Research grants

• Researchers registered at a UK university or research institution
• Principal Investigators must apply for funding for a PhD student or research assistant to lead a project under their supervision
• Previous and current grant-holders are eligible
• Applicants with a history of carrying out animal-based research, as long as they can demonstrate a commitment to non-animal methods

Humane Research grants are suitable for research into any aspect of human health that will also help replace animals in medical research. This includes projects which develop, test, and apply:

• novel in vitro, ex vivo, and in silico methods, models, techniques and products
• existing in vitro, ex vivo, and in silico methods, models, techniques and products to further refine or test them
• bespoke non-animal derived antibodies, animal-free growth factors, and serum substitutes

• Collaborators must be named and cannot receive payment (except for laboratory services)
• Any results from collaborators’ contemporaneous animal-based research cannot be used, only historic data

• stipend/salary
• tuition fees
• consumables
• research facility costs
• technician support
• attendance at conferences
• equipment such as a laptop or specialist software
• publication costs
  

• PhD projects for up to 4 years, and postdoctoral positions for 2 years
• projects within the range of £90,000 to £200,000

Humane Research Project Grants do not cover:

• animal or animal-derived products, including the use of animal-derived growth serums as positive controls
• indirect costs such as university overheads, living expenses, or recruitment costs
• the salary of the principal investigator
• equipment/consumables-only applications

Please read our grant application guidelines to learn more about the costs our grants cover and any limitations that apply.

Applications are made via our grant portal, which you will find on this webpage.

Ahead of making your application, please read our Use of Animals in Research Policy and our grant application guidelines.

1. Within 2 weeks of the closing date, applications are checked to confirm they meet our application guidance and policy criteria. Applicants may be contacted for clarification, rejection, or resubmission
2. Members of the Trust’s independent scientific advisory panel assess eligible applications
3. The board of trustees’ science sub-committee reviews the assessments and develops a shortlist
4. The Trust arranges a visit with shortlisted applicants to meet the researcher, view the laboratory and clarify any points raised in reviews
5. The science sub-committee makes a final decision on which grants to award

We aim to notify applicants of the decision within 24 weeks of the deadline for applications. To learn more about our assessment process, please read our grant decision-making framework.

Our scientific advisory panel and science committee will assess each application on a range of criteria. This includes:

• scientific merit of the project
• boldness in scientific thinking and innovation
• experience and expertise of the principal investigator and wider project group
• implementation plan and resources
• plan for science communication and impact activities

A successful proposal will effectively articulate the positive impact their project will have, both on human medicine and the replacement of animals in research.

• carry out the research project as set out in their submitted proposal
• commit to not using animals or animal-derived products for the duration of the project, in line with the Trust’s Use of Animals in Research Policy
• provide progress reports at the end of each year and a final report at the end of the project
• acknowledge the Trust’s support in any project-related publicity, including on the institution’s website

• The Trust will make grant payments quarterly in arrears
• The grant-holder must detail stipend/salary, fees, consumables, and other expenses in each invoice. These should be in accordance with the costings the grantee set out in their application
• The grant-holder must sign-off each list of consumables to confirm it contains no animal-derived products
• Q4 and final payments may be withheld until we receive and sign-off the requested progress reports