UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER

Their core work

The University of Leicester is a broad-based UK research university with particular depth in space science, planetary atmospheres, health research (particularly rare diseases and preterm infant outcomes), and advanced materials including diamond-based nanostructures. Their H2020 portfolio reflects a university that attracts significant individual research talent — evidenced by 8 ERC Consolidator Grants and 10 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships — while also contributing specialist capabilities to large international consortia in earth observation, astrophysics, and clinical research. They bridge fundamental science and applied domains, from atmospheric composition monitoring to spinal cord injury recovery using nanomaterials.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the early H2020 period (2014–2018), Leicester's portfolio was heavily weighted toward humanities and fundamental science — late antiquity archaeology, landscape studies, gentrification research — alongside foundational health work in immunotherapy and stem cells. The later period (2019–2024) shows a marked shift toward applied and data-intensive domains: knowledge-based engineering, corrosion science, diabetes data harmonization, and formal methods in computer science. The ERC grants remained a constant thread, but the surrounding portfolio moved from curiosity-driven humanities toward engineering and environmental applications.

Leicester is shifting from predominantly fundamental and humanities research toward applied engineering (electric vehicles, corrosion, knowledge-based engineering) and data-driven health research, making them increasingly relevant for industry-facing consortia.

How they like to work

Leicester operates as both a consortium leader and a reliable specialist partner — coordinating 26 of 83 projects (31%), which is high for a university of its size. Their 758 unique partners across 49 countries indicate they rarely repeat the same consortium, instead building fresh partnerships per project. This breadth makes them well-connected but also suggests they bring specific expertise to each call rather than operating as a recurring "package deal" partner.

An extensive European network spanning 758 unique partners across 49 countries, with strong connections across Western Europe and notable reach into global collaborations through space science and earth observation projects. Their network breadth is in the top tier for mid-sized UK universities.

What sets them apart

Leicester combines world-class space and planetary science (one of the UK's leading space research departments) with strong clinical research networks — an unusual pairing that enables cross-disciplinary work such as earth observation for health or remote sensing for environmental monitoring. Their high ERC success rate (8 Consolidator Grants) signals individually excellent researchers who attract their own funding, meaning consortium partners get access to proven principal investigators. Post-Brexit, Leicester maintains deep European ties through its H2020 track record, making them a natural bridge for UK-EU collaboration.

Highlights from their portfolio

• GIANTCLIMES
  Largest single grant (EUR 2M ERC Consolidator) — a flagship project on giant planet atmospheric science using ground- and space-based infrared observation.
• BuildingPlanS
  Second-largest grant (EUR 1.95M ERC Consolidator) linking planetary system architectures with formation theory — demonstrates Leicester's depth in planetary science.
• NanoZfish
  Unusually interdisciplinary: combines carbon nanotube nanotechnology with zebrafish models for spinal cord injury recovery — showcases Leicester's ability to bridge materials science and biomedical research.