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Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

The 'Population and systems medicine: programme' grant from the Medical Research Council (MRC) aims to support a comprehensive and coordinated program of research focused on understanding the complexities of human health and disease throughout the life course. It targets established researchers at eligible UK research organizations, fostering long-term, extensive projects that can address interrelated sets of questions across broad research areas in population and systems medicine. This is a SECTOR-SPECIFIC grant, primarily targeting the healthcare and social research sectors within the United Kingdom, although international research co-leads are permitted to collaborate.

Financial Structure

Funding Amounts

Typical Range: There is no stated limit to the funding you can apply for, but applicants typically apply for £1 million or more.
Appropriateness: The requested amount must be appropriate and justified for delivering the proposed research objectives.

Funding Rate

Full Economic Cost (FEC): The MRC will usually fund up to 80% of your project's full economic cost. Your organization is responsible for securing the remaining 20% from other sources.
Permitted Exceptions: 100% of permitted exceptions will be funded.
International Co-leads: Eligible costs for international project co-leads are funded at 100% of direct costs.

Eligible Costs

Personnel: Contribution to the salary of the project lead and co-leads; support for other posts (research and technical staff).
Direct Costs: Research consumables, equipment (items over £25,000 should be listed as 'Directly Incurred: Equipment', less than £25,000 as 'Directly Incurred: Other'), travel costs (standard class train/economy flight, conference attendance, collaborative visits, learning techniques).
Overheads: Estates and indirect costs (calculated by the research organization using TRAC).
Specific Research Costs: NHS research costs (when associated with NHS studies), data preservation, data sharing, and dissemination costs.
Public Engagement: Public partnerships and related activities, including payments to public contributors (funded at 100% as an exception).
International Collaborators: Costs for work undertaken at international organizations by international project co-leads (funded at 100% of eligible direct costs).
- Total costs for international applicants from high-income countries (not on OECD DAC List of ODA Recipients), India, and China must not exceed 30% of the total resources requested.
- There is no cap on costs requested for international applicants from DAC list countries.
- Indirect and estates costs for international organizations are usually not covered, but may be considered at 20% of directly incurred costs for DAC list countries (excluding India and China) if it aids research capacity development.
Other Directly Incurred: Minor equipment (< £25,000), recruitment/advertising costs, visa fees/immigration health surcharge for directly incurred staff (>50% time), relocation costs (if institutional policy), consultancy fees, subcontractor costs, additional childcare related to project, scanning/surveys, ISRCTN registration fee (if not covered by HRA), payments/incentives for healthy volunteers (for expense, time, inconvenience).
DNA Sequencing: Resources for DNA sequencing can be funded at 100% FEC if carried out by an institution/organization ineligible for UKRI funding.

Ineligible Costs

Research Type: Research involving randomised trials of clinical treatments.
Students: Costs for PhD studentships.
Publications: Article processing charges and other publication charges for peer-reviewed research articles and conference papers.
Bridge Funding: Funding to use as a 'bridge' between grants.
General Expenses: General printing or postage costs, basic computing equipment for directly allocated staff already employed (unless justified), general miscellaneous expenditure or contingency costs.
Travel: Carbon offsetting costs arising from project-related travel.
Intellectual Property: Patent costs and other intellectual property costs.
Unjustified Costs: Any costs not sufficiently justified.

Eligibility Requirements

Organizational Eligibility

Eligible Organization Types: You must be employed at a research organization that is eligible to apply for Medical Research Council (MRC) funding. This typically includes:
- Higher Education Providers (Universities)
- Research Institutes
- Public Sector Research Establishments
- NHS Bodies
- Independent Research Organizations
- Catapult Centres
- MRC's International Units (e.g., MRC Unit The Gambia, MRC/UVRI Uganda Research Unit at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) are eligible.
Geographic Location: The lead applicant's organization must be based in the United Kingdom. While international researchers can participate as project co-leads, the primary funding is awarded to the UK lead organization.

Applicant Qualifications (Project Lead)

Employment Status: Must be employed at an eligible research organization.
Active Engagement: You must show that you will direct the project and be actively engaged in the work.
Track Record: You need a substantial record of securing funding and delivering high-quality research. This is a critical criterion for demonstrating capability.
Research Focus: Your application must specifically focus within the science area of 'population and systems medicine'.
Pre-application Stage: You must have successfully completed the mandatory pre-application stage and been invited to submit a full application.
Contract Duration: If your employment contract does not cover the full duration of the proposed project, your research organization must confirm that your contract will be extended and necessary support (including mentorship and career development) will be provided.
Retired/Emeritus/Honorary Staff: If you are retired, emeritus, or honorary, your involvement should be covered by a contract with the research organization.

Exclusion Criteria

Current Programme Grant Holders: You are generally not eligible to apply if you already hold a programme grant, as the MRC expects you to focus on leading only one programme. Exceptional reasons must be discussed with the MRC.
MRC Institutes/Partnership Institutes: You are not eligible to apply for a programme grant if you lead a programme at an MRC institute or MRC partnership institute. However, staff from these institutes can be involved, and partnership institutes may apply for grants that are additional to their existing core support.
International Research Organizations as Lead: You are typically not eligible to apply as a project lead if you are based at an international research organization, with specific exceptions for MRC Unit The Gambia and MRC/UVRI Uganda Research Unit.
PhD Studentships: Costs for PhD studentships are not funded through this grant.

Application Process

Application Process Overview

Mandatory Pre-Application Stage: You must contact the MRC ([email protected]) to discuss the suitability of your application before submitting a full proposal. This is a critical step for competitive applications.
- Pre-application Submission: Submit a brief description (up to 4 pages) including: title, project lead and co-leads/organizations, collaborators (if known), estimated cost, and justification for why it needs programme grant funding, its strategic fit, and your team's track record.
- Pre-application Deadline: The latest for pre-application consideration is 7 July 2025.
Invitation to Apply: Only applicants invited via email after a successful pre-application stage can proceed to the full application.
Platform: Applications are submitted via the new UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Funding Service. Applications will not be accepted through the Joint Electronic Submissions (Je-S) system.
Organizational Submission: Only the lead research organization can submit the application to UKRI.

Key Dates and Deadlines

Opening Date: 6 May 2025, 9:00am UK time
Pre-Application Latest Submission: 7 July 2025
Closing Date (Full Application): 4 September 2025, 4:00pm UK time
- Ensure awareness of and adherence to any internal institutional deadlines.
Project Start: Projects should typically start one to six months after the funding decision date.

Required Documentation and Materials All applications must be completed directly within the UKRI Funding Service and include responses to the following sections/questions: * Summary: A plain English summary (max 550 words) suitable for public dissemination. * Core Team: List key team members with assigned roles. * MRC Research Area: Select primary MRC research area alignment. * MRC Grant Type: Justify why your proposed work requires programme-type funding (max 100 words). * Vision: Detail objectives and expected achievements (max 550 words), demonstrating quality, importance, potential advancement, timeliness, and impact. * Approach: Explain how the work will be delivered (max 5,500 words), covering effectiveness, feasibility, risk management, methodology, translation of outputs, and research environment. * Reproducibility and Statistical Design: Detail how the work will be reliable, robust, and reproducible (max 500 words), including statistical analyses and experimental design. * Data Management and Sharing: Provide a data management plan following the MRC template (max 1,500 words). * Applicant and Team Capability: Justify why you/your team are suitable to deliver the work (max 1,650 words, using R4RI format). * Project Partners: Details of contributions from collaborating organizations. Requires letters/emails of support (single PDF upload). * Industry Collaboration Framework (ICF): Required if collaborating with industry/company project partners (max 1,500 words). * Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I): Confirm international collaboration in sensitive areas and relevant NSI Act areas (max 100 words). * Facilities: Detail use of and agreement for required facilities (max 250 words). * Ethics and Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI): Address ethical implications and management strategies (max 500 words). * Genetic and Biological Risk: Identify risks and mitigation (max 700 words). * Research Involving Animals: Specific template upload (if applicable). * Conducting Research with Animals Overseas: Statement on welfare standards (max 700 words, plus checklists if applicable). * Research Involving Human Participation: Details of approvals, justification of participants, and severity (max 700 words). * Research Involving Human Tissues or Biological Samples: Details of approvals, justification of material (max 700 words). * Resources and Cost Justification: Justify all requested resources and costs (max 1,000 words). * Clinical Research Using NHS Resources: Upload Schedule of Events Cost Attribution Tool (SoECAT) export (if applicable, max 250 words). * Related Applications: Details of other related applications or resubmissions (max 500 words). * International Agreements: If using lead agency agreements (FAPESP, FNR, RCN), detail agreement (max 50 words). Application Assistance

Research Office: Contact your organization's research office for help with costings and application writing.
Scientific Queries: For remit and scientific aspects, email [email protected].
System Support: For Funding Service technical queries, email support@funding-service.ukri.org or call 01793 547490.
Accessibility Support: UKRI offers disability and accessibility support for applicants. Refer to specific guidance.

Post-Submission

Once submitted, applications cannot be changed or returned for amendment. Ensure accuracy before final submission. Feedback will be provided following assessment.

Evaluation Criteria

Applications are assessed against the following key areas: Vision of the Project

Quality and Importance: The proposed work must demonstrate excellent quality and significance within or beyond its fields or areas.
Advancement: It should have the potential to advance current understanding or generate new knowledge, thinking, or discovery.
Timeliness: The research must be timely, considering current trends, context, and needs.
Impact: Assessors will look for clear articulation of how the work will impact world-leading research, society, the economy, or the environment.
Benefits: Identification of potential direct or indirect benefits and beneficiaries, including improvements in human/population health, relieving disease/disability, improving quality of life, or benefiting health services/industry.
Strategic Alignment: The application must show how it fits within the MRC strategy and the significant difference it will make. Strategic fit for a major investment and the case for long-term, extensive support are crucial.

Approach to the Project

Effectiveness and Feasibility: The design of the approach must be effective and appropriate to achieve objectives, feasible, and comprehensively identify and manage risks.
Methodology: A clearly written and transparent methodology (if applicable) is expected.
Building on Previous Work: How previous work will be built upon and progressed.
Translation and Impact: How outputs will be maximized into outcomes and impacts.
Research Environment: Contribution of your (and your team's) research environment to the project's success.
Resources: Demonstration of access to appropriate services, facilities, infrastructure, or equipment.
Project Plan: A project plan including milestones and timelines (e.g., Gantt chart).
Diversity and Inclusion: Explanation and justification of how diversity and inclusion will be approached in the study population, following the MRC 'embedding diversity in research design' policy. This includes the use of male and female animals/tissues/cells where applicable, with justification for any exceptions.
Public Partnerships: Explanation and justification of the inclusion of public partnerships and their added value.
Reproducibility and Statistical Design: Demonstrated reliability, robustness, and reproducibility of the proposed work. This includes details on statistical analyses, methodology, experimental design, sample and effect sizes, planned analyses, models chosen, potential sources of bias and mitigation. Professional statistical advice is expected.
Data Management and Sharing: A clear data management plan detailing compliance with MRC's published data management and sharing policies, proportionate to study complexity and data types. This is assessed by peer reviewers and impacts success.

Capability of the Applicant and Project Team

Experience: Evidence of relevant experience appropriate to career stage.
Skills and Expertise: The right balance of skills and expertise within the team to cover the proposed work.
Leadership and Management: Appropriate leadership and management skills, and an approach to develop others.
Positive Research Environment: Contributions to developing a positive research environment and wider community.
R4RI Format: Use of the Résumé for Research and Innovation (R4RI) format to showcase skills and contributions, including contributions to new ideas, development of others, community engagement, and broader societal benefit.

Ethical and Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) Considerations

Identification and Management: Demonstration of identified and evaluated ethical/RRI implications and issues, and how they will be managed (e.g., genetic/biological risks, human/animal research).

Resources Requested

Justification: Resources must be comprehensive, appropriate, and justified. Assessors are not looking for line-by-line detail but a clear demonstration of optimal use of resources to achieve intended outcomes and maximize potential impacts.
Costly Resources: Justification for more costly items like project staff, significant travel, equipment over £25,000, exceptional consumables, facilities/infrastructure, international co-leads (within 30% cap for high-income countries), NHS research costs, animal costs, and public/patient involvement.

Compliance & Special Requirements

Regulatory Compliance

Ethical Standards: You must identify and evaluate all relevant ethical and Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) considerations and demonstrate how you will manage them. This includes considerations for genetic and biological risks, and research involving animals, human participation, or human tissues/samples. Approvals from relevant bodies (e.g., ethical review boards) must be in place or have a clear timeline for obtaining them.
Data Protection and Privacy: Compliance with MRC's published data management and sharing policies is mandatory. A detailed data management plan (DMP) is required, covering data quality, sharing, security, and long-term preservation. For human data, the DMP must be more detailed, addressing higher risk levels. For intervention studies with human participants, adherence to MRC policy on registration and publication of clinical trials is required.
Animal Welfare Standards: Research involving vertebrate animals or other organisms covered by the Animals Scientific Procedures Act must adhere to UK welfare standards, including detailed justification for animal use, choice of species, and experimental design. If animal research is conducted overseas, it must meet UK welfare standards consistent with the principles of 'Responsibility in the Use of Animals in Bioscience Research'. Specific templates and checklists are required.
NHS Research Costs (Clinical Research): If your project involves clinical research using NHS resources in the UK, you must complete and upload a 'Schedule of Events Cost Attribution Tool' (SoECAT) export. This ensures appropriate costing and eligibility for National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) support.

Key Policies and Frameworks

Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I): Applicants are expected to comply with UKRI's TR&I principles, ensuring integrity in international collaborations. If the proposed work involves international collaboration in sensitive research or technology areas, you must list collaborating countries and specify relevance to the UK National Security and Investment (NSI) Act's 17 areas.
Industry Collaboration Framework (ICF): If your application includes collaboration with industry or company project partners, you must follow the MRC Industry Collaboration Framework (ICF). This involves providing additional information on the nature, goals, and conditions of the collaboration, intellectual property (IP) arrangements, and any restrictions on results dissemination.
Diversity and Inclusion: The MRC is committed to equality of opportunity. Applications are encouraged from diverse researchers, and proposals should embed diversity in research design (e.g., considering sex in experimental design) and actively involve public partnerships reflecting diverse communities.
Open Access: Researchers must comply with UKRI's open access policy, meaning publication costs for peer-reviewed articles are generally not eligible for direct grant funding.
Longitudinal Population Studies (LPS): If your application relates to new or existing LPS core infrastructure support, you must obtain prior approval from the Longitudinal Population Studies Strategic Advisory Panel (LPS-SAP) through a specific outline application process.

Unique Aspects and Strategic Opportunities

Programme Grant Nature: This grant supports a 'programme' as a coordinated, coherent group of related projects, expecting innovation and ambition beyond continuation of current activities.
Ongoing Opportunity: This is an ongoing funding opportunity, suggesting regular calls or continuous submission (after pre-application).
Flexibility for Researchers: MRC supports researchers working flexibly, considering career breaks, caring responsibilities, and alternative working patterns. Reviewers are advised to consider impacts of disruptions (e.g., from COVID-19) on career development and capability.
Team Project Partners: Collaboration with external organizations or individuals (including industry, charity, academia, and international) as project partners is encouraged for cash or in-kind contributions.
International Co-leads: Specific provisions allow for international researchers to participate as project co-leads, with eligible costs covered, and flexible caps depending on the country's OECD DAC status.
Generative AI: The use of generative AI tools to prepare applications is permitted, but caution is advised, and reviewers/panellists are not permitted to use them for assessment due to confidentiality concerns.

Grant Details