MRFF Funding Opportunities

Several funding opportunities are currently available under the MRFF, seeking to address a range of different diseases and issues in different health settings. They are presented in order of application closing date below.

Want to assist with assessing MRFF grants?
The Department of Health is currently seeking interest from a range of stakeholders to assist in MRFF grant review and assessment as a member of a Grant Assessment Committee. More information is available here.

Open for application soon

2025 Aus-UK Platform Studies in Areas of Unmet Clinical Need Grant Opportunity

The objective of this grant opportunity is to support new, adaptive platform trials (Phase 2 or 3) in areas of unmet clinical need. The platform must be internationally collaborative, with joint project leads based in Australia (for the Australian-based component of the trial) and the UK (for the UK-based component of the trial).

The intended outcome of this research funded by this grant opportunity is to invest in new, ambitious platform trials in areas of unmet clinical need that support increased access to high-quality, evidence-based and effective health care.

Estimated Period of Release: January to June 2026

More information can be found here.

Supporting People with Cancer Round 16

Supporting People with Cancer (SPWC) is an annual grant program that funds projects aimed at reducing the impact of cancer and providing better support for people affected by cancer. Since 2005, the Australian Government through SPWC has funded 142 grants totalling over $12 million.

In alignment with the strategic objectives of the Australian Cancer Plan (the Plan), SPWC has a strong focus on achieving equity in cancer outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Grants must support one or more of the priority population groups identified in the Plan or demonstrate direct improvements in outcomes for people whose cancer outcomes are inequitable, for example, people impacted by rare or less common cancers or cancers with poorer outcomes.

Estimated Period of Release: July to December 2024

More information can be found here.

 

Dementia and Aged Care Services (DACS) Fund: Aged Care Research and Industry Innovation Australia (ARIIA)

This grant opportunity is being funded through the Dementia and Aged Care Services (DACS) Fund. The DACS Fund is designed to support activities that respond to existing and emerging challenges including dementia care, better support services targeting people from diverse social and cultural backgrounds and support special measures for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The DACS Fund may also support activities that assist the Commonwealth in informing itself about aged care.

The purpose of this grant opportunity is to provide ARIIA with Commonwealth funding to maintain and enhance their research and innovation initiatives as they progress towards self-sustainability.

Estimated Period of Release: July to December 2024

More information can be found here.

Indigenous Health Workforce Traineeship (IHWT) Program

The Indigenous Health Workforce Traineeship (IHWT) program is a component of the Health Workforce Program. The IHWT program aims to ensure that the health workforce providing these services has the capability and skills to meet the health care needs of First Nations people. The Australian Government is providing a total of $11.553 million (GST exclusive) over three financial years for the IHWT program.

Estimated Period of Release: July to December 2024

More information here 

Youth Mental Health headspace Demand Management and Enhancement Program

This grant opportunity will contribute to the Australian Government’s implementation of mental health reforms. Under Program 1.2: Mental Health, the Australian Government is committed to supporting Australians with, or at risk of, mental illness by improving service integration for a more effective and efficient mental health system.

There are three funding streams available under this grant opportunity:

  • Stream 1 – Wait Time Reduction: the purpose of this stream is to address demand and wait list management at headspace services identified as highest need.
  • Stream 2 – Building Cultural Capability: the purpose of this stream is to build the cultural capability of headspace services. Building cultural capability will help to improve access and provide better support for young people from priority groups including but not limited to those from First Nations, LGBTIQA+ and Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) communities.
  • Stream 3 – Capital Enhancement and Infrastructure: the purpose of this stream is to enhance the quality of service, improve access to services and support headspace services by appropriately accommodating current and future staffing needs at headspace sites identified as highest need.

Estimated Period of Release – July to December 2024

More information here

Open for application now

National CQR Automation and Innovation Capacity Building Grants

The National Clinical Quality Registry Program (the National CQR Program) aims to improve the quality of health care and ensure better health outcomes for Australian patients. It is also designed to reflect the key priorities of the National Clinical Quality Registry and Virtual Strategy 2020-2030  (the Strategy).

The National CQR Program includes the establishment of a new grant opportunity dedicated to support existing national CQRs to undertake short-term, or ‘catalyst’ projects, that help build their capacity and capability in line with the Strategy.  Projects under this grant opportunity should support national CQRs to develop and pilot, contemporary digital solutions and/or technologies.

Close date – 16 January 2025 2:00 pm (ACT Local Time)

More information can be found here.

Targeted Call for Research: Oral Health Care in Australia 2024

The TCR: Oral Health Care in Australia 2024 grant opportunity aims to fund research into better understanding the apparent gap in the translation and implementation of effective population-level oral health (including health services) interventions.

Minimum data is due 17:00 (ACT local time) on 29 January 2025.

More information can be found here.

Brain Cancer Discovery and Translation Grant Opportunity

The Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) – Australian Brain Cancer Mission – 2024 Brain Cancer Discovery and Translation Grant Opportunity.

The objective of this grant opportunity is to provide grants of financial assistance to support medical research and medical innovation projects that conduct innovative, interdisciplinary, collaborative and translational preclinical brain cancer research that advances knowledge in at least one of these areas:

  • Aetiology of brain cancer
  • Identification and validation of new therapeutic strategies for brain cancer, and/or
  • Development of new therapies for brain cancer.

Minimum Data closes at 5:00pm (ACT Local Time) on 22 January 2025

More information can be found here.

Improving First Nations Cancer Outcomes: Partnerships for Cancer Research

The Partnerships for Cancer Research grant program will invest $9,600,000 over three years to strengthen cancer research to improve the health outcomes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and to build the capacity of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cancer research sector.

The minimum grant amount is $0.8 million.
• The maximum grant amount is $2.5 million.
• The maximum grant period is three years.
• Up to twelve grants will be awarded.

Applications will be open to partnerships between organisations that will work together with community to deliver research activities.

Applications opened Wednesday, 9 October 2024
Applications close 5:00pm (AEDT) on Wednesday, 12 February 2025

 

MRFF –  Improving Health Outcomes of People with Intellectual Disability Grant Opportunity

The objective of this grant opportunity is to provide grants of financial assistance to support medical research and medical innovation projects that:

  • Stream 1 (Targeted Call for Research): conduct large-scale, multidisciplinary projects, in partnership with the health and disability sector and people with lived experience, to develop, optimise and/or evaluate person-centred approaches for preventive health care for people with intellectual disability.
  • Stream 2 (Targeted Call for Research): develop and/or evaluate approaches to support health care transitions across life stages for people with intellectual disability, through co-design with the health and disability sector and people with lived experience.
  • Stream 3 (Targeted Call for Research): develop, optimise and/or implement screening or diagnostic tools for mental health and/or physical health issues in people with intellectual disability.

Minimum Data closes at 5:00pm (ACT Local Time) on 11 December 2024

Close Date – 12 February 2025 5:00 pm

More information can be found here.

Addressing Critical Psychology Shortages – Postgraduate Psychology Incentive Program – Round 2

The Postgraduate Psychology Incentive Program aims to support higher education providers who have created additional postgraduate psychology places in courses which lead to general registration and can lead to relevant areas of practice endorsement.

Funding under the program will be available over 4 grant rounds, with one round opening each financial year from 2023-24 to 2026-27. Eligible organisations will be required to apply for each individual round as they become available on GrantConnect.

Close date – 1 March 2025 2:00 pm (ACT Local Time)

More information can be found here.

Critical Research Infrastructure

The 2024 National Critical Research Infrastructure initiative invests in research infrastructure to ensure Australian researchers find innovative solutions to complex health problems in areas of unmet medical need. This grant opportunity has four streams.

Stream 1 – Innovation enablers: Addresses an area of unmet medical need by promoting the development and implementation of new research infrastructure. Maximum amount available for a single grant is $3 million.

Stream 2 – Digitisation of health care: Developing and translating into practice digital therapeutics, artificial intelligence enabled health interventions and technologies (e.g. wearables integrated into clinical practice), applications or other software for use in clinical practice.   Maximum amount available for a single grant is $3 million.

Stream 3 – Co-investment partnerships:  Utilising co-investment (cash only) with the research sector, state and/or territory governments, and industry, in significant critical research infrastructure. Maximum amount available for a single grant is $7 million.

Stream 4 –  mRNA technology enabler. Leveraging and enhancing emerging mRNA technologies, platforms, and/or equipment to accelerate development of mRNA-based vaccines and therapeutics in an area of unmet medical need. Maximum amount available for a single grant is $4 million.

This grant opportunity is being administered by the Business Grants Hub, opened on 4 October 2024 and closing 31 March 2025.

Medical Research Future Fund – Clinical Trials Activity Initiative

Up to $63 million of funding is available in grants of up to $5 million in four streams:

  • Stream 1: conduct a pilot study to assess the feasibility of a new clinical trial for one or more treatments and/or management strategies for a rare cancer, rare disease and/or unmet need.
  • Stream 2: conduct a clinical trial of one or more treatments and/or management-based interventions for rare cancers, rare diseases and/or unmet need.
  • Stream 3: conduct a clinical trial that assesses the comparative effectiveness of two or more health interventions to treat a specific clinical condition, to inform the decisions of policy makers, clinicians, and consumers regarding healthcare and to minimise the use of unnecessary, ineffective, and harmful health interventions.
  • Stream 4: conduct an implementation science trial to determine the best ways to implement a proven preventive health intervention, screening or diagnostic test, therapeutic agent, technology or model of care that is not in routine use in Australia.

This grant opportunity is being administered by the NHMRC, Minimum Data closes at 5:00pm (ACT Local Time) on 5 March 2025. More information is available on Grant Connect.

2024 International Clinical Trial Collaborations Grant Opportunity

$12.6 million is available in grants of up to $3 million for projects that:

    • promote Australian involvement in international collaborative investigator-initiated clinical trials research through the establishment and co-ordination of clinical trial site/s in Australia.
    • provide high-quality evidence of the effectiveness of novel health treatments, drugs or devices in ‘usual care’ settings, which will support a decision on whether to deliver the intervention in an Australian setting.

This grant opportunity is being administered by the NHMRC in two rounds, with minimum data due by:

    • Round 1: 3 July 2024
    • Round 2: 4 December 2024

Long COVID

Funding for Post Acute Sequelae of COVID (PASC) research is available under 4 streams. $14 million is available in grants of up to $5 million.

Minimum data for Streams 1-4 was required by 18 October 2023.

  • Stream 4:
    • Stage 1 Minimum data was required by 18 October 2023.
    • Stage 2 will establish a multidisciplinary national adaptive platform trial that accelerates assessment and implementation of therapeutic interventions (pharmacological and non-pharmacological) for PASC. Up to $8 million will be available for Stage 2, and applications will close on 30 April 2025.

This grant  is administered by the NHMRC. More information on Stream 4, Stage 2 is available here.

MRFF –  Chronic Respiratory Conditions Grant Opportunity

The Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) Preventive and Public Health Research Initiative aims to enable or support research into new ways to address preventive and public health issues in Australia.

The objective of this grant opportunity is to provide grants of financial assistance to support medical research and medical innovation projects that:

  • Stream 1 (Targeted Call for Research): develop, optimise and/or implement diagnostic approaches that enable early detection and/or improved diagnostic accuracy for chronic respiratory conditions
  • Stream 2 (Targeted Call for Research): conduct small-scale developmental projects that investigate the pathophysiological mechanisms and pathways of disease for patients with multiple chronic respiratory conditions who are at risk of poor outcomes
  • Stream 3 (Targeted Call for Research): implement effective evidence-based interventions for management (including self-management) and/or treatment for chronic respiratory conditions in Priority Populations.

Minimum data due – 30 April 2025 5:00 pm (ACT Local Time)

More information can be found here

MRFF Frontiers

Frontiers Health and Medical Research offers funding to support medical research and medical innovation programs of research that deliver a ‘moonshot’ by creating a treatment for a currently serious and incurable health condition, through a series of linked projects. The program of research can propose to develop novel health technologies and/or re-purpose existing health technologies in a novel way.

The process to get funding has two stages:

    • expression of interest – outlining a proposed program of research with a 10-year time horizon
    • full application, for a project of up to 5 years under the program of research.

Full applications may be submitted by invitation only. Applicants may propose to start research at any stage in the research pipeline from proof-of-concept, with the intention of achieving full implementation of the proposed technology in 10 years.

The program is administered by Business Grants Hub and an expression of interest can be submitted at any time. More information is available here.