We are running this funding opportunity on the new UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Funding Service so please ensure that your organisation is registered. You cannot apply on the Joint Electronic Submissions (Je-S) system.
The project lead is responsible for completing the application process on the Funding Service, but we expect all team members and project partners to contribute to the application.
Only the lead research organisation can submit an application to UKRI.
To apply
Select ‘Start application’ near the beginning of this Funding finder page:
- Confirm you are the project lead.
- Sign in or create a Funding Service account. To create an account, select your organisation, verify your email address, and set a password.
- Answer questions directly in the text boxes. You can save your answers and come back to complete them or work offline and return to copy and paste your answers. If we need you to upload a document, follow the upload instructions in the Funding Service. All questions and assessment criteria are listed in the How to apply section on this Funding finder page.
- Allow enough time to check your application in ‘read-only’ view before sending to your research office.
- Send the completed application to your research office for checking. They will return it to you if it needs editing.
- Your research office will submit the completed and checked application to UKRI.
Please be aware that research office and finance teams undertake checks on hosting arrangements and financial eligibility. The ultimate responsibility for ensuring compliance with all opportunity requirements lies with the applicant.
Where indicated, you can also demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant.
When including images, you must:
- provide a descriptive caption or legend for each image immediately underneath it in the text box (this must be outside the image and counts towards your word limit)
- insert each new image on a new line
- use files smaller than 5MB and in JPEG, JPG, JPE, JFI, JIF, JFIF, PNG, GIF, BMP or WEBP format
Images should only be used to convey important visual information that cannot easily be put into words. The following are not permitted, and your application will be rejected if you include:
- sentences or paragraphs of text
- tables
- excessive quantities of images
A few words are permitted where the image would lack clarity without the contextual words, such as a diagram, where text labels are required for an axis or graph column.
For more guidance on the Funding Service, see:
References
References should be included within the word count of the appropriate question section. You should use your discretion when including references and prioritise those most pertinent to the application.
Hyperlinks can be used in reference information. When including references, you should consider how your references will be viewed and used by the assessors, ensuring that:
- references are easily identifiable by the assessors
- references are formatted as appropriate to your research
- persistent identifiers are used where possible
General use of hyperlinks
Applications should be self-contained. You should only use hyperlinks to link directly to reference information. You must not include links to web resources to extend your application. Assessors are not required to access links to conduct assessment or recommend a funding decision.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI)
Use of generative AI tools to prepare funding applications is permitted, however, caution should be applied.
For more information see our policy on the use of generative AI in application and assessment.
Deadline
MRC must receive your application by 14 April 2027 at 4:00pm UK time.
You will not be able to apply after this time.
Make sure you are aware of and follow any internal institutional deadlines.
Following the submission of your application to this funding opportunity, your application cannot be changed, and submitted applications will not be amended. If your application does not follow the guidance, it may be rejected.
Personal data
Processing personal data
MRC, as part of UKRI, will need to collect some personal information to manage your Funding Service account and the registration of your funding applications. We will handle personal data in line with UK data protection legislation and manage it securely. For more information, including how to exercise your rights, read our privacy notice.
MRC, as part of UKRI, may share applications and personal information contained within them with relevant government departments, public bodies, charities or other prospective funding partners where this is necessary for assessment, co-funding, award management or related funding activities. Any such sharing will be undertaken in accordance with UKRI’s privacy notices and applicable data protection legislation. For more information, including how to exercise your rights, read our privacy notice.
MRC, as part of UKRI, will need to share the application and any personal information that it contains with Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) so that they can participate in the assessment process. For more information on how DCMS uses personal information, visit the DCMS personal information charter.
Sensitive information
If you or a core team member need to tell us something that you wish to remain confidential, email gamblingexpmed@mrc.ukri.org
Include in the subject line: [the funding opportunity title; sensitive information; your Funding Service application number].
Typical examples of confidential information include:
- individual is unavailable until a certain date (for example due to parental leave)
- declaration of interest
- additional information about eligibility to apply that would not be appropriately shared in the ‘Applicant and team capability’ section
- conflict of interest for UKRI to consider in reviewer or panel participant selection
- the application is an invited resubmission
For information about how UKRI handles personal data, read UKRI’s privacy notice.
Institutional matched funding
There is no requirement for matched funding from the institutions hosting the project lead, project co-leads or other staff employed on the application, beyond the standard 20% FEC. Expert reviewers and panels assessing UKRI funding applications must not consider levels of institutional matched funding as a factor on which to base recommendations. Direct and in-kind contributions from third party project partners are encouraged.
This policy does not remove the need for support from host organisations who must provide the necessary research environment and infrastructure for award-specific activities funded by UKRI. For example, research facilities, training and development of staff.
Publication of outcomes
MRC, as part of UKRI, will publish the outcomes of this funding opportunity at board and panel outcomes.
If your application is successful, we will publish some personal information on the UKRI Gateway to Research.
Summary
Word limit: 550
In plain English, provide a summary we can use to identify the most suitable experts to assess your application.
We usually make this summary publicly available on external-facing websites, therefore do not include any confidential or sensitive information. Make it suitable for a variety of readers, for example:
- opinion-formers
- policymakers
- the public
- the wider research community
Guidance for writing a summary
Clearly describe your proposed work in terms of:
- context
- the challenge the project addresses
- aims and objectives
- potential applications and benefits
Core team
List the key members of your team and assign them roles from the following:
- project lead (PL)
- project co-lead (UK) (PcL)
- project co-lead (international) (PcL (I))
- specialist
- grant manager
- professional enabling staff
- research and innovation associate
- technician
- visiting researcher
- researcher co-lead (RcL) (Not applicable role for new investigator applications)
Only list one individual as project lead. If you include more than one project lead your application will fail at the checking stage.
UKRI has introduced a new addition to the ‘Specialist’ role type. Public contributors such as people with lived experience can now be added to an application.
For all roles, with the exception of public contributors such as people with lived experience, individuals must be based at the lead organisation or a collaborating organisation. Collaborating organisations are those organisations where project co-leads are based. Team members cannot be based at any other organisation.
Find out more about UKRI’s core team roles in funding applications.
New investigator applications
You should note that the role of researcher co-lead (RcL) is not permitted to be selected when you are applying as a new investigator.
To make your leadership role clear and justify the team around you, we encourage you to use the appropriate application sections such as applicant and team capability to deliver.
Application questions
Keywords
Word limit: 10
Provide up to five keywords that describe your application.
What the assessors are looking for in your response
Provide up to a maximum of five keywords including the health area, for example: mental health, engineering biology, environmental health, diagnosis, obesity, vaccine development.
Use commas or spaces to distinguish individual terms or phrases.
This is for administrative purposes to help with the initial application processing and will not affect the overall assessment or influence the outcome of your application.
Related applications
Word limit: 1,500
Is this application a resubmission of a previous experimental medicine stage one or an invited resubmission of a stage two application? If yes, please outline feedback received and the changes made in response to it.
What the assessors are looking for in your response
If your application is not a resubmission, enter ‘n/a’ in the text box, mark this section as complete, and proceed to the next question.
If your application is an invited resubmission to this funding opportunity, please provide the previous application reference number and details of any invitation from MRC permitting the resubmission.
Ensure that you describe:
- how this application differs from the previous application
- how the previous feedback has been considered and addressed
References may be included within this section.
You may demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. Further details are provided in the Funding Service.
New investigator applicants
Word limit: 10
Do you consider yourself eligible to apply as a new investigator for this funding opportunity?
What the assessors are looking for in your response
If you are eligible to apply as a new investigator, answer ‘Yes’ in the text box. At stage two, new investigators will be asked to provide information about their eligibility, career development and research organisation support.
If you are not applying as a new investigator, you will be able to indicate this in the Funding Service.
Find out more about eligibility and applying for a New Investigator Award.
Vision
Word limit: 550
What are you hoping to achieve with your proposed work?
What the assessors are looking for in your response
Explain how your proposed work:
- is of excellent quality and importance within or beyond the field(s) or area(s)
- has the potential to advance current understanding, or generate new knowledge, thinking or discovery within or beyond the field or area
- is timely given current trends, context, and needs
- impacts world-leading research, society, the economy, or the environment
- aligns with and advances the intentions of the gambling levy
Within the ‘Vision’ section we also expect you to:
- outline the current clinical challenge, healthcare burden or knowledge gap
- summarise the current state of understanding about the relevant mechanisms of gambling disorder
- identify the current gap in mechanistic understanding
- state the mechanistic hypothesis to be tested
- identify the potential direct or indirect benefits and who the beneficiaries might be
- if applicable, describe the route to patient benefit
References may be included within this section.
You may demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. Further details are provided in the Funding Service.
Intervention
Word limit: 275
What is the planned intervention?
What the assessors are looking for in your response
Explain the planned intervention to be used in the proposed work, including:
- the type of intervention, which may include compound, biologic, psychological, physiological, behavioural, immunological or environmental challenge
- relevant background information, including its established safety or acceptability profile and use in other mechanistic studies
References may be included in this section.
You may demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. Further details are provided in the Funding Service.
Approach
Word limit: 2,000
How are you going to deliver your proposed work?
What the assessors are looking for in your response
Provide an outline of your project plan, including key milestones, the proposed methodology and experimental design, an adapted risk management strategy, and access to the infrastructure and equipment required to deliver the project.
We suggest you structure your response using the following headings, with approximate words counts for each:
- project plan and milestones: 750 words
- methodology and experimental design: 750 words
- risk management: 300 words
- infrastructure and equipment: 200 words
References may be included throughout the ‘Approach’ section. We suggest you include your references under the most relevant heading. Any references you include count towards the approximate word limit indicated for each heading.
Project plan and milestones
Provide an outline project plan, including project milestones and timelines, demonstrating:
- how you propose to address the identified gap in knowledge
- the objectives of the proposed research in order of priority
- the primary and secondary experimental outcomes and how they relate to the experimental objectives
- how the proposed work packages will ensure the project objectives are achieved
- the success criteria that will be used for each milestone, detailing the robust ‘go or no-go’ criteria
To support your project plan, you must also provide an embedded legible Gantt chart that should include project tasks and project milestones.
Experimental medicine projects must include at least two progression milestones which are:
- major specifically-timed decision points (including the project end goal)
- defined by SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and timely success criteria and, where appropriate, detailed and robust ‘go or no-go’ criteria
Methodology and experimental design
Outline the proposed methodology and experimental design, including:
- the experiments you will undertake to probe the stated hypothesis
- the data you will collect and how it will test the hypothesis
- the proposed trial design and why this approach is appropriate to meet the study objectives
As part of your methodology and experimental design, outline the nature of human participation in your proposed work, including:
- the characteristics of the participants (such as age, disease) and the rationale for their selection
- target and acceptable levels of participant recruitment across the project timeline
- evidence of recruitment feasibility
- how you will obtain the necessary ethical and regulatory approvals, including the current status of any approvals. Consider the MRC guidance on ethics and approvals
- the participant recruitment strategy, including the steps that will be taken if patient recruitment does not reach the set target
- if applicable, outline how any limited animal, library specimen or isolate cell work will inform the human-centric proposed work. For any research involving animals, tissues and cells, you must show how you will use male and female donors in line with MRC guidance on sex in experimental design. If you are not proposing to do this, a strong justification is required
- if applicable, explain and justify the inclusion of public partnerships and the added value these offer
You should detail any information regarding your statistical analysis plan in the ‘Reproducibility and statistical design’ section.
Risk management
Outline the project risks and risk management, including:
- how likely the risks are to occur
- what their impact would be on the success and deliverability of the project
- your risk mitigation strategy, giving particular consideration to any potential safety risks and how these risks will be managed, by whom and related escalation or mitigations procedures
You may use a risk table to support your response.
Infrastructure and equipment
You should also demonstrate access to the appropriate services, clinical support, facilities, infrastructure, or equipment to deliver the proposed work, including details of:
- specialist equipment or infrastructure required to deliver the project objectives
- the use of existing clinical infrastructure such as NIHR Biomedical Research Centres, NIHR Clinical research facilities, patient cohorts
You may demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. Further details are provided in the Funding Service.
Reproducibility and statistical design
Word limit: 250
How will you ensure your proposed work is reliable, robust and reproducible?
What assessors are looking for in your response
Provide a statistical analysis plan.
We expect you to seek professional statistical or other relevant advice in preparing your statistical analysis plan, which may include:
- sample and effect sizes
- planned statistical analyses
Ensure you provide sufficient details to justify your proposed samples and effect sizes, and statistical analysis plan, and any assumptions used
Refer to the MRC guidance for applicants for further information, examples and online tools.
You may demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. Further details are provided in the Funding Service.
Applicant and team capability to deliver
Word limit: 1,800
Why are you the right individual or team to successfully deliver the proposed work?
What the assessors are looking for in your response
Evidence of how you, and if relevant, your team have:
- the relevant experience (appropriate to career stage) to deliver the proposed work
- the right balance of skills and expertise to cover the proposed work
- the appropriate leadership and management skills to deliver the work and your approach to develop others
- contributed to developing a positive research environment and wider community
You may demonstrate elements of your responses in visual form if relevant. Further details are provided in the Funding Service.
The word count for this section is 1,800 words:
- 1,100 words to be used for Résumé for Research and Innovation (R4RI) modules (including references)
- 200 words to summarise the career stage of the core team (an example table will be provided within the Funding Service to assist you with your summary)
- 500 words for Additions, if necessary
Use the R4RI format to showcase the range of relevant skills you and, if relevant, your team (project lead and project co-leads, researchers, technicians, specialists, partners and so on) have and how this will help deliver the proposed work. You can include individuals’ specific achievements but only choose past contributions that best evidence their ability to deliver this work. You are encouraged to include ORCID iDs for individuals where relevant, as this can help to demonstrate and verify their achievements.
Complete this section using the R4RI module headings listed. Use each heading once and include a response for the whole team, see the UKRI guidance on R4RI. You should consider how to balance your answer, and emphasise where appropriate the key skills each team member brings:
- contributions to the generation of new ideas, tools, methodologies, or knowledge. This may include your previous funding and key outputs such as publications
- the development of others and maintenance of effective working relationships
- contributions to the wider research and innovation community
- contributions to broader research or innovation users and audiences and towards wider societal benefit, including public partnerships
- if you are applying as a new investigator, you need to make your leadership role clear and justify the team around you
Additions
Provide any further details relevant to your application. This section is optional and can be up to 500 words. You should not use it to describe additional skills, experiences, or outputs, but you can use it to describe any factors that provide context for the rest of your R4RI (for example, details of career breaks if you wish to disclose them).
Complete this as a narrative. Do not format it like a CV.
References may be included within this section.
Project partners
Add details about any project partners contributions. If there are no project partners, you can indicate this on the Funding Service.
A project partner is a collaborating person or organisation who will have an integral role in your proposed research. This may include direct contributions for example cash, donated equipment and resources, or staff seconded to the project, or indirect and in-kind contributions for example use of project partner’s equipment, datasets, or facilities. Project partners may be in industry, academia, third sector or government organisations in the UK or overseas, including partners based in the EU.
A project partner is not anyone in your core team or anyone from your organisation or any of the other organisations represented by core team members.
If an individual or organisation outside the core team is responsible for recruiting people as research participants or providing human tissue for this project, list them as a project partner.
Add the following project partner details:
- the organisation name (searchable via a drop-down list or enter the organisation’s details manually, as applicable)
- the project partner contact name and email address
- the type of contribution (direct or in-direct) and its monetary value
If a detail is entered incorrectly and you have saved the entry, remove the specific project partner record and re-add it with the correct information.
If there are specific circumstances where project partners do require funding for minor costs such as travel and subsistence, these project partner costs should be claimed and justified in the ‘Resources and costs’ section when submitting an invited stage two application. (Note: the ‘Resources and costs’ section is only applicable during the invited stage 2 application process).
Please note the requirement for independence from gambling industry affiliations. Please contact rpginfo@ahrc.ukri.org before applying to discuss conflicts of interest related to this opportunity.
Important information
If you are adding a project partner to this section, you must ensure they provide you with a letter or email of support and you upload it to ‘Project partners: letters or emails of support’.
If your project partners are from industry or a company, you must also complete the ‘Industry Collaboration Framework (ICF)’ section (Note: the ICF section is only applicable during the invited stage two application process).
Project partners responsible for carrying out animal work
If the project partner is responsible for conducting animal work or providing animals or animal tissue samples, you must ensure that you complete and upload the appropriate forms under the ‘Animal Involvement and ‘3Rs’ section (if applicable). Note: the ‘Research involving the use of animals’ and ‘Conducting research with animals overseas’ are only applicable during the invited stage two application process.
For audit purposes, UKRI requires formal collaboration agreements to be put in place if an award is made.
Project partners: letters (or emails) of support
Word limit: 10
Upload a single PDF containing the letters or emails of support from each partner you named in the ‘Project partners’ section. These should be uploaded in English or Welsh only.
What the assessors are looking for in your response
If you do not have any project partners, you will be able to indicate this in the Funding Service.
What supporting statements we are looking for
We are looking for you to provide letters or emails of support from all your identified project partners.
What we are not looking for
We do not want any other letters (or emails) of support, from people who are not your identified project partners, such as those simply expressing general support for your project. If these are included by you, they will be ignored by us and will not be used in the assessment process.
Important information
You should only provide letters or emails of support from people you have identified in the project partner section of your application, who will have an integral role in your proposed research.
What each project partner letter or email of support must include
Each project partner letter or email you provide should:
- include the name of the project partner organisation and contact information
- explain the project partners’ commitment to the project
- explain the value, relevance, and possible benefits of the proposed work, to them
- describe any additional value they will bring to the project
- not exceed two sides of A4 per project partner
Project partner letters and emails of support are not required to be on headed paper or include handwritten signatures (electronic signatures are acceptable).
The Funding Service will provide document upload details when you apply.
Project partners from industry or a company
Industry or company project partners are required to download and complete the industry or company letter of support template. Note: this is applicable to invited stage two submissions only.
Project partners responsible for recruiting research participants or providing human tissue or samples
If the project partner is responsible for the recruitment of people as research participants or providing human tissue their letter or email of support should include:
- agreement that the project partner will recruit the participants or provide tissue
- confirmation that what is being supplied is suitable for the proposed work
- confirmation that the quantity of tissue being supplied is suitable, but not excessive for achieving meaningful results (if applicable)
Agreement with your project partners
Ensure you have prior agreement from project partners so that, if you are offered funding, they will support your project as indicated in the ‘Project partners’ section.
For audit purposes, UKRI requires formal collaboration agreements to be put in place if an award is made.
Outline costs
What are the expected costs of the proposed work?
Provide the approximate total values in GBP (£) for the expected directly incurred, directly allocated, indirect costs and exceptions. View the guidance on the costs you can apply for.
Ethics and responsible research and innovation (RRI)
What are the ethical and RRI considerations, implications and issues relating to the proposed work? If you do not think that the proposed work raises any ethical or RRI issues, explain why.
What the assessors are looking for in your response
Demonstrate that you have identified and evaluated:
- the relevant ethical and RRI considerations, including both the research or topic area itself and the design and delivery of the project
- the wider implications of the proposed work, and how you will maximise the positive societal, environmental, and economic benefits arising from the project, while minimising unintended negative impacts, such as research misuse or accidental harm
- how you will manage these considerations throughout the lifecycle of the project
Please refer to the UKRI position statement on funding ethical research and Responsible innovation for more information around our expectations on ethical and responsible research and innovation.
Declaration of Interests Form (DoI)
Word limit: 10
As part of our commitment to creating an independent research ecosystem on gambling harms, and to ensure fairness, transparency, and compliance with UKRI policies and standards, the project lead and each project co-lead must complete a DoI.
Please contact rpginfo@ahrc.ukri.org to discuss conflicts of interest to this opportunity.
What the assessors are looking for in your response
Please download the Declaration of Interest Form (DOCX, 43KB) and follow the guidance below:
Comprehensive disclosure
List all relevant interests, including:
- current and past funding from gambling operators, industry-linked charities, or advocacy groups
- consultancy, advisory, or employment roles with gambling-related organisations
- indirect links (for example, student projects, collaborations, or programme-level funding)
- other industry ties that may raise concerns (for example, technology or pharma)
Do not omit details mentioned elsewhere in your application or in public registers of interest.
Transparency and trust
The purpose of the DoI is not to exclude applicants but to ensure trust and transparency. A well-detailed declaration with thoughtful mitigations strengthens your application and aligns with UKRI’s expectations. If there is something you are unsure about, include it. It is better to overshare than omit potentially important information.
Mitigations
Provide clear, specific mitigations for both current and future conflicts.
Examples include:
- ceasing previous projects by a set date
- programme-level separation when institutional funding overlaps
- using transparency measures when lived experience groups have industry ties
- avoiding vague statements (for example, ‘we will follow guidance’) unless referencing verified, existing frameworks
- including details on how evidence bases and existing data sources will be used and scrutinised
Future planning
Outline how you will manage potential conflicts going forward, such as:
- plans to avoid industry funding
- safeguards for stakeholder engagement (for example, not working with licence holders)
- independent oversight mechanisms
Consistency across documents
Ensure your DoI form is consistent with your application and other public registers of interest. Any omission of declared collaborations or funding will be treated seriously and may result in funding being revoked.
Clarity and detail
Provide enough detail for reviewers to understand, including:
- the nature of the relationship (for example, employment, funding, or consultancy)
- the timeline (past, current and future)
- the scope (direct or indirect funding)
Avoid minimalist or identical declarations without explanation.
Lived experience organisations
If involving lived experience groups:
- declare their funding sources
- provide mitigations to address perceptions of conflict if they have industry ties
The Funding Service will provide document upload details when you apply.
Trusted Research and Innovation (TR&I)
Trusted Research and Innovation is the protection of the UK’s intellectual property, sensitive research, people, and infrastructure from potential theft, misuse, and exploitation.
Organisations receiving UKRI funding are obliged to act in line with UK government legislation. They are also expected to undertake appropriate due diligence assessments of organisations involved in research partnerships, collaboration agreements, and commercial contracts.
You will be asked about:
- which areas of the National Security and Investment (NSI) Act your project relates to
- who you intend to collaborate with and how
- if your project requires an export control licence
Your answers may affect the T&Cs of your funding agreement if you are successful. We may use your answers to determine that our current T&Cs are sufficient or if additional T&Cs are required.
