The information in this section should be read in conjunction with our Standard Conditions of Grant, which contain the standard terms to which all awards are subject.
We reserve the right to make awards subject to further terms and conditions on a case-by-case basis.
Award activation
Awards may only be activated after we have received the Grant Acceptance Form and satisfactory written acceptance of the terms upon which they are made.
1. Subject (field of research)
Basic or applied clinical research relevant to the cardiovascular system. Collaborative research between clinicians and basic scientists is encouraged.
2. Principal investigator - applicant and co-applicant(s)
Unless applied for in the application, the salaries of the principal investigator and co-applicants must be guaranteed during the term of the grant. There must be one principal investigator only, employed at, or affiliated to a UK academic research institution (the host institution), who will be held responsible for managing the grant, both scientifically and financially, and will be our point of contact. If the principal investigator is employed by an NHS Trust they must contact the research institution for the necessary affiliation.
Co-applicants/secondary supervisors are expected to make a significant contribution to the proposed research, providing expertise or skills not otherwise available to the PI. Their role(s) should be stated clearly in the application and they would usually be expected to contribute an effort of at least 5%. If a non-UK secondary supervisor is proposed, we need reassurance in writing from the host institution that their requirements and policies for supervision of students will be met.
3. Administering an award
The principal investigator is responsible for the administration of the grant on behalf of the host institution, and the host institution must be a UK academic research institution (not an NHS trust). Where two or more institutions are involved, the host institution has responsibility for the administration of the grant on behalf of the other centres.
4. Salaries
Salaries for research staff should be calculated on current nationally agreed pay scales. Institutions operating local pay scales should supply a copy. We will cover the employer's costs (i.e. basic salary, national insurance, superannuation and, if applicable, London allowance), and single annual increments to the top of the scale, providing sufficient provision (including inflation) is applied for. We will honour nationally agreed cost of living increases only. Senior researchers (at least 3 years post-doctoral) and medically qualified staff should be named. Support for PhD students (clinical or non-clinical; full or part-time) may not be applied for on any grant other than a clinical research training fellowship or non-clinical PhD studentship. The UK apprenticeship levy, and advertising and interviewing costs will not be met by us and must not be included in grant applications.
Salaries for researchers wishing to work part-time may be included on Project Grants and Programme Grants. Part-time researchers may also apply for fellowships, providing they meet the criteria for the fellowship and can remain internationally research competitive.
See guidance on Grant Costing Guide.
5. Stipends for PhD students (non-clinical)
Stipends are set by us and are listed separately. University tuition fees (UK rate, including inflationary increases) may be applied for, but no other allowances such as college fees. Support for PhD Students may not be applied for on any other grants.
See guidance on Grant Costing Guide.
6. Consumables
Applicants may apply for funding to cover research consumables such as reagents, materials and travel if essential to carry out the research project (remote conferencing should be used whenever possible to minimise carbon output). A detailed breakdown of the amount requested with a written justification should be supplied. We will only cover direct research costs and will not reimburse for university or research institution overheads and infrastructure costs (e.g. heating, lighting, institute staff, advertising, secretarial, office expenses, library and publication charges etc). An exception can be made for secretarial assistance and office costs for epidemiological studies.
See guidance on Grant Costing Guide.
7. Equipment
Items of equipment may be included in an application if specifically required for the project. Details required are: type of equipment, specification, preferred manufacturer and supplier, cost per item. A written justification should also be provided. Costs may include delivery but should exclude VAT (unless the item is non-exempt), installation, maintenance and insurance. Applicants should ensure that the host institution has agreed to be responsible for these costs at their own expense. Quotes must be provided for any requested equipment with a value of £5,000 or more.
See guidance on Grant Costing Guide.
8. Travel fund to attend conferences and scientific meetings
Applicants may apply for a Travel Fund to present research at or attend scientific meetings relevant to the grant. Maximum limits apply.
9. Supplementary funding
Supplementary funding following an award is not normally permitted. It is important, therefore, to provide accurate costings and sufficient inflationary increases when applying for funding.
10. Deferred applications
BHF accepts no responsibility for interim funding as a consequence of delays however caused.
11. Curricula vitae of fellows and research staff
Brief CVs should be submitted where required and should not exceed two sides of A4.
Full CVs where required should be more detailed to include prizes, awards, a complete career history, and a list of peer reviewed papers with abstracts listed separately.
12. Lay summaries
The summaries should be written in a non-technical style for use in publicity material. They should explain clearly the problem being addressed, the aims and expected benefits of the research project in terms understood by the general public. Please read Lay summaries for further guidance.
13. Ethical approval
A research proposal involving investigations using healthy volunteers, patients or patient material will require ethical approval from the Local Research Ethics Committee (or Multi-centre Research Ethics Committee, where five or more centres are involved in the research). The relevant questions on human details must be completed on the online application form. An awarded grant may not begin without full ethical approval, a copy of which must be forwarded to us in advance.
14. Use of animals
Applicants must be familiar with and apply the principles for reduction, refinement and replacement of use of animals laid out in the NC3Rs guidance and adherence to these principles will be a Condition of Award.
The relevant questions on research involving animals must be completed on the online application form.
The form asks for power calculations. Applicants must provide sufficient information for reviewers to be able to check these calculations. This includes estimation of the standard deviation of the dataset being collected, the degree of change expected, the statistical test to be used, and the level of power. If the experimental design relies on the replicate use of single cells or cell cultures from each animal, the numbers of replicates and animals must be given.
15. Commercial collaborations
BHF will consider funding research with commercial company involvement where there is clear potential for patient benefit. The lead applicant must be an academic who will have overall responsibility of the grant. BHF expects the commercial partner to provide an in-kind contribution e.g. materials consumed in the course of the grant.
Awards are conditional on BHF approval of a collaboration agreement or material transfer agreement between the partners. We would normally expect any arising IP created by the university via the grant to be wholly owned by the university. In any event the agreement should provide that:
- The university has adequate ownership of the arising IP in order to exploit it.
- The university has adequate licensing rights in relevant background IP in order to exploit any arising IP.
- There are no unreasonable restrictions on academic publication.
If the company was to use findings that emerge from the research in future development and/ or commercialisation of a related product (e.g. drug or device), BHF also needs to understand how the company will recognise the contribution of BHF funding for the research.
16. Intellectual property rights and commercial exploitation
Applicants must state whether or not the work arising from a BHF award is likely to lead to commercial exploitation. We encourage this to try to ensure that research findings are translated swiftly into patient benefit. For further information, refer to our Standard Conditions of Grant.
17. Consultancies, third party relationships and arrangements
Applicants and the institution need to review all existing consultancies and third party arrangements to check for compliance with our Standard Conditions of Grant prior to application and prior to acceptance of any award.
18. Current grants
Applicants should list current research awards from both BHF and other funding organisations giving the award reference number, title, sum awarded and end date.
19. Overlap with existing projects
Applicants need to explain how this application differs (i.e. does not overlap) scientifically or financially with other current grants of whatever source. It is not sufficient to simply state “no overlap”.
20. Continuation and subsequent grants
An application for renewed funding must include the aims and achievements of the previous grant with a list of publications arising from that award.
21. Re-submitted applications
If an application is being re-submitted having been rejected by us, in whole or in part, by the same or a different committee, this must be made clear and previous feedback should be included with an explanation of how the application has been changed in response to it. Unidentified re-submissions risk automatic rejection.
22. Closing dates for applications
Except for Clinical Study Grants, and Translational Awards and others specified in the grant guidelines there are no closing dates. Please submit the application when it is ready. Please refer to the specific grant guidelines for advice on when results will be available as this varies depending on the type of application. Sometimes applications are deferred for further information.
23. Reviewers
Applicants may supply names with full contact details of suitable reviewers; these may or may not be used. Applicants may also name those they consider to have a conflict of interest with their application.
24. Diversity & Inclusion
Applicants to most BHF funding schemes are now required to provide information on:
• Whether and how factors such as age, sex, gender or ethnicity have been considered as part of the design of the research project.
• Male/female representation in the proposed study.
Completing this section of the application form is mandatory if the proposed research involves human participants, animals, or samples/data relating to humans or animals - please note that your application will be returned if this has not been completed. Information you provide may form part of the assessment of research design and methods by our committee members and independent expert reviewers.
View an example of the Diversity & Inclusion application form section
Read more about why we have made this change