The European Research Council (ERC) was officially launched in February 2007. It is the first pan-European funding body to support investigator-driven frontier research. It is financed under the Seventh Framework Programme for Research (FP7) with a budget of 7.5 billion euro for the period 2007-2014.

The ERC was created to address the need to develop long-term research policy in Europe, and distribute funds based on excellence and merit. It will play a large part in achieving the goal of the Lisbon Strategy to make the EU ‘the world’s most competitive and dynamic economy by 2010’. It will have a fundamental role in reaching the target set by the Barcelona EU Council to increase research spending to 3% of GDP by 2010.

The ERC’s Scientific Council acts as its policy-making supervisory body. It acts on behalf of the scientific community in Europe to promote creativity and innovative research. It also oversees the operational management of the ERC and directs its scientific strategy. Professor Wendy Hall and Professor Robert May are the appointed UK members of the Scientific Council.

The UK Research Office provides detailed information to the UK HE sector about the ERC in its role as the UK ERC National Contact Point.