Clara
STFC's advanced electron-beam facility, mothballed in the July 2026 prioritisation cuts.
Clara, STFC's electron-beam test facility at Daresbury, was mothballed on 9 July 2026 when UKRI cut national laboratory funding by 58% over four years, ending its path toward admitting outside researchers during 2026.
Last refreshed: 4 August 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Why did the UK mothball its Clara accelerator test facility?
Timeline for Clara
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Formally the Compact Linear Accelerator for Research and Applications, Clara sits at STFC's Daresbury site and exists to test advanced free-electron-laser designs and other accelerator-physics techniques ahead of larger facilities being built elsewhere. Three 4-metre radiofrequency cavities and 77 electromagnets carry its beam across 60 metres.
A facility conceived to keep British accelerator physics internationally competitive has instead become shorthand for the wider STFC funding dispute, cited whenever MPs or peers ask what the 58% cut actually costs in working capability rather than budget lines.
Clara was mothballed in the cuts
UKRI's 9 July 2026 announcement of a 58% reduction in STFC national laboratory funding over four years put Clara out of action, one of the casualties as the council redirects money toward equity-stage science. By the time funding was cut, the machine had reached 250 million electron volts and was on course to admit outside researchers during 2026.
Parliament returned to the decision on 14 July, when peers pressed UKRI's chief executive on the funding approach behind it, confirming there was no near-term reprieve. STFC's own 27 July funding detail confirmed the mothballing stands even as the council's overall budget stays flat, with money shifting from research projects to repairing old buildings and equipment.
