Funding opportunities

The Needlemakers’ Award for Advanced Needle Technology is a new initiative of the Worshipful Company of Needlemakers (one of 112 livery companies in the City of London). The Needlemakers have a long history of supporting both needlemaking and needle usage, and this initiative widens that support for biotechnology and healthcare innovation. 

Their new award aims to support an early-stage project developing medical or bioscience products, technologies or services making use of the innovative and/or advanced use of needles or needle replacements for the benefit of patients and wider society. They will make this award working in conjunction with the Worshipful Company of Entrepreneurs and its charitable trust, whose Entrepreneurs’ Award in Social Innovation (EASI) is a highly successful and established programme and grant mechanism. This partnership with the Entrepreneurs and the EASI programme means that both Companies can benefit from shared resources, knowledge and networks for the purpose of supporting and escalating early-stage innovation.

Entrants are invited to complete the application form downloadable from their website and return it by email to Award.Applications@needlemakers.org.uk by 17 April 2025. The Award winner will benefit from a package of support provided by the Needlemakers in conjunction with the Worshipful Company of Entrepreneurs, comprising a programme of workshops and mentoring together with access to valuable networks, and a one-off prize of £7,500 payable by the Needlemakers to the applicant organisation.

Round 11 of BactiVac Network catalyst funding for pump priming projects is now OPEN. Funding is available to support collaborations between Network members in bacterial vaccinology to explore new approaches and strategies to advance their vaccines in partnership with LMICs and industry, and acquire the data to support substantive funding applications. BactiVac aims to fund a diversified portfolio of projects to catalyse research in bacterial vaccinology.

The catalyst funds are flexible, typically up to £70,000 GBP and aim to provide deliverables within six months post-award. Projects are required to align to one of the following: 

• Focus on pathogens with outbreak potential
• Tackle the global antimicrobial resistance (AMR) challenge

Submission deadline for applications is 15 June 2025 (23.59 hours UK time).

For more details and regular updates, please follow BactiVac on X (Twitter) @BactiVac using the hashtag #BactiVacFunding. You can also download BactiVac Catalyst Funding flyer to circulate and/or display within your organisation. For all queries, please email: bactivac@contacts.bham.ac.uk

Breakthrough T1D UK Small Grant Awards offer competitive funding to support excellent proposals which meet the following:

• supports the development of early career researchers (basic scientists, clinicians or healthcare professionals including allied health professionals)
• supports new research or innovation with a clear impact pathway that has the potential to deliver significant contribution to the understanding or management of type 1 diabetes
• leads on to further research or clinical practice change
• gathers critical data and resources to make novel research ideas more competitive for larger follow-on funding in the field of type 1 diabetes
• takes into consideration the views and needs of individuals living with type 1 diabetes

Breakthrough T1D UK Small Grant Awards are not intended to top-up an existing grant but sub-studies will be considered if strongly justified.

Funding: up to £20,000 for basic research and £30,000 for clinical research

Project length: up to 12 months

Applications open on 3 February 2025

Funding to support ambitious research and innovation across UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)’s remit.

You must be an early career researcher or innovator who is either:

• looking to establish or transition to independence
• developing their own original and ambitious plans within a commercial setting

This funding opportunity aims to:

• develop, retain, attract and sustain research and innovation talent in the UK
• foster new research and innovation career paths including those at the academic, business and interdisciplinary boundaries, and facilitate movement of people between sectors
• provide sustained funding and resources for the best early career researchers and innovators
• provide long-term, flexible funding to tackle difficult and novel challenges, and support adventurous, ambitious programmes

You must be based at, and have the support of, an eligible academic or non-academic institution eligible for UKRI funding.

There is no minimum or maximum project cost. UKRI will fund 80% of the full economic cost (FEC).

Your project can last for up to four years, with the option to apply to renew for a further three years.

Postdoctoral career development fellowships provide an opportunity for exceptional postdoctoral clinicians to consolidate their research experience.

Postdoctoral clinicians may apply for Crick funding to spend one year full-time or two years part-time working in a Crick research group, on a project agreed between the fellow and the Crick group leader.

This scheme aims to:

• Foster long-term clinical links and collaborations.
• Provide clinicians with a postdoctoral extension of their research experience, and with scientific networking, training and career development opportunities.
• Provide a platform from which fellows may apply for external funding, e.g. clinician scientist fellowships, to be held at the Crick or elsewhere.

Fellows at the Crick will be embedded in a vibrant multidisciplinary research community of more than 1000 scientists carrying out research to improve our understanding of health and disease. 

This opportunity would suit talented and motivated postdoctoral clinicians who are passionate about research and show outstanding potential for continuing a career in academic medicine and research. Applicants should have completed a medical degree, or equivalent clinical professional qualification, and hold, or be about to hold, a research PhD. 

The application submission window for Crick fully funded fellowships (route 1) is open from early March 2025 to end of April 2025. 

Applications from fellows with funding for their own salary support (route 2) are welcome all year round.