Where to find funding

NIHR is the nation’s largest funder of health and care research, spending £1 billion from the Department of Health and Social Care on research every year. However, a wide range of bodies fund health and social care research, including charities i.e. Alzheimer’s Society and the Medical Research Council, or industry, some fund projects jointly. Most have specific areas of interest and many are disease specific. Sources of further information include (note this is not an exhaustive list):

Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC) is the national membership organisation for medical and health research charities. AMRC members support over one-third of all UK publicly-funded medical research in the UK, with members investing over £1.2 billion in health research in the UK in 2012.
Medical Research Council (MRC) funds research through a range of grants, calls, highlight notices, studentships and fellowships.
National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) funds a range of programmes addressing a broad range of health priorities. Funding is based on the quality and relevance of the research to personal social services, public health and the NHS.
NIHR Evaluation, Trials and Studies Coordinating Centre (NETSCC) is part of the NIHR, manages a number of research programmes, including: Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation; Health Services and Delivery Research; Health Technology Assessment; Public Health Research; and Systematic Reviews.
UK Clinical Research Collaboration (UKCRC) many different organisations fund health research in the UK. The UKCRC has developed a coherent approach to health research funding by providing a forum to coordinate the activities of funding bodies and by developing an evidence base to inform strategic planning.
UK Research Office (UKRO) is the European office of the UK Research Councils. Activities include providing details on European Commission funding opportunities.

There is support available to you when preparing a grant application.

Specific Calls

The Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Programme is considering this topic for future commissioned research.

Research Questions:

(a) Is it feasible to conduct a study to examine the effectiveness of higher-calorie refeeding compared with lower-calorie refeeding in malnourished adults with anorexia nervosa?
(b) If feasibility is established, what is the clinical and cost-effectiveness of higher-calorie refeeding compared with lower-calorie refeeding in malnourished adults with anorexia nervosa?

The research specification will provide more details about the opportunity and will be published when the funding opportunity opens for applications.

Funding: The Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Programme is considering this topic for future commissioned research.

Deadline: 02/04/2025, 1pm

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Generic Calls

Better Methods, Better Research (BMBR) funds the development of generalisable methods that underpin research. This includes biomedical, health and social care research.

Criteria: These methods must be applicable beyond a single case study or research question. They need to be applicable as they are, without significant modification. Methodology research should also be developed with end-user engagement.

Amount: Project proposals can be up to a budget of £625,000 (100% full economic cost (FEC)). MRC and NIHR will usually fund up to 80% of your project’s FEC.

Deadline: 04/12/2024, 1pm

More Information

A webinar was held for potential applicants on Monday 7 October 2024. To request a copy of the slides please contact BMBR@nihr.ac.uk.

The Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation (EME) Programme funds ambitious studies evaluating interventions with potential to make a step-change in the promotion of health, treatment of disease and improvement of rehabilitation or long-term care.

NIHR NICE Rolling Call: The programme is interested in receiving applications to meet recommendations in research identified in NICE guidance that has been published or updated in the last 5 years.

NIHR James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnerships rolling Call: Applications addressing priorities within the JLA PSP for digital technology in mental health care which was established in 2018 to identify research priorities and opportunities for integrating digital technology for people with mental health conditions.

Amount: The NIHR funds 3 reseacher-led projects per year.

Deadline: 10/12/2024, 1pm (Stage 1)

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The Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) Programme is looking to fund high quality studies on brain tumour care, support, and rehabilitation. Studies should aim to generate robust evidence that can drive changes to enhance guidance and practice.

Criteria: Studies may focus on any type or grade of primary adult and/or paediatric brain tumour. This includes low-grade or ‘benign’ tumours and high-grade tumours that are cancerous, primary brain tumours that have metastasised, recurrent or relapsed disease, and studies on patients in remission or living with brain cancer.

Studies focusing on the support network for patients with brain tumours (family, carers, healthcare workforce) are also within scope.

Funding: 3 researcher-led per year

Deadline: 01/01/2025, 1pm

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Funding for high quality applied health and social care research to increase and improve the evidence base about mental health nursing and the mental health nursing workforce.

The Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) Programme is accepting Stage 1 applications to this funding opportunity.

Criteria: Research proposals must fall within the remit of the Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) Programme which aims to produce rigorous and relevant evidence to improve the quality, accessibility and organisation of health and social care services.

Funding: 3 researcher-led per year

Deadline: 08/01/2025, 1pm.

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The Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Programme funds evidence synthesis as well as primary research, into the clinical and cost-effectiveness, and broader impact of healthcare treatments, tests, and other interventions.

The programme is interested in receiving applications to meet recommendations in research identified in NICE guidance that has been published or updated in the last 5 years.

Funding: 3 researcher-led per year

Deadline: 08/01/2025, 1pm.

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The NIHR Research for Patient Benefit (RfPB) programme is inviting stage 1 applications for research proposals that are concerned with the day-to-day practice of health service staff, and that have the potential to have an impact on the health or wellbeing of patients and users of the NHS.

As a researcher-led programme, RfPB does not specify topics for research but instead encourages proposals for projects that address a wide range of health service issues and challenges.

The programme aims to fund high quality quantitative and qualitative research with a clear trajectory to patient benefit. It particularly encourages applications that have a strong element of interaction with patients and the public and that have been conceived in association with a relevant group of service users.

Criteria: Competition 56 sees the launch of two highlight notices for the RfPB Programme. The first of these is the initial instalment in a series of highlight notices that aim to solicit applications that address the specific health challenges facing the regions and communities of each funding committee. This is being launched initially for applications from the East of England and South West regions, before being rolled out in the other regions across subsequent competitions.

The second highlight notice has been launched as part of a cross-NIHR initiative that invites proposals that address the outcomes set out in the first of the Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC) areas of research interest, which is ‘Early action to prevent poor health outcomes’. Applications are requested that focus on tackling inequality in prevention/early detection or intervention/management for people at risk of poor health.

Amount: 3 researcher-led opportunities per year

Deadline: 05/03/2025, 1pm

More Information

A webinar is being held on Monday 11 November 2024 on Zoom. Register your attendance, submit questions in advance and gain access to joining details through the Zoom registration form.

This scheme provides funding for established researchers and teams from any discipline who want to pursue bold and creative research ideas to deliver significant shifts in understanding related to human life, health and wellbeing.

Criteria: You can apply for a Wellcome Discovery Award if you are a researcher who wants to pursue bold and creative research ideas. You must aim to make a major contribution to your research field by generating significant shifts in understanding and/or developing methodologies, conceptual frameworks, tools or techniques that could benefit health-related research.

An award can be held by an established researcher or a team of researchers led by an established researcher.

Research is funded in the following areas:

fundamental processes that underpin biology, to understand more about how human life works
complexities of human health and disease, including clinical and population-based approaches
burden of disease and its determinants, where this brings new and transformational knowledge
development of methodologies, conceptual frameworks, technologies, tools or techniques that could benefit health-related research
needs, values and priorities of the people and communities affected by disease and health disparities, and
social, ethical, cultural, political, economic and historical contexts of human health and disease.

Amount: A Wellcome Discovery Award provides funding for research expenses. The award usually lasts for 8 years, but may be less for some disciplines, such as humanities and social science. The award may be held on a part-time basis. When applying, you should cost the application at 1.0 (100%) full-time equivalent. We will then extend the duration of the award to reflect this. You should ask for a level and duration of funding that’s appropriate for your proposed research. You will need to justify these costs in your grant application.

Deadline: 03/12/2024, 5pm, /03/2025, 08/04/2025, 5pm (upcoming round)

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Fellowships

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) North Thames is recruiting for part-time Knowledge Mobilisation Fellows in applied health, public health, and social care research for a 3-year capacity building initiative.

The goal is to maximise the impact of research through what is known as 'Knowledge Mobilisation'. Knowledge mobilisation is about sharing research evidence and information widely and with people and communities who are able to use it, and helps us create new knowledge and positive change. There are four fellowships available:

Mental Health and Dementia
Starting living ageing well
Tackling health inequalities
Prevention in social care

Amount: PT Role Compensation

Deadline: 04/11/2024, 12 noon

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The ARC Fellowship is aimed people working in health, care and voluntary service settings across the East of England. It is for those who would like to work at the interface of research and practice, develop an understanding of the research environment, and develop skills in research methodology, service redesign, change management and implementing evidence-based improvements into practice.

Criteria: If the Research or Impact project is NHS based, NIHR strongly encourage aligning your project focus to the Darzi review of the NHS. For Research or Impact projects in social care or other non-NHS settings, the applicant can prioritise their own research/impact questions.

Amount: £12,500

Deadline: 06/01/2025, 12 noon

More Information:

Research Fellowship (Focus on Measuring Health and Care / Mental Health / Social Care)

Impact Fellowship (Focus on Implementation / Knowledge Mobilisation)

Webinars: 7 and 25 November 2024