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Our response to the UKRI/STFC e-MERLIN funding announcement

27 Jul 2026

Jodrell Bank remains open and continues to play a nationally important role

Lovell telescope on a sunny

Today (Monday 27 July) UKRI and the STFC’s decision not to renew funding for e-MERLIN, headquartered at our Jodrell Bank Observatory, was announced. The current funding will end in March 2028.

While these cuts to e-MERLIN’s funding are significant, Jodrell Bank remains a major scientific, cultural and economic centre nationally and for the local area.

The University will be looking at the implications of this news carefully and we are working with our partners to secure the future of the Lovell telescope and e-MERLIN. 

Our immediate priority has been to speak with and support relevant technical, academic, PS and research colleagues. 

Professor Sarah Sharples, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, said: “The University has been working actively behind the scenes with UKRI/STFC and other partners, and we will continue to pursue routes with government, public agencies, industry and philanthropic funders to sustain the extraordinary science, engineering, training and public engagement enabled by Jodrell Bank.

“Jodrell is an iconic part of the University’s contribution to science and society. We remain committed to doing all we can to protect its future as a world-leading scientific facility.”

The Observatory is an important part of the UK’s science infrastructure, with research spanning radio astronomy, cosmology, pulsars, exoplanets, astrophysics and solar physics.

The Lovell Telescope, completed in 1957, remains one of the most recognisable landmarks in UK astronomy. Jodrell Bank is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site and attracts more than 100,000 visitors each year, inspiring future generations of scientists and engineers.

The e-MERLIN funding is the most visible of a wider set of decisions made on future funding by UKRI and STFC on scientific projects. Find out more.  

The Jodrell Bank Centre for Engagement is separate from UKRI funding and remains open to visitors.