14 December 2017 Amanda Darley, Head of Operations and Engagement
Increase your claims (quick!): While new RDEC claims are not available to universities, you may wish to investigate expanding your previous claims since HMRC decided to allow travel and subsistence expenses into the claims, which some universities have found this has increased their claims by hundreds of thousands of pounds - see here for more details. The deadline for submitting the additional element of the claim is 31 January 2018 so you'll need to hurry!
Spin out companies: Universities themselves can no longer make new RDEC claims, but subsidiary and associated companies certainly can. Does your university have a technology transfer/innovation company set up to help university spin out companies? Are they aware of the opportunities RDEC presents? Could you share your experience of RDEC claims with them to make sure they are making the most of this opportunity?
So RDEC still holds the possibility of making this a very happy new year for universities!