This is a key step in addressing the need to grow the number of clinical researchers, who play a pivotal role in discovery and translational research. Their work drives innovation in the NHS to deliver better patient outcomes and contributes to economic growth.
Through aligned Clinical Future Leaders Fellowships (FLF) funding opportunities, the Medical Research Council (MRC), the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and Cancer Research UK (CRUK) are strengthening support for doctors, dentists and other health and care professionals.
This will enable them to pursue research careers alongside their clinical practice, particularly in academia where career pathways can be fragmented.
Clinical Future Leaders Fellowships
By increasing investment and coordinated action, we are growing the UK’s clinical research capacity and improving access to clinical research careers.
FLF are seven year awards that provide protected research time, leadership development, and help for clinicians to establish their own research teams. Host organisations must commit to offering an open-ended post during or after the fellowship.
Expanding support
MRC is providing up to £5 million additional funding each year to the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) FLF scheme for those pursuing biomedical discovery and early translation research. This aims to at least double the number of FLF awarded to clinicians, building on already strong success rates.
The expanded MRC funding will allow host organisations to nominate additional clinicians, enabling more clinical researchers to secure a fellowship at a critical career stage.
NIHR will launch a new, complementary Clinical FLF for researchers within translational, clinical, and applied health and social care research. This area of research bridges the gap between basic scientific discoveries and their application in clinical practice and public health.
CRUK will refresh its fellowship offer for future clinical academics in cancer research, with an equivalent scheme that aligns with MRC and NIHR.
Removing barriers
Ashley Dalton, Health Minister, said:
Building an NHS fit for the future and cementing the UK’s position as a world leader in life sciences is central to this government’s Plan for Change.
We are removing the barriers which can limit our researchers from undertaking and delivering world leading research and innovation to reduce the lives lost to the biggest killers and improve patient outcomes. Clinical Future Leaders Fellowships are a crucial contribution to increasing research career opportunities for clinicians from all professions by providing clear routes into research leadership roles.
Building on existing investment
The coordinated funding opportunities build on NIHR’s significant investment in clinical academic careers and its recent investment to expand funding opportunities for health and care professionals. The funding opportunities also complement MRC’s ongoing support for clinical researchers.
Professor Lucy Chappell, NIHR Chief Executive and Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department for Health and Social Care, said:
Clinical researchers are essential to driving innovation and improvements within health, social care and the public health system to deliver better patient outcomes, reduced health inequalities and increased economic growth.
This opportunity will attract and support outstanding clinical researchers to deliver high quality research that effectively addresses current and emerging priorities, across the system, while providing a route into longer-term pathways for clinical research leadership.
This programme builds on the NIHR’s comprehensive portfolio of postdoctoral career development opportunities, further enhancing routes into research leadership.
Responding to recommendations
MRC, NIHR and CRUK are working together to respond to recommendations from the ‘Clinical Researchers in the UK’ report, commissioned by the Office for Strategic Coordination of Health Research. The report called for more tenured research posts and clearer career pathways.
As the MRC and NIHR Clinical FLF will require host organisations to commit to open-ended posts during or after the end of the award, they therefore provide a clear route into a long-term post.
Reversing the decline
Dr Catherine Elliott, Director of Research at Cancer Research UK, said:
Clinically trained researchers are a vital part of the cancer research workforce. They bring clinical experience to accelerate progress in cancer research from discoveries in the lab all the way through to the clinic. We are very concerned by the decline in the clinical research workforce, due to the specific challenges facing this group, including a lack of protected time for research and limited routes for clinicians to pursue careers in research.
We will also be offering Clinical Future Leaders Fellowships, which will provide targeted support at this critical career stage as part of our refreshed approach across the clinical academic pathway.
Further details will be provided in the coming months. We are pleased to work with MRC and NIHR to make the pathway more coherent for clinical trainees and encourage more talented clinicians to build their careers in cancer research.
Opportunities for funding
Clinical researchers supported by the UKRI FLF are already delivering world-class research across a wide range of areas, from identifying targets for cancer therapy to developing earlier diagnostics for glaucoma to prevent sight loss.
We welcome new ideas and new leaders wishing to combine research with clinical practice and are currently inviting applications to the UKRI FLF scheme, which closes on 18 June.
NIHR will open their Clinical FLF to applications in autumn 2025. Interested applicants should register for the NIHR funding and support newsletter.
CRUK’s current funding opportunities for clinical academic career support can be found on their website.
The next generation of clinical researchers
Professor Patrick Chinnery, Executive Chair of MRC, said:
The next generation of clinical researchers are essential to building an NHS fit for the future and driving economic growth. Our enhanced fellowship funding will provide clear and attractive routes into secure clinical research leadership positions.
In addition, we are continuing our support for clinical doctorates and early independence while developing approaches to address identified gaps in the pathway and respond to our review of Clinical Academic Research Partnerships.
Our new approach will aim to spread best practice, ensure local and regional support at critical career stages, and enable long-term success for clinical researchers.