Background: The Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) associated with the five inaugural Academic Health Science Centres (AHSCs) in England (Cambridge Enterprise, Imperial Innovations Ltd, King’s Business, UCL Business PLC and University of Manchester Intellectual Property Ltd / TRUSTECH) have worked together to scope unmet healthcare needs in the area of ‘Enhancing Functional Rehabilitation.’ This initiative led by MIMIT (Manchester: Integrating Medicine and Innovative Technology) is funded by the National Innovation Centre and Arthritis Research UK. We are now seeking solutions to one of the unmet healthcare needs arising from this collaboration.

Objective: To provide 12 months seed grant funding (Arthritis Research UK or National Innovation Centre) to support early stage, collaborative research projects to address this particular unmet healthcare need. This funding will be matched by the Principal Investigators relevant Technology Transfer Organisation (TTO).

Amount of award per project: Up to £80k total per project will be awarded for a period of 12 – 18 months. Up to three projects may be supported simultaneously addressing the same unmet healthcare need.

Eligibility: This initiative is open to investigators employed by one of the following Academic Health Science Centres in England where matched funding commitment has been assured from the associated Technology Transfer Organisation:

Cambridge University Health Partners
Imperial College Academic Health Sciences Centre (Imperial College and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust the latter comprising St Mary’s, Hammersmith, Queen Charlotte’s & Chelsea, Charing Cross and Western Eye Hospitals)
Kings Health Partners
Manchester Academic Health Science Centre
UCL Partners (UCL, UCH, Moorefield’s, Great Ormond St or the Royal Free)

Application process: Applications are evaluated in two phases: a solicitation for two-page outline proposal and a second phase for full proposals. Outline proposals are structured to enable you to briefly describe:

The technology / idea
How the technology will address the unmet healthcare need?
Which of the specific aspects of the clinical problem you are addressing?
The expertise within the team to address the unmet healthcare need.
If invited to the full proposal stage you will be required to provide in seven pages:
A summary of the proposed work
A description of the proposed solution and why it should be pursued
A description of the proposed work, specific aims and associated milestones
A description of the team members and their contributions
An outline of the potential challenges and how they may be addressed
A breakdown of the budget and associated justification
An outline of the next steps you anticipate upon completion of the proposed work

Deadline for submission of outline proposals is midnight on the 30th June 2013

Based upon a review and selection of the most promising projects in phase one, invitations are extended to a limited number of applicants to submit full proposals during phase two. The deadline for submission for full proposals will be midnight on the 31st August 2013.

Applicant Resources: All investigators must discuss their application with their relevant Technology Transfer Organisation who will be able to help with the process. The TTO will work with you during the period of the award to optimize the potential for leverage of follow on funding. General questions may be posed to MIMIT facilitating oversight of this development by email info@mimit.org.uk

Details of the challenge: Not all of the problems or all of the considerations need to be taken into account when putting forward outline proposals. Project proposals should be feasible, realistic and describe a technology solution.

The problem:
For long term conditions patients require on-going monitoring/recurrent healthcare appointments and
treatment.
There is a great potential for tele monitoring services for patients with arthritis as well as other conditions.
A significant portion of the appointment time might be taken by gathering information.
Information is a snapshot of an individual’s current health and is a subjective measure.
Gathering relevant information over a period of time (e.g. days) before an appointment may provide more detailed/better information.
Information made available to the healthcare professional before appointment could focus time in appointment to address key issues.
Capturing information following an appointment or start of new treatment may enable better monitoring of an individual’s condition.
Could enable quicker responses to when problems begin to occur and spacing appointments more appropriately.
Better documentation of patient outcomes is needed.

Considerations for a potential solution:
A system/device to gather the relevant information that may or may not be condition dependent
Must enable remote/home monitoring
System must measure key factors that are used to define improvement in patient health/wellbeing
Could start with a simple electronic questionnaire to capture basic information usually gathered at an appointment e.g. height, weight.
Could develop into more complex monitoring devices for specific markers/changes in condition
Might be used for monitoring treatment compliance
Ideally data collected and stored is automatically sent and made available to healthcare professional(s)
Collection and storage of data, and real time analysis may provide feedback to patient as to how well they are doing
Ideally aids patient compliance to treatment / monitoring over number of weeks/months
Cost should be taken into consideration i.e. it has been estimated that something costing £3.69 per patient could lead to annual savings to the NHS of £36million per year.
May need to be specific about the limitations of existing technologies and clear identification of the gap in the market the technology is addressing.

The Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) associated with the five inaugural Academic Health Science Centres (AHSCs) in England (Cambridge Enterprise, Imperial Innovations Ltd, King’s Business, UCL Business PLC and University of Manchester Intellectual Property Ltd / TRUSTECH) have worked together to scope unmet healthcare needs in the area of ‘Enhancing Functional Rehabilitation.’ This initiative led by MIMIT (Manchester: Integrating Medicine and Innovative Technology) is funded by the National Innovation Centre and Arthritis Research UK. We are now seeking solutions to one of the unmet healthcare needs arising from this collaboration.

Objective: To provide 12 months seed grant funding (Arthritis Research UK or National Innovation Centre) to support early stage, collaborative research projects to address this particular unmet healthcare need. This funding will be matched by the Principal Investigators relevant Technology Transfer Organisation (TTO).

Amount of award per project: Up to £80k total per project will be awarded for a period of 12 – 18 months. Up to three projects may be supported simultaneously addressing the same unmet healthcare need.

Eligibility: This initiative is open to investigators employed by one of the following Academic Health Science Centres in England where matched funding commitment has been assured from the associated
Technology Transfer Organisation:
Cambridge University Health Partners
Imperial College Academic Health Sciences Centre (Imperial College and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust the latter comprising St Mary’s, Hammersmith, Queen Charlotte’s & Chelsea, Charing Cross and Western Eye Hospitals)
Kings Health Partners
Manchester Academic Health Science Centre
UCL Partners (UCL, UCH, Moorefield’s, Great Ormond St or the Royal Free)

Application Process: Applications are evaluated in two phases: a solicitation for two-page outline proposal and a second phase for full proposals. Outline proposals are structured to enable you to briefly describe:

The technology / idea
How the technology will address the unmet healthcare need?
Which of the specific aspects of the clinical problem you are addressing?
The expertise within the team to address the unmet healthcare need.
If invited to the full proposal stage you will be required to provide in seven pages:
A summary of the proposed work
A description of the proposed solution and why it should be pursued
A description of the proposed work, specific aims and associated milestones
A description of the team members and their contributions
An outline of the potential challenges and how they may be addressed
A breakdown of the budget and associated justification
An outline of the next steps you anticipate upon completion of the proposed work

Deadline for submission of outline proposals is midnight on the 30th June 2013

Based upon a review and selection of the most promising projects in phase one, invitations are extended to a limited number of applicants to submit full proposals during phase two. The deadline for submission for full proposals will be midnight on the 31st August 2013.

Applicant Resources: All investigators must discuss their application with their relevant Technology Transfer Organisation who will be able to help with the process. The TTO will work with you during the period of the award to optimize the potential for leverage of follow on funding. General questions may be posed to MIMIT facilitating oversight of this development by email info@mimit.org.uk

Details of the challenge: Not all of the problems or all of the considerations need to be taken into account when putting forward outline proposals. Project proposals should be feasible, realistic and describe a technology solution.

The problem:
Uncomfortable handles
Difficult to grip
Lack of confidence in the strength of fold away sticks
Poor aesthetics – need to be more socially acceptable
Need to stow upright so don’t have to bend down to retrieve
Considerations for a potential solution:
New handle design that is comfortable and easy to grip
Needs to fold away and be easy to carry around but also can be stowed fully extended and upright so you don’t have to bend down to retrieve
Needs to be strong and provide complete confidence to the user
Needs to look good
Should be a low cost item £5-23k
The direct purchase route is the one taken most often for this piece of equipment
There are many types of walking stick on the market but customisation of handles may be an important next step
May want to consider new technologies such as 3D printing as a means of producing low cost customised handles.
May need to take into account an ergonomic review of existing stick in order to identify the most effective design in terms of grip and stability.

The Translational Stem Cell Research Committee (TSCRC) has been established to fund investigator-led research proposals that have clear translational goals, and will consider applications from across the UK. The funding mechanism will also provide a platform for partnership funding which will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

The Technology Strategy Board and the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) are to invest up to £1m in feasibility studies to stimulate the development of new multi-disciplinary approaches to software development.

We are looking to fund projects that seek to create novel approaches to critical parts of the software development process, such as capturing user requirements and understanding user culture, and the translation of these into proposals for effective business methodologies suitable for small projects and budgets.

Our aim is to reduce the amount of software that is produced that is unfit-for-purpose, because it is developed without a real understanding of the contexts that users are working in, or their cultures and behaviours, and so does not meet user requirements. The AHRC is particularly keen to encourage innovative engagement with research expertise from across the full spectrum of the arts and humanities.

The competition aims to enable software development teams to work with partners with complementary expertise from non-software disciplines (eg the arts, humanities and social sciences), to explore new and better ways of working, meaning that the value of significant annual investment in software development in the UK can be maximised.

Feasibility studies are open to companies of all sizes, and must be business-led and collaborative. Projects can attract up to 75% public funding for SME business partners (65% for larger organisations). Total project costs should not exceed £66,666. We expect projects to last up to six months.

This competition opens on 28 May 2013. A briefing event for applicants will be held on the same day. The deadline for registration for the competition is noon on 3 July 2013, and the deadline for submission of applications is noon on 10 July 2013.

We are also launching a call for Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs), lasting up to one year, and focusing on bringing academic learning into software development business practice. The call will open in May 2013. Any organisations applying to both competitions must make sure that their proposals can stand alone and are not dependent on both applications being successful.

Supporting either early- or late-stage product development, i4i is positioned to transform the translation of healthcare technologies for increased patient benefits

The New Agents Committee (NAC) funding scheme provides a one-step process for selecting new anti-cancer treatments and diagnostics and taking them into early clinical trials.

The NAC was set up by Cancer Research UK's Drug Development Office (DDO).

The NAC meets four times a year and comprises clinicians expert in early clinical trials of novel agents as well as other experts in drug development.

Therapeutics, Devices and Diagnostics Development
The Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme/Developmental Clinical Studies scheme (DPFS/DCS) supports the translation of fundamental discoveries toward benefits to human health. It funds the pre-clinical development and early clinical testing of novel therapeutics, devices and diagnostics, including “repurposing” of existing therapies.

The DPFS/DCS scheme combines the previous individual translational funding schemes, permitting a more flexible and integrated approach to the development of new interventions and diagnostics. This scheme forms part of the MRC’s Translational Research Strategy.

EPSRC are inviting outline proposals for Healthcare Impact Partnerships in the area of advanced materials and nanotechnology for healthcare. A budget of £5 million is available to support projects that will progress previous EPSRC funded research in advanced materials and nanotechnology towards translation within a healthcare application. Proposals should build upon existing strengths and expertise and demonstrate potential to address an unmet healthcare need and/or offer significant added value over current or alternative healthcare solutions.

This call is open to eligible UK academics who have held an EPSRC grant or portfolio of grants in advanced materials and nanotechnology. Applicants will be required to work in partnership with at least one industrial partner to progress their previous research outputs towards translation. Partner(s) will be expected to provide a financial contribution to support the project and play an active role in development of the research project and pathways to impact.

Proposals will be assessed on the impact generated from their previous EPSRC funded grant, the suitability of the proposed research team, the quality of the proposed research and the extent to which further support will progress the previously funded research towards translation.

The 2013 NERC Industrial CASE Studentship Competition is now open. This replaces the Open CASE Studentship competition.

The Industrial CASE Studentship Competition promotes collaboration between the research community and the end-users of research.

NERC, BBSRC, MRC and STFC are now working together on Industrial CASE Studentships. 31 July is a common closing date for all councils with Industrial CASE competitions. This will allow us to transfer any applications which are better suited to another council's remit.

A CASE studentship is a PhD studentship during which the student enhances their training by spending between 3 and 18 months with the CASE partner in a workplace outside the academic environment.

It aims to benefit both the end-user and the student. It provides outstanding students with access to training, facilities and expertise not available in an academic setting alone.

CASE partners benefit from a motivated, high-quality PhD student undertaking cutting-edge research relevant to their organisation's priorities and objectives. The studentship also provides opportunities develop or strengthen research collaborations with academic partners.

Impact is one of the CASE scheme's main criteria. Applications must demonstrate the potential for societal or economic impact through collaboration with the CASE partner and the provision of high quality training in research skills. For more on impact see the RCUK website.

CASE studentship projects must provide sound training in research methods, and a stimulating intellectual challenge for the student. The work's impetus and initial requirement should originate from the CASE partner.

Both the research organisation and the CASE partner nominate supervisors responsible for overseeing the student's training.

Eligibility requirements
Applications should fall within the NERC science remit. Individuals may make only one application to the scheme, whether it be in the role of supervisor or of co-supervisor. This applies to both the research partner and the CASE partner.

More details on eligibility can be found in the call guidance.

Funding
Awards will be made for 48 months. The total funding awarded each year will be calculated on the basis of: the set student stipend, plus the set research training support grant, plus the set fee level. Awards will be supplemented with London Allowance where necessary.

Feasibility studies, pilot studies and Phase II trials are viewed as purpose-driven preparatory studies, essential for determining the most appropriate questions for the next generation of Phase III trials. The Feasibility Study Project Grants scheme funds studies testing aspects of feasibility or tolerability and/or efficacy.

Cancer Research UK accepts investigator-led studies, except first in man studies, including:

- Single or multi-centre prospective therapeutic (IMP and non-IMP), diagnostic or prevention phase II studies testing aspects of feasibility, tolerability and/or efficacy. Trials may involve more than one NCRN network, or several centres within a network.

- Academically-led feasibility studies in receipt of educational grants or free drugs from the pharmaceutical industry can be submitted for endorsement (industry-sponsored trials cannot be reviewed under this scheme).

The Health Innovation Challenge Fund (HICF) is a parallel funding partnership between the Wellcome Trust and the Department of Health. The funders are collaborating to stimulate the creation of innovative healthcare products, technologies and interventions, and facilitate their development for the benefit of patients in the NHS and beyond. The HICF will have a succession of thematic calls for proposals, each selected to focus on unmet needs in healthcare relevant to the NHS, and will support innovative developments that are within three to five years of launch or adoption.

Science-led, responsive mode grants where an industrial partner contributes in cash at least 10% of the full economic cost of the project. Additional in-kind contributions from industry are welcome but they neither count against the industry contribution nor the total cost of the project. (See FAQs for example calculations.)

Applications are assessed by our Research Committees, alongside standard applications, using the same criteria. IPA projects are normally funded in preference to standard grants of equivalent scientific merit.

EPSRC has made an allocation to the University of Cambridge for the Impact Acceleration Account over a 3 year period. One of the aims of the fund is to enhance the exploitation of the outputs of EPSRC funded research. The University has elected to use part of this fund for a Follow-on Fund to help fund the early stages of commercialisation of technologies, to make the ideas more attractive for commercial investment. The fund is open to develop ideas which have arisen from EPSRC funded research, which may be either research grants or studentships. The call document, which includes full information on the Fund and the Follow-on Fund application form, can be found at http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/offices/rso/internal/iaa/.

Application process:

An Expression of Interest for bids to be submitted to the first round, consisting of a one paragraph description of the project, should be submitted to researchstrategy@admin.cam.ac.uk by 24th April 2013. There will be no assessment at this stage. The purpose of the EoI stage is to identify likely number of applications and the thematic areas of applications. The applicants who do not submit an EoI won’t be considered at the full selection stage.

The deadline for submission of the bids for the first round is 31st May 2013. Applications must be made on the attached application form and be submitted to researchstrategy@admin.cam.ac.uk.

For advice on applications or to discuss any aspect of your application please contact Cambridge Enterprise – either your usual contact or, if you haven’t worked previously with Cambridge Enterprise, then email enquiries@enterprise.cam.ac.uk

The grants will be awarded as a result of competitive bids within the University, and we anticipate running three rounds of funding per year. The bids will be reviewed by a cross-disciplinary selection panel consisting of academics with commercial experience nominated by the schools and industrial and investor representatives.

The Technology Strategy Board is to invest up to £500,000 to establish new Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs) in multi-disciplinary software design (MDSD), to enable UK businesses to draw on the latest research in this area. In addition, the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) will consider co-funding projects if they involve arts and humanities academic disciplines.

The aim of this initiative is to enable industry to access the MDSD expertise that is available within the UK research base, and to translate it into innovative business practice. The AHRC is particularly keen to encourage businesses to access academic expertise from across the full spectrum of the arts and humanities.

Although there have been many initiatives to involve external expertise (ie expertise from outside computer science) in the software production process after the code has been developed, this initiative focuses on helping businesses access that expertise at the initial stage of software engineering.

We are seeking proposals that will lead to the development of new multi-disciplinary approaches to critical parts of the software development process, such as the capture of user requirements and understanding of user culture, and the translation of these into effective business methodologies that are suitable for small projects and budgets.

Our aim is to reduce the amount of software that is produced that is unfit-forpurpose, because it is developed without a real understanding of the contexts that users are working in, or their cultures and behaviours, and so does not meet user requirements.

This targeted call for KTPs is part of a £1.5m programme to develop innovative ideas and facilitate new cross-sector, industry-led collaborations, bringing software developers together with professionals from non-computer-science disciplines, in small-scale software development. It runs in parallel with a competition for feasibility studies funding, supported by the Technology Strategy Board and the Arts and Humanities Research Council, which encourages software companies to experiment with MDSD and to try out new formats and methodologies in this area.

Through this investment we aim to:
help UK software businesses to access academic learning and embed it into business practice
encourage small software companies to experiment with MDSD and create a pool of companies that understand its benefits
give those companies an edge over other software companies that do not employ these methods.
Our ultimate aim is to ensure that the value of significant annual investment in software development in the UK can be maximised.

We will part-fund KTPs. The competition opens for applications on 28 May 2013 and the final deadline for proposals is noon on 2 October 2013. A briefing and brokering event for potential applicants will be held on 28 May 2013.

Follow-on funding is designed to help demonstrate the commercial potential of ideas arising from Research Council funded research. It provides financial support at the very early or pre-seed stage of turning research outputs into a commercial proposition. The programme enables activities essential to preparing a robust business plan and secure further funding to progress commercially. This might include:

• Undertaking further scientific and technical development of an idea.
• Improving an IP position through, for example, supporting further work to exemplify or broaden patent claims.
• Gaining further information about the market for the new products or process.
• Identifying potential licensees or opportunities for joint ventures.

Eligibility: Applicants must be researchers employed by a UK university or BBSRC funded institute and must hold a permanent academic post and have or have had grant funding, with relevance to the application, from the BBSRC. Projects must draw substantially on previous BBSRC-funded research.

Funding: Typical grants are expected to be under £250,000 (fEC) and 12 months in duration, of which BBSRC will pay the standard 80% fEC proportion. A small number of larger strategic awards (Super Follow-on Funding) are also available which will be valued between £250,000 and £1M per annum (fEC) and will be 12-24 months in duration, of which BBSRC will pay the standard 80% fEC proportion.

Applications for this call require a letter of support from Cambridge Enterprise and their involvement in the management of any successful grants. Potential applicants should contact Iain.Thomas@enterprise.cam.ac.uk as soon as possible to discuss their project.

For more information see: http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/business/commercialisation/follow-on.aspx

The Wellcome Trust invites preliminary applications for its seeding drug discovery scheme. The aim is to develop drug-like, small molecules that will be the springboard for further research and development by the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry. Projects must address an unmet need in healthcare or in applied medical research, offer a potential new solution, and have a realistic expectation that the innovation will be developed further by the market. It is expected that 6-9 projects will be selected to submit a full proposal and 3-4 will receive funding.

Applications require the involvement of Cambridge Enterprise. It is highly advisable to contact Cambridge Enterprise as early as possible in the process, who have experience of this scheme and can provide advice and assistance throughout the application process. Please contact Dr Iain Thomas (iain.thomas@enterprise.cam.ac.uk) in the first instance.

Funding: There is no set size for these awards, but it is expected that most awards will be in the range of £1M-£3M and will provide support for 10-20FTEs (including contract research services, as appropriate). Project duration will be determined by how advanced the candidate compounds have to be to have a good prospect of attracting third-party funding. It is, however, expected that projects will last no longer than three years.

Eligibility: Applicants should normally hold a position of responsibility within the University and be able to sign up or comply with the conditions or terms of an award. Postdoctoral research assistants are eligible for co-applicant status if they make a significant contribution to a research proposal and have agreement from their funding agency. Researchers from disciplines outside biomedicine can apply providing the application of research is designed to facilitate or meet a need in healthcare. For example, the application of physics, chemistry, computing, engineering and materials science to the development of medical products is entirely appropriate.

The Translational Stem Cell Research Committee (TSCRC) has been established to fund investigator-led research proposals that have clear translational goals, and will consider applications from across the UK. The funding mechanism will also provide a platform for partnership funding which will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Feasibility studies, pilot studies and Phase II trials are viewed as purpose-driven preparatory studies, essential for determining the most appropriate questions for the next generation of Phase III trials. The Feasibility Study Project Grants scheme funds studies testing aspects of feasibility or tolerability and/or efficacy.

Cancer Research UK accepts investigator-led studies, except first in man studies, including:

- Single or multi-centre prospective therapeutic (IMP and non-IMP), diagnostic or prevention phase II studies testing aspects of feasibility, tolerability and/or efficacy. Trials may involve more than one NCRN network, or several centres within a network.

- Academically-led feasibility studies in receipt of educational grants or free drugs from the pharmaceutical industry can be submitted for endorsement (industry-sponsored trials cannot be reviewed under this scheme).

Therapeutics, Devices and Diagnostics Development
The Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme/Developmental Clinical Studies scheme (DPFS/DCS) supports the translation of fundamental discoveries toward benefits to human health. It funds the pre-clinical development and early clinical testing of novel therapeutics, devices and diagnostics, including “repurposing” of existing therapies.

The DPFS/DCS scheme combines the previous individual translational funding schemes, permitting a more flexible and integrated approach to the development of new interventions and diagnostics. This scheme forms part of the MRC’s Translational Research Strategy.

Translational research bridges the gap between scientific research and patient care, bringing about clinical benefits in the most efficient way. This may advance current practice or enable innovative discoveries to be efficiently transferred into practical tools to prevent, diagnose and treat human disease.

Translational research is a dynamic and evolving process to continually improve healthcare and should not stop once the technology is at the patient's bedside. It can be thought of as taking a scientific breakthrough from ‘laboratory bench to hospital bedside and back to bench’ to be further improved. For example, it may help to explain why some treatments stop working or why side-effects may occur.

These grants show our commitment to supporting innovative 'bench-to-bedside' research which can improve the health and treatment of patients with cardiovascular disease.

Maximum award: £150,000
Closing date: 1pm, 1 February every year, applications accepted from the beginning of January.

The Translational Stem Cell Research Committee (TSCRC) has been established to fund investigator-led research proposals that have clear translational goals, and will consider applications from across the UK. The funding mechanism will also provide a platform for partnership funding which will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Therapeutics, Devices and Diagnostics Development
The Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme/Developmental Clinical Studies scheme (DPFS/DCS) supports the translation of fundamental discoveries toward benefits to human health. It funds the pre-clinical development and early clinical testing of novel therapeutics, devices and diagnostics, including “repurposing” of existing therapies.

The DPFS/DCS scheme combines the previous individual translational funding schemes, permitting a more flexible and integrated approach to the development of new interventions and diagnostics. This scheme forms part of the MRC’s Translational Research Strategy.

Research projects with an emphasis on (1) novel and emerging technologies and (2) their application to cardiovascular disease prevention and/or treatment, which can be expected to benefit patients within a foreseeable timeframe, will be considered. Appropriate approaches include tissue and bioengineering, the development and evaluation of new diagnostic and therapeutic devices, bioimaging, nanotechnology, biomaterials, genomic and proteomic approaches, computational biology and bioinformatics. NET Grants are not appropriate for funding clinical trials.

Translating research into healthcare improvements and enhanced economic prosperity is central to the MRC’s mission. A number of recent developments have contributed to a marked improvement in opportunities for academic-industry biomedical research collaborations. MICAs represent MRC’s response to this changing climate and are particularly aimed at encouraging and supporting genuinely collaborative research projects between academic researchers and industry.

The BBSRC new pathfinder scheme enables potential follow-on funding applicants to secure small amounts of funding to carry out preliminary commercial activities.

The Brian Mercer Feasibility Awards aim to provide initial support to test the feasibility of a project and enable holders to investigate the technical and economical feasibility of commercialising an aspect of their scientific research, possibly in conjunction with a third party. These awards are designed to promote innovation and are intended to fill the funding gap between the scientific research and the exploitation of the idea through venture capital. The scheme covers the built environment, clean technology, energy and nanoscience and nanotechnology.

Funded by BBSRC and delivered by the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Enterprise Fellowships are designed to encourage the development of a new business, building on previously funded BBSRC research, around a technological idea developed by the Fellow (either individually or with others) and within which the Fellow would be expected to play a leading (though not necessarily the leading) role. This award is of particular relevance to individuals and ideas who previously received BBSRC Follow-on Funding (although not exclusively).

They provide:

A year’s salary to provide time to develop a full business plan and seek investment
Access to mentors, business experts and professional advisors
Business training to help develop the required skills
Eligibility
Academic and research staff and postgraduates with relevant experience are eligible to apply if employed by a:

UK Higher Education Institution (HEI), or
Institutes of BBSRC

Invited applications for applied R&D projects that are close to existing Wellcome Trust interests. For example, these may build on Trust initiatives in basic science, such as genome-wide association studies, healthcare in low- and middle-income countries, or in areas like malaria, typhoid or TB.