguire, Queen’s University Belfast
Karen Edler, Lund University
Christopher Ridgers, University of York
Mark Elsegood, Loughborough University
Naëmi Leo, Loughborough University
Peter Parsons, Queen’s University Belfast
Sarah Berger, University of Glasgow
Francesco Grazzi, CNR-IFAC - Italy
Cara Clarke, Queen’s University Belfast
Jon Marles-Wright, Newcastle University
Denis Vasiukov, European Spallation Source
Alexander MacAskill, University of Glasgow
Jonathan Kennedy, Queens University Belfast
Nina Steinke, Institut Laue-Langevin
Matthew Gerring, Jackson Laboratory
Sergey Lebedev, Imperial College London
Ellen Fogh, Technical University of Munich
Tracey Gloster, University of St Andrews
Andrew Stewart, University College London
Reem Alraddadi, University of York
Ursula Bengaard Hansen, Institut Laue-Langevin
Simon Hooker, University of Oxford
Bratislav Lukic, Institut Laue-Langevin
Robin Woracek, European Spallation Source & Technical University of Munich
Tom Hayward, University of Sheffield
Peter Fouquet, Institut Laue-Langevin
Thomas Saerbeck, Institut Laue-Langevin
Derek Sinclair, University of Sheffield
William Proud, Imperial College London
Sergio Federico Mayer, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas
Felix Fernandez-Alonso, Materials Physics Center & Ikerbasque
Michael Schulz, Technical University of Munich
Judith Peters, Université Grenoble Alpes
Nik Reeves-McLaren, University of Sheffield
Emily Draper, University of Glasgow
Giancarlo Abis, King’s College London
Peter Skabara, University of Glasgow
Emma Gibson, University of Glasgow
Yu Song, Zhejiang University
Helen Fielding, University College London
Marcell Wolf, Technical University of Munich
Philip Gutfreund, Institut Laue-Langevin
Matthew Jessop, The Institute of Cancer Research
Trevor Greenhough, Keele University
Dave Adams, University of Glasgow
Adam Sapnik, University of Copenhagen
Emily Meekel, University of Birmingham
Simon Cassidy, University of Oxford
Lewis Blackburn, University of Sheffield
Malcolm McMahon, University of Edinburgh
Lucas Launay, Imperial College London
Julia Weinstein, University of Sheffield
Laura Corner, University of Liverpool
Klaas Wynne, University of Glasgow
John Palastro, University of Rochester Laboratory for Laser Energetics
John Claridge, University of Liverpool
Emma Hawking, Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre
Natalie Johnson, Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre
Charles McMonagle, Swiss-Norwegian Beamlines at ESRF
Suzanna Ward, Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre
Giulio Isacco Lampronti, University of Cambridge
Martin King, Royal Holloway University of London
Amber L. Thompson, Chemical Crystallography, Oxford
Alexander Dickson, Royal Holloway University of London
Queenie Chan, Royal Holloway University of London
Igor Marković, University of Birmingham
Franko Bayer, University of Michigan
David Tam, Institut Laue-Langevin
Steven Armes, University of Sheffield
Nick Turner, University of Sheffield
Gary Verth, University of Sheffield
Denis Mettus, MLZ (Technical University Munich)
Stefan Mattauch, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH
Sarah Harris, University of Sheffield
Reiner Zorn, Forschungszentrum Juelich
Leonie Stödter, Forschungszentrum Jülich
Aureliano Tartaglione, Technical University of Munich
Oleksandr Mykhaylyk, University of Sheffield
Laura McWilliams, Queen’s University Belfast
Jim Thomas, University of Sheffield
Samuel Moody, Paul Scherrer Institute
Jon Goff, Royal Holloway University of London
Fazal-ur Rehman, FRMII
Adrian Losko, FRMII
Seda Ulusoy, FRMII
Marta Falkowska, University of Manchester
Laurence Bradley, Imperial College London
Calum Prestwood, Queen’s University Belfast
Rafael Guimaraes da Silva, University of St Andrews
Philipp Niklowitz, Royal Holloway, University of London
Peter Böni, Technical University of Munich
William Peveler, University of Glasgow
Emma Hume, York Plasma Institute
Lee Brammer, University of Sheffield
Pablo Martinez-Bulit, Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre
Andrew Purkiss, The Francis Crick Institute
Sanjit Nayak, University of Bristol
Shaun Doherty, University of York
Robert Georgii, Technical University of Munich
Niamh McAllister, Queen’s University Belfast
Stephen Worrall, Aston University
Paul McKenna, University of Strathclyde
Jeyan Thiyagalingam, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
Shabir Najmudin, Randall Centre, King’s College London
Andrew Orr-Ewing FRS, University of Bristol
Robbie Wilson, University of Strathclyde
Chris Smith, University of Cambridge
Dame Clare Grey FRS, University of Cambridge
George Phillips, University of Cambridge
Ewan Dolier, University of Strathclyde
Charlotte Cordery, EMBL-EBI
Lukasz Domanski, University of Cambridge
Liam Nagle-Cocco, Stanford University
Teedhat Zugus Trisukhon, University of Cambridge
Jessica O’Flaherty, University of Cambridge
Sundeep Vema, University of Cambridge
Ramón Héctor Campoy Félix, University of Cambridge
Surat Prempluem, University of Cambridge
Stefan Karsch, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Louise Willingale, University of Michigan
Alec Thomas, University of Michigan
Andreas Döpp, LMU Munich
Manchikanti Krishnamurthy, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
Christopher Murphy, University of York
Demeke Tegegne, University of St Andrews
Kerry McMahon, University of St Andrews
Su Ji Kim, University of St Andrews
Nida Shahbaz, University of St Andrews
Candice Mitchell, University of St Andrews
Michael Pitcher, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Robert Armstrong, University of St Andrews
David Cordes, University of St Andrews
Saiful Islam, University of Oxford
Caroline Kirk, University of Edinburgh
Paul Connor, University of St Andrews
Jan-Willem Bos, University of St Andrews
Lemuel Crentsil, University of Oxford
Stephen Argent, University of Nottingham
Elaine Moore, The Open University
Martin Attfield, University of Manchester
Ieuan Seymour, University of Aberdeen
Joachim Breternitz, FH Münster University of Applied Sciences
Peter Dunne, Trinity College Dublin
Pablo Calvo, FAU Erlangen
Jeremy Sloan, University of Warwick
Neil Allan, University of Bristol
Weihao Li, University of Glasgow
Naveed Kausar Janjua, Quaid-i-Azam University
Alexey Ganin, University of Glasgow
Robert Price, University of St Andrews
Jade Doody, University of Birmingham
Andrew Cairns, Imperial College London
Grace Farmer, University of Liverpool
Jonathan Van Buskirk, University of Cambridge
Eleanor Teather, University College London
Nicolás Flores-González, University of Concepción
Stefan Oswald, University of Cambridge
Chinnasamy Murugesan, University of St Andrews
Martin Smith, University of St. Andrews
Judith A. K. Howard CBE, FRS, Durham University
Cristian Savaniu, University of St Andrews
Lauren McHugh, University of Liverpool
John Harding, University of Sheffield
Grant Stone, University of St Andrews
Jay McCarron, University of Liverpool
Alan Chadwick, University of Kent
George Fulham, University of Cambridge
Ned Sawdy, University of St Andrews
Emma Kendrick, University of Birmingham
Lizzie Evans, University of Birmingham
Christopher O’Keefe, University of Cambirdge
Joel Adams, University of York
Matt Roscoe, University of Liverpool
Robert Baker, Trinity College, Dublin
Nigel Woolsey, University of York
Kate Lancaster, University of York
Jennifer Readman, University of Lancashire
Ross McFadzean, University of Glasgow
Girija Perumal, Annamalai University
Debashis Tripathy, University of Cambridge
John Pasley, University of York
Jörg Schreiber, LMU Munich
Cormac McGuinness, Trinity College Dublin
Leon Focks, University of Cambridge
Jason Lynam, University of York
Jessica McConnell, University of Cambridge
Anthony Phillips, Queen Mary University of London
Andreas Maier, Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron DESY
James Le Houx, University of Greenwich
Philippa Cox, University of Birmingham
Thomas Ashton, University College London
Christian Pfleiderer, Technical University of Munich
Thomas Brogan, University of Birmingham
Eirini Kaiserli, University of Glasgow
Leonida Antonio Gizzi, CNR
Michael Hale, Newcastle University
Jergus Strucka, European XFEL
Donna Arnold, University of Kent
Thierry Bigault, Institut Laue Langevin
Alan Dunbar, University of Sheffield
Alisyn Nedoma, University of Sheffield Xiao Wan, University of Glasgow
Bill David FRS, University of Oxford
Shurui Miao, University of Oxford
Philip Salmon, University of Bath
Jing Ming, Queen Mary University of London
Huiqian Luo, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences
James Drewitt, University of Bristol
Richard Thompson, Durham University
Tobias Witting, Max Born Institute
Paul Freeman, University of Lancashire
Laura Whitfield, University of Liverpool
Yiqian Zhang, University of Southampton
Stuart Cavill, University of York
Chris Toseland, University of Sheffield