UKRI Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund Launch Healthy Ageing Challenge Call

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), via the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), is inviting outline proposals for research grants of up to £2 million.

The Healthy Ageing Social, Behavioural and Design Research Programme (SBDRP) is part of the ISCF Healthy Ageing Challenge. The SBDRP will provide £9.5 million to fund interdisciplinary academic-led teams to carry out research into social, behavioural and design aspects of healthy ageing.

Funded projects may address, but are not limited to, research into the impacts of the COVID-19/coronavirus pandemic on social, behavioural and design aspects of healthy ageing. Projects will also be expected to make a significant contribution to disseminating this knowledge, helping to inform innovators and positively influence market behaviours.

Applicants are encouraged to critically engage with one or more social, behavioural and design aspect of the Healthy Ageing Challenge themes outlined in the Challenge Framework. These are:

Sustaining physical activity: to help people in mid-and later life to increase and sustain their levels of physical activity

Maintaining health at work: to promote and maintain older workers’ health and wellbeing

Design for age-friendly homes: to enable people to live independently and safely at home for longer with innovative products and services

Managing common complaints of ageing: to improve the quality of life of people in later life with a range of common health conditions

Living well with cognitive impairment: to improve the quality of life for older people living with cognitive impairment

Creating healthy active places: to develop places that encourage people in later life to sustain physical activity.

Principal Investigators (PIs) must be based at a UK Research Organisation eligible for UKRI funding for the duration of the award.

Research grants of up to £2 million (at 100% fEC) for a period of up to 36 months are available.

UKRI intend to make 3-5 awards.

Outline proposals must be submitted online by 7 July 2020.

Successful applicants will be invited to submit a full proposal, with a deadline of 5 November 2020.

More information about this research funding opportunity and the application process is available on the RESEARCHconnect funding information platform. RESEARCHconnect provides up-to-the minute content, insight and analysis on research funding news and policy. To find out more about how RESEARCHconnect can keep you in the know, and subscription fees, contact us today.