About

The Wellcome Discovery Awards provides funding for established researchers and teams from any discipline who want to pursue bold and creative research ideas to deliver significant shifts in understanding related to human life, health and wellbeing.

Funding Information 

• Funding amount: The average size of a Discovery Award is £3.5 million. Applications above £5 million will be subject to additional scrutiny.

• Funding duration: Awards can be up to 8 years, but may be less for some disciplines, and may be longer if held on a part-time basis. The average duration of a Discovery Award is 7 years, although we have supported awards from 3 to 8 years.

Where your administering organisation is based?

• The administering organisation must be in one of the following:

  • UK

  • Republic of Ireland

  • a low- or middle-income country (apart from India and mainland China)

• The organisation must be a not-for-profit and can be a:

  • higher education institution

  • research institute

  • healthcare organisation

  • charity or social enterprise

Who can't apply?

• You are not eligible to apply as a lead applicant on a Discovery Award if you are the lead applicant on two other Discovery Award applications and you are waiting for a decision.

• You cannot apply if you intend to carry out activities that involve the transfer of grant funds into mainland China.

Eligibility

Who can apply?

• You can apply for a Wellcome Discovery Award if you are a researcher who wants to pursue bold and creative research ideas. You must aim to make a major contribution to your research field by:

  • generating significant shifts in understanding

  • developing methodologies, conceptual frameworks, tools or techniques that could benefit health-related research.

  • An award can be held by an established researcher or a team of researchers led by an established researcher.

  • If you are applying as a team of researchers

  • Team size will depend on the proposed research. It will usually range from two to eight applicants, including the lead applicant. The primary location for the research, including the leadership of the programme, must be within the UK, Republic of Ireland and/or a low- and middle-income country.

  • If you are applying as an individual

  • You cannot involve coapplicants in your application and award, but you can still work with collaborators.

Post Date: August 12, 2025