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Your latest funding opportunities
The Health Innovation East Midlands funding newsletter highlights funding opportunities for innovators. For each opportunity we have provided a brief summary and a link to the full details.
We help bring health and social care innovations to patients faster, to improve patient outcomes, increase value for the NHS, and support economic growth for UK plc. In supporting commercial, academic and clinical innovators we help develop solutions to real needs, develop the evidence base supporting those solutions, offer support to navigate appropriate governance standards, and drive adoption.
This newsletter is split into categories to help to organise the content by interest. These categories are industry, research and NHS. | |
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If you are an innovator looking for support, please complete our East Midlands innovator engagement form to tell us more about your innovation. | |
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Featured funding opportunities | |
International growth bursary for health innovators | The Health Innovation Network has launched a new international growth bursary with ABHI, supporting eligible health innovators to explore international accelerator opportunities in the US and Middle East.
The application form and full eligibility information are available via the Network website.
Deadline: 29 October 2026 | | Horizon Europe 2026-2027: Health Cluster | The European Commission has published all of the 2026-27 Horizon Europe Work Programmes, which list the funding opportunities under the 2026-27 call topics.
Businesses, universities, research institutes, charities, and not-for-profits could all be eligible to apply for Horizon Europe funding to advance cutting-edge research and innovation, fostering lasting impact and meaningful change.
Various closing dates in Sep 2026, Apr 2027 and Sep 2027 | | | |
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NIHR Invention for Innovation (i4i FAST programme) | This opportunity is seeking technologies that can improve prevention, diagnosis, monitoring, treatment, self-management and long-term care for chronic respiratory conditions in both children and adults, particularly within community, primary care and home settings. Awards of £50,000 to £100,000 are available for projects lasting 6 to 12 months. Deadline: 20 October 2026
| | N-CODE Innovation Challenge | The N-CODE Innovation Challenge is looking for concepts, ideas and innovations that could fundamentally change how neurological care is delivered in the NHS. Particularly in approaches using wearable technologies, digital biomarkers, artificial intelligence, and mathematical modelling to support earlier diagnosis, better monitoring, and more effective management of neurological conditions closer to home.
Deadline: 18 November 2026 | | | |
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Through Ignite. Health Innovation East Midlands offers bespoke services to support health innovations no matter where they are in their development timeline. Within this fast-moving environment, we have a specific focus in the development and delivery of the work packages that are required for the majority of the funding competitions within the UK today. With an excellent return of successful partnerships and funding wins, we can support innovators in the following key deliverable areas including (but not limited to): Pathway Mapping, Stakeholder Mapping, PPI (Patient & Public Involvement), EDI (Equality, Diversity & Inclusion), Value Proposition, Budget/Cost Impact Analysis, Health Economics, Business Case, Commercialisation, and Adoption and Spread. Ignite and Health Innovation East Midlands' focus and experience aligned with our NHS background and expertise allows us to support innovators in a unique way that has led to many successful funding competitions for our partners. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact us at:ignite@nottingham.ac.uk | |
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Other funding opportunities | |
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UKRI Translation: MRC Impact Acceleration Awards (formerly Gap Fund)
Deadline: 1 November 2026 £50k–£300k for a single high-risk translational step (data generation) on a new/repurposed medicine, device or diagnostic. Led by MRC-eligible research organisations; health SMEs typically participate as commercial/development partners rather than lead applicants. | |
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Advancing innovation in accelerated cancer diagnosis
Deadline: 28 October 2026 Innovate UK, on behalf of the Office for Life Sciences’ (OLS) Cancer Healthcare Goals programme, will invest up to £25.4 million, to support the clinical validation and evaluation of early cancer diagnostic technologies and devices. | |
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Future Leaders Fellowships: Round 11, business and non-academic
Deadline: 4 November 2026 UK registered organisations can apply for a share of up to £110 million to deliver ambitious research and innovation and develop future leaders. This funding is from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). | |
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UKRI Translation: MRC Proof of Concept (formerly DPFS) – Stage One
Deadline: 18 November 2026 Funds pre-clinical development and early clinical testing (up to Phase 2a) of new therapeutics, devices and diagnostics. Lead applicants must be at an MRC-eligible research organisation, but SMEs are strongly encouraged as industry collaborators/cofunders | |
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UK-Singapore CR&D 2026
Deadline: 1 December 2026 UK registered businesses can apply for a share of up to £3 million for the purpose of developing innovative proposals with Singapore. You must collaborate with at least one Singapore business applying under the equivalent Enterprise Singapore programme. | |
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HSBC Women's Business Growth Initiative
Deadline: Open HSBC's Women's Business Growth Initiative £250 million funding pot, looking to partner with women-led businesses. Specialist pitch workshops and events, and masterclasses have been developed with businesses led and owned by women in mind to help you grow your business. Personalised funding support for businesses led by women from an HSBC relationship manager for lending needs over £100,000. | |
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Access to Isambard-AI and Dawn AIRR supercomputers
Deadline: Open Apply for 10,000 graphics processing unit hours on the Isambard-AI and Dawn supercomputers for artificial intelligence-related research and development projects. Open to UK researchers from academia, industry, or other organisations. | |
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