TL;DR: UKRI’s Medical Research Council has reopened two paused translational funding routes under new names: Proof of Concept (successor to the Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme stage one), open since 2 July 2026 with an 18 November 2026 deadline; and the Impact Acceleration Award (successor to the Gap Fund), open since 16 July 2026 with an 11 November 2026 deadline and funding of £50,000-£300,000. Both are live now, with November deadlines that will compress internal review timelines if research offices don’t plan for them today.
What changed
MRC’s Proof of Concept award — the successor to the Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme (DPFS) stage one — opened for applications on 2 July 2026 at 9:00am UK time, with a stage one closing date of 18 November 2026 at 4:00pm UK time. Applicants successful at stage one are expected to be invited into a stage two round planned to open 5 November 2026, closing 3 March 2027.
MRC’s Impact Acceleration Award — the successor to the Gap Fund (formally “Gap Fund: single-step support for medical product development”) — opened on 16 July 2026 at 9:00am UK time, with a closing date of 11 November 2026 at 4:00pm UK time. Both schemes sit within UKRI’s Translation opportunity family and are administered through the UKRI Funding Service.
Funding parameters
- Impact Acceleration Award: £50,000 to £300,000 in full economic cost, funded at 80% FEC plus 100% of permitted exceptions, for projects lasting between 6 and 18 months.
- Proof of Concept: UKRI’s published guidance does not set a fixed funding ceiling — requested costs and project duration should be proportionate to, and justified by, the proposed work rather than fitted to a set band.
Both figures should be checked against the live UKRI opportunity pages before an application is finalised, since UKRI can revise call terms between rounds.
Who is eligible
For the Impact Acceleration Award, the project lead must be based at an MRC-eligible UK research organisation. International researchers may participate as an international co-lead, and charities or third-sector organisations that hold approved UKRI Independent Research Organisation (IRO) status are eligible to apply as project leads or co-leads; businesses and other charities may participate as project partners.
For Proof of Concept, the applicant must be employed by an MRC-eligible research organisation and must be able to demonstrate they will direct the project and be actively engaged in the work — the standard MRC principal investigator eligibility test used across its translational portfolio.
Why this matters for research offices
Both schemes fund the same broad space — translating early-stage medical, diagnostic, device and therapeutic research toward the next stage of development or clinical adoption — but they sit at different points on that pathway. Proof of Concept is aimed earlier (validating a concept, generating proof-of-principle data); Impact Acceleration Award targets a single, well-defined development step closer to application. Research offices with translational portfolios that were holding projects back pending scheme reopening should treat this as a live window, not a future one: applications are already open under both names, and the old DPFS/Gap Fund names no longer apply.
What to do now
- Set internal deadlines well ahead of the UKRI dates. With the Impact Acceleration Award closing 11 November 2026 and Proof of Concept stage one closing 18 November 2026, most institutions will want an internal expression-of-interest or costing-freeze deadline several weeks earlier — both UKRI dates fall in the same November window, which will compress institutional review and costing capacity if not planned for now.
- Confirm eligibility status early, particularly for charity or third-sector partners who need to check their UKRI Independent Research Organisation status before assuming Impact Acceleration Award eligibility as a lead applicant.
- Route enquiries to the correct successor scheme. Researchers who previously had a DPFS or Gap Fund application in progress, or who were waiting for either scheme to reopen, should be pointed to Proof of Concept or Impact Acceleration Award respectively — the names have changed even though MRC-eligible institutions and the translational remit have not.
- Flag the Proof of Concept stage two date (planned to open 5 November 2026, closing 3 March 2027) to PIs now, so stage one applicants aren’t caught out by the gap between stages.
- Verify current terms directly on ukri.org before submission — UKRI opportunity pages are the authoritative source for costing rules, funding limits and eligibility, and can be revised between funding rounds.
Related UKRI funding context
This reopening is separate from funding reductions elsewhere in UKRI’s research council portfolio, such as the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s decision to end UK funding for the e-MERLIN radio telescope array at Jodrell Bank — a cut, not a reopening. Together the two stories illustrate the uneven picture across UKRI’s constituent research councils in 2026: some translational funding routes are reopening with new names and live deadlines, while other long-running facilities funding is being wound down. For background on MRC’s structure and role within UKRI, see CASRAI’s guide to MRC funding and the UK Medical Research Council’s role in UKRI and the dictionary entry on the Medical Research Council (MRC).
Frequently asked questions
What were Proof of Concept and Impact Acceleration Award called before?
Proof of Concept succeeds the Developmental Pathway Funding Scheme (DPFS) stage one. Impact Acceleration Award succeeds the Gap Fund, formally “Gap Fund: single-step support for medical product development.”
When do the two schemes close?
Impact Acceleration Award closes 11 November 2026 at 4:00pm UK time. Proof of Concept stage one closes 18 November 2026 at 4:00pm UK time.
How much funding is available?
Impact Acceleration Award funds £50,000-£300,000 in full economic cost, at 80% FEC plus 100% of permitted exceptions, for 6-18 month projects. Proof of Concept does not publish a fixed funding ceiling; costs should be proportionate to and justified by the proposed work.
Who can apply?
Both schemes require the project lead to be based at an MRC-eligible UK research organisation. Impact Acceleration Award additionally allows international co-leads and, for IRO-status charities/third-sector organisations, project leadership or co-leadership.
Sources: UKRI, “UKRI Translation: MRC Proof of Concept: stage one”; UKRI, “UKRI Translation: MRC Impact Acceleration Awards”.
