Royal Museums Greenwich (RMG) is delighted to have the opportunity to apply to an AHRC scheme which aims to enable early career postdoctoral researchers to gain research and career experience in the galleries, libraries, archives, and museums sector. The scheme will fund c.10 research fellowships in cultural and heritage institutions. Fellowships start 1 January 2027 and last one to two years (longer if part-time). Further details can be found here: Early career fellowships in cultural and heritage institutions: 2025 – UKRI.
Each institution has set out priority areas for research and we welcome approaches from researchers engaged in the below topics who would be interested in co-developing an application to the scheme with RMG. A formal expression of interest form must be submitted to the Cohort Coordination and Development team at the V&A by 10 December 2025. We would be glad to offer informal conversations with interested applicants in advance of this, subject to submission of a brief emailed proposal. Please send these to research@rmg.co.uk, by 14 November.
RMG’s areas of interest are as follows:
1. British-Caribbean maritime connections: from transatlantic trade and the (resisted) use of enslaved African labour in the 18th century, through the experiences of Caribbean seafarers, to the passenger liners which brought people from the Caribbean to study and work in Britain in the mid-20th century. We especially welcome research which could strengthen RMG’s ability to mark Windrush 80 in 2028, which builds equitable access to collections for wider research use, and which is co-designed with descendant and stakeholder communities.
2. The democratisation of astronomy in the late 19th-early 20th centuries. We invite research which explores how female and non-professional astronomers were able to participate in astronomical communities of knowledge in this period, particularly through the relationship between the Royal Observatory, Greenwich (ROG) and the British Astronomical Association (BAA) as they shared people, instruments and expertise. There is scope to develop community engagement activities with the BAA and other astronomical societies to raise awareness of shared histories.
3. Research which strengthens RMG’s ability to support community-led research practice. Such research might explore how institutions can promote equitable access to cultural heritage for research; consider strategies through which they can promote research undertaken by individuals from non-academic backgrounds, and co-design resources and training which empower and give agency to researchers.
4. Research which illuminates the value of digital technologies to promoting collections access and engagement. Assets include RMG’s extensive oral history collection relating to the lives and experiences of seafarers. We welcome research which develops our capacity to manage and curate digital collections and to engage with digital humanities tools and methods.