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Funding Calls

Our funding calls aim to improve patient outcomes through healthcare provided by NHS staff who feel valued. These are theme-specific and support one of our four funding priorities.

Typically funding calls have specific criteria and are open for application at certain times of the year. Check below for our funding calls of 2026/27.

Funding Calls

SHC Funding Programme 2026 - 2027

Light up Sheffield's NHS - Decorations

We want to help decorate patient-facing areas across our NHS services to spread some festive cheer to patients, their families and you as the staff who care for them.

Each area can apply to up to £100 of Christmas decorations. You will be reimbursed once you have bought the decorations.


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Light up Sheffield's NHS - Decorations

Nominate one member of your team to submit an application and organise purchase, delivery and decoration of your patient-facing spaces (but not clinical areas). Please ensure all decorations align with your area's IPC, fire and safety guidance.

Each area can apply to up to £100 of Christmas decorations.

You will be reimbursed once you have bought the decorations.

To submit an application, please follow this link.

Sheffield Hospitals Charity Travel Scholarship

For registered nurses, midwives and allied health professionals employed by Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS FT only.

£10,000 available - Minimum value £500; Maximum value £5,000.

Funding Call opens May 14, 2026

Funding Call closes June 18, 2026

Shortlisted candidates meet the Reviewing Panel on July 8th or July 14th*

Review and decisions mid-July.

*We will aim to offer a maximum of two dates for candidates to join us and deliver a short presentation to the Reviewing Panel on their study leave plans


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Sheffield Hospitals Charity Travel Scholarship

In partnership with Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS FT, the Travel Scholarship Funding Call by Sheffield Hospitals Charity gives nurses, midwives and allied health professionals the opportunity to travel to other hospitals - anywhere in the world - to undertake a study on any aspect of patient care. 

Through this opportunity we wish to promote cross-learning and bring best practice back to Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS FT. 

We are particularly interested in receiving applications seeking to improve practices in relation to patient infections, falls, pressure ulcer care, medicines management, enhanced care, dementia care, digital improvements, mental health, cancer, reducing health inequalities, end of life care, or any clinical practice issues or innovations designed to enhance patient care. 

Successful applicants will be allocated a senior member of staff to act as a mentor/supervisor during their study.

For an application pack, please contact the Grants Team at grants@shct.nhs.uk 

If you wish to discuss your idea or if you require assistance with your application, please contact Elaine Coghill, STH Deputy Chief Nurse at e.coghill@nhs.net

Supporting Caring & Cared for Staff

The total funding available is £100,000. 
The minimum value per bid is £5,000.

Funding Call opens July 17th, 2026 
Funding Call closes October 4th, 2026 
Outcome notification and awards mid-November


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Supporting Caring & Cared for Staff

Supporting caring and cared for staff is one of four grant-making priorities and 2026 marks the third year of delivering a funding call specifically designed for staff-focused initiatives.  

We recognise that NHS staff are central to delivering high-quality patient care and such, staff wellbeing is non-negotiable. The ambitious objectives of the NHS 10-Year Plan require a renewed commitment to staff wellbeing, inclusion, and long-term workforce development. 

With this funding call we want to prioritise funding for projects that focus on specific aspects of workforce wellbeing and development.  

We have identified 5 categories that are summarised below:  

  1. Promoting staff wellbeing and psychological safety: including mental health support, and initiatives that reduce burnout and sickness absence.

  2. Fostering inclusive and compassionate workplace cultures aligned with the NHS People Promise and both Trusts’ EDI strategies. 

  3. Enabling professional development and career progression, through training, coaching, and leadership programmes- helping staff grow and flourish. 

  4. Supporting new ways of working, including integrated care models and flexible workforce transformation.

  5. Improving recruitment and retention, especially in high-need areas like cancer, mental health, and community services. 

  
We have collaborated with your Trust to ensure applications submitted to this Funding Call share the direction of travel of the wider organisation. 

For SHPU: 

Charlotte Turnbull, Head of Leadership & OD Charlotte.Turnbull@sheffieldpartnership.nhs.uk  

Rebecca (Becks) Malone, OD Practitioner Rebecca.malone@sheffieldpartnership.nhs.uk  

For STH:  

Rhian Bishop, Staff Engagement and Wellbeing Lead 

rhian.bishop1@nhs.net

Emily Hirst, Staff Engagement and Wellbeing Coordinator

emily.hirst1@nhs.net

For a copy of the guidance or for more information, email our team at grants@shct.nhs.uk  

Or, you can Start an Application

Reducing Health Inequalities in Sheffield

The total funding available is £100,000. 
The minimum value per bid is £5,000.

Funding Call opens July 17th, 2026 
Funding Call closes October 4th, 2026 
Outcome notification and awards mid-November


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Reducing Health Inequalities in Sheffield

Reducing health inequalities in Sheffield is one of four grant-making priorities and 2026 marks the third year of delivering a funding call specifically designed for initiatives contributing to reduce health (and healthcare) inequalities.

We too recognise that inequalities are an ‘intolerable injustice’, and we praise the commitment made by the UK Government with the NHS 10-Year Plan to reinvent the NHS, make three radical shifts and ensure it is a service ‘fit for the future’.

With this year’s funding call, we want to prioritise funding for projects focusing on one or more of the following categories:

  1. Improving access to care: address missed appointments (DNA), waiting list variation, and access barriers linked to deprivation and ethnicity.

  2. Delivering integrated services for inclusion health: commission specialist services, co-design services with people in inclusion health groups, work with system partners such as Primary Care or VCSE organisations.

  3. Focusing on prevention and make every contact count: address modifiable risk factors, and act on screening, testing and early detection of illness.

  4. Using co-production and experts by experience to redesign services and respond to gaps in care.

  5. Bringing care closer to communities, reducing reliance on hospital-based services, including digitalisation of services and mobile delivery.

We have collaborated with your Trust to ensure applications submitted to this Funding Call share the direction of travel of the wider organisation.

  2. For SHPU:

  4. Jo Hardwick, Head of Population Health - jo.hardwick@sheffieldpartnership.nhs.uk

For STH:

Paulette Anderson-Afflick, Strategy and Planning Manager - p.afflick-anderson@nhs.net

For a copy of the guidance or for more information, email our team at grants@shct.nhs.uk

Or, you can Start an application

Dragons’ Den

The 2026 edition of Dragons’ Den will be held in the Winter of 2026/27 in collaboration with Sheffield Teaching Hospitals.

The total funding allocation will be £150,000.

Funding Call opens October 12th, 2026 
Funding Call closes October 20th, 2026 
Outcome notification and awards late February 2027


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Dragons’ Den

We are delighted to announce the third edition of Dragons' Den - a funding call designed for Sheffield Teaching Hospitals to pump prime innovative ideas supporting improvement in patient care, and staff wellbeing.

This year's edition is funded in its entirety by Sheffield Hospitals Charity.

Applications are welcome for initiatives which:

• Earlier Diagnosis, Prevention and Faster Access to Care - Supporting projects that help people stay well, improve early diagnosis and treatment, reduce delays, and ensure timely access to care, including cancer services.

• Improving Patient Experience and Access to Care - Supporting projects that improve patient experience and outcomes, reduce inequalities, improve access to services, and enable care closer to home.

• Innovation and Digital Transformation - Supporting projects that use innovation, technology, digital solutions and new ways of working to improve care, increase efficiency, and support sustainable services.

• Supporting Our Staff - Supporting projects that improve staff wellbeing, development and retention, helping staff to thrive and deliver excellent patient care.

For full details of this competition, please refer to the Dragons' Den intranet page. If you have any questions about the process, please contact our Research & Innovation Coordinator in the Clinical Research and Innovation Office, Daniel Lawrence: Daniel.lawrence12@nhs.net.

To submit an application, please follow this link.