# PHR Researcher-Led

**Funder:** NIHR
**Application:** 2-stage: outline application → full application
**Eligible countries:** GB
**Official call:** https://www.nihr.ac.uk/funding/phr-researcher-led/2026494
**Last updated:** 30 Aug 2026

## Eligibility & scope

NIHR PHR Programme researcher-led call funding primary research and evidence synthesis evaluating public health interventions. Requires health economic evaluation and public/patient involvement. UK domestic call; outline stage requires 5-page research plan, flow diagram, and logic model. Shortlisted applicants are invited to submit a full application.

## Summary

The NIHR PHR Researcher-Led programme funds primary research, systematic reviews, and evidence syntheses evaluating public health interventions or policies across the UK. All studies must include a health economics component, public involvement, and explicit attention to health inequalities, with applications following a two-stage process from outline to full proposal.

## Who should apply

- Researchers at UK academic or NHS institutions with public health research experience
- Teams able to embed health economics analysis and public involvement from the outset
- Applicants designing inclusive research addressing health inequalities and disparities
- Primary researchers, systematic reviewers, or evidence synthesis leads
- Projects spanning feasibility, pilot, or definitive study designs

## Key dates

- Two-stage evaluation: outline application followed by full application invitation
- Projects must comply with ESRC ethics framework or obtain NRES approval

## Tips for applicants

- Health economics is mandatory, not optional, integrate it into your research question and methods from the outline stage.
- Public involvement must be meaningful and described in governance and protocol; tokenistic co-option scores poorly here.
- Frame your research explicitly as addressing health inequalities; NIHR screens for this criterion across outline and full stages.

## Frequently asked questions

### What types of research does the NIHR PHR Researcher-Led fund?

The programme funds primary research, systematic reviews, and evidence syntheses evaluating public health interventions or policies, including feasibility, pilot, and definitive studies.

### Do I need public involvement and health economics in my NIHR PHR application?

Yes, a health economics component and public involvement are mandatory requirements, and your research design must explicitly address health inequalities.

### Is the NIHR PHR Researcher-Led open to non-UK institutions?

No, applications must be from researchers based at UK institutions.

### What is the application process for NIHR PHR Researcher-Led?

The call uses a two-stage process: applicants first submit an outline application, and successful teams are then invited to submit a full application.

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Source: [The Great Grantsby](https://grantsby.eu/grants/nihr-phr-researcher-led-2026) — EU grant monitoring for academic researchers. Always verify details on the funder's website before applying.

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