Development Awards

Career level:

There are two types of Development Award, one for Early Career Researchers and one for Established Investigators.

Research area:

We welcome proposals that address our research goals, focused on the research priorities of people with CF.

Call dates:

• Preliminary application: 11 May 2026 
• Final submission: September 2026
• Committee review: February 2027
• Notification of outcome: March 2027

Funding period:

1-3 years

Funding amount:

£150,000 - £300,000

Find out more: 

We strongly encourage applicants to contact staff in the Research Awards team of Cystic Fibrosis Trust ahead of applying to this scheme: [email protected]

Download the Development Award Guidelines to find out more

There are two types of Development Award (DA), one for Early Career Researchers and one for Established Investigators.

Early Career Research DAs: Funding is available to undertake preparatory work (eg generating preliminary data, strengthening collaborations, developing partnerships etc) to develop future applications for further funding and help career development.

Established Investigator DAs: Funding is available to undertake preparatory work (eg generating preliminary data, strengthening collaborations, developing partnerships etc) to develop future applications for further funding, for example to our Strategic Research Centre (SRC) programme.

We strongly encourage applicants to contact staff in the Research Awards team at Cystic Fibrosis Trust ahead of applying to this scheme: [email protected]

We welcome proposals that address our research goals, focused on the research priorities of people with CF.

Funding support is provided for:

• Salaries (post-doc, PhD students and technicians only). The award can cover the salary costs of post-doctoral applicants.
• Research consumables directly attributable to the project.
• Research equipment, non-capital expenditure, essential for the project (up to £20k across the period of the grant).
• Travel funding of up to £1,000 per year to facilitate travel relevant to the grant, such as attendance at scientific meetings.

Download the Development Award Guidelines to find out more

Please read the criteria for applying for Development Awards (DAs) carefully.

For Early Career Researcher DA:

In summary, applicants should be:

• UK-based.
• Less than eight years post PhD award, or equivalent professional training
• Looking for career development opportunities
• Applications from basic scientists are particularly welcome

For Established Investigator DA:

In summary, applicants should be

• UK based.
• An independent investigator with a proven track record of independent, peer-reviewed, funded research, who hold permanent or long-term contracts in academia, industry or other
• Looking to develop new avenues of research
• Applications from basic scientists are particularly welcome

For both types of DA award:

• Applicants from outside the field of CF are welcome but must demonstrate support from an established CF researcher.
• The centre where the work is to be pursued must be an established research institution in the UK.
• The applicant must have space and facilities to run the project.

Re-applying for awards

• If you are an early career researcher and have previously applied for a DA award, you are permitted to reapply
• If you are an established investigator and applied for a DA in the previous funding round and were unsuccessful you cannot reapply for this year’s funding round. New applications may be considered if differing significantly from any original proposal previously submitted.
• If you have previously applied for a DA award and are looking to submit a completely new proposal please contact the Research Awards Team to discuss eligibility before applying. 

The 2026 call for applications is now CLOSED

• Expression of Interest (preliminary stage): Deadline 5pm 11 May 2026
• Announcement of results of phase 1: mid-July 2026
• Full proposal (stage 2) deadline: end -September 2026
• Decision: March 2027