Great ideas don’t follow a single path. Some begin as early-stage concepts, others grow through focused projects, and some develop into large collaborative programmes. Alzheimer’s Research UK’s refreshed funding portfolio is designed to support researchers at every stage of that journey.

The refresh reflects what we’ve heard from the dementia research community, alongside lessons learned from delivering our funding schemes over many years. As the field has grown, research questions have become increasingly complex, often requiring expertise from multiple disciplines, longer-term collaboration and different types of support at different stages of discovery.

In response, we’ve introduced a new Programme Award and refreshed our existing Pilot and Project Awards. Together, these schemes create a clearer pathway for researchers to develop ideas, build evidence, establish collaborations and progress towards larger programmes of research.

By supporting research across prevention, diagnosis and treatment, the refreshed portfolio is designed to help researchers tackle some of the biggest challenges in dementia research while strengthening collaboration, capability and leadership across the field.

Explaining the thinking behind the changes, Dr Jacqui Hanley, our Head of Research Funding says: “We’ve spent time listening and reviewing how our schemes are being used, considering how the dementia research landscape is evolving. One message came through consistently: researchers need different types of support at different stages of the research journey.

“At the same time, the science itself is becoming more complex. Many of the important questions in dementia research require collaboration across disciplines, institutions and areas of expertise. We wanted to ensure our funding portfolio reflects that reality.

“With the changes we have brought through, we hope we offer a clearer pathway from early exploration through to large-scale programmes of research. Whether researchers are testing a new idea, addressing a focused research question or leading a collaborative programme, we want them to be able to identify the funding opportunity that best fits their ambitions and helps them take the next step.”

Choosing the right funding route

The refreshed portfolio is designed to support researchers at different stages and scales of ambition:

• Pilot Award: Best suited to researchers testing new ideas, generating preliminary data or building new collaborations.
• Project Award: Best suited to focused, hypothesis-driven projects with clear objectives.
• Programme Award: Best suited to established collaborative teams proposing integrated, multi-workstream research.

 Supporting collaborative research at scale

The Programme Award is a response to the growing need for team science within dementia research. While individual projects remain critically important, some of today’s challenges can no longer be addressed through individual projects alone. They require sustained collaboration across multiple disciplines, technologies and areas of expertise.

The new scheme is intended to give researchers the flexibility and stability needed to pursue larger, integrated programmes of work whilst building long-term scientific leadership, infrastructure and sustained capacity.

By supporting coordinated programmes built around a shared scientific vision, the award aims to help researchers tackle complex questions in dementia prevention, diagnosis and treatment that require a scale of effort beyond a single project.

A renewed focus for Pilot Awards

Many of the most exciting opportunities in research begin as ideas that are not yet ready for traditional project funding. There needs to be a space to test new concepts, generate preliminary data, establish collaborations and explore innovative approaches before applying for larger awards.

The Pilot Award has been redesigned to address these challenges.

Crucially, a key aim of the refreshed Pilot Award is to strengthen our unwavering support for future leaders in the field. The scheme offers early-career researchers an opportunity to secure their first independent funding, gain experience leading a research project, and establish the evidence needed to compete for larger grants in the future.

We also encourage researchers from outside the dementia field to apply. The complexity of dementia means that progress towards a cure cannot be achieved through traditional dementia research alone. Therefore, applicants from other disciplines are encouraged to collaborate with dementia researchers to explore how their knowledge, technologies or methodologies could help answer crucial questions in dementia research.

Core support through Project Awards

Alongside the new and refreshed schemes, our Project Award will continue to provide core funding to support transformative dementia research.

Previously known as the Major Project grant, the scheme has been renamed and refined to better suit the type of research it is intended to support.

The award will provide up to £500,000 over four years for focused, hypothesis-driven projects that address clearly defined questions in dementia research.

The scheme will continue to support research across areas including disease mechanisms, diagnosis, prevention and treatment, while also helping strengthen research capability through training and team development.

Next steps if these schemes sound right for you

Researchers interested in applying can review the full guidance for each scheme, including eligibility criteria, application timelines and assessment processes, on the Alzheimer’s Research UK grant schemes webpage.

If you’re considering an application, contact the Research team at research@alzheimersresearchuk.org to discuss ideas, ask questions and help find the funding opportunity that best fits your plans.