The Department does not operate any research institutes directly, institutes, centres and units are operated by the research councils, with DES funding, as shown in the table. Some establishments are jointly operated with universities and other bodies; in these cases the numbers employed refer to research council employees only.
The list includes some centres and units operated by the research councils within higher education institutions. It does not cover other research undertaken in universities and other higher education institutions with funding from the Universities Funding Council and the Polytechnics and Colleges Funding Council and from the research councils.
| Research institute |
Number of staff (full-time equivalent) |
| Agricultural and Food Research Council |
Institute of Arable Crops Research (IACR) |
| Rothampstead, Harpenden, Hertfordshire |
422.0 |
| Long Ashton, Bristol |
207.5 |
| Brooms Barn, Bury St. Edmunds |
48.0 |
| Total IACR |
677.5 |
| Institute of Animal Health (IAH) |
| Compton, Newbury |
206.5 |
| Houghton, Huntingdon |
112.0 |
| Pirbright, Guildford |
167.0 |
| Neuropatogenesis Unit, Edinburgh |
46.0 |
| Total IAH |
531.5 |
| Institute on Animal Physiology and Genetics Research (IAPGR) |
| Babraham, Cambridge |
291.0 |
| Roslin, Edinburgh |
246.5 |
| Total IAPGR |
537.5 |
| Institute of Food Research (IFR) |
| Reading |
159.0 |
| Norwich |
244.0 |
| Total IFR |
403.0 |
| Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research (IGER) |
| Welsh Plant Breeding Station, Aberystwyth |
251.0 |
| Hurley, Maidenhead |
184.0 |
| North Wyke, Devon |
40.5 |
| Total IGER |
475.5 |
| Institute of Plant Science Research (IPSR) |
| John Innes Centre, Norwich |
321.5 |
| Nitrogen Fixation Laboratory, Brighton |
60.5 |
| Total IPSR |
382.0 |
| Silsoe Research Institute |
| Silsoe, Bedfordshire |
288.0 |
| Research institute |
Number of staff (full-time equivalent) |
| Total AFRC |
3,325 |
| Medical Research Council |
| National Institute for Medical Research, London |
541.5 |
| MRC Collaborative Centre, Mill Hill, London |
30.5 |
| MRC Blood Group Unit, London |
11.0 |
| MRC Cognitive Development Unit, London |
13.0 |
| MRC Child Psychiatry Unit, Denmark Hill, London |
9.5 |
| MRC Cyclotron Unit, Hammersmith Hospital, London |
112.0 |
| MRC Dental Research Unit, Newark Street, London |
16.0 |
| MRC Human Biochemical Genetics Unit, University College, London |
22.0 |
| MRC Human Movement and Balance Unit, Institute of Neurology, London |
17.0 |
| MRC Experimental Embryology and Teratology Unit, Tooting, London |
21.5 |
| MRC Epidemiology and Medical Care Unit, Northwich Park Hospital, Harrow |
37.5 |
| MRC/LRF Leukaemia Unit, Royal Postgraduate Medical School, London |
10.0 |
| MRC Mammalian Development Unit, University College, London |
13.5 |
| MRC Neurological Prostheses Unit, Institute of Psychiatry, London |
7.0 |
| MRC Muscle and Cell Motility Unit, Kings College, London |
22.0 |
| MRC Social and Community Psychiatry Unit, Institute of Psychiatry, London |
12.5 |
| MRC Toxicology Unit Carshalton, Surrey |
131.0 |
| MRC Tuberculosis and Related Infections Unit Hammersmith Hospital, London |
17.0 |
| Clinical Research Centre, Harrow, Middlesex |
414.5 |
| MRC Biochemical and Clinical Magnetic Resonance Unit, Oxford |
9.0 |
| MRC Cellular Immunology Unit, Oxford |
16.5 |
| MRC Immunochemistry Unit, Oxford |
14.5 |
| MRC Molecular Haematology Unit, Oxford |
14.0 |
| Institution of Molecular Medicine, Headington, Oxford |
12.0 |
| MRC Anatomical Neuropharmacology Unit, Oxford |
16.5 |
| MRC Clinical Pharmacology Unit, Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford |
18.5 |
| MRC Radiobiology Unit, Didcot, Oxfordshire |
143.0 |
| MRC Cell Mutation Unit, University of Sussex, Brighton |
21.5 |
| MRC Environmental Epidemiology Unit, Southampton General Hospital, Hampshire |
23.5 |
| Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge |
43.0 |
| Molecular Immunopathology Unit, Cambridge |
21.0 |
| Molecular Genetics Unit, Cambridge |
15.5 |
| Molecular Neurobiology Unit, Cambridge |
19.5 |
| Dunn Nutrition Unit, Cambridge |
75.0 |
| Clinical Onocolgy and Radiotherapeutics Unit, Cambridge |
46.5 |
| Protein Function and Design Unit, Cambridge |
8.0 |
| Applied Psychology Unit, Cambridge |
63.0 |
| Biostatistics Unit |
16.5 |
| Cambridge Centre for Protein Engineering (IRC), |
14.0 |
| Social and Applied Psychology Unit, Sheffield |
30.0 |
| Institute of Hearing Research, Nottingham |
39.5 |
| Meurochemical Pathology Unit, Newcastle |
27.5 |
| MRC Blood Pressure Unit, Glasgow |
28.0 |
| MRC Medical Sociology Unit, Glasgow |
23.5 |
| MRC Virology Unit, Institute of Virology, Glasgow |
54.0 |
| MRC Brian Metabolism Unit, Edinburgh |
36.5 |
| Research institute |
Number of staff (full-time equivalent) |
| MRC Human Genetics Unit, Western General |
| Hospital, Edinburgh |
155.0 |
| MRC Reproductive Biology Unit, Edinburgh |
65.5 |
| Total MRC |
2,529.5 |
| National Environment Research Council |
| British Geological Survey |
| Exhibition Road, London |
3.0 |
| Wallingford, Oxfordshire |
51.0 |
| Exeter, Devon |
13.0 |
| Hartland Point, Devon |
1.0 |
| Keyworth, Nottinghamshire |
501.0 |
| Newcastle |
14.0 |
| Eskdalemuir, Scotland |
3.0 |
| Edinburgh |
220.0 |
| Aberystwyth |
13.0 |
| Belfast |
8.0 |
| Total BGS |
827.0 |
| Marine and Atmospheric Sciences Directorate |
| Unit of Aquatic Biochemistry, Stirling, Scotland |
5.0 |
| Culture Centre for Algae and Protozoa, Dunstaffnage Marine Laboratory, Oban, Scotland |
55.0 |
| Institute of Oceanographic Science Deacon Laboratory, Wormley, Surrey Rennell Centre, Southampton |
192.0 |
| Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory, Bidston, Merseyside |
91.0 |
| Plymouth Marine Laboratory/Marine Biological Association, Plymouth |
159.0 |
| Sea Mammal Research Unit, Cambridge |
17.0 |
| Total Marine and Atmospheric Sciences |
519.0 |
| Terrestrial and Freshwater Sciences |
| Institute of Terrestrial Ecology |
| Banchory, Scotland |
23.0 |
| Bush, Edinburgh |
60.0 |
| Merlewood, Cumbria |
61.0 |
| Bangor, Wales |
18.0 |
| Monks Wood, Huntingdon |
79.0 |
| Furzebrook, Wareham, Dorset |
26.0 |
| Institute of Hydrology |
| Balquidder, Scotland |
2.0 |
| Plynlimon, Wales |
6.0 |
| Wallingford, Oxfordshire |
155.0 |
| Institute of Virology and Environmental Microbiology, Oxford |
61.0 |
| Institute of Freshwater Ecology |
4.0 |
| Bush, Edinburgh |
26.0 |
| East Stoke, Wareham,, Dorset |
26.0 |
| Monks Wood, Huntingdon |
6.0 |
| Windermere, Cumbria |
66.0 |
| Culture Centre for Algae and Protozoa, Windemere, Cumbria |
6.0 |
| Total Terrestrial and Freshwater Sciences |
599.0 |
| Scientific Services |
| Banchory, Scotland |
1.0 |
| Bush, Edinburgh |
1.0 |
| Murchison House, Edinburgh |
10.0 |
| East Kilbridge, Glasgow |
3.0 |
| Bangor, Wales |
1.0 |
| Barry, Wales |
78.0 |
| Merlewood, Cumbria |
3.0 |
| Bidston, Wirral |
4.0 |
| Keyworth, Nottingham |
39.0 |
| Monks Wood, Huntingdon |
8.0 |
In addition the following AFRC employees are seconded to Horticultural Research International.