NIHR are looking for a Programme Director for a Programme Grants for Applied Research (PGfAR) Programme, to succeed Professor Marian Knight who reaches the end of their tenure on 31 May 2026.
The NIHR PGfAR funding scheme makes significant awards of flexible funding budget and duration. Since the Programme was established in 2006, 47 rounds have been completed, leading to over 340 awards, largely health care related but increasingly, public health and social care orientated. To view our current funded projects, please visit the NIHR funding and awards website.
The research is applied and relatively ‘near-term’, with an expectation of clear benefits to patients, service users, carers, and the health and social care systems. Further information can be found by visiting the Programme Grants for Applied Research website.
In parallel, the programme offers both seed funding and/or follow-on funding for those researchers seeking to strengthen their research activities funded via its component Programme Development Grants scheme. Please refer to the NIHR Programme Development Grants web pages for more details.
If you believe passionately in inclusive evidence-based care and want to make health, public health and social care services and organisations work better for service users, patients, and the dedicated staff and managers who provide care, and you have a strong track record in health and care services research, then this is the role for you. Leading this influential programme, as part of a wider group of NIHR programme directors, will allow you to work across the health and care sectors and alongside key influencers in government.
Find out more and apply on the NIHR website!
Programme Grants for Applied Research (PGfAR) Programme Director
Closing date: 27 February 2026
Pre-requisites: Successful role holder must not hold any other NIHR honorary role for the duration of the tenure, other than in exceptional circumstances.