Please find the funding opportunities available from the NHS Gloucestershire and NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB Research Team.
You can find information about eligibility, application deadlines, guidance and application forms in each funding opportunity drop-down below.
For further information or if you have any questions, please email bnssg.research@nhs.net
This is funding provided to support the development of a research project. We are looking to support the co-development of a specific research question relevant to health and care into a strong NIHR grant application.
The NHS Gloucestershire and NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB Research Team is committed to supporting health and care research that addresses the needs of our local population and reduces health inequalities.
We are inviting applications for the following priority areas through the Themed Call, as part of our Responsive Call.
For more information, please read the Responsive Call Themed Call guidance
There are three types of Responsive Call opportunities that you can apply for:
£3,000 to start co-development of research ideas, such as stakeholder engagement and PPI (Patient and Public Involvement) work.
Up to £20,000 for NIHR grant application writing. This can include activities that will help write a high-quality NIHR application, such as preliminary data collection and literature review.
Please submit completed application forms to bnssg.research@nhs.net.
Funding is available for projects that embed evidence into primary care practice, improve patient outcomes and demonstrate sustainable improvements to primary care that address health inequalities. The fund is intended to support implementation and service improvement activity rather than ongoing service provision.
Projects should support primary care organisations to implement evidence, adopt innovation and improve services in ways that reduce health inequalities. The fund aims to generate practical learning that can be shared across the Integrated Care System and beyond.
Evidence suggests that creating better relationships between researchers and commissioners is the most influential factor in getting research into practice. To help foster these relationships, NHS Gloucestershire and NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB cluster offers the Researcher in Residence scheme.
The Researcher in Residence role facilitates the Knowledge Mobilisation initiative in primary healthcare.
The Researcher in Residence will have a key role in:
Researchers can be seconded for 3-12 months part-time, to be negotiated on successful appointment. The role will be based in the NHS Gloucestershire ICB and NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB Integrated Care System (ICS).
If you are an ICS employee with an opportunity for a Researcher in Residence, please complete the application form and email it to the NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB Research team at bnssg.research@nhs.net.
NHS Gloucestershire and NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICBs have an exciting opportunity for a Researcher in Residence to support the service evaluation of the Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Falls Prevention Programme.
Deadline: 30 September 2026, 5pm
Please submit your completed application form and a copy of your research C.V. to bnssg.research@nhs.net
*Please note that this opportunity is initially only open to applicants based within Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire, and Gloucestershire. Please check back after 30 September 2026 if you are a researcher based outside of this area.
For further information, please contact the NHS Gloucestershire and NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB Cluster Research Team at bnssg.research@nhs.net.
Covering salary costs of researchers between NIHR grants, to ensure they do not face redundancy whilst waiting for the next NIHR-funded post to be set up. You can download the application form below.
Back-filling key NIHR-grant funded posts left temporarily vacant during the award period by staff taking maternity, paternity, or long-term sick leave, where absence will seriously compromise the success of NIHR-funded research.
Providing shorter-term support for researchers whose grant application was delayed due to unforeseen circumstances.
For no-cost extensions, please contact bnssg.research@nhs.net.
Funding for an academic to develop and establish a specific area of work within one of our partner University departments. The ICB receives proposals from the University of Bristol and UWE Bristol.
If you are interested in this kind of funding please speak to your relevant contact below:
Funding for methodologist posts within departments who will support a wide range of academic colleagues across a range of research interests with their research – recent examples are a Health Economist, a Medical Statistician, and a Realist Methodologist.
The ICB receives proposals from the University of Bristol and UWE Bristol. These are strategic investments to build capacity within University departments and within the local Health Services.
This award is for academics from the University of Bristol and the University of the West of England (UWE).
This award supports academic colleagues who are a Research Fellow or Senior Research Fellow at the University of Bristol, or an individual in a senior academic/research position at UWE Bristol, who are not core funded by their University employer. This award will enable academics to dedicate time to activities that support their career stability e.g. applying for research grants or Advanced Fellowships.
These awards are intended to help reduce the pressures of short-term contracts by awarding funding of £60,000 over 18 months.
Please speak to your line manager about this award if you are interested.
This scheme supports early-career, post-PhD researchers to establish their academic career, enhance their publication record and develop their first research grant application, for example an NIHR Fellowship or RfPB.
We are very proud to be associated with our Launching Fellows who are outstanding individuals who we believe will become research leaders of the future.
We offer up to £60,000 in funding for applicants from University of Bristol and UWE Bristol.
More information can be found in the guidance:
Practitioner reviewers help us to prioritise research topics and ensure we fund the best applications. Reviewers have a vital role in maintaining and improving the quality of our research.
This is an opportunity to contribute directly to improving the NHS, social care, and public health by helping to shape the research we support.
Our funding initiatives seek to address the most pressing questions in health and social care, and your input will help ensure that the most impactful research is funded.
You will also benefit from gaining insight into best practice in health and social care research and learning more about the standards and characteristics of successful funding applications.
If you are interested to become a reviewer, please complete this expression of interest form.
RCF contributes to the salary costs of various research-related, administrative and research support staff who work to deliver high-quality grant applications and research.
We have joint posts with our partner Universities with staff working for the ICB and the University of Bristol or UWE Bristol.
Our job is to make academic health science thrive locally, and we always seek to improve our services, so if you have ideas about how we can support you better, please let us know by emailing bnssg.research@nhs.net.