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Often, collaboration happens in the margins of already busy schedules. So, the CAKE Placements and Visits programme is designed to create the time, space and support needed for people to come together, share ideas, share knowledge and develop collaborations that last.

Traditional placement schemes can be kind of restrictive, with rigid eligibility criteria or fixed expectations about how and where work should happen. CAKE takes a more flexible approach to help open doors to opportunities that might otherwise be missed.

This flexibility is particularly important in ensuring that collaboration is accessible to a wider range of participants and circumstances. Not everyone is able to commit to working away from home for extended periods. Family responsibilities, health conditions, disability, financial constraints, or other personal circumstances can all make traditional placements difficult or impossible.

Virtual placements

Virtual placements, while not offering the same level of immersion as an in-person placement, provide a valuable and accessible alternative that keeps collaboration open to a wider range of participants.

While you won’t need to think about office keys or desks, successful virtual placements do require thoughtful planning. It’s important to ensure the placee is fully integrated into the team, with clear opportunities for regular communication, structured collaboration time, and informal interaction wherever possible.

CAKE provides guidance on how to design and run successful virtual placements. This includes practical advice on structuring the experience so that participants are fully embedded within the team and able to contribute effectively.

The CAKE flexible fund for placements and visits can also support costs associated with short in-person visits or joint activities. These can play an important role in strengthening virtual placements by adding valuable face-to-face interaction where possible.

Explore your next collaboration with CAKE

Whether you’re starting something new or strengthening an existing partnership, these opportunities are all about transforming how we work together! For example, joint development of training, learning from a new team or discipline, or exploring things that wouldn’t otherwise have funding support. Whether virtual or in-person, they are not just about what people bring to a project, but how working together can change perspectives and open up new possibilities.