FUNding OpportunitiesA selection of the latest calls for funding
Our selection of funding opportunities, from current calls with deadlines approaching or no closing date to industry collaborations and fellowships, have particular emphasis on the AAA sector - Animal Health, Agritech and Aquaculture.
This is a growing sector and represents three of the Scottish Life Sciences sectors (including Digital Healthcare), having a distinct crossover with biotech, gene modification, gene editing etc. for food security and in crop science and environmental research.
Scotland is the ideal environment to carry out research and development in the area of domestic livestock, companion animals, aquaculture and plant science. We offer a truly world–leading scientific expertise, access to state of the art research facilities, a pool of highly skilled personnel and a growing cluster of innovative bioscience companies.
Food & Agriculture Science Transformer (FAST)
Programme in partnership with Deep Science Ventures (DSV) and the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute
Applications ongoing. Reviewed within 10 working days of receipt and if the candidacy successful, it normally takes no more than 2-3 weeks to get started.
Application ongoing: Projects are starting all the time.
The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) is a five year £1.5 billion resource funding stream, announced as part of the 2015 spending review, to ensure that UK research takes a leading role in addressing the problems faced by developing countries.
The GCRF will deploy the UK’s world-class research capability to address the challenges faced by the developing world.
Recognising the fast-moving nature of many of the challenges facing low or middle income countries (LMICs), the AHRC has launched this scheme to provide an accelerated funding outlet for urgent arts and humanities research priorities.
Funded as a part of the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF), it is an open, responsive mechanism through which arts and humanities researchers (working with other disciplines where appropriate) can respond to unanticipated urgent research needs, including (but not limited to) disasters, humanitarian emergencies, rapid radical political or economic change, changes to conflicts, major displacements of populations etc., or unanticipated time-limited opportunities for research to contribute to international development policy or practice.
Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)
Application deadline: 31 October, 2020
The goal is to realise sustainable management of the food production systems in Africa in a way that alleviates poverty, enhances economic prosperity and delivers improved well-being.
Applications are accepted from both BSAS members and non-members, and the overall aim is to help support and develop a new partnership rather than a piece of work with a current partner or current organisation.
The award is for specific short research programmes and/or training opportunities in the UK, or overseas, with a new academic or industrial partner. Funds can be used in any relevant animal science sector, with up to £5,000 of funding available dependent on length of project.
Professor Steve Bishop was a world-renowned scientist, making an outstanding contribution to the understanding of the impact of genetics on infectious diseases in farm animals. He took up a position at the Roslin Institute in 1988, building up a major research group with international recognition, and was a member of BSAS from 1993 to 2015.
Application deadline: 7 July, 2021
This award is aimed at those interested in animal genetics, helping them to attend the World Congress in Genetics Applied Livestock Production (WCGALP).
Applications should reflect areas of current or future interest that will advance research and education in the application of genetics to livestock production.
Up to £4000 prize fund is available and can be awarded to a single applicant or divided between a number of successful applicants dependent on the quality of submissions.
Alan Robertson was a population geneticist and a major influence in the widespread adoption of artificial insemination of cattle and on estimating genetic effects that influence quantitative traits. Robertson spent most of his working life based at the National Animal Breeding and Genetics Research Organisation in Edinburgh as a member of the Unit of Animal Genetics.
Closing date: to be announced - this is normally approximately three months before the WCGALP.
The 12th World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production (WCGALP 2022) will be held in the Netherlands.
In years when the WCGALP is being held (every four years - 2022, 2026, 2030...) an additional application period will be added as notified by the society.
This scholarship is open to both members and non-members of BSAS.
No deadline
The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) is one of seven Research Councils that work together as Research Councils UK (RCUK). Funded by the Government's Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).
BBSRC provide a range of funding opportunities to enable individuals and groups to pursue world-class bioscience research. This includes joint opportunities with other Research Councils and organisations.
The BBSRC Grants Guide covers all aspects of research grant funding, including: eligibility, research equipment and application procedures.
If you can't find what you're looking for please contact:
Research grant submission: jeshelp@rcuk.ac.uk t: 01793 444164
Grant eligibility: eligibility@bbsrc.ukri.org
Remit: remit@bbsrc.ukri.org
Follow-on Funding (FoF) supports the translation of research into practical application, including commercialisation. The aim of the programme is to help researchers maximise the societal and economic benefits of their research.
The FoF is a proof-of-concept programme to support bioscience innovation and provide funding where further work on an idea will take it through to a stage at which the route to application is clear, which may include a spin-out, licensing opportunity or the creation of a social enterprise. The programme enables researchers to conduct activities essential to preparing a robust business plan and to secure, where appropriate, further funding and support to progress the project.
The FoF aims to bridge the funding gap between BBSRC-funded research and the point at which other non-BBSRC funding becomes available. By supporting early-stage projects, it also seeks to reduce the risk for future investors. The FoF should not duplicate other sources of public and private funding.
UK Research and Innovation is a new body which works in partnership with universities, research organisations, businesses, charities, and government to create the best possible environment for research and innovation to flourish. Operating across the whole of the UK, working with many partners to benefit everyone through knowledge, talent and ideas, with a combined budget of more than £7 billion.
UKRI provides a range of funding opportunities to enable individuals and groups to pursue world-class research and innovation.
Innovate UK is part of UKRI, a non-departmental public body funded by a grant-in-aid from the UK government.
As the UK's innovation agency, Innovate UK works with people, companies and partner organisations to fund business and research collaborations to accelerate innovation and drive business investment into research and development and realise the potential of new ideas that grow the economy, including those from the UK’s world-class research base.
Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, is investing up to £25 million in the best game-changing and commercially viable innovative or disruptive ideas.
An opportunity for UK registered organisations to apply for a share of this fund, to deliver disruptive R&D innovations that can significantly impact the UK economy.
All proposals must be business focused. Applications can come from any area of technology and be applied to any part of the economy, such as but not exclusively:
How to Apply:
Contact your local KTP Adviser or Office or call +44 (0) 300 321 4357.
A KTP can last between 12 and 36 months depending on the project and the needs of the business. It is part-funded by a grant. The amount businesses need to contribute is different for SMEs and larger companies.
2020 close dates for submission are aligned with Innovate UK’s sector and open competitions.
The Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) is part of Innovate UK's suite of business support products. It is a well established process to connect public sector challenges with innovative ideas from industry, supporting companies to generate economic growth and enabling improvement in achieving government objectives.
SBRI provides innovative solutions to challenges faced by the public sector, leading to better public services and improved efficiency and effectiveness. It generates new business opportunities for companies, provides small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) a route to market for their ideas and bridges the seed funding gap experienced by many early stage companies. It supports economic growth and enables the development of innovative products and services through the public procurement of research and development (R&D).
The aim of the Medical Research Council (MRC) is to improve human health through world-class medical research, from fundamental science to early clinical trials and preventive medicine. The MRC works in partnership across UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and with the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and devolved administrations, the NHS, charities and industry.
The Biomedical Catalyst (BMC) is a unique partnership between the MRC and Innovate UK, providing responsive and effective support to the most innovative life sciences opportunities regardless of scientific approach.
The BMC aims to de-risk innovative science and commercialise ideas arising out of academia and industry helping UK SMEs to develop into competitive and sustainable organisations. This accelerates the progress of novel products to market, facilitates onward investment and bridges “the valley of death”.
MRC supports academically-led feasibility research through the Confidence in Concept which is open to institutions but not individual researchers. Academic-led applications for Early and Late Stage awards are primarily administered through the Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme (DPFS).
Since BMC launched in April 2012, the scheme has awarded more than £250m funding, matched by £150m of private finance, to over 300 projects seeking to develop a wide range of therapies, diagnostics and devices.
Horizon 2020 is the EU funding programme for research and innovation, running from 2014 to 2020. Its goal is to ensure Europe produces world-class science, removes barriers to innovation and makes it easier for the public and private sectors to work together in delivering innovation. It has a budget of around €80bn and a stronger focus on innovation compared with the previous Framework Programme 7 (FP7), which ran from 2007 until 2013.
FP7 is the EU’s instrument for funding research in Europe. Since their launch in 1984, Framework Programmes have played a lead role in funding multi-disciplinary research and cooperative activities in Europe and beyond. They are an important source of funding to the UK research base.
There are three main pillars within Horizon 2020:
Future and Emerging Technologies is part of the Excellent Science pillar of the EU's programme for research and innovation, Horizon 2020. It focuses on research beyond what is known, accepted or widely adopted and supports novel and visionary thinking.
Funding is available for collaborative research projects to open up new and promising fields of research, technology and innovation (various topics).
Horizon 2020/FET Work Programme 2018 - 2020
Application deadline: Various to 2020
The FTI scheme is a collaborative programme for industry driven, innovative concepts that can be market ready within 3 years.
Are you looking for partners that can help you with a fast go-to-market of an industry-driven, innovative concept that has strong potential to make your company grow and scale-up?
Do you see co-creation or open innovation as ways to advance your innovation cycle and enter the market within three years?
Substantial funding available to test, validate and demonstrate innovations with users before full commercial roll-out, potentially via a spin-off company or a joint venture.
European Innovation Council (EIC)
Next application deadline: 9 June and 27 October, 2020
Are you an innovative, high-flying small or medium-sized business with European and global ambitions?
Supports close-to-market activities, with the aim to give a strong boost to breakthrough innovation with a market-creating potential. Highly innovative SMEs with a clear commercial ambition and a potential for high growth and internationalisation are the prime target (any topic). €500,00- €2.5 euros.
Application deadline: 7 October and 4 November, 2020
National Phenotypic Screening Centre (NPSC) is a collaborative community creating a crucible of innovation in the Life Sciences.
Built on a core partnership between the members of the Scottish Universities Life Science Alliance (SULSA) and the University of Oxford. The project was kickstarted with an £8M infrastructure award from the Scottish Government that allowed SULSA to finance state-of-the-art robotics, instrumentation and computation at the Universities of Dundee, Oxford, and to link up with an additional assay development hub in Edinburgh.
Phenomics Discovery Initiative (PDi) is a public-private partnership between industrial pharmaceutical companies and NPSC. PDi seeks to identify, develop, screen and validate innovative phenotypic assays that are relevant to human disease.
PDi recruits assays from the global academic and SME communities, through calls for proposals. The global reach of these calls are allowing the consortium to build a strong portfolio of novel and complex cell-based assays.
Algae-UK and the Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC) are pleased to announce a joint Proof of Concept call for projects addressing the technical challenges of delivering bio-polymers, natural pigments, dyes and inks from algae.invites applications for industry led collaborative research with funding of up to £25k available per project.
These compounds have a broad range of applications in several sectors and while there are some specific challenges associated with each sector and specific applications of polymer and pigment materials, there are some cross-cutting themes:
Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC)
First call closed
Check direct with the funding organisation for information and any updates.
The Grand Challenges family of initiatives fosters innovation to solve key global health and development problems. Each initiative is an experiment in the use of challenges to focus innovation on making an impact. Individual challenges address some of the same problems, but from differing perspectives.
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Round 25 Challenges (Grand Challenges Explorations) has now closed. There are no open Grant Opportunities at this time.
The Wellcome Trust has awarded the University of Edinburgh an Institutional Translational Partnership Award (iTPA) to diversify and intensify the support available to engage Wellcome- and non Wellcome-funded researchers across the medical, life and social sciences.
High potential translational projects will be considered for an award of up to a maximum of £20,000. The funds may be used on a broad range of activities aimed at stimulating future translation of specific early stage research projects. The award will support direct costs only, and be associated with a range of activities including but not limited to:-
Skills development via industry secondments, academic placements or people exchanges, or specialist training.
Some projects that have received funding:-
Edinburgh Innovations, University of Edinburgh’s commercialisation service.
Applications are currently closed but please check Edinburgh Innovations for updates.
EUREKA is the leading platform for innovative entrepreneurs in Europe. Eurostars is the only European funding programme specifically dedicated to support R&D-performing SMEs in their innovative R&D projects. With its bottom-up approach, it stimulates international collaborative research and innovation projects that will be rapidly commercialised.
There are hundreds of international projects led by R&D-performing SMEs from Eurostars Participating States and Partner Countries. Organisations of all types from across the globe are receiving government and European Commission support to improve their performance and focus on world-class market-oriented research and development.
If you are a small company in need of public funding for your innovative idea, participation in a Eurostars project can bring you a passport to growth, further innovation, an opening to new global markets and even greater business success.
Assistance is available for pan-European near-market, collaborative R&D projects which lead to the development of advanced products, processes or services. Assistance may include help with finding partners and the lowering of likely barriers to commercial success.
EUROSTARS project portfolio features a number of technological areas including Agriculture and Marine Resources. In this area, previously funded Eurostars projects included sustainable agriculture, agritech; crop production, protection and management; innovation in plant breeding and aquaculture resources
When applying for Eurostars funding, note that Eurostars has two submission deadlines per year.
No deadlines currently set.
The UK Government’s Seafood Innovation Fund (SIF) is a £10 million research and development (R&D) fund that launched in July 2019.
The 3-year programme focuses on delivering longer term, cutting-edge innovation across the seafood sector; helping to take innovative ideas from early stage research to commercial viability. Products must benefit the sustainability and productivity of the seafood industry. Applications for collaborative projects that include both seafood sector organisations and technology businesses are encouraged.
To be considered for funding you must provide an innovative idea or solution relevant to the seafood sector; demonstrate long-term sustainability and environmental benefits; be from an organisation of any size within the EU; follow the full submission process correctly.
The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) is administering the SIF programme on behalf of the UK Government.
The Seafood Innovation Fund is not currently open for applications.
Applicants to a second funding call will be notified of the outcome in due course.
This scheme is for academic scientists who want to work on a collaborative project with industry and for scientists in industry who want to work on a collaborative project with an academic organisation. This exciting opportunity allows researchers to establish personal, scientific and corporate links between sectors.
The Industry Fellowship, part of the Royal Society's Industry programme, aims to enhance knowledge transfer in science and technology between those in industry and those in academia in the UK.
The scheme provides a basic salary for the researcher and a contribution towards research costs.
This scheme, part of the Royal Society's Industry programme, enables scientists employed in industry or academia and/or their postdoctoral researcher to have shorter more dynamic engagements between academia and industry, working on a mutually beneficial and collaborative project.
Collaborations between academia and early-stage companies are particularly encouraged. It is anticipated that the personal and corporate links established by the researcher between the two sectors in the UK will seed longer-term collaborations and contribute to their long-term future development.
The Royal Society of Edinburgh Enterprise Fellowships enable promising science and technology researchers to grow into successful entrepreneurs.
Fellowships funded by Scottish Enterprise comprise the bulk of the programme. These awards are designed to encourage and enable the development of a new business based in Scotland around a technological idea developed by the Enterprise Fellow, either individually or with others, and within which the Enterprise Fellow would be expected to play a leading, though not necessarily the leading, role.
The Royal Society of Edinburgh
Awards are twice a year. Closing dates are generally April and October. The next call will be announced in the Summer.TRAIN@ed is an ambitious new postdoctoral fellowship scheme providing researchers from around the world the opportunity to develop their career in one of the world’s leading universities. Each Fellow will take part in a dedicated skills development programme designed to help the Fellow establish a sustainable career in research.
TRAIN@Ed Fellowships have a focus on collaborative research with industry, the creative arts or third sector organisations. Fellowships will normally be 3 years long. Training, mentoring and career development of the Fellows are major features of the TRAIN@Ed programme.
TRAIN@Ed is a Horizon 2020 Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions COFUND scheme. It will act as a new innovation tool at the university employing people as joint industry-academic fellows that can work to deepen collaborative partnerships. The aim of the “experienced researcher” programme is to facilitate recruitment of international postdoctoral Fellows.
The TRAIN@Ed project will recruit 25 fellows from around the world, with the first cohort starting in early 2019.
Calls are open to researchers who are eligible for Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions Experienced Researcher Schemes and satisfy the mobility requirements of the COFUND scheme i.e. no more than 12 months spent in the UK in the last three years.
The current round of recruitment is now closed for applications. The next round is due to be advertised in August.
PhD and MScR opportunities are available at The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies.
A number of studentships for taught and research postgraduates are offered each year.
PhD and MScR opportunities are available at The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies.
A number of studentships for taught and research postgraduates are offered each year.
AHDB fund a wide variety of PhD students to support the increase of new talent and ideas into our agricultural and horticultural sectors.
Requests for further information should be sent to studentships@ahdb.org.uk indicating to which sector(s) your question is addressed.
AHDB PhD Studentship Programme
New funding calls will be added regularly so please Bookmark this page for the latest additions and those with deadlines approaching.
Roslin Innovation Centre
The University of Edinburgh
Easter Bush Campus
Midlothian EH25 9RG
