The SMC is housed within the Royal Institution but independent from any single scientific body. To preserve our independence, funding has been sought from a wide variety of sources, none of which have contributed more than 5% of the total running costs (£250,000 per year).

Media groups, industry, professional associations and individuals are all taking part in funding the Science Media Centre. The list below shows the organisations that have committed funds towards our running costs in the last twelve months:

(To date: February 2007)

Current Funders

• Abbott Laboratories
• AAAS and the magazine Science
• ARM Holdings Plc
• Associated Newspapers Ltd (ANL) including Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, Evening Standard & Metro
• Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC)
• Association for Science Education (ASE)
• AstraZeneca
• BASF Plc
• Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)
• Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• British Computer Society (BCS)
• British Embassy in Washington
• British Geological Survey (BGS)
• British Neuroscience Association (BNA)
• British Psychological Society (BPS)
• BP Plc
• Cadbury Schweppes
• Cancer Resarch UK
• Coalition for Medical Progress (CMP)
• Chemical Industries Association (CIA)
• Chilled Food Association (CFA)
• Chiron Vaccines
• Colgate-Palmolive Company
• Confederation of the Food and Drink Industries of the European Union (CIAA)
• Copus
• Council for the Central Laboratory of the Research Councils (CCLRC)
• Daily Express
• Department for Trade and Industry (Office of Science and Innovation)
• The Dow Chemical Company
• The Drayson Foundation
• Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC)
• Elsevier
• Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)
• Engineering and Technology Board (ETB)*
• Environment Agency
• European Science Foundation (ESF)
• Euroscience Open Forum (ESOF)
• ExxonMobil
• GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)
• Human Tissue Authority (HTA)
• Imperial College, London
• Institute of Food Science & Technology (IFST)
• Instite of Marine Engineering, Science and Techology (IMarEST)
• Institute of Physics
• Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE)
• Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE)
• Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE)
• Kraft Foods Inc
• Medical Research Council (MRC)
• Merck Sharp & Dohme Limited (MSD)
• The Met Office
• Mobile Operators Association (MOA)
• National Physical Laboratory (NPL)
• Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)
• Nature Magazine and Macmillan Publishing Group
• News International Limited
• Nirex
• Particle Physics & Astronomy Research Council (PPARC)
• Pfizer Limited
• The Physiological Society
• Research Councils UK (RCUK)
• RDS
• Rothamsted Research
• Royal Academy of Engineering
• Royal Astronomical Society (RAS)
• The Royal College of Pathologists
• The Royal Society
• The Royal Society of Medicine
• Sanofi Pasteur MSD
• Shell Chemicals Limited
• Siemens Plc
• Smith & Nephew Plc
• Society for Applied Microbiology (SfAM)
• Society for General Microbiology (SGM)
• Syngenta
• Tate & Lyle Plc
• Trinity Mirror Plc
• UCB Group
• UK Cleaning Products Industry Association (UKCPI)
• Unilever
• University of Teesside
• Vodafone Group
• Wellcome Trust*
• Wyeth

Previous Funders

• Allied Domecq
• Beeson Gregory
• BBC Worldwide
• British Energy Plc
• British Land Plc
• British Transplantation Society Council
• Conoco (UK) Ltd
• Conoco-Phillips
• Co-operative Group (CWS) Limited
• Dixons Group Plc
• The Drayson Foundation
• Du Pont (UK) Ltd
• Eli Lilly & Company
• JH Ritblat Charitable Trust
• Lever Faberge
• Merlin Biosciences
• Northern Foods
• The Posen Foundation
• Powderject
• QinetiQ
• Rathbones
• Regenesys
• Royal College of Physicians
• Science Council
• Simon Best
• Tesco Limited

Special Notes

The Wellcome Trust is an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. The Science Media Centre is in receipt of a Wellcome Trust People Award for public engagement activities, to the value of £30,000. Visit the Wellcome Trust website page on grants awarded.

The Engineering and Technology Board (etb) is a registered charity that aims to tackle the significant yet unaddressed needs of the UK's science, engineering and technology industry and to create a unified platform and voice. The etb fund the Engineering Press Officer position at the Science Media Centre.

Refurbishment costs were met by a generous donation from John Ritblat. In recognition of this vital support, the main office of the Science Media Centre has been named the John Ritblat room.

The Dixon Group PLC generously donated our IT equipment.

Trinity Mirror PLC have donated money towards furnishing the Centre.