Bma Foundation

The BMA Foundation, the world's oldest medical organization awarding grants since 1839 and unified as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation in 2020, is an independent charity dedicated to accelerating medical research advances for public health benefit and relieving sickness. Rooted in scientific rigour, ethical stewardship, and transparency, it empowers early-career researchers—primarily medical students, doctors, and scientists—to drive innovation in addressing major health challenges like rheumatology, cardiology, oncology, neurology, arthritis, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and neurological disorders through basic and clinical projects improving diagnoses, treatments, and patient outcomes.

It funds pioneering medical research projects with high potential for tangible impact, awarding around 14 grants annually totaling over £850,000, typically to individuals or UK research teams rather than communities. Eligible applicants are UK-registered medical practitioners and scientists based in the UK (primarily England and Wales), with projects focused on UK-related research; no organization income thresholds apply, but emphasis is on early-stage talent via unsolicited online applications including a host letter, 2,500-word proposal, references, and ethics documentation.

Grants range from £50,000 (e.g., Sherman Fund) to £65,000 over three years, covering direct research costs only in annual rounds—2025 closed March 16, next expected early 2026—with decisions by mid-July and funding from September. Exclusions include education, overseas work, travel, hardware, and indirect costs like overheads. Distinctively independent from the British Medical Association, its historic prestige, flexibility to emerging priorities, and rigorous peer review set it apart for innovative, patient-focused UK medical inquiry.