Funding
Listed below are some of the Past Funding Calls (mainly grants) ending in 2026 that have been available to companies in UK healthcare.
Past funding calls ending in:
2025 can be found here and
2024 can be found here.
Future and Current Funding Calls can be found here.
For more information, please contact us.
Past Funding Calls 2026
Expression of Interest: Precision prevention - biological mechanisms of response variation
Funder: Medical Research Council
Open: 21 July 2026
Closed: 4pm, 17 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Up to £5 million full economic cost per project (MRC funds 80% of FEC)
Project duration: Up to five years
Eligibility: UK research organisations eligible for MRC funding; projects must include an experimental intervention or challenge in humans and test a mechanistic hypothesis.
This new MRC call funds research into why biomedical prevention interventions work differently across different people. Projects must generate mechanistic evidence in humans, testing interventions or challenges in pre-disease or early disease states.
The intent is to improve the targeting and effectiveness of precision prevention strategies. Moving prevention from population-average to individually-stratified approaches.
More information here.
Early Detection and Diagnosis Primer Award
Funder: Cancer Research UK
Open
Closed: 17 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Up to £100,000
Project duration: Typically 12–24 months
Eligibility: UK-based investigators (academic or clinical), often with industry collaborators. Designed for early-stage, novel ideas needing pilot data.
The Primer Award is CRUK's seed-stage early detection scheme. It supports highly novel, exploratory approaches to early cancer detection and diagnosis - including unconventional biomarker classes, sensor-based monitoring, AI-driven signal extraction from routine data, and population-scale risk-stratification tools.
Awards are deliberately small and short, but Primer projects are widely used as the evidence-generating step before a larger CRUK Project or Programme Award. Successful applicants typically present a clear hypothesis, a credible feasibility plan, and a route to clinical validation.
More information here.
Health Innovation Uptake Call 2026
Funder: EIT (part of the EU)
Opened: 15 July 2026
Closed: 16 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Up to €650,000 EIT Health contribution per project (up to eight projects funded); SME-led elements typically €400,000–€500,000. Covers up to 50% of total project costs (co-funding required).
Project duration: Not fixed in the published call.
Eligibility: Consortia led by a commercialising entity, with partners representing at least two sides of the Knowledge Triangle (industry, research, education). Solutions must already be mature and ready to scale across European markets. UK organisations are eligible as Horizon Europe associated-country participants.
The THI is intended to support private companies, specifically Micro, Small and Medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with at least 4 full-time equivalent employees. Eligible companies must have closed a minimum total equity investment of 2m EUR within the previous 36 months, with at least one new investor contributing. Funded projects must be at the Innovation Maturity Levels (IML) listed below, depending on their industry focus:
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IML ≥ 5 for Biotech (Safety / toxicity study stage).
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IML ≥ 6 in Medtech (Initial clinical PoC).
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IML ≥ 7 for Digital (Market validation).
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IML ≥ 7 for Biomarkers / Diagnostics.
The Innovation Uptake Call funds mature digital, data-driven and AI-powered healthcare solutions that are ready to scale, with funding intended to accelerate market entry, generate real-world evidence, strengthen market access, and support adoption within healthcare systems across Europe.
Unlike the Transformative Healthcare Instrument, this call requires a multi-partner consortium spanning industry, research and education rather than a single-company applicant, making it best suited to clients with existing academic or cross-border partners.
More information here.
EIC Transition 2026
Funder: EIC/ Horizon Europe
Open
Closed: 5pm CET, 16 September 2026
Sector: ALL
Funding level: Grants up to €2.5 million per project; overall 2026 budget of €100 million.
Project duration Typically 1–3 years, maturing technology from TRL 3/4 to TRL 5/6 Eligibility Single applicants (including UK SMEs and universities) or small consortia. Proposals must build on results from an eligible prior project: EIC Pathfinder, ERC Proof of Concept, Horizon Europe Pillar II, H2020 RIA/LEIT, or research infrastructures.
EIC Transition bridges the gap between promising research results and market-ready innovation. It funds both technology validation - demonstrating the technology in application-relevant environments - and the parallel development of business and market readiness, including early commercial strategy and investor engagement.
Because the UK is an associated country to Horizon Europe, UK organisations are fully eligible, including as single applicants. The key gating requirement is provenance: the proposal must develop results generated in an eligible predecessor project such as EIC Pathfinder or an ERC Proof of Concept grant.
More information here.
Improving discharge delivery across Health and Social Care
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 24 June 2026
Closed: 1pm, 16 September 2026
Sector: Health and care
Funding level: Not stated in the publicly available summary at the time of writing.
Project duration: Not stated in the publicly available summary - typical HSDR commissioned studies run over 2-4 years.
Eligibility: UK universities, local authorities/government bodies, and NHS bodies or other providers of NHS services in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
This is a two stage, commissioned call from NIHR's Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) programme, inviting research to improve how patients are discharged across health and social care settings, including acute hospitals, mental health services and specialist inpatient care. The programme is prioritising practical, system-wide improvements spanning patient pathways, service coordination and integrated care models, rather than single-site process tweaks.
As with other HSDR commissioned calls, a technology SME would typically need to partner with an eligible lead applicant (university, NHS body, or local authority) rather than apply directly.
More information here.
Programme Development Grants - July26
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 22 July 2026
Closed: 1pm, 16 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Up to £250,000 per award
Project duration: Typically up to 12–24 months of preparatory work
Eligibility: UK-based research teams; four streams - researcher-led stream A (pre-programme grant), stream B (post-award), NICE rolling and James Lind Alliance rolling. One-stage: full application required.
NIHR Programme Development Grants fund the preparatory work needed to develop a future Programme Grant for Applied Research - feasibility work, stakeholder engagement, pilot data collection and study design.
PDGs are an accessible entry point for SMEs into the NIHR applied research pipeline - a health tech vendor can be embedded as a partner in the development phase and carried into a much larger subsequent Programme Grant.
More information here.
Cluster 1 Health (2026 Calls)
Funder: Horizon Europe
Open
Closed: 15 September 2026 (single-stage destination calls)
Sector:
Funding level: Typically €4m–€15m per project
Project duration: Usually 36–60 months
Eligibility: Consortia of at least three independent legal entities from three different countries, including at least one EU Member State. UK organisations are eligible as Associated Country partners (cannot fulfil the Member State requirement but can be funded participants).
Cluster 1 of Horizon Europe is the principal EU funding stream for health research and innovation. The 2026 work programme covers six Destinations, including 'Tackling diseases and reducing disease burden', 'Ensuring equal access to innovative, sustainable and high-quality healthcare', and 'Unlocking the full potential of new tools, technologies and digital solutions for a healthy society'. The 15 September 2026 deadline applies to a large tranche of single-stage calls across these destinations.
Topics in this round include AI-enabled clinical decision support, real-world evidence platforms, secondary use of health data, digital mental health, cancer interception, and value-based procurement of health technologies. Project funding is generous and UK-led consortia have been successful in recent rounds, particularly where the UK partner brings an NHS deployment pathway or unique data asset.
More information here.
European Partnership on Rare Diseases
Funder: Horizon Europe
Opened: 10 February 2026
Closed: 5pm (CET), 15 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
This topic aims at supporting activities that are enabling or contributing to one or several expected impacts of destination “Tackling diseases and reducing disease burden”. To that end, proposals under this topic should aim to deliver results that are directed at, tailored towards and contributing to all the following expected outcomes:
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The EU is reinforced as an internationally recognised driver of research and innovation in Rare Diseases (RD) and thereby substantially contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals related to rare diseases.
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Research funders align, adopt and implement their RD research policies allowing for the optimal generation and translation of knowledge into meaningful health products and interventions responding to the needs of people living with a rare disease across Europe and globally.
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The RD research community at large benefit from and use an improved comprehensive knowledge framework and cross-border FAIR[1] data access and analysis, including rare diseases registries, by integrating the EU, national/regional data and information infrastructures to improve translational research.
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People living with a rare disease, including those from underrepresented communities, benefit from a more timely, equitable access to innovative, sustainable and high-quality healthcare including novel diagnosis and treatments, taking stock of highly integrated research and healthcare systems.
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Researchers, innovators -as well as people living with a rare disease and their advocates (as co-creators)- effectively constitute and operate into an integrated research and innovation ecosystem to deliver cost-effective diagnosis and treatments.
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Public and private actors, including civil society (e.g. Non-Governmental Organisations, charities), establish coordinated and efficient multi-stakeholder collaborations at EU and national (including regional) levels, allowing for more effective clinical research, for example aiming at improved success rates of therapeutic development.
More information here.
The total indicative budget for the topic is EUR 91.3 million committed in annual instalments over the two years, 2026 and 2027 (EUR 48.7 million from the 2026 budget and EUR 42.6 million from the 2027 budget).
Microbiome for early cancer prediction before the onset of disease
Funder: Horizon Europe
Opened: 10 February 2026
Closed: 5pm (CET), 15 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
This single stage topic will contribute to the achievement of the EU Cancer Mission’s objective to achieve better cancer prevention and early detection. The focus is on the development of validated microbiome tools, an assessment of predispositions, the comparison with other predictive tools and risk modelling approaches.
Proposals should address all of the following:
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Development of microbiome tools for earlier, better and personalised prediction and prevention of cancer before the onset of the disease; if possible 2 years before the onset of the disease. Proposals should deal with several types of cancer if possible.
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Assessments of predispositions, AI risk modelling approaches and organ/body simulations.
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Collaboration with large cohorts/registries from different communities, usage of existing microbiome and clinical data in combination with and generation of new data. These data could include other predictive signs such as sensations of fatigue, unusual pain, weight loss or other body changes.
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Citizen engagement could be included with data and sample collections as well as educational programmes.
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Comparison with other minimally invasive liquid biopsy and other tests concerning their predictive power, simplicity, cost-benefits and potential for commercialisation.
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Validation of the tests in an independent cohort. Development of guidelines that help to manage risk factors such as lifestyle or diet. The outcome and expertise of ongoing EU and International initatives and the International Cancer Microbiome Consortium could be considered for the reliability of the tests and guidelines to be developed. Age, sex and gender differences should be duly considered.
More information here.
Virtual Human Twin (VHT) Models for Cancer Research
Funder: Horizon Europe
Opened: 10 February 2026
Closed: 5pm (CET), 15 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Proposals under this single stage topic should aim to deliver results that are directed and tailored towards and contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:
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Researchers of different disciplines use advanced multiscale Virtual Human Twins (VHTs) to expand the knowledge and understanding of cancer onset and progression
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Healthcare professionals and researchers have access to advanced VHT-based solutions that model cancer onset and progression over time, contributing to improve personalised treatments
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Researchers, healthcare professionals, innovators and citizens have access to cancer VHTs through the UNCAN.eu and the advanced Virtual Human Twin platforms
Successful proposals will be asked to join the 'Understanding' project cluster of the EU Cancer Mission and should include a budget for networking, attendance at meetings and joint activities. The Commission will facilitate coordination of this activity. Collaboration is encouraged also with Horizon Europe projects supporting the VHT initiative, as appropriate.
More information here.
Prevention and Population Research Programme Award
Funder: Cancer Research UK
Open
Closed: 11 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Long-term programme funding (multi-million pound awards, typically 5+ years)
Project duration: Typically five years or more
Eligibility: Scientists, clinicians or healthcare workers based at a UK university, medical school, hospital or research institution; industry collaboration encouraged within programmes
This CRUK programme award funds long-term, integrated programmes of prevention and population research aiming to reduce cancer incidence and mortality at population scale. It supports work spanning behavioural science, epidemiology, screening and risk stratification.
Applications are reviewed in spring and autumn rounds, and applicants must contact CRUK for an informal discussion before submitting. Data-driven approaches, including digital tools and AI-enabled risk prediction, sit comfortably within scope where they serve prevention and population health goals.
More information here.
Discovery Research Grant
Funder: RNID
Open
Closed: 5pm, 10 September 2026 (Preliminary application)
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Up to £225,000 in total, with funding not exceeding £75,000 in any one year.
Project duration: Multi-year (implied by the annual funding cap)
Eligibility: Applicants may be from any university, research institute, or small/medium enterprise based anywhere in the world. Two-stage process: preliminary application reviewed first, with shortlisted applicants invited to submit a full application.
The Discovery Research Grant funds earlier-stage work that generates the knowledge underpinning future treatments for hearing loss or tinnitus, or that improves how such treatments are developed and tested. It is RNID's earlier-stage counterpart to the Translational Research Grant, and is intended to build the evidence base ahead of a translational or commercial project.
As with the Translational Grant, RNID confirms that SMEs are eligible applicants alongside universities and research institutes, broadening access beyond a purely academic applicant pool.
More information here.
Translational Research Grant
Funder: RNID
Open
Closed: 5pm, 10 September 2026 (Preliminary application)
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Up to £300,000 in total, with funding not exceeding £100,000 in any one year.
Project duration: Multi-year (implied by the annual funding cap; typically up to 3 years).
Eligibility: Applicants may be from any university, research institute, or small/medium enterprise based anywhere in the world. Two-stage process: a preliminary application is reviewed first, with shortlisted applicants invited to submit a full application.
The RNID Translational Research Grant funds the development of a specific novel therapeutic, device, or technology aimed at improving outcomes for people with hearing loss or tinnitus. It sits between early discovery research and clinical deployment, supporting projects that have moved beyond proof-of-concept and need funding to reach a validated, near-market stage.
Unlike many charity research schemes, RNID explicitly welcomes applications from SMEs as well as academic and clinical institutions, making this one of the more accessible major health charity grants for a commercial health tech applicant.
More information here.
Eurostars Call 11
Funders: Eureka Network / Innovate UK
Opened: 9 July 2026
Closed: 10 September 2026
Sector: ALL
Funding level: UK SMEs: grant up to 60% of eligible project costs; Innovate UK budget of £2.5 million for this call.
Project duration: Up to 36 months; products expected to reach market within two years of project completion.
Eligibility: Project must be led by an SME from a Eurostars country and include at least one other independent organisation from a different Eurostars country. UK participants must be registered at Companies House and active for at least 12 months, and may hold only one live Eurostars project at a time.
Eurostars is the largest international funding programme for SMEs wishing to collaborate on R&D projects with international partners. Call 11 projects must be innovative, market-driven and aimed at developing a new product, process or service.
Health and medical technology is consistently one of the largest thematic areas in Eurostars portfolios, and consortia are typically small (two to four partners), making the scheme far more accessible than mainstream Horizon Europe collaborative calls.
More information here.
Small molecule high throughput screen using AstraZeneca facilities
Funder: MRC
Opened: 30 January 2026
Closed: 4pm, 9 September 2026
Sector: Life Sciences
Apply for funding to run a high throughput screen (HTS) using AstraZeneca’s compound library and screening robots. There are two funding opportunities per year, which remain open to all targets.
Research Aims
The scheme aims to support discovery of potential starting points for small molecule medicinal drugs against novel targets. AstraZeneca provides technical input for assay optimisation, investigation of alternative readout technologies, and pilot HTS screening before platform transfer. Depending on optimisation results, compound sets of between 100,000 and 1,000,000 molecules will be screened.
Thematic Focus
While the opportunity remains open to all targets, this round prioritises mental health or dementia (including Parkinson's and Huntington's disease). Applications in these strategic areas receive ranking uplift during assessment.
Lead Organisation Eligibility
Project leads must be based at UK research organisations eligible for MRC funding. Commercial entities cannot lead applications, and collaborations with additional commercial parties are prohibited. International researchers may participate as co-leads or collaborators.
Funding and Duration
Projects receive up to £270,000 full economic cost (FEC), with MRC contributing £250,000. Duration typically spans 15 months, ranging from 12 to 18 months. Funding covers: £20,000 (100% FEC) for HTS optimisation and establishment; £150,000 (100% FEC) for HTS execution; travel, accommodation and subsistence for researchers embedding at AstraZeneca for up to three months (80% FEC); screening cascade elements conducted at host organisations (80% FEC); and minimal project lead time (80% FEC).
More information here.
MSD UK 2026 Grants Programme
Funder: Merck Sharp & Dohme UK
Open
Closed: 5pm, 8 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: £15,000–£25,000 (healthcare organisations); £5,000–£15,000 (patient organisations). 8–12 grants expected per window.
Project duration: Projects must start and complete within 12 months of approval
Eligibility: UK healthcare organisations (NHS trusts, PCNs, HCP membership bodies, learned societies) and patient organisations (registered not-for-profits with a company or charity number and established org chart). Grants paid to organisations only, never individuals.
MSD's 2026 programme offers arm's length financial grants for non-promotional projects tackling health inequalities with demonstrable patient and population impact. Applications must meet both programme goals - addressing a defined disparity in outcomes, access or wellbeing, and placing patient and population needs at the centre with clear KPIs. Plus at least one of three themes: community and neighbourhood care, prevention, or digital innovation to enable healthy living and behaviours.
The digital innovation theme is explicitly framed around digital tools that improve access to services, and digital patient or public engagement reaching hard-to-reach populations. MSD's own showcased 2025 award (an AI receptionist deployed with North Central London Cancer Alliance and NCL ICB, delivering a 160% increase in cervical screening bookings) signals the kind of digitally-enabled prevention project that fares well. Projects in oncology, vaccines/HIV, or CVD (PAH and lipid management) are prioritised, though all disease areas are considered.
Key financial restrictions: MSD will not be a sole funder, total MSD payments cannot exceed half the recipient's annual income, and no core funding, overheads, administration or capital expenditure is eligible. Staff time spent directly managing or delivering the project can be funded if itemised in the budget. Outcomes must be delivered in the UK.
More information here.
Digital Twin Adoption Accelerator 2026
Funders: Digital Catapult/ Innovate UK
Opened: 8 July 2026
Closed: 6 September 2026
Sector: Various
Funding level: Up to £100,000 Innovate UK grant per successful project; nine partnerships to be funded.
Duration: Nine-month programme - kick-off 18 November 2026, ends June 2027.
Eligibility: Pre-formed partnerships only. Partner 1: a UK technology SME working in one or more of six enabling technology areas (cyber-physical systems; data services; security and trustworthiness; immersive technologies and UX; intelligence; integration and interoperability). Partner 2: an industry adopter organisation in one of the eight named sectors with a digital twin adoption challenge. Either partner may act as lead applicant.
Beyond the grant, successful partnerships receive technical support from Digital Catapult's innovation and technology teams, access to real-world test environments, dedicated 1-2-1 mentoring, introductions across the UK Digital Twin Centre's industry partner network (which includes Thales, Spirit AeroSystems, Artemis Technologies and Sony Music UK), and a place at an end-of-programme showcase to industry, government and investors.
The distinguishing feature, and the main constraining factor, is that applications must come from an already-formed SME/adopter pair. This is an adoption programme, not a technology development competition: the assessment centres on whether the partnership can demonstrate a credible route to deployment within the adopter's operating environment.
More information here.
Drug Accelerator Awards
Funder: Parkinson's UK
Open
Closed: 4pm, 3 September 2026
Sector: Life sciences
Full application deadline: 22 October 2026 (invited applicants only)
Funding level: Up to £150,000 (standard); up to £200,000 for projects involving in vivo work
Project duration: Up to 18 months
Eligibility: UK-based universities, NHS Trusts, or small start-up biotech companies. Co-applicants and collaborators may be based outside the UK or at larger biotech companies.
Parkinson's UK runs this annual award to accelerate the development of novel drugs for Parkinson's disease. Projects must have a clear translational drug development focus: the programme is explicitly designed to generate data that readies compounds for entry into full-scale drug discovery, either with an industry partner or through Parkinson's Research Ventures, the charity's own virtual biotech initiative.
Fundable activities include work that pioneers novel drug targets, generates preclinical or early clinical data, and positions compounds for the next stage of development with a commercial or industry partner. All applicants are expected to involve people with lived experience of Parkinson's in the research process and to address equity, diversity and inclusion across all aspects of the work.
The application process is two-stage: all applicants submit a preproposal, which is triaged by an in-house expert panel. Only invited applicants proceed to a full application, reviewed by a panel of industrial and academic experts alongside people affected by Parkinson's. In the 2025 round, 17 preproposals were submitted, generating 10 full application invitations and 3 funded projects.
A virtual applicant workshop is scheduled for 23 July 2026.
More information here.
Treatments for Gambling Harms (Commissioned Call)
Funder: NIHR - HTA
Opened: 27 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 2 September 2026
Sector: Addictions
Funding level: HTA-scale - up to several £m per study
Project duration: Typically 24–48 months
Eligibility: UK-based research teams with academic, NHS or industry partnerships. Lead applicant must hold a relevant contractual relationship with an eligible UK institution.
This is a specific commissioned HTA call inviting research on the best treatments for gambling that harms. The scope spans pharmacological, psychological and digital interventions and is explicitly open to comparative effectiveness studies, real-world evaluations and implementation research. It sits alongside the broader Government strategy on gambling harms released in late 2025.
The HTA Programme typically funds the most policy-relevant clinical trials and economic evaluations in the NIHR portfolio. A successful application would directly inform NICE guidance and NHS commissioning for gambling-related harms - an area where the evidence base is currently thin.
More information here.
NIHR/ NICE Rolling Funding Opportunity
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 7 May 2026
Closed: 1pm, 2 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The Health Technology Assessment Programme (HTA) is inviting outline applications via the commissioned workstream. NIHR 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.
Applications must be within the remit of the HTA Programme, and the primary outcome measure must be health related. The following research programmes are also participating in this funding opportunity:
More information here
Researcher-Led Primary Research
Funder: NIHR - HTA
Opened: 7 May 2026
Closes: 1pm, 2 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding Level: Sized to project requirements. HTA programme awards typically range from £500,000 to £3 million+ for primary research studies. No formal upper limit for justified projects.
Project Duration: Typically 3 – 5 years
Eligibility: Open to UK-based researchers and research organisations able to deliver high-quality health technology assessment studies. This is a researcher-led (open) workstream; proposals may address any health problem in areas not otherwise well covered in the HTA Programme portfolio. The programme is particularly interested in proposals using rigorous primary research methods (randomised trials, large cohort studies, or equivalent). This is a two-stage process: outline application reviewed first; invited teams complete a full application. Academic-industry partnerships are welcomed.
The NIHR Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Programme funds independent research on the effectiveness, costs, and broader impact of health technologies for the NHS and social care system. The researcher-led primary research workstream is the open, unsolicited stream where researchers can propose their own questions - in contrast to commissioned calls targeting specific topics.
HTA primary research typically involves trials or large-scale evaluation studies that generate the definitive evidence needed for NHS adoption decisions. Technologies undergoing HTA-style evaluation include diagnostics, medical devices, digital health tools, AI-assisted clinical decision support, surgical technologies, screening programmes, and pharmaceutical interventions. The HTA Programme is the primary route through which NICE makes evidence-based recommendations for NHS adoption, meaning a successful HTA study can directly unlock NHS commissioning for the technology evaluated.
This round is explicitly seeking proposals that address health problems not currently well covered in the existing HTA portfolio, meaning novel or emerging health technologies are actively encouraged. For health tech companies, partnering with an academic clinical trials unit on an HTA study of their product is one of the highest-impact routes to NHS adoption and NICE recommendation.
More information here.
James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnerships rolling funding opportunity
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 7 May 2026
Closed: 1pm, 2 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
NIHR's Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) Programme is inviting outline applications (two stages) to their commissioned workstream. They are interested in receiving applications that address research priorities identified by the James Lind Alliance (JLA) Priority Setting Partnerships (PSP).
Key priorities for this call relate to addiction healthcare goals.Published in May 2025, the the JLA's top 10 research priorities ranked ‘identifying the best approaches to reducing drug-related deaths’ as the leading priority. Other key areas for further research include:
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Treatment and therapeutics – including identifying effective interventions to treat trauma alongside addiction (priority 2) and co-existing mental health conditions (priority 5), identifying effective psychological therapies (priority 9) and interventions to prevent relapse (priority 10)
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Health services – including effective interventions or approaches to address stigma and discrimination within health services (priority 3), deliver personalised, culturally responsive treatment (priority 7) and improve the integration of addiction and mental health services (priority 8)
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Public health and harm reduction – identifying the most effective harm reduction approaches (priority 4)
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Supporting children affected by people with addiction (priority 6)
Patient and public involvement must be included within the application and study design to ensure the research is relevant and appropriate to patients and the public.
More information here.
Commercialising Knowledge Assets Fund
Funders: DSIT/ Innovate UK
Opened: 18 May 2026
Closed: 11am, 1 September 2026
Sector: ALL
Funding level: Grant funding for commercialisation projects (levels in line with previous CKAF rounds)
Project duration: Typically up to 12 months
Eligibility: UK public sector organisations and partners commercialising publicly held knowledge assets (IP, data, know-how); NHS and public research bodies can partner with SMEs.
The Commercialising Knowledge Assets Fund supports public sector bodies to unlock the commercial potential of knowledge assets - intellectual property, data, software and know-how - generated within government and the wider public sector.
Projects can cover feasibility, proof of concept and route-to-market activity for assets that would otherwise remain unexploited. Health-related public sector assets, including NHS-derived datasets and clinical innovations, have featured strongly in earlier rounds.
More information here.
Data science and AI
Funder: Kidney Research UK
Opened: 2 July 2026
Closed: 26 August 2026
Sector: Renal care
Funding Level: Up to £300,000 per project
Project Duration: Up to 3 years
Eligibility: Collaborative teams with shared leadership including a researcher with kidney disease expertise and a co-PI with expertise in data science, bioinformatics, or AI. Based at UK universities, NHS trusts, or research institutions. Industry can participate as collaborators.
This grant supports research that applies data science and artificial intelligence to advance understanding, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of kidney disease. The programme strongly encourages applications from collaborative teams combining clinical kidney research expertise with data science or AI capability.
Eligible projects may include development of machine learning models for early kidney disease detection, AI-powered risk stratification tools for chronic kidney disease progression, natural language processing of clinical records for kidney research, and data-driven optimisation of dialysis or transplantation outcomes.
Kidney Research UK is particularly keen on projects that leverage real-world health data to reduce unnecessary clinical visits through digital monitoring and remote care.
More information here.
Women’s health communication
Funder: NIHR
Open: 24 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 18 August 2026
Sector: Women's Health
This two stage NIHR PHR call funds research on how to improve communication about women’s health across the life course, focusing on the effectiveness of public health messaging in improving outcomes for women and girls and reducing health inequalities.
The focus is on evaluating how different approaches to women’s health communication influence knowledge, behaviours, health outcomes and inequalities among women and girls.
It aims to generate evidence that can inform national and local public health policy, campaigns and services relating to women’s health (e.g. menstrual health, reproductive health, menopause, sexual health, mental health).
Eligibility: UK-based teams eligible for PHR funding, including universities, local authorities, NHS/public health bodies and other organisations working in population health.
Scope and themes
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Research on the effectiveness of communication and messaging strategies targeting women and girls, including underserved and marginalised groups.
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Potential settings and channels include schools, workplaces, community and digital platforms, and health or social care interfaces, provided interventions are primarily public health in nature.
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Outcomes of interest include changes in awareness, help‑seeking, access to care, behaviours, health outcomes and inequalities relating to women’s health across the life course.
No fixed maximum award stated; applicants should propose a justified budget and duration appropriate to the PHR remit and design.
More information here.
Next Wave: Breakthrough Wave 1
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 23 June 2026
Closed: 11am, 11 August 2026
Sector: Various
Funding Level: Share of up to £10 million total fund; individual project grants typically £50K–£500K
Project Duration: Industrial research phase (typically 6–18 months)
Eligibility: UK registered SMEs (as lead applicant). Larger organisations can participate as collaborators. Single or collaborative applications. Must relate to an Industrial Strategy frontier sector (Health is explicitly listed alongside Digital, AI, and Advanced Manufacturing).
This is a new Innovate UK programme investing up to £10 million in early-stage industrial research projects that explore Createch innovation - the convergence of creative industries with frontier technologies. Health is one of the eligible Industrial Strategy frontier sectors, making this particularly relevant to digital health, AI-enabled diagnostics, health-focused software, and medtech companies applying creative or AI-driven approaches to healthcare challenges.
Projects must involve UK-registered SMEs as lead applicants and should demonstrate how creative and digital innovation can deliver commercial and societal value within a frontier sector. The programme targets early-stage innovation (proof-of-concept through to early prototype) and applicants should be ready to commercialise within a realistic timeframe following the award.
Your project must focus on commercial digital platforms and services in one of the following frontier industries:
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video games (so XR for healthcare would be included)
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advertising and marketing
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film and TV
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music, performing and visual arts
More information here.
EME Programme researcher-led
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 2 April 2026
Closed: 1pm, 5 August 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding: no fixed limit, sized to the research needs; typical awards range from £500,000 to £2 million.
Project Duration: no fixed time limit - funded for as long as needed to complete the study.
Eligibility: UK-based researchers at universities, NHS trusts, and eligible research organisations. Studies must test whether health interventions work (efficacy) and/or investigate the biological, psychological, or social mechanisms by which they produce their effects.
The NIHR Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation (EME) Programme funds definitive, rigorously designed studies that test whether health interventions are effective and illuminate the biological, psychological, or social mechanisms underlying that effectiveness.
The programme is distinct from the Experimental Medicine programme (Biomedical Catalyst), it focuses on later-phase, powered trials and mechanistic add-on studies rather than early-phase experimental work.
EME-funded studies span a wide range of intervention types, including digital health technologies, AI-assisted diagnostics, psychological interventions, medical devices, and complex health service models. The researcher-led strand (this call) allows academics and clinicians to propose studies in any area within the EME remit, rather than responding to a commissioned topic.
More information here.
Translational Award
Funder: British Heart Foundation (BHF)
Open
Closed: 5pm, 5 August 2026 (preliminary stage)
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding Level: No upper limit specified - applicants should request the resources needed and justify them. Projects typically range from £500,000 to £3 million+.
Project Duration: Up to 3 years (with defined progression milestones)
The principal investigator (PI) must be a researcher working at an established UK research institution. Individuals or teams from commercial organisations may apply as collaborators, not as PI. Projects must address cardiovascular health broadly defined, including heart disease, stroke, vascular disease, and circulatory conditions. Two-stage application: preliminary application reviewed first; shortlisted applicants are then invited to submit a full application with a separately notified deadline.
BHF places strong emphasis on intellectual property position and commercial development potential; proposals should demonstrate a clear IP strategy and a pathway to attracting follow-on investment or clinical adoption. Technologies across all cardiovascular modalities are eligible: medical devices, AI diagnostics, digital monitoring tools, novel biomarkers, drug delivery systems, and digital therapeutics for cardiac conditions. Projects must define clear scientific and/or value inflection milestones at which continued funding will be assessed.
More information here.
Advanced Connectivity Technologies: New Innovators
Funders: Innovate UK / DSIT
Opened: 7 July 2026
Closed: 11am, 5 August 2026
Sector: ALL
Funding level: Between £25,000 and £50,000
Duration: Project-dependent (typically up to 12 months)
Eligibility: UK-registered micro or small businesses; single applicants only.
Innovate UK, with funding from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, is inviting UK micro and small businesses to develop affordable, adoptable and investable innovations in advanced connectivity technologies. The competition targets early-stage innovators building the connectivity layer (5G/6G, IoT, secure networks) that underpins many digital services.
For health tech, robust and secure connectivity is foundational to remote monitoring, virtual wards, connected medical devices and data-enabled care. SMEs with a connectivity-enabled digital health proposition may find this a route to non-dilutive funding for feasibility and early development.
More information here.
Osteoarthritis Pharmacotherapeutic Treatments
Funder: Versus Arthritis
Opened: June 2026
Closed: 4pm, 5 August 2026 (notice of intent)
Full application by 23 September 2026
Sector: Life Sciences
Funding level: Up to £3 million (Consortium award)
Duration: Up to 60 months
Eligibility: Lead applicant based at an eligible UK institution; consortium model.
Versus Arthritis is investing up to £3 million in a Research Consortium focused on osteoarthritis pharmacotherapeutic treatments.
While centred on therapeutics, the consortium framework has room for digital and data partners - for example trial-enabling technology, real-world-evidence platforms, digital endpoints and AI-supported patient stratification.
More information here.
Supporting Mental Health for People with Arthritis
Funder: Versus Arthritis
Opened: June 2026
Closed: 4pm, 29 July 2026 (notice of intent)
Full application by 9 September 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Up to £3 million (Consortium award)
Duration: Up to 60 months
Eligibility: Lead applicant based at an eligible UK institution; consortium model - welcomes industry, NHS and academic partners.
Versus Arthritis is investing up to £3 million in a new Research Consortium focused on the mental health of people living with arthritis.
The consortium model explicitly invites multidisciplinary partnerships. Digital mental health tools, remote symptom monitoring and data-driven interventions for long-term-condition self-management are squarely within scope where paired with an academic or NHS lead.
This is a substantial, long-duration award suited to Bidshaper clients able to partner into a research consortium rather than lead a commercial bid alone.
More information here.
Early Detection and Diagnosis Programme Award
Funder: Cancer Research UK
Open
Closed: 21 July 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Up to £2.5 million
Project duration: Up to 5 years
Eligibility: UK-based academic and clinical investigators, with strong support for industry co-investigators bringing diagnostic technologies.
CRUK's Programme Award is a substantial multi-year award supporting ambitious, programmatic research into the early detection and diagnosis of cancer. It is one of the largest non-commercial grants available for early-detection technology development in the UK and explicitly welcomes proposals that build, validate or deploy novel diagnostic platforms, AI tools, imaging modalities, biomarker panels and population screening strategies.
Awards typically combine technology development with prospective clinical validation in primary care or population screening cohorts. Successful applicants usually bring together a multidisciplinary team spanning data science, clinical specialty, behavioural science and health economics.
More information here.
Accelerated Knowledge Transfer Partnerships 6 (AKT 6)
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 26 May 2026
Closed: 11am, 15 July 2026
Sector: ALL
Funding level: Up to £35,000 per project (90% grant rate);
Project duration: 3 months only
Eligibility: Applications must be led by a UK Knowledge Base (HE/FE institution, RTO or Catapult), partnering with a UK-registered business with 4+ FTE. The Knowledge Base is the sole grant recipient. Third-sector and public-sector bodies are excluded as Business Partners.
Projects are open in scope but must first demonstrate alignment with one of six Industrial Strategy priority sectors: Advanced Manufacturing, Clean Energy Industries, Creative Industries, Defence, Digital and Technologies, or Life Sciences. Scoring (max 40 marks) covers innovation, challenges and risks, the need for a business-academic partnership, and projected business outcomes.
This is suitable for health tech and digital health SMEs that have an innovation challenge; a prototype to validate, a workflow to optimise, an algorithm to develop. Also, those companies with a concept/ solution which would benefit from a 3-month structured engagement with a university or Catapult to accelerate it. The £35,000 grant goes to the academic partner, but the commercial benefit accrues to the Business Partner, making this a low-cost route to accessing research expertise.
More information here.
What is the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of specialist palliative care support in care home settings?
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 27 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 15 July 2026
Sector: Care homes
This NIHR HTA two stage call funds research to determine the effectiveness and cost‑effectiveness of providing specialist palliative care support in UK care home settings, with a particular focus on “Palliative Care Needs Rounds” for older residents at risk of dying without a plan in place. It aims to inform commissioners and providers on whether and how such models should be implemented at scale in UK care homes.
Scope and population
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Primary research question: what is the effectiveness and cost‑effectiveness of providing specialist palliative care support (Palliative Care Needs Rounds) in UK residential care homes?
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Target group: residents at risk of dying without a plan in place in residential care homes for older people, and their paid carers; applicants are encouraged to include populations and regions with high need that have been historically underserved by research.
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Designs should generate decision‑grade evidence on outcomes such as symptom burden, place of death, unplanned hospital use, carer outcomes and costs to health and social care.
No explicit maximum award stated; applicants should propose a justified HTA‑standard budget and duration proportionate to their design and objectives.
More information here.
Target trial emulation: utilising routine data to answer key health and care questions
Funder: NIHR - HTA
Opened: 27 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 15 July 2026
Healthcare & Life Sciences
This NIHR HTA two stage call funds target trial emulation (TTE) studies that use existing routine health and social care data to answer important effectiveness and cost‑effectiveness questions where randomised trials are difficult, slow or not feasible. It aims to unlock the value of UK routine data assets and support NHS strategic shifts towards community care, prevention and digital delivery.
Eligibility: UK‑based research teams eligible for NIHR HTA funding, typically collaborations between universities, NHS or social care providers and data custodians.
Scope and themes
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TTE studies using existing routine datasets only; no new participant recruitment or prospective data collection is allowed.
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Priority areas include:
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Questions where randomisation is not feasible due to lack of equipoise.
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Evaluations of fast‑moving technologies needing rapid evidence.
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Complex questions and under‑served populations often excluded from RCTs (e.g. multimorbidity, rare diseases, paediatrics, social care).
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Proposals must remain within HTA remit (effectiveness and cost‑effectiveness of health technologies) rather than service‑delivery‑only studies.
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Strong emphasis on robust design to minimise bias (e.g. eligibility criteria, treatment strategies, follow‑up and analysis plans mirroring a pragmatic trial).
No fixed funding cap is stated; applicants must justify costs and demonstrate clear value for money, making efficient use of existing data resources.
More information here.
Mental Health Award: Using physical activity and circadian-based interventions to reduce anxiety and depression in young people
Funder: Wellcome Trust
Opened: 13 April 2026
Closesd: 3pm, 14 July 2026
Sector: Healthcare
This award will fund mechanistically informed trials of interventions for anxiety and depression in young people aged 10-18 years. Successful teams will build on existing mechanistic evidence to develop more precise and effective early interventions that have the potential to scale.
£1-4 million per grant, research should last 3-4 years.
This funding call focuses on interventions that improve youth mental health by targeting circadian rhythms (such as, but not limited to, sleep timing, sleep quality and daily light exposure) and/or physical activity (such as, but not limited to, aerobic exercise, dance classes, walking programmes and app-based exercise programmes). This is because these interventions are accessible, cost effective and straightforward to deliver, yet their mechanisms remain underexplored in this group. Interventions may primarily address either circadian functioning or physical activity or may combine both approaches.
More information here.
Innovation Catalyst – June 2026 (pilot)
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 9 June 2026
Closed: 1pm, 14 July 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: No maximum. Milestone-driven funding tranches; ambitious projects encouraged.
Project duration: Flexible; milestone-driven progression with stage-gate reviews between projects.
Eligibility: UK lead organisation: NHS/social care providers, universities, SMEs (≤250 staff, ≤€50m turnover), or not-forprofits. Collaboration of at least two organisations required. MedTech/digital health must be at TRL 4+; biotech/pharma must be ready for Phase II trials.
The NIHR Innovation Catalyst is a major new pilot initiative to mark NIHR’s 20th anniversary. It provides a single entry point for funding that accelerates innovations from development and testing through to real-world evidence generation, with seamless transitions between funding tranches to maintain project momentum. The first call invites proposals to develop, validate, evaluate and/or generate real world evidence for disruptive and transformative community care interventions, supporting the shift to neighbourhood health services.
Eligible interventions span medical devices and diagnostics, digital health technologies (including Software as a Medical Device, AI/ML tools, clinical decision support, remote monitoring and assistive technologies for independent living or social care), and biotech/pharmaceuticals.
Fundable activities include prototyping and validation, regulatory and commercial work (CE/UKCA marking, IP, market access), feasibility and pilot studies, and efficacy or real-world evaluations. Applications must also demonstrate contribution to the UK growth mission, including commercial potential and a clear IP and commercialisation strategy.
More information here.
Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) Researcher-Led
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 30 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 8 July 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The NIHR Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) Programme Researcher-Led call is currently open and funds high-quality, applied research that meets the real-world needs of NHS and social care managers and leaders. Unlike NIHR commissioned calls (which focus on pre-specified topics), this researcher-led strand allows applicants to propose their own research questions - provided they fall within HSDR's broad remit of improving service delivery, quality, and efficiency.
Funding Level: no fixed upper limit; project-appropriate (typical awards: £200,000–£2 million depending on scope). Project Duration: typically 2–4 years
The programme is particularly relevant for digital health and social care technology research: how are technology-enabled services being implemented? What are the barriers and facilitators to digital health adoption? How can AI or data-driven tools improve care pathways for complex populations? Research into social care innovation, integrated care, digital inclusion, and technology-assisted service delivery all fall clearly within scope.
Applications follow a two-stage process, an outline application is submitted first and assessed for strategic fit, after which shortlisted teams are invited to submit a full application.
Eligibility: UK research teams including universities, NHS organisations, local authorities, social care providers, and third sector organisations. Projects must address health and social care delivery; how services are organised, delivered, and experienced. Digital health, technology-enabled care, and AI-assisted service delivery are within scope.
More information here.
NIHR NICE rolling funding opportunity (HSDR)
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 30 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 8 July 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The NIHR NICE Rolling Funding Opportunity is a 2 stage grant funding call that supports high-quality research that addresses evidence gaps highlighted in recent NICE guidance, with a specific focus on improving health and social care delivery across the NHS and social care system.
Eligibility: UK-based research teams working in health and social care delivery, including collaborations between NHS, social care providers, academia and other partners.
Scope and themes
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Research to generate actionable evidence that supports managers and leaders in the NHS and social care to improve services, models of care and outcomes.
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Proposals must clearly reference and address one or more research recommendations from NICE guidance issued or updated within the past 5 years.
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Methodological sub-studies (Studies Within A Trial/Review/Project) are eligible and encouraged where they will improve the design and conduct of current and future research.
The same NICE rolling opportunity is also open via other NIHR programmes, including EME, HTA, i4i, PGfAR (via Programme Development Grants), PHR, RfPB and RPSC. Applicants must check remit carefully and apply directly to the most appropriate NIHR programme-specific NICE rolling call.
There is no fixed maximum grant value per applicant for this call. Instead, teams are expected to request a realistic budget that is fully justified and proportionate to the proposed HSDR research.
More information here.
Research for Patient Benefit - March 2026
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 11 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 8 July 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The NIHR Research for Patient Benefit (RfPB) Programme is inviting outline 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.
There are three funding opportunities with separate applications on the awards management system. Applicants should read each one carefully before applying. The main RfPB relates to building a health and social care system fit for the future. The main areas of research interest are:
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Early action to prevent poor health outcomes: This area focuses on research into prevention, timely diagnosis, and appropriate intervention for populations at increased risk of poor health.
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Reduction of compound pressures on the NHS and social care: This priority aims to address challenges that strain the health system simultaneously. For example, this could be seasonal spikes in demand, increase in multiple long-term conditions, and events such as pandemics. Research is needed to make routine care more efficient, cut down on waiting times, and be better prepared for surges in demand.
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Shaping and supporting the health and social care workforce of the future: This is dedicated to optimising the public health, NHS, and social care workforce. It calls for research into how the workforce is structured, trained, deployed, and supported, ensuring it is equipped to deliver future effective and efficient models of healthcare that meet the changing needs of the UK's ageing population.
More information here.
EIC Accelerator 2026 (Grant Component — UK SMEs)
Funder: EIC - Horizon
Open
Closed: 5pm CET, 8 July 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding Level: Grant component: up to €2.5 million (UK SMEs are eligible for grant only; the blended finance/equity component is not open to UK applicants)
Project Duration: Variable; typically 12–24 months of grant-funded activities.
Open to all technology sectors including Health/Medical Technologies, Digital, AI, and Quantum. Short proposals can be submitted at any time; GO decisions allow full proposal submission ahead of a batching date.
UK SMEs participate under the associated country arrangement and can access the non-dilutive grant component of up to €2.5 million - an exceptionally large grant award for a single SME - though the blended finance/equity arm remains unavailable to UK entities.
The application process operates on a rolling basis: short proposals (a 5-page summary plus pitch video) can be submitted at any time and are evaluated monthly. If awarded a 'GO' decision, the applicant is invited to submit a full proposal before one of the 2026 batching deadlines. The next full-proposal batching dates that fall more than three weeks from the date of this report are 8 July 2026, 2 September 2026, and 4 November 2026.
Health technology is one of the EIC's explicitly prioritised domains, with Medical Technologies, Digital Health, and AI all featuring in the 2026 work programme.
The EIC Accelerator suits health tech SMEs that are already beyond TRL 5–6, have developed a minimum viable product or clinical prototype, and are seeking funding to scale towards commercialisation or market access. Given the stringent evaluation criteria and the competitive success rates (typically 5–10%), strong application support from experienced bid writers is highly valuable, particularly in framing the market breakthrough narrative and the financial sustainability case.
More information here.
Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation (EME) Programme – Commissioned Workstream
Funder: NIHR
Open
Closed: 1pm, 5 July 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding level: Not explicitly stated but substantial, typically £1m–£3m per study
Project duration: Typically 36–60 months
Eligibility: UK academic and NHS research teams, with industry co-applicants permitted. Studies must address a topic in the published EME commissioned brief.
The EME Programme funds clinical trials and evaluative studies that test efficacy, effectiveness and mechanisms of action of interventions where there is sufficient evidence to justify a confirmatory study. The commissioned workstream lets NIHR direct funding towards strategically important questions identified by clinical and public stakeholders, rather than relying purely on investigator-led submissions.
The 5 July deadline applies to the current commissioned brief. EME is increasingly receptive to studies of digital therapeutics, AI-enabled clinical decision support, and combination interventions where the mechanism of action is novel or contested. The two-stage process (outline then full) means applicants should begin scoping immediately.
More information here.
Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP): 2026 – 2027 Round 2
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 20 April 2026
Closed: 11am, 24 June 2026
Sector: ALL
The Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) programme allows a UK registered business, which is referred to as the business partner from now on, to partner with a knowledge base partner. This can be either a UK higher education (HE) or further education (FE) institution, research and technology organisation (RTO) or Catapult.
The KTP partnership brings new skills and the latest academic thinking into the business partner to deliver a specific, strategic innovation project. The knowledge base partner recruits the associate to work on the project. The associate has the opportunity to lead a strategic development within the business, developing new skills and gaining valuable experience.
Each application must be led by a knowledge base, working with a business partner and supported by a Knowledge Transfer Adviser. If you are a business and do not yet have a relationship with a knowledge base partner, the Knowledge Transfer Adviser can help you to identify one.
All projects should align with one of six Industrial Strategy sectors which have been selected for KTP, which Innovate UK interprets as the application of technologies, for example, a business using AI, as well as developing AI tools. The sectors include Creative Industries, Digital and Technologies, and Life Sciences. Digital and Technologies includes Artificial Intelligence, Engineering Biology, Advanced Connectivity Technologies, Quantum Technologies, Semiconductors, and Cyber Security. If your project does not align with one of the six priority sectors, it may still be eligible if it is exploiting a novel area of research and the business partner meets the criteria for a high growth potential. Priority will be given to projects that align with the Industrial strategy.
A project’s total eligible costs are typically £8,500 per month. Projects must be between 12 and 36 months. Some of the knowledge base partners costs will be funded by Innovate UK. The rest of the eligible project costs are paid by the business partner.
More information here.
BMBR Programme researcher-led
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 31 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 23 June 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding: up to £625,000 (100% FEC); NIHR/MRC fund up to 80% of FEC
Project Duration: variable - as long as needed to complete the research
Eligibility: researchers employed by eligible UK research organisations (universities, NHS trusts, research institutes).
The proposed research must develop generalisable methods applicable to biomedical, health or social care research, not specific to a single application, location, or team. Applications developing exclusively lab-based methods or applying existing methods to answer new research questions (without methodological development) are ineligible. One-stage full application process; funding decision expected November 2026.
The Better Methods Better Research (BMBR) Programme is a joint MRC–NIHR initiative that funds the development of research methods which improve the quality, efficiency, and reliability of biomedical, health, and care research. This researcher-led call accepts proposals in any area of methodology within the programme's broad remit, including statistical methods, trial design, evidence synthesis, digital and remote data collection, AI-assisted analysis, and health economic methodology.
Projects valued up to £625,000 (100% FEC) are invited, with NIHR and MRC jointly funding up to 80% of the full economic cost. Open-source software and code outputs are encouraged, and methodological sub-studies nested within existing trials or reviews are explicitly eligible. A webinar for prospective applicants will be held on 6 May 2026 (1:30–2:30 pm).
The programme is particularly interested in methods that strengthen randomised controlled trials, improve systematic review quality, advance the use of routine health data, and support the evaluation of complex interventions - all areas of direct relevance to digital health and AI in healthcare.
More information here.
Quarterly Research Grant Funding Programme
Funder: Cure Parkinson's
Open:
Closed: 22 June 2026
Sector: Healthcare
This scheme is providing grants for scientists and clinicians from universities, hospitals and commercial organisations to help them fund preclinical and clinical research focused on slowing, stopping, or reversing Parkinson’s.
There are grants of up to £250,000 which prioritise projects that are likely to lead to clinical trials in people with Parkinson’s within 5 years. For clinical research, CP funds clinical trials and sub-studies of trials in people with Parkinson’s. The grant amount is flexible but please contact CP ahead of submission if you are thinking of applying for a clinical trial.
2025/2026 application deadlines:
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Monday 3 November 2025
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Monday 12 January 2026
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Monday 13 April 2026
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Monday 22 June 2026
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Monday 12 October 2026
More information here.
Research Programme for Social Care
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 4 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 17 June 2026
Sector: Social Care
Apply for programme grants (typically up to £750,000 over 3 years). This is a two-stage funding opportunity
The RPSC funds research to improve outcomes and quality of life for people who use social care services and their carers. This call invites applications on researcher-led topics, as well as topics related to Area of Research Interest 3, NICE recommendations, and James Lind Alliance (JLA) priorities. Highly relevant to organisations working across the boundary of health and social care. The programme explicitly seeks to build the evidence base that informs social care policy and practice.
Eligibility: UK-based researchers at HEIs, NHS organisations, local authorities, social care providers, and independent research organisations. Multi-disciplinary teams with social care involvement are particularly encouraged.
More information here.
Contracts for Innovation: Cyber scale in critical sectors
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 01 May 2026
Closed: 11am, 10 June 2026
Sector: Selected industrial sectors
This single stage opportunity offers up to £300k per organisation to deploy and scale near‑market cyber security solutions in real operational environments across UK critical sectors, under a 12‑month R&D services contract fully funded by Innovate UK. Up to 100% of eligible project costs can be covered and the competition is not subject to subsidy control. The lead applicant can be an organisation of any size, working alone or with UK‑based subcontractors providing specialist skills; the contract is awarded to a single legal entity. All project work and key deliverables must be done in the UK, by the applicant, with any subcontractors also UK‑based.
The aim is to help promising cyber security organisations prove and scale solutions by operating them in real environments within critical sector organisations.Target solutions should be at Technology Readiness Level 7 at entry and reach TRL 8 or above by project end.
Your project must focus on one or more of these challenge areas:
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Proactive cyber defence of Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) systems, including operations and incident response.
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Advanced solutions for detecting and evicting sophisticated actors from CNI networks.
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Innovative threat hunting solutions for CNI organisations.
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Advanced solutions addressing legacy system vulnerabilities in CNI.
Key requirements for what you do in the project:
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Deploy and run your solution in a real operational environment of a critical sector organisation.
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Work closely with potential end users and customers, using their feedback to improve the product.
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Have at least 50% of contract value directly and exclusively on R&D (exploration, design, prototyping, field‑testing).
More information here.
Frontier AI Discovery
Funder: Innovate UK
Open
Closed: 11am, 10 June 2026
Sector: ALL
Funding Level: £25,000 – £50,000 per feasibility study (Phase 1).
Phase 2 demonstrator projects up to £10 million
Project Duration: Phase 1 feasibility studies (short duration). Phase 2 demonstrators are a separate competition.
Eligibility: Open to all UK organisations: businesses (including SMEs), universities, research and technology organisations, charities, and public sector bodies.
Frontier AI Discovery is Innovate UK's open competition for feasibility studies advancing frontier artificial intelligence and foundation model technologies. It is the first phase of a two-stage programme: Phase 1 provides £25,000–£50,000 grants to enable teams to scope and validate an innovative application of frontier AI, with successful Phase 1 recipients eligible to compete for Phase 2 demonstrator funding of up to £10 million - one of the largest single Innovate UK awards currently available. The total Phase 1 envelope is at least £2.5 million, with Phase 2 targeting at least £50 million investment.
Health and life sciences is an explicitly supported sector within this competition, encompassing AI-enabled diagnostics, clinical decision support, drug discovery acceleration, genomic analysis, and population health management tools. For health tech SMEs and academic-industry consortia, Frontier AI Discovery provides a low-barrier entry point to UKRI's frontier AI investment pipeline, with Phase 1 acting as a structured gateway to the transformative Phase 2 funding. The broad eligibility - covering universities, SMEs, charities, and public bodies - means consortia of varied composition can apply.
More information here.
Healthcare Implementation Fund
Funder: British Heart Foundation
Open
Closed: 12pm, 8 June 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding Level: Up to £500,000 per project
Project Duration: Not specified; awards expected within approximately 3 months of deadline
Eligibility: NHS organisations and UK-based academic institutions, supported by regional Health Innovation Networks. Applicants must demonstrate strong multidisciplinary collaboration and meaningful patient involvement.
The BHF Healthcare Implementation Fund supports the early-stage testing and scaling of innovative solutions that address unmet needs in cardiovascular disease care. This round, open in spring 2026, invites proposals that will drive measurable improvements in cardiovascular care delivery across real-world NHS settings. The fund is designed to bridge the gap between a promising innovation and sustainable, system-wide adoption.
Projects are expected to demonstrate a clear, systematic approach to evaluation, with robust evidence that the proposed solution addresses a genuine gap in current cardiovascular care. Successful applications will show how the innovation will be integrated into existing NHS pathways, identify measurable patient outcome improvements, and articulate a credible plan for broader rollout beyond the funded period.
More information here.
Sovereign AI Strategic Assets Grants Programme
Funders: DSIT/ Innovate UK
Opened: 16 April 2026
Closed: 2pm, 5 June 2026
Sector: ALL
Funding: £1,000,000 – £9,000,000 per grant
Duration: Project-dependent (linked to asset development timeline)
To be eligible for this scheme the lead applicant must be a UK-registered company or organisation including companies, charities, universities, research organisations and other UK-registered bodies. Consortia may apply. The project must be located and delivered in the UK.
The Sovereign AI Strategic Assets Grants Programme is the grants arm of the UK Government's new £500 million Sovereign AI Fund, launched in April 2026. Two eligible asset classes are currently defined: high-value AI datasets and autonomous or automated laboratory infrastructure. Within the Health & Life Sciences priority area, the programme explicitly targets drug discovery, clinical trials AI, NHS operational AI, health and social care applications, and health data platforms - covering AI applied across the full discovery, development, validation, and deployment pipeline.
Expressions of Interest (EOIs) can be submitted on a rolling basis and are assessed within three working days, with successful EOI applicants then invited to submit a full application. Applicants are advised to submit EOIs as early as possible given the 5 June 2026 full application deadline. Eligible costs include equipment, infrastructure, capital expenditure, intangible asset development, and limited commissioning activity.
More information here.
Rapid transfusion diagnostics: optimising safety on deployed operations
Funder: Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl)
Opened: 10 March 2026
Closed: 12pm, 2 June 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
UK Defence Innovation (UKDI), on behalf of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and Defence Medical Services (DMS), is seeking innovative solutions to improve the safety and availability of blood transfusions in deployed and operational environments. The competition is focused on developing rapid, portable blood testing technologies that can be used in the field by non-specialists.
The aim is to reduce the logistical burden associated with collecting, testing and administering blood during military operations and emergency situations. Proposed technologies should support rapid testing for ABO blood grouping and/or blood-borne viruses, ideally both, while being suitable for use in challenging operational settings.
Up to £3 million (excluding VAT) is available through the competition. UKDI expects to fund between 4 and 6 projects, with individual awards likely to range from approximately £500,000 to £700,000, although projects outside this range may also be considered.
Projects are expected to run for up to 24 months. Solutions should begin at a minimum Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 4 and progress by at least one TRL during the project, with a maximum end point of TRL 8.
Eligibility: the competition is open to SMEs, academic institutions, technology developers and industry partnerships.
UKDI is looking for proposals that demonstrate:
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Innovative or novel approaches to blood testing in operational environments
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Potential for translation into practical demonstrations or proof-of-concept systems
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Relevance to defence and security contexts
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Solutions that are logistically light, accurate and suitable for point-of-care use by non-specialists
More information here.
Diet and health: collaborative research and development grants: full stage
Funder: BBSRC
Opened: 26 March 2026
Closed: 4pm, 27 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
These BBSRC–Defra collaborative R&D grants fund partnerships developing novel products and innovations that deliver healthy, sustainable and resilient diets for the UK population, with projects required to include industry co-funding and start by 31 October 2026.
Submission of a Notification of Intent (NOI) is mandatory; applicants who do not submit an NOI cannot submit a full application. Proposals must clearly articulate industry need, pathways to impact in the UK food system, and how collaboration will deliver benefits that could not be achieved by either party alone.
There is a focus on collaborative R&D that translates UK bioscience into innovative foods, ingredients and diet solutions that improve nutrition, support sustainability and strengthen resilience of the UK food system.
Priority areas include improving nutritional quality for at‑risk groups, understanding health impacts of processing and formulation, and improving environmental outcomes (for example, circular economy approaches to food loss and waste).
Eligibility: Lead applicants must be based at a UK research organisation eligible for BBSRC funding (for example, HEIs and approved research institutes). Projects must be collaborative and include at least one industry partner providing a minimum 30% contribution to the 100% full economic cost (FEC).
The FEC of each project can be up to £800,000, with BBSRC and Defra funding 80% of FEC (industry cash/in‑kind is additional to this and must cover at least 30% of the FEC). Projects must start by 31 October 2026 and end no later than November 2029.
More information here.
i4i Product Development Awards (PDA)
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 8 April 2026
Closed: 1pm, 27 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The NIHR Invention for Innovation (i4i) programme is inviting outline applications to its Product Development Awards (PDA) funding opportunity. This is a two-stage funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. If invited to the second stage, you will then need to complete a full application.
Please upload your research plan as a PDF. It should clearly include these sections:
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Background and rationale
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Aims and objectives
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Methodology/plan
and not be longer than 5 pages (Arial font, size 12).
Application form template.
i4i PDA is participating in the following funding opportunities with separate applications on the awards management system. Applicants should read each one carefully before applying to the relevant one.
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i4i PDA researcher-led (2026/396)
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Main areas of focus:
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Brain tumours
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Invasive lobular carcinoma (lobular breast cancer)
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i4i will hold a webinar about this funding opportunity on 15 April 2026, 13:00-14:30.
Reserve a place here.
More information here.
Product Development Awards (PDA) NICE Early Use — April 2026
Funder: NIHR - i4i
Opened: 8 April 2026
Closed: 1pm, 27 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding: no fixed upper or lower limit, costs must be justified and offer value for money.
Project Duration: up to 36 months
Eligibility: collaborative consortia comprising:
(1) an analytical partner as lead applicant,
(2) a technology partner (the product provider), and
(3) at least one NHS adopting site or service.
Applications must address a product that has received a NICE recommendation for early use (including Early Value Assessment or Medtech Innovation Briefing). UK-registered organisations only. Two-stage process: Full application closes 23 September 2026; funding decision expected from December 2026.
The NIHR i4i Programme is inviting outline applications for its Product Development Awards (PDA) NICE Early Use round, a distinct funding stream that targets innovations already identified by NICE as showing promise for NHS adoption.
Unlike the general i4i PDA (also listed on the Bidshaper funding page), this call specifically requires that the technology has received a NICE recommendation for early use, and the funded work must generate the real-world evidence defined in the NICE evidence generation plan.
Eligible products include medical devices, in vitro diagnostic devices, and digital health technologies. The programme supports collaborative real-world evaluation studies, with a clear exit point of generating evidence sufficient to support a NICE full evaluation and widespread NHS adoption. Consortium leadership is expected to sit with an analytical partner (e.g. a university or CRO), with the technology company as a named partner.
A webinar for prospective applicants is scheduled for 15 April 2026 (1:00–2:30 pm). Register now. Please use access code NIHR to reserve your ticket.
Funding decisions are expected from December 2026, with projects commencing early 2027. There is no prescribed budget cap, awards are sized to meet the evidence needs defined by NICE.
More information here.
Medicines Manufacturing: Labs of the Future
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 13 April 2026
Closed: 11am, 27 May 2026
Sector: Life Sciences
Apply for £500,000 – £1.5 million (share of £7.5 million).
Collaborative R&D projects supporting development and use of digital, automated, and robotic technologies to improve speed and efficiency of pharmaceutical process development and manufacturing. Focus includes laboratory automation, digital twins, advanced process control, and other 'labs of the future' technologies improving productivity, sustainability, or time-to-patient. Projects run from August 2026, with interviews in July 2026. A competition briefing webinar will be held online on 17 April 2026 (11am–12pm). Briefing slides will be available to download from Supporting Information after the event.
Eligibility: UK registered businesses; must be collaborative (lead organisation plus at least one other UK registered entity).
More information here.
Frontier AI Benchmarking Datasets
Funder: Innovate UK
Opens: 21 April 2026
Closed: 11am, 27 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding Level: Up to £4.5 million total; £500,000–£750,000 per project
Duration: TBC
Eligibility: UK registered organisations must lead the project – collaborative projects only. Must align with one of two eligible themes: (1) AI-Enabled Health and Life Sciences, or (2) Advanced Materials.
Part of Innovate UK's broader Frontier AI programme, this competition funds the creation, curation, annotation and exploitation of FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) datasets and benchmarks to fuel AI industry growth. Specifically, for the Health and Life Sciences theme, successful projects will create high-quality benchmarks and large annotated datasets to enable evaluation of AI models in: drug discovery and development; medicines manufacturing; clinical trials; and healthcare delivery applications.
Projects must demonstrate how their datasets will enable meaningful evaluation of new frontier AI models.
More information here.
Venture Builder Pilot Expression of Interest
Funder: Innovate UK
Open
Closed: 11am, 22 May 2026
Sector: ALL
Innovate UK has launched a new pilot programme aimed at supporting the creation and early growth of deep-tech spin-outs in the UK. The competition will provide up to £150k per project alongside structured venture-building support designed to help ambitious innovation-led businesses secure their first major investment round.
The programme is specifically focused on opportunities within three priority Industrial Strategy sectors:
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Frontier AI
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Engineering Biology
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Advanced Materials and Manufacturing
The funding is intended to help research-intensive ventures move from promising innovation into commercially investable businesses. Innovate UK is looking for projects with strong technical differentiation, clear market potential and a credible pathway to scaling.
This is currently an Expression of Interest stage competition. Successful applicants are expected to receive not only grant funding, but also tailored support around venture creation, commercialisation and investment readiness.
More information here.
Prosperity Partnerships 2027
Funder: EPSRC
Opened:12 March 2026
Closed: 4pm, 21 May 2026
Sector: ALL
The EPSRC Prosperity Partnerships 2027 funding call supports ambitious, collaborative research programmes designed to create long-term prosperity for the UK through business-led innovation. The scheme specifically targets projects that will catalyse lasting benefits, such as job and revenue growth or the tackling of broad societal and sustainability challenges.
Scope
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Proposals must be for substantial, collaborative research partnerships between businesses and academic institutions.
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The projects must be co-created and co-delivered by both types of partners, with a strong focus on delivering impact that is aligned with UK priorities.
Eligibility
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Projects must be business-led and involve one or more academic partners.
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Both business and academic partners must play significant roles in shaping and delivering the work.
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The business partner’s cash contribution must at least match the amount funded by EPSRC.
Process, Value & Timings
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EPSRC will fund up to 80% of the full economic cost (FEC) of the academic portion of the project.
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The business cash contribution is required to match the EPSRC funding, ensuring substantial co-investment from the private sector.
This scheme is designed to foster large-scale, sustainable business–academic collaboration aligned with national prosperity and innovation goals.
More information here.
Programme Development Grant
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 25 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 20 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Apply for up to £250,000 (projects lasting 12–24 months).
The PDG programme helps research teams prepare for Programme Grants for Applied Research (PGfAR) applications. This call invites applications on researcher-led topics as well as those related to NICE and James Lind Alliance (JLA). The programme runs three funding opportunities per year. Awards support targeted work that strengthens and makes PGfAR proposals more competitive, including stakeholder engagement, feasibility work, and methodology development.
Eligibility: UK-based research teams (HEIs, NHS organisations, social care providers). Lead applicant must be based in England. Suitable for multi-disciplinary teams with a clear pathway to a full PGfAR application.
This is a strong entry-point for health and care organisations looking to develop the evidence base for complex interventions before committing to a full programme grant. Particularly relevant for care providers, charities and social enterprises building research capacity.
More information here.
UKRI Translation: Proof of Concept
Funder: UKRI
Opened: 4 March 2026
Closed: 4pm, 13 May 2026
Sector: All
Apply for funding for research commercialisation activities to develop new products, processes, and services via future venture creation, licensing or other commercialisation routes.
Applications are welcomed from any discipline. The programme will not fund discovery or curiosity-driven research.
You must be based in a UK research organisation eligible for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) funding.
The full economic cost (FEC) can be up to £250,000 up to nine months duration.
UKRI will fund 80% of the FEC. They aim to support a range of projects across both the cost, length and remit permitted.
More information here.
Sandpit: AI-Supported Research Using Social Science Data
Funders: UKRI, ESRC
Open: 23 March 2026
Closed: 4pm, 12 May 2026
Sector: AI
Funding: up to £230,000 FEC. Total fund available is £875,000.
Project Duration: up to 36 months
Eligibility: collaborative consortia comprising:
(1) an analytical partner as lead applicant,
(2) a technology partner (the product provider), and
(3) at least one NHS adopting site or service.
Applications must address a product that has received a NICE recommendation for early use (including Early Value Assessment or Medtech Innovation Briefing). UK-registered organisations only. Two-stage process: outline applications at this stage. Full application closes 23 September 2026; funding decision expected from December 2026.
Smart Data Research UK, ESRC, Administrative Data Research UK (ADR UK) and DARE UK are running a two-day residential sandpit to generate collaborative research projects that harness artificial intelligence to unlock insights from UKRI-funded social science datasets. The event will convene researchers from AI, data science, social science, and domain expertise (including health) to co-produce feasible, high-impact project ideas.
One of four explicit research themes is health and wellbeing, encompassing mental health monitoring, chronic disease management, and health-service utilisation patterns. Participants will form new cross-disciplinary consortia during the sandpit, and the most promising ideas will be developed into full proposals worth up to £230,000 FEC. UKRI covers 80% of the full economic cost.
This sandpit is part of a broader Smart Data Research UK initiative to position the UK at the forefront of responsible AI-driven social science, directly complementing the government's AI Opportunities Action Plan and the UKRI AI Research and Innovation Strategic Framework.
More information here.
EIC Pathfinder Open
Funder: EU - Horizon
Open
Closed: 12 May 2026
Sector: ALL
Funding: Up to €4 million per project (consortium total)
Duration: Typically 3–4 years
The EIC Pathfinder Open supports visionary, high-risk/high-gain research aimed at producing technology breakthroughs with the potential to create entirely new markets. There are no predefined thematic areas – any domain is eligible provided the science is sufficiently ambitious and novel. Areas of particular relevance include AI-enabled diagnostics and health tools, novel therapeutics, medical devices based on emerging physical or biological principles, and digital health infrastructure.
The EIC Pathfinder is an early-stage research grant (typically TRL 1–4), so it is well-suited to academic-led consortia exploring genuinely new science with commercial partners.
This grant is a strong fit for UK health tech companies partnering with European universities on cutting-edge AI, diagnostics, or medical device research. The large funding envelope and long project duration make it attractive for ambitious collaborations.
More information here.
Mental Health Data Prize UK 2026
Funder: Wellcome Trust
Open
Closed: 12pm, 8 May 2026
Sector: Mental Health
The Mental Health Data Prize UK is an open challenge for teams with a bold idea for a new digital tool or application that uses existing mental health data in innovative ways.
It brings together people from academia and industry, offering funding, tailored support, and a vibrant learning community to help transform great ideas into scalable solutions that improve early intervention for anxiety, depression, and psychosis.
Delivered by Social Finance in partnership with Wellcome, the programme supports Wellcome’s mission to transform early intervention in mental health.
The prize will support the development of data tools that contribute to improving early intervention for anxiety, depression and psychosis.
Six teams will be selected from shortlisted applications and will each receive up to £100,000 to develop and test their prototypes. After nine months, three teams will be chosen to receive up to an additional £300,000 each to continue developing their tool or application for a further nine months.
More information here.
Commercialising Knowledge Assets Fund (CKAF) Spring 2026
Funders: Government Office for Technology Transfer / Innovate UK
Opened: 17 December 2025
Closed: 11am, 7 May 2026
Sector: Public sector
Funding Level: £50,000–£250,000 (UKRI funds 80% of FEC; 20% co-funding required). Project Duration: typically 6–18 months.
The Commercialising Knowledge Assets Fund (CKAF) is a targeted government programme that helps public sector research organisations translate their intellectual property and research outputs into commercially viable products and services. The Spring 2026 round is open to NHS research bodies and other public sector health research institutions seeking to move proven innovations closer to market.
Eligible activities include prototype development, market validation, regulatory pathway assessment, IP strategy development, user-centred design, and expert business or investor advisory services. The fund specifically targets the 'valley of death' between research outputs and commercial products — making it particularly well-suited to health tech innovations that have promising evidence bases but need support to reach market.
For NHS trusts with research arms, innovation hubs, or HINs operating as PSREs, CKAF provides a direct funding route to commercialise digital health tools, diagnostics, care pathway innovations, and other health technologies that have been developed within public sector settings but lack the commercial development support to reach patients at scale. Applicants must demonstrate a viable public-sector knowledge asset ready to move towards commercial readiness.
More information here.
UK 2026 Grants Programme: Solutions for Healthy Communities 2026
Funder: MSD (Merck Sharp & Dohme) UK
Open
Closed: 5pm, 7 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
MSD UK's annual grants programme - 'Solutions for Healthy Communities' - funds practical, real-world initiatives that improve health outcomes and system efficiency. For the 2026 round, the programme is particularly interested in projects that align with a community and neighbourhood care model, that are prevention-focused, or that harness digital innovation to enable healthy living and behaviours.
The programme has a track record of funding digital health implementations that drive measurable results. Previous awards include AI-based tools for improving cervical screening access (resulting in a 160% increase in booking rates), digital navigation services, and community health tech pilots. The focus is on initiatives that can demonstrate tangible health or operational impact within 12 months.
Grants are structured as arm's-length financial awards - MSD provides funding but does not direct project activities. Applications are reviewed by a grants committee (Grantscommittee@msd.com), and successful projects must submit regular progress reports. While the individual grant amounts are relatively modest, MSD's imprimatur can add credibility and support further commissioning or scale-up funding.
Eligibility: UK-registered healthcare and patient organisations. Applications via MSD grants portal. You need to demonstrate alignment with the MSD grant programme goals:
• Addresses health inequalities
• Delivers patient and population impact
Funding Level: Healthcare organisations: £15,000–£25,000; Patient organisations: £5,000–£15,000
Apply here.
EIC Accelerator 2026 (Open Call)
Funder: European Innovation Council
Open
Closed: 6 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Funding Level: up to EUR 2.5 million grant (UK applicants: grant only; equity component not available). Project Duration - typically 12–24 months
The EIC Accelerator Open calls have no predefined topic. This call is for innovations in any field of technology and innovations that cut across different scientific, technological, sectoral and application fields. The EIC Accelerator is Europe's flagship funding instrument for breakthrough innovators, providing high-risk, high-reward funding to individual SMEs with world-class potential. Unlike collaborative research programmes, the Accelerator is designed for single companies pursuing disruptive innovation - meaning UK health tech scale-ups can apply directly without needing a consortium partner.
The programme covers a wide range of technology domains highly relevant to health tech: Health and Medical Technologies, AI and Robotics, Digital and Data technologies, and advanced diagnostics. Projects funded have included AI-driven diagnostics, digital therapeutics, wearable health monitors, and next-generation medtech devices. The EIC particularly values innovations with potential for global market disruption and clear routes to commercialisation.
Eligibility Summary
UK-registered SMEs and start-ups (including spin-outs and scale-ups with fewer than 250 employees). UK is an Associated Country to Horizon Europe, making UK organisations fully eligible for the grant component. Stage 1 (short application) can be submitted at any time; Stage 2 (full proposal) is submitted by one of the fixed cut-off dates after a successful Stage 1.
More information here.
NICE rolling funding opportunity
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 8 January 2026
Closed: 1pm, 6 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The Health Technology Assessment Programme (HTA) is inviting outline applications via the commissioned workstream. We are interested in receiving applications to meet recommendations in research identified in NICE guidance that has been published or updated in the last 5 years.
Applications must be within the remit of the HTA Programme, and the primary outcome measure must be health related. The following research programmes are also participating in this funding opportunity:
After checking the programme remit, you should apply directly to the relevant programme funding opportunity.
This is a 2-stage funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. If invited to the second stage, you will then need to complete a full application.
More information here.
James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnerships rolling funding opportunity
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 8 January 2026
Closed: 1pm, 6 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The JLA Priority Setting Partnerships facilitate patients, carers and clinicians to work collaboratively to identify research priorities in particular areas of health and care.
Write a maximum of 5 A4 pages for your research plan. When reviewing applications, NIHR will not consider any additional information over this 5 page limit.
Applicants should clearly state how their proposed research addresses a current evidence gap and how the research adds value to the existing NIHR research portfolio.
The top 10 priorities (for multiple years and countries) of the JLA priority setting partnerships are shown here. 2025 priorities include:
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Bone marrow transplantation in paediatrics
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Burn injury
-
Co-existing dementia and hearing conditions
-
Diverticular disease
-
East London Pandemic PSP for Ethnic Minority Communities
-
Epidermolysis Bullosa
-
Faecal Incontinence in Adults
-
Mental Health and the Body Clock
-
Midwifery Practice and Maternity Care
-
Palliative and End of Life Care Refresh
-
Perianal Crohn’s Disease
-
Prehabilitation for Hip & Knee Replacement Surgery
-
Premature Babies born <25 weeks' gestation
More information here.
Improving mobility and quality of life after stroke
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 4 December 2025
Closest: 1pm, 6 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare
The Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Programme is looking to fund research into improving mobility and quality of life after stroke.
This is a 2-stage, commissioned funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. If invited to the second stage, you will then need to complete a full application. This is a focused funding opportunity where the intention is to fund a single study.
Research question
What is the clinical and cost-effectiveness of interventions to improve mobility on the quality of life of people who have had a stroke?
More information here.
Contracts for Innovation in drug and alcohol addiction healthcare
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 16 February 2026
Closed: 11am, 6 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare
Innovate UK, on behalf of the Office for Life Sciences Addiction Healthcare Goals programme, will award up to 8 SBRI-style contracts (£200,000 to £1.5 million each) as part of a £20 million AHG Catalysing Innovation Awards scheme to develop pharmaceutical, MedTech and digital solutions that improve treatment outcomes, support recovery and reduce harm and deaths from drug and alcohol addiction. Projects can be up to £1 million for MedTech/digital, up to £1.5 million for pharmaceutical solutions. Project start/end: Start 1 October 2026, end by 30 September 2028, up to 24 months’ duration.
Aim and scope
Projects must develop addiction-focused pharmaceutical, digital health or MedTech solutions that, by the end of the contract, reach TRL 6–7, show user acceptability and UK market fit, and have a clear plan for IP, regulation, certification and commercialisation. They must address illicit drug or alcohol use (e.g. opioids, stimulants, cannabis, GHB, ketamine, benzodiazepines, gabapentinoids) and target improved treatment outcomes, recovery, or harm and overdose prevention.
Proposals must work closely with people with lived experience and treatment or service providers, and engage statutory bodies to map regulatory and adoption pathways. Strong bids will align with the James Lind Alliance addiction priorities, Addiction Healthcare Goals, the UK 10‑year drugs strategy From Harm to Hope and relevant devolved strategies, and show clear commercial potential and UK route to market.
More information here.
Advancing innovation in drug and alcohol addiction healthcare
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 16 February 2026
Closed: 11am, 6 May 2026
Sector: Healthcare
This funding is for pharmaceutical, MedTech and digital interventions that can show real world effectiveness and progress towards UK market use. Projects must also secure the regulatory approvals or certificates needed for rollout. By the end of the funded project, innovations should have achieved:
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necessary regulatory approvals and certification, or work already underway to get them
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full market readiness analysis and clear plans for manufacturing and UK rollout
If your proposal is technological you must include the design and features of your solution and how it will be applied.
This AHG Catalysing Innovation Awards scheme and the funding is split into two strands:
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CR&D industrial research for industry led R&D projects: grants to support projects with total eligible costs up to an expected £10 million (this strand)
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Contracts for Innovation for industry led R&D projects: up to an expected £1.5 million funding per project, inclusive of VAT
More information here.
i4i FAST - April 2026
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 8 April 2026
Closed: 1pm, 29 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life sciences
FAST is aimed at innovators in need of a small amount of funding to answer a specific question or to fund a single piece of activity to advance healthcare technologies and interventions for increased patient benefit. Awards are designed to address an evidence gap and innovations must have demonstrated experimental proof of concept as a minimum.
This single stage funding opportunity provides the critical bridge for proven technologies in a community/primary care setting (TRL5) to move beyond standalone pilots and become embedded, interoperable components in community care.
Key features of FAST
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Simple application process, fast response
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Funding a single activity to address an evidence gap
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Applications between £50k and £100k over 6 to 12 months
i4i FAST April 2026 launch webinar on 23 March 2026, 12pm - 1.15pm. Register here.
More information here.
Secure Software for Resilient Growth
Funders: Innovate UK / Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
Opened: 16 March 2026
Closed: 11am, 29 April 2026
Sector: ALL
Collaborative R&D funding to enable UK organisations to adopt the Government's Software Security Code of Practice (SSCoP), driving growth of secure and resilient software supply chains. Focus areas include tools or systems to incentivise adoption, engagement and training, metrics and testing to improve understanding of cyber resilience in complex software systems, and sector-specific guidance for supplier management. The NHS Cyber Security Charter for Suppliers already references SSCoP, making this directly relevant to health tech suppliers. Projects must begin by August 2026 and run for 12–18 months. £250,000 – £750,000 per project (share of £5 million)
Eligibility: UK registered organisations (companies of any size, research organisations, universities). Must be collaborative - lead organisation plus at least one business partner. Grant covers up to 70% of eligible costs (50% for large companies).
More information here.
Artificial intelligence (AI) champions: frontier AI phase one
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 17 March 2026
Closed: 11am, 29 April 2026
Sector: ALL
The aim of this competition is to advance the development of state of the art artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in the UK. Innovate UK will fund UK SMEs to validate the technical feasibility of ambitious AI, and ML innovations that could deliver step-change improvements in capability and enable new products, services or platforms.
In this competition series, Frontier AI refers to be any AI and ML systems that deliver state of the art benchmark performance against or genuinely new to the world capability in a clearly specified area.
This advance must be attributable to innovation in one or more of the following:
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model, system architecture
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training methodology
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core control or learning algorithm
This is a three-phase stage-gated funding pipeline approach, Innovate UK will support the next wave of UK AI Champions, from early technical validation through to scale-up. Experience from similar competitions suggests that you could have 2% chance of success.
Your project’s total eligible costs must be between £150,000 and £250,000.
More information here.
Innovative Health Initiative 12th Call For Proposals
Funder: Horizon Europe
Opened: 21 January 2026
Closed: 21 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare
International consortia can apply for this single-stage funding to support projects to tackle unmet public health needs with ambitious public-private partnerships. Topics within the call include, but are not limited to, boosting innovation for a better understanding of the determinants of health and boosting innovation through better integration of fragmented health R&I efforts.
The call contains five topics, each focusing on one of the five IHI Specific Objectives (SOs) as set out in the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA):
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Topic 1 (SO1): Boosting innovation for a better understanding of the determinants of health
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Topic 2 (SO2): Boosting innovation through better integration of fragmented health R&I efforts
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Topic 3 (SO3): Boosting innovation for people-centred integrated healthcare solutions
For full details of the topics, including the budget breakdown, read the call text. All documents relating to the call can be found via the Funding and Tenders Portal and the IHI call documents page. You are advised to read these documents, in particular the guide for applicants, carefully.
Important information on eligibility for funding
Applicants should note that legal entities based in the following countries are not eligible to receive funding for some of the topics in this call:
Canada and UK: Legal entities are eligible to receive funding under topics 1, 2, 3 and 5, but not eligible to receive funding under topic 4.
James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnerships rolling funding opportunity (PHR Programme)
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 16 December 2025
Closed: 1pm, 21 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The JLA Priority Setting Partnerships facilitate patients, carers and clinicians to work collaboratively to identify research priorities in particular areas of health and care. The Public Health Research (PHR) Programme is inviting outline applications to its commissioned workstream.
Write a maximum of 5 A4 pages for your research plan. When reviewing applications, NIHR will not consider any additional information over this 5 page limit.
Applicants should clearly state how their proposed research addresses a current evidence gap and how the research adds value to the existing NIHR research portfolio.
The top 10 priorities (for multiple years and countries) of the JLA priority setting partnerships are shown here. 2025 priorities include:
-
Bone marrow transplantation in paediatrics
-
Burn injury
-
Co-existing dementia and hearing conditions
-
Diverticular disease
-
East London Pandemic PSP for Ethnic Minority Communities
-
Epidermolysis Bullosa
-
Faecal Incontinence in Adults
-
Mental Health and the Body Clock
-
Midwifery Practice and Maternity Care
-
Palliative and End of Life Care Refresh
-
Perianal Crohn’s Disease
-
Prehabilitation for Hip & Knee Replacement Surgery
-
Premature Babies born <25 weeks' gestation
More information here.
NICE rolling funding opportunity (PHR Programme)
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 16 December 2025
Closed: 1pm, 21 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The Public Health Research (PHR) Programme is inviting outline applications via the commissioned workstream. NIHR 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.
Applications must be within the remit of the PHR Programme, and the primary outcome measure must be health related. The following research programmes are also participating in this funding opportunity:
After checking the programme remit, you should apply directly to the relevant programme funding opportunity.
This is a 2-stage funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. If invited to the second stage, you will then need to complete a full application.
More information here.
Men’s mental health
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 15 July 2025
Closed: 1pm, 21 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare
NIHR's Public Health Research (PHR) Programme is looking to fund research which evaluates the health and health inequality impacts of interventions aimed at promoting good mental health or preventing poor mental health among men.
This is a 2-stage funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. If invited to the second stage, you will then need to complete a full application.
Research question: What are the health and health inequality impacts of interventions aimed at promoting good mental health or preventing poor mental health among men?
This funding opportunity focuses on research evaluating mental health interventions (excluding individual-level mental health treatments) for men at different stages of the life-course. NIHR's Public Health Research (PHR) Programme prioritises interventions at a population or group level, rather than individual interventions, with a focus on addressing health inequalities and the wider determinants of health.
Suggested research areas include, but are not limited to, evaluations of:
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interventions that utilise lifestyle behaviours or changes to improve men’s mental health
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community-based interventions
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programmes adopting a whole-community approach to men’s mental health. This could include interventions:
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based in specific settings, such as schools, colleges, universities, workplaces, leisure venues, places of worship, community groups and services, health centres, or criminal justice settings
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focused on specific population groups, such as men from particular ethnic minority groups, men from sexual and gender minorities, or men experiencing different forms of disadvantage
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for which the primary focus of the intervention is not necessarily on improving mental health, but the activity or mechanism might impact mental health (positively or negatively)
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interventions that address the multiple, interacting disadvantages affecting the most marginalised men
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trauma-informed and trauma-specific interventions
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interventions or initiatives aimed at proactively addressing help seeking behaviour among men at risk of perpetrating violence and their impact on mental health
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interventions related to the influence of societal and cultural norms, gender roles and beliefs across diverse male populations
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evaluation of public health campaigns and educational initiatives designed to challenge harmful gender stereotypes and to support healthy relationships
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intergenerational interventions
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Interventions that take a holistic, person-centred approach
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peer support interventions
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interventions related to social media, or online images, messages, or digital content
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the impact of drugs and alcohol
More information here.
Veterans' health
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 15 July 2025
Closed: 1pm, 21 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
This scheme aims to support research which evaluates the effects of interventions on the mental, physical, or both aspects of Veterans' health.
NIHR is seeking research that evaluates interventions which can have an impact on the mental and physical health outcomes of veterans through community-based public health approaches. This can include both targeted, small-scale initiatives and larger community-level strategies that enhance access to health and well-being services for veterans, as well as other policy decisions in areas outside of health that may impact health. NIHR is particularly interested in interventions that address key barriers to healthcare access, promote early intervention, and support veterans' transition to civilian life.
Evaluations should clearly define the nature of the intervention from the outset, avoiding broad generalisations and ensuring a precise understanding of the mechanisms at play.
More information here.
i4i THRIVE - March 2026
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 12 March 2026
Closed: 1pm, 17 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The Invention for Innovation (i4i) THRIVE (Translate Healthcare Research through InnoVation and Entrepreneurship) funding and training programme funds early stage innovations which tackle health inequalities. This is a full researcher-led funding opportunity.
THRIVE supports clinicians and researchers to accelerate the translation of healthcare innovations tackling health inequalities from bench to bed, speed up patient benefit and concurrently expand the entrepreneurial mindset of researchers and clinicians.
THRIVE offers up to £150,000 over 9 months to support the development of a technology-based product or service, and a structured programme of entrepreneurial training, mentoring, peer support and networking. Through the programme the innovators will explore the market for their innovation and identify potential routes for commercialising (spin-out vs licensing) or sustaining their innovation (Intrapreneurship) and leave the programme with a plan to achieve their goals, a network of support and with the skills for the next steps of commercialisation.
More information here.
Impact Challenge: AI for Science
Funder: Google
Open
Closed: 11.59pm (PT), 17 April 2026
Sector: Social impact orgs
Award size: $500K – $3M per organisation.
Eligibility: Nonprofits, academic/research institutions, social enterprises
What they're funding
Projects that use AI to accelerate scientific breakthroughs in two primary domains:
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AI for Health & Life Sciences - genomics, cellular/tissue biology, neuroscience, drug discovery, disease understanding & resistance
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AI for Climate Resilience & Environmental Science - chemistry/synthetic biology, food & agriculture, biosphere/climate, materials discovery, advanced energy
An "Other" category exists but most funded projects are expected to fall within the two main areas.
Key criteria
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Scientific ambition - must address a critical, unresolved question; clear quantifiable outcomes at 12–18 months and 24–36+ months
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Responsible AI - AI must be core to the methodology; IP must be open-sourced under a permissive licence
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Feasibility - credible team, realistic plan, budget, and access to data/compute
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Scalability - clear path to broader impact beyond the initial scope; knowledge-sharing plan
Beyond the grant
Selected organisations are invited to join the Google.org Accelerator (optional, autumn 2026):
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6 months of pro bono support from Google engineers and experts
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Dedicated AI Coach and Project Success Manager
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Google Cloud credits
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Two in-person gatherings plus virtual programming
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~2–4 hours/week commitment
More information here.
FAQs (PDF)
A PDF copy of the application questions here.
Enhancing and enlarging the European Partnership on Personalised Medicine
Funder: Horizon Europe
Opened: 10 February 2026
Closed: 5pm (CET), 16 April 2026
Sector: Life Sciences
This topic aims at supporting activities that are enabling or contributing to one or several expected impacts of destination “Ensuring equal access to innovative, sustainable, and high-quality healthcare”. To that end, proposals under this topic should aim to deliver results that are directed at, tailored towards and contributing to all the following expected outcomes:
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European countries and regions, along with international partners, are engaged in enhanced collaborative research efforts for the development of innovative personalised medicine approaches regarding prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
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Healthcare authorities, policymakers and other stakeholders develop evidence-based strategies and policies for the uptake of personalised medicine in national or regional healthcare systems.
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Health industries, policymakers and other stakeholders have access to efficient measures and investments to allow swift transfer of research and innovation into market.
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Health industries and other stakeholders can accelerate the uptake of personalised medicine through the adoption of innovative business models.
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Healthcare authorities, policymakers and other stakeholders use improved knowledge and understanding of the health and costs benefits of personalised medicine to optimise healthcare and make healthcare systems more sustainable.
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Healthcare providers and professionals improve health outcomes, prevent diseases and maintain population health through the implementation of personalised medicine.
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Stronger and highly connected local/regional ecosystems of stakeholders, including innovators, are in place and facilitate the uptake of successful innovations in personalised medicine, thus improving healthcare outcomes and strengthening European competitiveness.
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Citizens, patients and healthcare professionals have a better knowledge of personalised medicine and are better involved in its implementation.
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Stakeholders cooperate better and establish a network of national and regional knowledge hubs for personalised medicine.
More information here.
Robotics adoption hubs
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 24 February 2026
Closed: 11am, 15 April 2026
Sector: ALL
UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £38 million for creating one-stop shops to help end-users adopt robotics and autonomous systems with expert guidance. For this competition, robotics is defined broadly. It includes drones operating on land, sea and air; autonomous plant and service robots; and industrial robots or automated machinery that use sensors, actuators and control software. Robotics does not include systems that are only software based.
The aim of this competition is to bridge the knowledge gap to impact productivity, safety and growth, and deliver public benefit through accelerating adoption of robotics. Your project’s total eligible grant funding request must be between £2 million and £7.5 million.
Hubs will be located within a region, may have single or multi end user sector focus and are expected to build on strengths and capabilities within the existing ecosystem.
Hubs will at a minimum:
-
advise end users on robotics benefits, costs and integration needs, help identify applications, and connect them with vendors, integrators and finance providers
-
showcase robotics technologies and capabilities at the Hub and in representative environments
-
build in a mechanism to be self sustaining beyond the end of the programme
-
work with the central convening body to share lessons learned, develop national adoption resources, and triage enquiries to the most suitable Hub
-
focus on adoption led activity rather than low Technology Readiness Level (TRL) or fundamental research
-
reuse existing facilities rather than building new or significantly refurbishing physical infrastructure
-
purchase limited robotic demonstration equipment for showcasing, with primary use of existing hardware
More information here.
Experimental medicine stage one
Funder: MRC
Opened: 2 October 2025
Closed: 4pm, 15 April 2026
Sector: Life Sciences
Apply for funding to investigate the causes, progression and treatment of human disease.
Your project must:
-
focus on a mechanistic hypothesis
-
include an experimental intervention or challenge in humans
You must be a researcher based at a research organisation eligible to apply for MRC funding. If you are taking the next step towards becoming an independent researcher, you may be eligible to apply as a ‘new investigator.
There is no limit to the amount of funding you can apply for (Total fund is £10m) or the length of your project. The MRC will fund 80% of your project’s full economic cost.
This is an ongoing funding opportunity. Application rounds close every April and October.
More information here.
Digital cluster call 1
Funder: Horizon (EU)
Opened: 15 January 2026
Closed: 15 April 2026
Sector: Digital (ALL)
The expected impacts of this cluster are contained in the Horizon Europe strategic plan.
Areas of intervention
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manufacturing technologies
-
key digital technologies including quantum technologies
-
emerging enabling technologies
-
advanced materials
-
artificial intelligence and robotics
-
next generation internet
-
advanced computing and Big Data
-
circular industries
-
low carbon and clean industries
-
space including earth observation
The destinations within this call are as follows:
-
Developing an agile and secure single market and infrastructure for data-services and trustworthy artificial intelligence services.
-
Achieving open strategic autonomy in digital and emerging enabling technologies
-
Digital and industrial technologies driving human-centric innovation
Total funding available is 222 million Euros.
See more information and apply here.
Contracts for Innovation: industrial human relevant drug models
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 2 March 2026
Closed: 11am, 15 April 2026
Sector: Life Sciences
This competition is part of the Innovate UK Alternative Industrialised Models for ethical Drug Discovery (AIM) programme and is delivered in partnership with the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs).
The aim of the competition is to support organisations developing disruptive and innovative alternatives for improved pharmacokinetic (PK) and cardiac safety studies to:
-
further qualify the methods towards broad adoption
-
or improve their applicability in a drug development setting
Your project must focus on developing new approaches or further developing existing approaches that can be deployed within a drug development setting. It must enable progress towards the government targets of:
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more than 35% reduction in dedicated PK studies using dogs or non-human primates (NHPs)
-
more than 50% reduction in dedicated cardiovascular safety studies using dogs or NHPs by 2030
This is phase 1 of a potential 2 phase competition. In applying to phase 1 of this competition you are entering into a competitive process. This competition has a funding budget of up to £2 million, so Innovate UK may not be able to fund all the proposed projects.Phase 1 projects can range in size up to total eligible costs of £200,000, inclusive of VAT.
More information here.
Quarterly Research Grant Funding Programme
Funder: Cure Parkinson's
Open:
Closed: 13 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare
This scheme is providing grants for scientists and clinicians from universities, hospitals and commercial organisations to help them fund preclinical and clinical research focused on slowing, stopping, or reversing Parkinson’s.
There are grants of up to £250,000 which prioritise projects that are likely to lead to clinical trials in people with Parkinson’s within 5 years. For clinical research, CP funds clinical trials and sub-studies of trials in people with Parkinson’s. The grant amount is flexible but please contact CP ahead of submission if you are thinking of applying for a clinical trial.
2025/2026 application deadlines:
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Monday 3 November 2025
-
Monday 12 January 2026
-
Monday 13 April 2026
-
Monday 22 June 2026
-
Monday 12 October 2026
More information here.
RfPB Under-represented disciplines and specialisms: Nurses and Midwives 2025/26
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 19 November 2025
Closed: 1pm, 8 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
This Research for Patient Benefit (RfPB) funding opportunity is part of ring-fenced funding in support of the NIHR strategy to strengthen the careers of under-represented disciplines and specialisms in health and care professions.
Applicants must submit an expression of interest form by 2 March 2026
To support capacity building, all applications to this funding opportunity must be led by a nurse or a midwife at an early stage of their research career. For this funding opportunity, an early career researcher is a researcher who has not yet been the lead investigator for a substantial project award (>£100,000).
The early career nurse or midwife is expected to apply as lead applicant supported by a senior colleague fulfilling the role as joint-lead applicant. The joint-lead mentor can have any relevant professional background as long as they are experienced researchers in a field relevant to the proposed research. The mentor is expected to have led at least one large research project (at a value of >£100,000) to completion and have relevant experience of mentoring an early career researcher.
The RfPB programme is researcher-led and does not specify topics for research, so applications can be primary, secondary and include quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods designs. The topic of the projects funded in the previous funding opportunity supporting nurses and midwives can be found in the news story on the website.
More information here.
Expression of interest: NHS fit for the future dementia challenge
Funder: MRC
Open
Closed: 4pm, 2 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life sciences
Submit an expression of interest if you have a clinical intervention or technological innovation that could:
-
shorten the time it takes to diagnose dementia in the NHS
-
enhance early detection of clinical change following diagnosis
-
be deployed in the NHS from 2029
Healthcare professionals, businesses and researchers can take part.
Successful interventions will receive a fully funded real-world evaluation to generate the evidence needed for wider adoption across the NHS. Support will also be provided to help with regulatory clearance.
Successful innovations will receive a fully funded real-world evaluation tailored to generate the evidence required for widescale adoption across the UK.
This includes:
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partnership with clinical research lead and clinical infrastructure
-
collaborative protocol development
-
evaluation monitoring, data collection and analysis support
-
write-up and dissemination
-
access to the evaluation data generated for analysis and modelling to drive product and service enhancement
-
support for fast-track regulatory clearance in the UK
-
guidance on commissioning, procurement and the development of a market access strategy for the NHS across the devolved nations
-
publication and presentation of evaluation results as part of a national campaign to raise awareness for the dementia challenge
Clinical interventions must have been evaluated in at least a single-site pilot.
They must deliver at least one of the following:
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shortened time from referral to dementia diagnosis
-
improved staging of disease state
-
improved prognostic data to guide patient and carer support
-
reduced resource requirement
-
enhanced efficiency
-
better patient outcomes
Technological innovations
Technological innovations must:
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be intended for dementia diagnosis or tracking disease progression in people already living with dementia
-
be medical devices and have, or be near to, regulatory clearance (UKCA or CE mark)
-
have evidence of clinical safety and efficacy through randomised controlled trial data or clinically robust real-world evidence
All interventions and innovations must:
-
have been tested with user groups
-
be suitable for routine use across the NHS
-
have a roadmap for implementation in the NHS
-
have support from a clinical champion to support real-world evaluation and rollout across the UK if agreed milestones are met
-
demonstrate an understanding of the resources required to train and support adoption
-
show the value of the innovation for stakeholders
Evidence of efficiency gains or health economic benefit is desirable.
More information here.
NICE rolling funding opportunity (EME Programme)
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 3 December 2025
Closed: 1pm, 1 April 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation (EME) Programme is inviting outline applications to their commissioned workstream. NIHR 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.
Applications must be within the remit of the EME Programme and the primary outcome measure must be health related. This funding opportunity is also open in the following:
which fall within the remit of those programmes. Applicants should apply directly to the relevant programme.
This is a 2-stage funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. If invited to the second stage, you will then need to complete a full application.
More information here.
Knowledge Transfer Partnership: 2026 to 2027 round one
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 2 February 2026
Closed: 11am, 1 April 2026
Sector: ALL
The Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) programme allows a UK registered business, which is referred to as the business partner from now on, to partner with a knowledge base partner. This can be either a UK higher education (HE) or further education (FE) institution, research and technology organisation (RTO) or Catapult.
The KTP partnership brings new skills and the latest academic thinking into the business partner to deliver a specific, strategic innovation project. The knowledge base partner recruits the associate to work on the project. The associate has the opportunity to lead a strategic development within the business, developing new skills and gaining valuable experience.
Each application must be led by a knowledge base, working with a business partner and supported by a Knowledge Transfer Adviser. If you are a business and do not yet have a relationship with a knowledge base partner, the Knowledge Transfer Adviser can help you to identify one.
A project’s total eligible costs are typically £8,500 per month. Projects must be between 12 and 36 months. Some of the knowledge base partners costs will be funded by Innovate UK. The rest of the eligible project costs are paid by the business partner.
More information here.
Discovery Awards
Funder: Wellcome
Open
Closed: 31 March 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
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. Maximum grant of £5m over a maximum duration of up to 8 years.
The lead organisation must be a not-for-profit and can be a:
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higher education institution
-
research institute
-
healthcare organisation
-
charity or social enterprise
Your research must:
-
fit within what Wellcome support in Discovery Research
-
have the potential to improve human life, health, and wellbeing.
Your research can:
-
be in any discipline - including science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), experimental medicine, humanities and social science, clinical/allied health sciences, and public health
-
be in a single discipline or multidisciplinary.
Your research must not:
-
fall outside of what Wellcome support in Discovery Research. Check what Wellcome don't fund.
-
start earlier than seven months after the application deadline.
More information here.
Launchpad Grants in Children & Young People's Movement and Balance disorders
Funder: MRF
Opened: 10 December 2025
Closed: 12pm, 27 March 2026
Sector: Healthcare
This scheme is designed to support research that will increase understanding of movement and balance disorders in children and young people, improve diagnosis, and develop better treatments and interventions. For the purposes of this funding scheme, the term ‘children and young people’ (CYP) refers to anyone below the age of 25.
Applicants may apply for up to £100,000 over a maximum of a 2-year period (pro-rata for part-time positions). There will be at least £500,000 available in this competition.
Research proposals are encouraged that include the following themes:
-
Increased understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying the causes of movement disorders
-
Further understanding of mechanisms of action of any available therapies
-
Development of treatments and interventions, including pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical interventions (such as orthotics, splints, physiotherapy, speech and language therapies)
-
Mental health impacts of movement and balance disorders in children and young people
More information here.
Early Detection and Diagnosis Primer Award
Funder: Cancer Research UK
Open:
Closed: 26 March 2026
This scheme aims to support new and pioneering research ideas and pilot studies of high scientific risk to stimulate and develop the early detection field. Funding is for up to £100,000 for projects lasting up to 1 year led by a scientist, clinician or healthcare worker based in a UK university, medical school, hospital or research institution.
More information here.
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Robotics Adoption Programme skills development
Funder: SIT
Opened: 2 February 2026
Closed: 11am, 25 March 2026
Sector: ALL
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, delivered through Innovate UK, is providing up to £2.5 million to develop vocational robotics skills courses across the UK.
Your project must:
-
have a grant funding request of between £100,000 and £500,000
-
start by 1 August 2026
-
end by 31 January 2027
-
last between three and six months
Research Aims and Scope
Projects must develop vocational robotics skills courses to build the workforce needed for UK robotics adoption. This aligns with the broader Robotics Adoption Hubs programme (a £40 million initiative announced with delivery starting early 2026) which aims to enable SMEs and manufacturers to access and implement robotics technology effectively.
Lead Organisation Eligibility
UK registered organisations can lead applications. This includes universities, businesses, and public sector organisations, reflecting a broad-based approach to skills development across different institutional types.
Project Scope and Opportunities
Projects can develop multiple types of skills initiatives to address the critical workforce gap in robotics adoption. Opportunities include but are not limited to:
-
Apprenticeships and internships
-
Upskilling and reskilling of existing workforce
-
Technical courses and training programmes
-
Vocational qualifications aligned to industry needs
More information here.
Scaling Trust: Full proposals
Funder: ARIA
Open
Closed: 2pm, 24 March 2026
Sector: Gen AI
ARIA is now accepting applications for funding within its £50m Scaling Trust programme. The programme’s goal is to create the capability for AI agents to securely coordinate, negotiate, and verify with one another on our behalf. To kickstart Phase 1 of this programme, ARIA is seeking to fund teams to develop open-source coordination infrastructure and perform fundamental research that moves us from empirical to theory-driven guarantees in agentic coordination.
In advance of launching the Scaling Trust Arena, ARIA is looking to fund teams across the following programme tracks:
Track 2 | Tooling: Open-source agents and reusable components that enable secure requirement capture, negotiation, protocol generation, and verification in multi-agent settings. Must be usable by all Arena participants, built for adversarial environments, and designed to generalise beyond single tasks.
Track 3 | Fundamental research: Foundational work that turns empirical security into provable guarantees, and unlocks new cyber-physical trust primitives for agents. Focus areas include formal AI security, generative protocol design and verification, and cyber-physical trust anchors.
Full details of what is in and out of scope for each area can be found in the call for proposals.
More information here.
Developmental pathway funding scheme: stage one
Funder: MRC
Opened: 20 November 2025
Closed: 4pm, 18 March 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Apply for funding to develop and test novel therapeutics, medical devices, diagnostics and other interventions.
Your project can start and finish at any stage on the developmental pathway from prototype development, through pre-clinical refinement and testing to early-phase clinical studies and trials (up to phase 2a).
You must be based at a research organisation eligible for Medical Research Council (MRC) funding.
There is no limit on the amount of funding you can apply for, but it should be appropriate to the project. We usually fund 80% of a project’s full economic cost (FEC).
More information here.
Step-up treatment for people with uncontrolled asthma
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 4 December 2025
Closed: 1pm, 18 March 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
NIHR's Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Programme is looking to fund research into step-up treatment for people with uncontrolled asthma.
This is a 2-stage, commissioned funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. If invited to the second stage, you will then need to complete a full application.
Research question: What is the best step-up treatment for people aged 12 years and older diagnosed with asthma, whose asthma is uncontrolled on a low-dose inhaled corticosteroid/formoterol combination inhaler used as needed?
More information here.
TechLocal: Connecting Local Talent to Local Tech Jobs
Funders: Innovate UK & DSIT
Opened: 4 February 2026
Closed: 11am, 18 March 2026
Sector: ALL
This competition is open to collaborations only. To lead a collaborative project your organisation must be a UK registered business, research and technology organisation, charity, not for profit or public sector organisation.
The aim of this competition is to develop impactful local initiatives that enable tech talent to secure entry level tech jobs by bridging the gap between training and employment.
Award range: £100,000 - £225,000
Total fund: £7.6m
Your proposal must:
-
be delivered and demonstrate impact in one or more of the specified geographic areas, addressing a local need or leveraging a local strength
-
demonstrate clear impact in one or more frontier technologies by enabling local talent into entry level tech jobs and helping SMEs adopt these technologies through skilled workforces
-
alignment with national and local economic growth plans and skills strategies, such as DWP Jobcentres, the Growth and Skills Levy, LSIPs and local defence plans
-
demonstrate contribution to the overall TechLocal target of 1,000 new tech jobs
The six frontier technologies are:
-
Artificial Intelligence
-
Cyber Security
-
Engineering Biology
-
Semiconductors
-
Advanced Connectivity Technologies (ACT)
-
Quantum
The specific geographical areas are:
-
North West England
-
South West England
-
Yorkshire and Humber
-
North East England
-
East Midlands
-
West Midlands
-
South East England
-
East of England
-
London
-
Scotland
-
Wales
-
Northern Ireland
More information here.
Scaling Impact in Health and Care Fund
Funder: Sir Jules Thorn Charitable Trust
Open
Closed: 12pm, 16 March 2026
Sector: Health and care
The Scaling Impact in Health and Care Fund supports charities and NHS organisations to expand proven health and care interventions and deliver them more widely. The Fund focuses on projects underpinned by real-world evidence of effectiveness, with strong potential for adoption and integration at scale. It prioritises initiatives that can demonstrate sustainability, system-level benefit, and measurable improvements for people and services. It is a two stage process. this is the first stage.
Previously known as the Innovation and Improvement in Health and Care Fund, it was refined in 2025 to better reflect its focus on bridging the gap between models of care that have been shown to work in practice and securing the resources needed to deliver them at scale.
The Fund makes awards between £150,000 and £500,000, with successful applicants required to draw down the funding within two years of the award date.
Applications may address any area of physical or mental health, physical or learning disability, or end-of-life care.
The Trust is seeking to fund projects that can meet all the following criteria:
-
Scale-tested models of care that have demonstrated effectiveness in real-world settings
-
Strengthen collaboration and integration across one or more care settings, including primary, secondary, or community care
-
Embed the partnerships, infrastructure, and evidence needed to sustain delivery at scale
-
Deliver practical improvements in outcomes for users, carers, and staff, and greater efficiency across services
The Fund will not support incremental service developments, funding to maintain existing services, or projects without demonstrated effectiveness or potential for wider impact.
More information here.
Genomics in Context Awards
Funder: Wellcome
Open
Closed: 16 March 2026
Sector: Genomics
The Wellcome Genomics in Context Awards fund interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research teams exploring genomics in combination with the humanities, social sciences, or bioethics. Projects must build novel collaborations and shape new research agendas at the intersection of genomics and its wider contexts, with stakeholder involvement encouraged throughout.
Teams should include at least one researcher from the life sciences, one from the humanities/social sciences/bioethics, and one wider stakeholder, and may be based anywhere in the world except mainland China.
Eligibility:
-
Lead applicant must hold a PhD or equivalent and be based at an eligible institution.
-
Teams must include 1–4 coapplicants from relevant disciplines and a wider key stakeholder.
Funding covers:
-
Up to £500,000 per award for 12–24 months.
-
Research costs, collaborative activities, stakeholder involvement, and dissemination.
The scheme seeks creative approaches to co-leadership and emphasises equity, engaged research, and the co-development of discovery-led research agendas. For full details and application guidance, see the official call here.
Gap Fund: single-step support for medical product development
Funder: MRC
Opened: 13 November 2025
Closed: 4pm, 11 March 2026
Sector: Life Sciences
The MRC Gap Fund provides targeted, single-step support for researchers developing a new or repurposed medicine, medical device, diagnostic, or other medical product. The fund enables projects to address a high-risk development milestone, helping to generate critical data needed to advance or end a product’s development. It acts as a strategic bridge between the MRC’s smaller Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) and the larger Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme (DPFS).
Eligibility:
Applicants must be based at an MRC-eligible UK research organisation.
Funding covers:
-
Key high-risk development steps
-
Activities to generate data essential for onward progression or decision-making
The Gap Fund supports MRC’s strategic priorities including:
-
precision prevention to reduce disease risk in targeted populations
-
early and accurate diagnosis to improve speed and accuracy of disease detection
-
advanced treatments offering novel therapeutic approaches
-
improve outcome monitoring of patients receiving treatment
-
better management of diseases and conditions through innovative technologies
All human diseases and medical interventions are eligible for support, both in the context of UK healthcare and addressing global health issues.
For full details and guidance on how to apply, visit the official call here.
Work and Health Research Awards Round 2
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 12 June 2025
Closed: 1pm, 11 March 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) invites applications for work and health research awards. The purpose of these awards is to enable research teams to receive funding for larger programmes of research or large scale and ambitious projects to tackle priorities in work and health research. These awards can cost up to £2 million over 3 years.
This competition aims to:
-
bring together teams representing different disciplines, professions and sectors to submit plans for ambitious research and to catalyse future research capacity;
-
fund large scale, ambitious and transdisciplinary projects or programmes of research addressing key priorities and substantial areas of need in work and health and occupational health.
More information here.
Research for Patient Benefit - November 2025
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 12 November 2025
Closed: 1pm, 4 March 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The NIHR Research for Patient Benefit programme funds high-quality, applied health and care research that aims to improve the health and wellbeing of patients, service users, carers and the public. Studies can take place in NHS, public health, or social care settings. Projects are expected to be designed with significant patient and public involvement, and show clear relevance to those directly affected by the research. This is a two-stage, commissioned funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. If invited to the second stage, you will then need to complete a full application.
Eligibility:
Lead applicants must be based at eligible organisations, including NHS bodies, universities, local authorities, and social care providers across England. Multidisciplinary collaboration is encouraged.
Funding covers:
-
Research costs, support for patient/public involvement, and dissemination activities.
-
There is no fixed maximum funding per project, but awards are typically between £150,000–£500,000, lasting up to three years.
This round welcomes studies addressing important health and social care challenges, with a focus on benefiting patients and service users in England. For full details, refer to the official call here.
Notification of intent: Diet and health: collaborative research and development grants
Funders: BBSRC and Defra
Opened: 3 February 2026
Closed: 4pm, 3 March 2026
Sector: Healthcare
The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) have co-launched a £3 million programme supporting collaborative R&D projects that develop novel food products and innovations delivering healthy, sustainable, and resilient diets for the UK population.
Research Aims
The programme accelerates translation of world-class bioscience into practical solutions by fostering academia-industry collaboration. Projects must improve nutritional quality of food, advance understanding of how food processing and product composition affect health, and promote circular economy approaches to reduce food waste and loss.
Priority Research Areas
Funded projects must address at least one priority area, including: improving nutrition for populations at higher risk of malnutrition or muscle loss (older people, those using GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs, and disadvantaged groups); assessing health impacts of food additives and emulsifiers and developing sustainable alternatives; biofortification; food reformulation; affordability and accessibility of nutritious food; consumer behaviour; and strengthening resilience of the UK food supply chain. Projects may also explore improving environmental outcomes through sustainable processing technologies and circular economy approaches.
Lead Organisation and Partnership Requirements
Project leads must be based at UK research organisations eligible for BBSRC funding. Mandatory industry partnership is required—projects must include at least one industry partner contributing a minimum 30% of total project costs (cash, in-kind, or combination).
Funding and Duration
Maximum funding per project is £800,000 full economic cost (FEC), with BBSRC and Defra funding 80% of FEC. Projects last three years and are expected to start by October 2026.
More information here.
Notification of intent: Diet and health: collaborative research and development grants
Funders: BBSRC & DEFRA
Opened: 3 February 2026
Closed: 4pm, 3 March 2026
Sector: Healthcare
Apply for Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and Defra funding to support collaborative R&D projects developing novel products and innovations delivering healthy, sustainable, and resilient diets for the UK population.
You must be based at a UK research organisation eligible for BBSRC funding.
Projects must include at least one industry partner and an industry contribution of 30% (cash, in-kind or both in-kind) is required.
The full economic cost (FEC) of your project can be up to £800,000. BBSRC and Defra will fund 80% of the FEC. Projects will be expected to start by October 2026 and will last for 3 years.
More information here.
Strategic Innovation Open Call
Funder: EIT Urban Mobility
Opened: 24 September 2025
Closed: 28 February 2026
Sector: Various
EIT Urban Mobility invites innovators from across Europe to submit a proposal to its Strategic Innovation Open Call, designed to accelerate the deployment of impactful solutions that address the most pressing challenges in urban mobility.
The call focuses on supporting ambitious, market-critical projects that tackle clearly defined problems faced by cities, public authorities, and mobility providers. EIT aims to de-risk development and enable large-scale deployment by backing solutions with a clear path to market and the potential to scale across Europe.
Through this call, EIT Urban Mobility fosters innovation and strengthens Europe’s competitiveness by encouraging collaboration across the EIT Knowledge Triangle—education, research, and business—alongside a fourth essential partner: cities.
The Call will focus on five sectors which have the potential to innovate and create impact:
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Urban logistics,
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Public transport,
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Mobility data management,
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Electrification of transport and alternative fuels, and
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Health and mobility.
Each project may receive up to 2 million EUR of EIT funding. EIT Urban Mobility will reimburse up to 65% of the eligible project costs, while the minimum co-funding rate for all proposals is 35%.
"Solutions that promote active mobility as a foundation for healthier urban lifestyles, by improving safety, convenience, inclusivity and integration within the urban environment, facilitating a modal shift towards active modes."
More information here.
Translating Disruptive New Approach Methodologies into Practice
Funder: Horizon Europe
Opened: 3 December 2025
Closed: 5pm (CET), 26 February 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
This Challenge supports ambitions to maintain and strengthen the health sector in Europe. It aims to accelerate the development and validation of disruptive NAMs for biomedical applications, including medicinal products and medical technologies. This is a two-stage Challenge competition with the ultimate ambition to deliver robust, validated NAMs that constitute a representative model or prototype system i.e. achieve TRL 6 after Stage 2. Applicants should apply to Stage 1 only where there is an outlook of the potential impact in the longer term.
Maximum award likely to be 300,000 Euros per project.
More information here.
Pump-priming Grant
Funder: Asthma + Lung UK
Open
Closed: 13 February 2026
These are small size grants to kickstart your research. These support proof of concept studies in new or original areas of research. Funding - up to £100,000 (£40,000 for mesothelioma research projects).
More information here.
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
Local Innovation Partnerships Fund
Funder: UKRI
Opened: 6 October 2025
Closed: 4pm, 12 February 2026
Sector: ALL
This programme earmarks at least £20 million for each of ten regions across the UK, including one in each of the devolved nations. The intention is to attract a further £1 billion additional investment, including from the private sector, and £700 million of additional value to local economies. The maximum duration of this award is for five years.
Partnership and co-creation are at the heart of the Local Innovation Partnership Fund. It is open to collaborative proposals co-created between UKRI and locally led triple-helix partnerships/consortia of civic authorities, industry and research organisations.
This is a closed funding opportunity, for applications from the places selected by the UK government:
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Greater Manchester
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West Midlands
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South Yorkshire
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West Yorkshire
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Liverpool City Region
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North East England
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Greater London
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Cardiff Capital Region
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Glasgow City Region
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an innovation corridor spanning Belfast and Derry/Londonderry
This will not run as a typical UKRI funding opportunity. Partnership and co-creation are at the heart of the Local Innovation Partnership Fund. It is open to collaborative proposals co-created between UKRI and locally led triple-helix partnerships/ consortia of civic authorities, industry and research organisations.
The programme is designed to support places that have an identifiable innovation ecosystem, with high-potential innovation clusters aligned to national policy priorities.
Proposals must build on local innovation strengths and opportunities giving places a strong role in determining their priorities, with UKRI providing a national perspective, technical expertise and support.
To apply on behalf of your triple helix partnership you must be based at an eligible organisation as follows:
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higher education providers
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research institutes
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public sector research establishments
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NHS bodies
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independent research organisations
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a Mayoral Strategic Authority, or other local government partner that has been granted non-standard eligibility for this funding opportunity
The primary objectives of the LIPF are to:
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foster the growth of mature innovation clusters by deepening their capabilities and expanding their reach
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support emerging clusters, to grow and mature their ecosystems enhancing their capability of generating substantial economic value
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support the adoption, diffusion, and commercialisation of new technologies
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strengthen local partnerships and governance to deliver place-based innovation
A competition will run for all other parts of the UK to bid for support to grow their innovation ecosystems. UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) will work with regional partnerships between civic authorities, businesses and research organisations to co-create a portfolio of investment in each region.
More information here.
BBSRC 2025 Transformative Research Technologies
Funder: Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Opened: 26 November 2025
Closed: 4pm, 11 February 2026
Sector: BioTech
Apply for funding to pursue early-stage development of cutting-edge research technologies with transformative potential in the biosciences. You must be a researcher or research technical professional based at a UK research organisation eligible for Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) funding.
You can only apply as project lead (PL) on one submitted application. You can be project co-lead (PcL ) on multiple applications. The full economic cost (FEC) of your project can be up to £225,000. BBSRC will fund 80% of the FEC.
Applications must be between six and 18-months duration.
More information here.
Application Development Award for Health and Care Professionals
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 17 September 2025
Closed: 1pm, 4 February 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
NIHR is looking to commission up to 10 Application Development Awards (ADAs) to carry out development work prior to research applications, with a requirement for applicant teams to involve a specific group of Health and Care Professionals (HCP).
To be eligible for this funding opportunity as an early-mid career researcher HCP, you must be a registered professional within 1 of the following eligible HCP groups: nurses (including nurses that work in social care); midwives; pharmacists; healthcare scientists; allied health professions.
Funding of up to £150,000, over a maximum of 12 months, is available for each ADA. Applicants will need to justify how funds are to be used.
ADA funding aims to create collaborative teams of health professionals (HCPs) to design a future research project. A key goal is to develop the research leadership of an underrepresented HCP by pairing them with experienced academics. The funding also supports building research networks and conducting preparatory work to inform a subsequent full application to a national research programme.
More information here.
MRC Centre of Research Excellence: round four: outline application
Funders: MRC and MoD
Opened: 1 October 2025
Closes: 4pm, 4th February 2026
Sector:
Total fund: £50,000,000
Maximum award: £26,250,000
Apply for MRC Centre of Research Excellence (MRC CoRE) funding to tackle complex and interdisciplinary health challenges. You must be based at a UK research organisation eligible for Medical Research Council (MRC) funding.
MRC CoREs will be funded for up to 14 years. Your award will initially last for seven years, with a further seven years based on successful review. The full economic cost (FEC) of your MRC CoRE can be up to £26.25 million for the first seven years.
MRC will fund 80% of the FEC. The maximum MRC contribution will be £21 million.
This is an annual funding opportunity. MRC expects to fund one or two MRC CoREs every year.
MRC CoRE challenges are expected to:
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be bold, ambitious, and innovative, and address a gap or opportunity which is not being adequately addressed elsewhere
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address substantial unmet needs in understanding or modifying human health and disease
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be specific, with major strategic objectives achievable within the 14-year timeframe which, if achieved, will transform the research field or area of health research
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align to the MRC mission
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require coordinated and flexible, major long-term funding
More information here.
Knowledge Transfer Partnership: 2025 to 2026 round five
Funder: Innovate UK
Opened: 2 December 2025
Closed: 11am, 4 February 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) programme allows a UK registered business, which is referred to as the business partner from now on, to partner with a knowledge base partner. This can be either a UK higher education (HE) or further education (FE) institution, research and technology organisation (RTO) or Catapult.
The KTP partnership brings new skills and the latest academic thinking into the business partner to deliver a specific, strategic innovation project. The knowledge base partner recruits the associate to work on the project. The associate has the opportunity to lead a strategic development within the business, developing new skills and gaining valuable experience.
Each application must be led by a knowledge base, working with a business partner and supported by a Knowledge Transfer Adviser. If you are a business and do not yet have a relationship with a knowledge base partner, the Knowledge Transfer Adviser can help you to identify one.
A project’s total eligible costs are typically £8,500 per month. Projects must be between 12 and 36 months. Some of the knowledge base partners costs will be funded by Innovate UK. The rest of the eligible project costs are paid by the business partner.
More information here.
Women in Innovation Awards 2025/26
Funder: Innovate UK
Open: 26 November 2025
Closed: 11am, 4 February 2026
Sector: ALL
Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), is offering up to 60 Women in Innovation Awards for women founders or co-founders of UK-registered SMEs. Each successful applicant will receive up to £75,000 in grant funding plus 12 months of bespoke business support. A number of highly commended applicants who do not receive funding may still be offered a year of tailored business support.
The competition aims to back women leading late-stage start-ups with scalable, investment-ready innovations aligned to three high-growth sectors in the UK’s Industrial Strategy: Advanced Manufacturing, Digital and Technologies, and Life Sciences. Applicants should already have a prototype or MVP, evidence of early customer interest or revenue, an understanding of their market, and a growing team beyond the original founders.
Innovations must be new to market or a significant improvement over existing solutions. Projects must address a clear market need and demonstrate strong potential for commercial growth. Award holders must also contribute at least four hours of role-modelling activity to inspire other women innovators over the 12-month award period.
Innovate UK uses a portfolio approach to fund a diverse range of women innovators across regions and the three growth sectors. Priority areas include zero-emission vehicles, batteries, aerospace, space, advanced materials, agri-tech, AI, cybersecurity, quantum technologies, semiconductors, engineering biology, 5G/6G, biotechnology, MedTech, pharmaceuticals, and health data/AI.
Eligibility
Projects must request no more than £75,000, run for 12 months, and start on 1 July 2026, ending 30 June 2027. Work must be carried out in the UK, with exploitation of results intended in or from the UK. Only eligible project costs may be included, and applicants must not exceed the Minimal Financial Assistance limit.
To lead a project, applicants must be:
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A woman founder or co-founder of a UK-registered micro, small, or medium-sized enterprise.
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A UK resident.
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Able to commit to 10+ hours of training and development and four hours of role-modelling.
Previous recipients of Women in Innovation Awards or certain other Innovate UK programmes are not eligible. Only one woman per organisation may apply. Subcontractors are allowed, with costs capped at 50% of the grant; overseas subcontracting must be robustly justified.
The success rate in 2024/25 was 3.4%, and a suitability checker is required before applying.
More information here.
Growth Catalyst December 2025
Funder: Innovate UK
Opens: 10 December 2025
Closed: 11am, 3 February 2026
Sector: All
Innovate UK Growth Catalyst is an Innovate UK programme designed to help startups and scaleups with high growth potential to grow faster. This Innovate UK Growth Catalyst competition combines grant funding, aligned private investment and structured support services to help innovators progress through key growth milestones.
Up to £900k per company to support late-stage R&D and commercialisation, aligned with private investment from an Innovate UK Investor Partner.
You should have established traction with at least one Innovate UK Investor Partner. Your Investor Partner must be identified in your application and confirm their support through an Expression of Interest (EOI) before the application close date. See directory of Investor Partners.
Your project must fall into one of the following categories:
Feasibility studies
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Total project costs: £50,000 to £300,000
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Duration: 6 to 12 months
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Grant funding: up to 70% of costs
Industrial research
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Total project costs: £100,000 to £1million
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Duration: 6 to 24 months
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Grant funding: up to 70% of costs
For feasibility studies and industrial research projects, aligned private investment must be at least equal to the grant amount. This investment does not need to directly fund the project but must be committed to the business before the grant can be made.
Experimental development
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Total project costs: £250,000 to £2million
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Duration: 12 to 24 months
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Grant funding: up to 45% of costs
More information here.
Polyphonic™ AI Fund for Surgery QuickFire Challenge
Funder: J&J
Open
Closed: 30 January 2026
Sector: Healthcare
The Polyphonic AI Fund for Surgery QuickFire Challenge seeks innovators developing cutting-edge artificial intelligence solutions with potential to transform surgical care. Proposals may target clinical workflow, surgical decision-making, patient outcomes, or the broader surgical ecosystem through responsible AI technologies.
The programme is open internationally and welcomes entries from startups, SMEs, academic teams, and entrepreneurs aiming to address unmet needs in surgery through AI.
Funding:
Eligible innovators with the best potential solutions will have the opportunity to receive grant funding up to $100,000 and mentorship from experts across Johnson & Johnson. Awardees may also be eligible to receive computing tools and technologies to help advance their innovations, including access to: GPUs and related software for accelerated computing, cloud platform and application services, Machine Learning (ML) and AI modeling toolkits and other Software Development Kits (SDKs).
Eligibility:
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Individuals or teams from startups, SMEs, academic institutions, and other relevant organisations.
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Solutions must focus on integrating AI in surgical care.
Innovators interested in bringing responsible AI to surgical practice can view full details and apply to the challenge here.
Behavioral shifts for longevity
Funder: AXA
Opened: 24 November 2025
Closed: 30 January 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
AXA Research invites individual researchers and research consortia to submit innovative proposals that aim to:
-> Develop predictive markers that enhance program matching
-> Explore cost-effective and scalable solutions to improve therapies across intervention tiers
-> Leverage behavioral insights and technological advancements to drive long-term impact on individual metabolic health.
Selected projects may be awarded grants of up to €150,000 for a duration of up to 18 months.
Full Guidelines available here.
James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnerships rolling funding opportunity
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 1pm, 14 October 2025
Closed: 1pm, 28 January 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The JLA Priority Setting Partnerships facilitate patients, carers and clinicians to work collaboratively to identify research priorities in particular areas of health and care.
Write a maximum of 5 A4 pages for your research plan. When reviewing applications, NIHR will not consider any additional information over this 5 page limit.
Applicants should clearly state how their proposed research addresses a current evidence gap and how the research adds value to the existing NIHR research portfolio.
The top 10 priorities (for multiple years and countries) of the JLA priority setting partnerships are shown here. 2025 priorities include:
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Bone marrow transplantation in paediatrics
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Burn injury
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Co-existing dementia and hearing conditions
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Diverticular disease
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East London Pandemic PSP for Ethnic Minority Communities
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Epidermolysis Bullosa
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Faecal Incontinence in Adults
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Mental Health and the Body Clock
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Midwifery Practice and Maternity Care
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Palliative and End of Life Care Refresh
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Perianal Crohn’s Disease
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Prehabilitation for Hip & Knee Replacement Surgery
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Premature Babies born <25 weeks' gestation
More information here.
Early action and prevention within Health and Social Care Services
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 26 September 2025
Closed: 1pm, 21 January 2026
Sector: Healthcare, Social Care
The Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) Programme is looking to fund high quality research about early action and prevention within Health and Social Care Services. This is a 2-stage, commissioned funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. There are no specific eligibility requirements or restrictions for applicants to this funding opportunity.
Although not an exhaustive list, some examples of interest for evaluative research are:
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the pathway, flow, and coordination of patients through prevention services and the broader configuration of prevention services for those with long-term conditions and rehabilitation following acute care
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innovative ways of providing, commissioning, or streamlining prevention services, for example:
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the integration of preventative approaches and initiatives within health and social care services (such as original/novel research on NHS vaccination programmes, social prescribing, smoking cessation, preventative clinics/hubs in hospital and primary care settings)
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the effectiveness of service delivery models enabled by emerging technologies and the trade-off between administrative efficiency and patient/staff experiences
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how data can be used to proactively offer preventative support and how data can be linked across health, social care, and other systems
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models of effective systems leadership and funding mechanisms to embed prevention into the commissioning and provision of health and social care.
We are looking to fund research which has the potential to inform prevention services at a national level, and therefore local or regional evaluations are unlikely to be fundable.
More information here.
Major Projects Awards
Funder: Rosetrees
Opened: 3 November 2025
Closed: 4pm, 19 January 2026
Sector: Healthcare and Life Sciences
Rosetrees Major Project Awards provide up to £210,000 over three years (maximum £70,000 per year) to support advanced translational research with established proof-of-concept. Projects must demonstrate robust supporting data and aim for clinical translation to address a significant unmet need in the UK patient population. Applications focused on rare diseases may be considered if there is potential for broader clinical benefits. No dementia-related projects will be accepted.
Eligibility:
Lead applicants should hold a PhD (or equivalent), have a strong track record in research management, and normally a tenured position or confirmed salary for the grant period.
Funding Covers:
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Salaries for post-docs/research assistants/technicians
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Research consumables, sequencing, animal costs
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Some small equipment costs
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(Exceptionally) PhD stipends as part of wider research/programmes
Key Features:
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Matched funding is required (secured grants or in-kind support). Applications with pending matched funding may be considered but Rosetrees funding is conditional on match confirmation.
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Projects must have a realistic plan for patient benefit within 5–10 years post-grant.
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Two-stage application: preliminary application, then full application if shortlisted; peer-review included.
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Highly competitive; clear justification of costs and strong patient impact essential.
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Applications for small patient groups must demonstrate broader applicability potential.
More information here.
UNITE Open Call
Funder: European Commission
Open
Closed: 15 January 2026
Sector: Scottish Healthcare
The first UNITE Open Call invites digital health innovators from seven participating European regions to develop high-impact solutions that can transform healthcare delivery, empower patients and strengthen European digital health ecosystems. With a total budget of €4 million, the call supports collaborative projects that advance personalised remote care and data-driven healthcare.
Maximum budget per project: €1,000,000. Maximum budget per organisation: €600,000. Support rate: 100 percent (lump sum model)
More information here.
Programme Development Grants - November 2025
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 19 November 2025
Closed: 1pm, 14 January 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
NIHR Programme Development Grants (PDG) is inviting applications for funding (up to £250K) to undertake preparatory work to develop a future programme of research (stream A). PDGs are also available for researchers to develop and enhance the quality and value of an ongoing or recently completed Programme Grants for Applied Research (PGfAR) award (stream B).
This is a one-stage, researcher-led funding opportunity. To apply you will need to submit a full application.
The programmes are:
2025/440 PGfAR PDG researcher-led - stream A - pre-programme grant
2025/439 PGfAR PDG commissioned - stream A - NIHR NICE rolling funding opportunity
2025/438 PGfAR PDG commissioned - stream A - NIHR JLA rolling funding opportunity
2025/437 PGfAR PDG researcher-led - stream B - post-award programme grant
More information here.
Quarterly Research Grant Funding Programme
Funder: Cure Parkinson's
Open:
Closed: 12 January 2026
Sector: Healthcare
This scheme is providing grants for scientists and clinicians from universities, hospitals and commercial organisations to help them fund preclinical and clinical research focused on slowing, stopping, or reversing Parkinson’s.
There are grants of up to £250,000 which prioritise projects that are likely to lead to clinical trials in people with Parkinson’s within 5 years. For clinical research, CP funds clinical trials and sub-studies of trials in people with Parkinson’s. The grant amount is flexible but please contact CP ahead of submission if you are thinking of applying for a clinical trial.
2025/2026 application deadlines:
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Monday 3 November 2025
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Monday 12 January 2026
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Monday 13 April 2026
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Monday 22 June 2026
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Monday 12 October 2026
More information here.
NIHR/NICE rolling funding opportunity (HTA Programme)
Funder: NIHR
Opened: 4 September 2025
Closed: 1pm, 7 January 2026
Sector: Healthcare & Life Sciences
The Health Technology Assessment Programme (HTA) is inviting outline applications via the commissioned workstream. We are interested in receiving applications to meet recommendations in research identified in NICE guidance that has been published or updated in the last 5 years.
Applications must be within the remit of the HTA Programme, and the primary outcome measure must be health related. The following research programmes are also participating in this funding opportunity:
After checking the programme remit, you should apply directly to the relevant programme funding opportunity.
This is a 2-stage funding opportunity. To apply for the first stage you should submit an outline application. If invited to the second stage, you will then need to complete a full application.
More information here.