Core support for Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology. (360G-Wellcome-077707_Z_05_Z)

The broad aim of the Wellcome Trust Centre is to create a world-class research grouping that is at the forefront of research on fundamental aspects of cell biology. Since the creation of the Centre four years ago, we have made significant progress towards this aspiration. We appointed a core of professorial level scientists who are leaders in their fields plus more junior group leaders who have acquired fellowships in open competition. Our most important assets are the individual scientists who direct and manage their independently funded research groups and whose ability largely determines our research output. The Centre's specific goal is to make discoveries that take the understanding of cells to new levels. We believe that creative research of this kind flourishes where interaction, scientific rigour and constructive criticism are pervasive. The core funding associated with being a Centre allows us to realise these ideals. We have promoted a culture of scientific excellence through communal scientific activites that reinforce our ethos (seminars, retreats, Fellows Meetings, etc) and through sharing of state-of-theart core resources, equipment and facilities. In future, we intend to strengthen our scientific profile in several ways. 1. We will continue to seek cell biologists of excellence for our faculty. 2. We will improve the Centre's instumentation stock in order to maintain our status at the cutting edge in a time of feverish technological development. 3. We will develop our "outreach" activities in order to more effectively communicate the excitement of our research to the public. 4. We will enhance our mentoring of scientists at all levels. 5. We will seek to institute a PhD programme that will allow us to stimulate and educate a new generation of scientists.