RCS England pump priming grants
Further your independent research career with our pump priming grants, which give you up to £10,000 of funding to support your own research in any surgical specialty.
Career stage
Newly appointed consultants in surgery (in the last five years), senior lecturers, SAS doctors and post-doctoral trainees in surgery.
Funding amount
The grant provides up to £10,000.
Deadline
31 October 2026 at 2pm.
Please note, all our grants and fellowships are reviewed annually, so the information on this page may be subject to change before the next round opens.
Duration
Up to 24 months.
We recommend you read the information below fully before starting an application.
Eligibility
Our pump priming grant is open to surgical team members from any surgical specialty.
Dental members should apply for pump priming grants offered by the Faculty of Dental Surgery (FDS).
To apply, you must be:
- a member of RCS England (or in the process of transferring membership);
- a newly appointed consultant (within the last five years), senior lecturer, SAS doctor, or post-doctoral trainee in surgery;
- employed by a UK university or NHS trust;
- undertaking research in the UK;
- ready to commence your research project and use the grant funding within two years of the award date.
About our pump priming grants
This grant allows you to explore any aspect of surgery or surgical care, from the ten surgical specialties that fall with the General Medical Council (GMC) defined Specialty Advisory Committees (SACSs).
Your research can look into basic science, diagnosis, treatment, surgical technology, audit, or advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in healthcare.
What’s expected from pump priming grant holders
Pump priming grants are awarded on the understanding that you, your host centre, and head of department agree to the full Terms and Conditions relating to the scheme and any amendments issued during the term of the grant.
As part of the terms and conditions, you are required to:
- only use the fellowship funding for the project and purpose described in the application;
- notify us of any proposed changes to your project from the application, at which point further guidance will be provided;
- remain up to date with your RCS England membership subscription from application through to at least the end of the grant period;
- use the grant funding within two years of the award date.
You will also be expected to provide an interim report (one year from award date) providing details on project progress and a final report at the end of the grant period.
What you’ll gain from the grant
If successful, you will receive a grant (payable to your university or NHS Trust) of up to £10,000. You may use the grant flexibly across a two-year period, for the project and purpose described in your application.
The funding is to support your own research and can be used to purchase small items of equipment, for consumables or for technical assistance. It cannot be used for personal salary costs.
These grants are meant to act as 'seedcorn' monies which will lead to the award of programme grants, i.e. to pump prime a project, and are not ‘top up’ funds.
How to apply
You can apply via the application form on our research funding portal. Select 2027 pump priming grants from the list of available grants.
Before you start
The form has seven sections. These cover:
- your details;
- basic eligibility;
- organisation;
- proposed research project.
You will be required to give the contact details of your head of department for the project.
It is your responsibility to make sure every part of the form is complete and submitted by the deadline.
You can save your application and return to it at any time.
What happens next
We check every application against the eligibility criteria, and all eligible applications go through an independent peer review process between December and February.
The peer review process evaluates:
- the importance of your research;
- study design;
- your experience;
- facilities at the host institution;
- whether the proposed work will be valid, beneficial, and original.
We rank and award applications based on the combined peer review scores and comments
Grant offers will be made in spring each year. If successful, you will be asked to sign the grant Terms and Conditions.
Please note: The number of grants awarded depends on the standard of applications and available funding. The success rate for pump priming grant applications in 2026 was 35%.
Contact
If you have any questions when completing the Flexigrant application, please first read the additional notes we have provided in the application itself. If your question is not covered there, please email us at research@rcseng.ac.uk and we’ll be happy to help.
How the research pump priming grants are funded
These grants are funded through the generosity of our funding partners, along with legacies and endowed restricted funds. Some grants will have eponymous titles which acknowledge the funding source.
If your grant has been funded by one of our funding partners, you may have the opportunity to meet your funder to share the progress of your research.