Digital Humanities Research Grants

Grants of up to £50,000 per annum for three years (maximum total of £150,000) are available to European institutions.

We will fund up to 70% of the project budget and at least 30% of the cost of the project will need to come from other funding sources. We favour proposals that include co-funding from other organisations as well as clear evidence of financial commitments from your own institution (e.g., institutional reserves, money raised from ticket sales etc.) Of this 30%, up to half can be attributed to in-kind contributions or allocated costs (see below).

Proposals are welcome where funds from other sources are allocated for the purpose of the long-term sustainability of the project.

• Contribution toward salary of principle investigators, co-investigators and/or research associates
• Funding for associated graduate students
• Hiring of external IT specialists
• Equipment costs including the purchase of hardware and software (no more than 35% of the overall budget)
• Travel for research, meetings, and conferences

In-kind contributions and allocated costs can make up a maximum of 15% of the total cost of your project. Please ensure you identify these on your Project Budget Form under Project Income and use the Budget Explanation section to provide further details, e.g., breakdown of salaries, volunteer time etc.

In-kind contributions include any materials, goods, services or facilities that you would otherwise have to pay for but that are being provided free of charge or at a reduced rate. This may include:

• volunteer time (i.e., how much would the time donated to the organisation cost if it had to be paid at an hourly rate in your country)
• new equipment that is donated to be used by the project
• dedicated space for the project that would otherwise have to be rented

Allocated costs include expenditure which must be paid for at some point by your organisation and do not qualify as in-kind contributions. This may include:

• services of an employee currently employed by your organisation for time spent on the project (e.g., staff costs, project management or supervision)
• additional time spent on the project by existing employees, beyond their current contracted hours, e.g., a part-time staff member who takes on additional responsibilities for the duration of the project
• supplies and material bought by your institutions which will be used on the project.

Applying institutions must be based in Europe. We are currently not accepting applications from Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine.

All Digital Humanities projects connected to the broad field of Jewish Studies are considered eligible. In principle, projects only tangentially related to Jewish Studies are unlikely to be successful, nor will projects devoted to an individual or individuals who happen to be Jewish, but whose historical importance is not significantly contingent on that biographical fact.

Projects focused solely or primarily on digitisation are not eligible for funding within this category. For digitisation projects, please see our Collections Management grant category within our European Jewish Heritage grant programme.

For more information on Jewish Studies please read our AJS Grant FAQs.

A fundamental component of the Rothschild Foundation Hanadiv Europe’s mission is to increase access to European Jewish heritage and culture. To that end, the results and outputs of the proposed project must be published online and freely accessible.

The Foundation also encourages grantees to publish their research in peer-reviewed journals with an open access option, and to make their articles freely accessible whenever possible.

Some applicants are having issues downloading the budget form within the application – please download a copy and save to your desktop from here.

Please make sure you have submitted the following with your application. If it is not included, your application cannot be considered.

If your application is approved, you will need to submit further supporting documentation once you receive your Grant Letter and Agreement.

1. Budget table and budget explanation for the proposed project: An example of a completed budget form can be downloaded from the application form.
2. CVs of key staff members working on the project (maximum 5 pages for each staff member): Please combine all the CVs into one document before uploading it.
3. Proof of Charitable Status: This will vary from country to country and according to the type of organisation making the application. In all cases, the activities of the organisation must qualify as charitable within the United Kingdom. If your organisation is a publicly funded body, such as a university, research centre or museum, then we will accept a copy of your organisation’s statutes as proof of its charitable status.
   • Certification from the tax authorities: If you require a certificate from the tax authorities in order to demonstrate charitable status in your country, please forward a copy of this certificate.
4. The most recently available audited accounts or financial statement: This is a formal record of your organisation’s financial activities for either a one- or three-year period. The statement must include a summary of the income and expenditure over a given period. It should have been prepared by your financial department or a chartered accountant and, if your country requires it, approved by the relevant authority.
   • Income and Expenditure: If the submitted audited accounts or financial statement are not in English, you are required to submit an English summary of the income and expenditure account and balance sheet.
5. Project Update/Final Report: If you currently receive funding from the Foundation please submit a one-page Project Update of your existing grant. If you have recently finished a grant funded by the Foundation please ensure the Final Report has been submitted before the closing date for the current grant round as this will be assessed alongside your new application.
6. Other supporting documents: If there are any additional supporting documents which are relevant to your application you are also able to submit these online. This may include a letter of support from any partner organisation who will be involved with the project or a letter confirming copyright ownership.

Translations: For documents not originally written in English please include an English translation. This does not need to be an official translation, but it must be clear and accurate. Documents in a language other than English that are not accompanied by an English translation will not be processed.

Financial summaries: If financial documents are very long, please provide a translation summarising the main income and expenditure included in your financial statements and organisational budget. This document should be no longer than 10 pages.

Please upload your translated/summarised document against the same upload title you use for the original document. This means you may have two documents saved under each upload title

Please supply the name and full contact details of two external referees who can provide us with a confidential assessment of your proposal. We will only contact them if deemed necessary. By supplying contact details of your referees, you confirm they are aware that you are sharing their information with RFHE for the purposes of acting as referees for this application. Please ensure you share details of your application with them.

Referees must be independent of the project and must not be an employee, board member, anyone related to an employee or board member and anyone who may benefit financially from the project, now or in the future.

Applications can only be submitted via our online application process. We do not accept applications by mail or email.

Please use the Apply Now button at the bottom of the grant category page to begin your application.

The first time you log in, you will need to create an account with an email and a password. Please keep a note of your login information as you will need it to access your application form on future visits.

Once you have set up your online account you will be taken directly to the application form.

When completing the application form, make sure to switch your web browser language settings to English if necessary.

We strongly recommend you read all of the questions before you fill in the application form.

Once you have started your application, continue editing by logging into your online account below. Do not click on the Apply Now button again as this creates duplicate application forms.

Please note: If your application form is left inactive for more than 50 minutes your changes won’t be saved. In order to keep the form ‘active’ when completing your application, you must either click ‘Next’ or ‘Save and Finish Later’, which will take you to your account dashboard.

Your Application Form and supporting documents must be submitted by the appropriate deadline which can be found here.

You should expect notification via email letting you know whether your application has been successful or unsuccessful. If your application is approved, you will receive an official award letter and agreement which you will need to e-sign and return with the necessary supporting documentation.

For our requirements for ensuring safeguarding, please read the relevant section on our website.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you require any further information or advice as you prepare your application.

For queries relating to this grant category please contact: Dr Ruchama Johnston-Bloom (R.Johnston-Bloom@rothschildfoundation.eu)

For any other information including technical support please contact info@rothschildfoundation.eu