Funding call for NIHR Cambridge BRC-wide Pump-Priming Awards 2025

• Opening date: Tuesday 27^th May 2025
• Closing date for submission to theme leads: Wednesday 18^th June 5pm
• Submission by theme leads to BRC Programme Manager: Monday 23^rd June 5pm
• Awards to start by October 2025
• Awards of up to £25,000 will be made with a small number of exceptional awards of up to £50,000 also made.

Guidance for applicants

The objective of the Pump-Priming Awards is to:

• Pump-prime high-quality studies and provide pilot, proof of concept data to support external translational funding applications.
• Promote new collaboration between themes within the NIHR Cambridge BRC or investigators in our partner organisations (University of Cambridge, Cambridge University Hospitals, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Foundation Trust, Royal Papworth, etc), the NIHR Applied Research Collaborative and other Biomedical Research Centres.
• Support the development of early- and mid-career researchers (non-clinical, clinical and NMAHP).
• Support projects that address health inequalities and reach into underserved communities, particularly in deprived areas of the East of England.
• Support projects which strengthen the BRC translational research objectives.
• Fund projects that have potential for clinical or health economic impact.

This pump-priming research grant call is designed to fund projects that have the potential to expand translational research activity across our current themes and with our partner organisations and which will lead to new, high quality translational grant applications delivering significant additional leveraged grant funding. Scope includes therapies, devices, biomarkers, diagnostics, treatment innovation, new methodologies and data analytics – all with direct line of sight to improved health outcomes for patients.

Funds can be used for consumables, equipment, staff costs, relevant travel costs.

This funding call is open to all staff across the NIHR Cambridge BRC partnership organisations University of Cambridge, Cambridge University Hospitals, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Foundation Trust, Royal Papworth, etc). Applicants do not need to have an NIHR Cambridge BRC theme affiliation. If you do not have a BRC theme affiliation then please contact Caroline Reynolds, BRC Programme Manager cmmr2@cam.ac.uk

We particularly encourage applications led by early or mid-career researchers.

The lead applicant must hold an appropriate contract with an NIHR Cambridge BRC partner organisation.

We also welcome applications from nursing, allied health professional, psychologist, pharmacist, and healthcare scientist staff groups, along with other healthcare professionals.

Examples of initiatives that may be funded include:

• Proof of concept studies and studies that will provide preliminary data enabling substantive grant applications
• Qualitative research such as utilisation of consensus methods, focus groups
• Knowledge exchange placements with an industry partner
• Funding to scope and prepare future applications for external research funding in collaboration with an industry partner
• Stakeholder engagement activities
• Health economic modelling. NB: for this please consider utilising the BRC funded support available through Dr Lina Massou em716@cam.ac.uk

Terms and Conditions  

This call will fund direct costs:

• Directly incurred staff costs
• Materials and consumables – should be project specific and not general costs
• Equipment/facilities access
• Equipment purchases (capped at £5,000 per item and must be justified)
• Workshops
• Other engagement, knowledge exchange, training and culture change activities can also be supported

This award will NOT fund:

• Pre-clinical/animal model work
• Bridging Funds (staff between posts)
• Conference attendance
• Projects with no clear translational agenda
• Indirect or estate costs Directly allocated, Indirect, Estate or Overhead costs
• Costs relating to protection of intellectual property including patent costs
• Equipment costs of more than £5,000 per item

IMPORTANT: Please contact University Research Operations Office or CUH R&D finance office, prior to submission, as appropriate (i.e., if including University/Trust staff costs).

All funds must be used within 12 months of the award date and any underspend returned.

Acknowledgements and Open Access

Publications, conferences, and any other media communication generated from this project must acknowledge NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre as the funding source. Failure to do so will result in ineligibility for future funding rounds.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

EDI must be acknowledged and included in each funding application. Applicants are expected to provide detail on how EDI principles have been considered and applied.

Successful applicants may be contacted in the future by Cambridge BRC for data gathering initiatives, surrounding equality, diversity and inclusion measures which could inform equality monitoring.

Reporting/monitoring

As a condition of funding, awardees are required to provide a brief written report following the completion of the project. A final report is expected within 1 month of the project end date where the PI must report how project milestones and objectives have been met and what plans are in place to build upon the work. The report should also report impact arising and include new and planned grant application resulting from the pump-priming award along with any associated publication.

NIHR Cambridge BRC will contact the awardee(s) for up to five years’ post-award, to record follow on activities resultant from the pump-priming award, including (but not limited to)

• Grant applications and awards
• Publications
• Career progress of associated ECRs
• Collaborations with Industrial partners
• Impact and IP

IP and commercialisation

Examples of IP that may be developed from clinical-academic research include training manuals or programmes, e-learning modules, software, clinical guidelines, films, audio recordings, inventions, new or improved designs, images, medical devices, equipment, new uses for existing drugs, biomarkers and diagnostic tests, and new treatments or interventions.

Any IP must comply with NIHR terms and conditions.

Please consult Tim Fishlock, Senior BRC IP Manager tim.fishlock@nhs.net

Criteria for review

Applications will be reviewed by a panel appointed by the Director of the NIHR Cambridge BRC against criteria including:

• CV and academic potential
• Quality of Science: good scientific plan, translational research, feasible in the time frame
• Translational potential: clinical need with clear route to clinical impact, commercial potential, and potential to leverage other translational grant funding.
• Collaborative nature: relevance and potential of collaborations across themes, other BRCs and collaborating institutes
• Patient involvement: particularly patients outside Cambridge and addressing EDI or health inequalities
• Career development of ECRs and MCRs

Checklist of application before submitting

• Completed application form
• 1 page CV for lead applicant
• Cross reference to any previous BRC pump priming funding where applicable
• Costs obtained from University ROO or NHD Trust R&D where appropriate
• Approval from the Theme Lead