LMS-Bath & LMS-Sheffield Mathematical Symposia

The London Mathematical Society (LMS) held its Call for Proposals for the LMS-Sheffield Mathematical Symposium to be held at the University of Sheffield in 2026. Starting life in 1974 as the LMS-Durham Symposia and then continuing as LMS-Bath Symposia after 2021, the LMS-Sheffield Mathematical Symposia will be held at the University of Sheffield between 2026 and 2030. The Symposia are an established and recognised series of international research meetings that provide an excellent opportunity to explore an area of research in depth, to learn of new developments, and to instigate links between different branches.

Core funding of approximately £16k-20k will be available to support the symposium provided by the University of Sheffield’s School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, the LMS, the International Centre for Mathematical Sciences (ICMS) and the Isaac Newton Institute (INI). Pending the outcome of a current EPSRC grant application, core funding may increase. In addition to the core support, organisers are encouraged to seek further funding from other funding bodies, industry partnerships, and/or their local institutions.

The meeting will be held during July or August and will be open to all. A significant proportion of the participants are expected to come from the UK. Each symposium will have the option to be complemented by a summer school to prepare young researchers such as PhD students, or a “research incubator”, where problem(s) related to the topic of the conference is studied in smaller groups. 

Prospective organisers were asked to send a formal proposal to the LMS Grants Team (Grants@lms.ac.uk) by 03 March 2025. Proposals are approved by the LMS Research Grants Committee after careful consideration of referees’ reports. 

Your proposal should address the following and be submitted in a pdf format.

• List the organisers. Indicate, if any, those who are female and/or an early career researcher. 
• Provide a list of key invited participants. Indicate those who confirmed their participation. Discuss composition of the list in terms of gender, career stage and geographical location (within the UK and the world). Explain your efforts to improve the diversity of the composition. Please note the following advice on diversity.
• Provide a detailed scientific case for the symposium, discussing its objectives, novelty and timeliness. Explain how the meeting will impact UK mathematics.
• List any other recent or upcoming meetings on similar topics and discuss how this meeting differs from them.
• Include the details of any additional support from other funding bodies, or proposed avenues of available funding which organisers are planning to apply for. 
• Indicate detailed plans for a summer school or a research incubator.
• Where appropriate, prospective organisers should consider the possibility of an “industry day”.

Before submitting, organisers are welcome to discuss their ideas informally with the Chair of the Research Grants Committee, Professor Amanda Turner (Grants@lms.ac.uk).

Additional sources of funding