Contract opportunities
Find out about contract opportunities to support Wellcome's mission to improve human health – including an overview of each project, who can apply and how.
At Wellcome, we invite organisations to apply for contract opportunities that support our mission to fund discovery research and find solutions to three worldwide health challenges: mental health, infectious disease and climate.
Explore our requests for proposals (RFP) below.
Climate and Health RFPs
Given the growing awareness of the negative impacts of extreme heat on human physical and mental health, Wellcome has initiated funding to help increase knowledge of these impacts and evaluate potential solutions. However, there remain gaps in our knowledge of when and why heat is so detrimental to human health and this knowledge could help us improve current interventions and identify new ones. Biomedical and biotechnical scientists (including immunologists, geneticists, engineers, biometeorologists, data scientists and others) are starting to develop innovative solutions to the impacts of extreme heat on human health but these entrepreneurial efforts are nascent and scattered.
Wellcome is interested in learning where investment opportunities may lie for further innovation at this intersection. Ultimately, we are seeking to identify opportunities for protecting communities from extreme heat through biomedical and biotechnological innovation. For example, risk indicators, diagnostics and protective measures.
Potential suppliers are asked to provide a programme of work that will produce a report for Wellcome with the objectives detailed in the full RFP document below.
Eligibility: Open to all
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 1 February 2024
Submission of full proposal: 19 February 2024
Discovery Research RFPs
There are currently no RFPs for Discovery Research
Infectious Disease RFPs
Wellcome and Novo Nordisk Foundation are co-commissioning a review on mucosal immunity to gain a better understanding of mucosal immune responses and how to harness mucosal immunity to provide protection from pathogenic infections.
We would like to commission a focused analysis on the current landscape of human mucosal immunity induced by vaccines with a particular focus on specific respiratory, enteric and genitourinary pathogens.
Eligibility: Open to all
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 16 February 2024
Submission of full proposals: 19 March 2024
Wellcome and Novo Nordisk Foundation are co-commissioning a focused analysis on sample collection methods and assays in the human mucosal immunology and vaccine field. We are interested in understanding the different sampling techniques and assays utilised in human (children and adult) scientific studies across the vaccine field especially for vaccines (mucosal and systemic) targeting respiratory, enteric and genitourinary pathogens
We would therefore like to commission a report based on a literature review/landscape analysis and interviews with experts. The experts should be currently involved in developing and using assays and sampling techniques in vaccine development for respiratory, enteric and genitourinary pathogens.
We are interested in developing and prioritising a set of recommendations, strategies and actions which will aid in creating a uniform way of developing sampling and assays across the field. We would like to identify potential global stakeholders ideally positioned to play a role in the identified priority strategies and develop a plan of action for engagement.
Eligibility: Open to all
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 16 February 2024
Submission of full proposals: 19 March 2024
Mental Health RFPs
We are commissioning an analysis of the landscape of psychological and social interventions with potential for early intervention in anxiety, depression and psychosis. We are interested in the broad geographical landscape, including high-, middle- and low-income countries.
Eligibility: We encourage proposals from a broad range of potential suppliers to fulfil this role. We anticipate it could be an asset if the supplier has worked in or has close links with low- and middle-income countries or low-resource settings, so please identify these where relevant in the proposal. Please download the RFP for full eligibility criteria.
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 4 March 2024
Submission of full proposals: 3 April 2024
Wellcome's Mental Health team are looking for a supplier to help us understand how research or resources exploring people’s subjective experiences of mental health problems are integrated across diverse areas of mental health science.
Specifically, the supplier will consider the extent to which research or resources exist and their accessibility across other areas of mental health research. The supplier will develop a landscaping report highlighting what works well and why, as well as exploring existing barriers and ongoing initiatives. We also want further recommendations to facilitate the use of this research in ways that are inclusive, sensitive and appropriate.
Eligibility: Open to all
Submission of questions: 8 January 2024
Submission of full proposal: 5 February 2024
Download the full RFP [PDF 228KB]
Wellcome is looking for a supplier to help us understand how technical challenges to sensor use in mental health research and clinical practice could be resolved.
Digital sensors, like the GPS tracker in a mobile phone or a heart rate sensor in a smartwatch, hold promise for tackling the mental health crisis. However, they are not easy to use. Interested researchers must contend with many different devices, each of which can present different technical challenges. At Wellcome, we want to understand what can be done to solve the technical challenges facing researchers and clinicians who aim to use sensors and sensor data in their work. We are commissioning this research to understand the technical challenges faced, how they are currently solved, and what opportunities exist for the development of new solutions.
Eligibility: Open to all
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 8 December 2023
Submission of full proposals: 26 January 2024
Wellcome is looking for a supplier to work with our Mental Health team to provide a report on citizen science in mental health. Citizen science is scientific work undertaken by members of the general public, often in collaboration with or under the direction of professional scientists and scientific institutions.
The report will have a specific focus on issues pertinent to early intervention in anxiety, depression and psychosis. It will cover the use of citizen science in the field thus far, its potential for development, ways of measuring impact, an analysis of potential practical and ethical issues with its implementation, and its broader potential to raise the profile and acceptance of mental health science as a scientific field. We anticipate that this report will guide Wellcome’s own thinking on the subject, and provide a resource for other funders and mental health scientists.
Eligibility: Open to all
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 20 November 2023
Submission of full proposals: 15 January 2024
Other RFPs
Research Environment:
Wellcome is a politically and financially independent charitable foundation. We improve health for everyone by funding research, leading policy and advocacy campaigns and building global partnerships. Wellcome’s Research Environment approach cuts across our strategy and considers how we fund research. It is grounded in three values:
- The research that Wellcome supports is strengthened by being ethical, open and engaged.
- The people Wellcome funds thrive in equitable, diverse and supportive cultures.
- Wellcome is an innovative, efficient and inclusive partner and organisation.
To support these ambitions, we encourage our researchers to use an engaged approach. An engaged research approach describes a variety of methodologies, frameworks and skills that embed a range of voices and experiences across the lifecycle of research.
Engaging with stakeholders as early as possible helps researchers understand what might be required from their research and enables them to plan, cost and staff their proposals appropriately.
Wellcome seeks a supplier to produce a landscaping report that focuses on the tools needed to help our researchers embed engagement in Wellcome-funded research and to understand the barriers that researchers currently face to undertake this work.
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 4 March 2024
Submission of full proposal: 27 March 2024
A growing body of research has demonstrated how the composition of the human gut microbiome can impact or contribute to a range of health conditions – including diarrheal diseases, mental health conditions via the gut-brain axis, and inflammatory and infectious diseases via effects on the immune system. Additionally, the microbiome can also impact response to therapeutics and vaccines.
As we continue to develop the evidence and our understanding of how the microbiome impacts both causal pathways to disease and response to biomedical interventions, there is growing potential for microbiome‐based interventions and therapies to address key health challenges.
This work will produce insights on the ethical, social, and cultural considerations for the development and introduction of gut microbiome-targeted interventions.
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 6 February 2024
Submission of full proposal: 4 March 2024
The Reimagine Research study Wellcome conducted in 2019 provided significant insights into the current issues within the research culture in the UK. In 2023, Wellcome also commissioned a study in Africa to investigate the research culture in an African context. Wellcome now wants to expand on these studies and is inviting proposals for developing and delivering a project to gain a deeper understanding of research culture in Southeast Asia, its impacts and how to improve it.
This project could be explored in various ways, including a literature review, virtual focus groups, interviews and/or an extensive online survey of academic researchers. However, we are open to other approaches to achieve a similarly robust result.
Eligibility: The team and leadership of this project should include individuals from and with lived experience of Southeast Asia, particularly in a research context, and across several countries. This does not preclude teams which include members who are not from the region, but most members must either be from or have long-term and demonstrable experience of regional research environments and cultures.
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 22 February 2024
Submission of full proposal: 11 April 2024
Translation and Portfolio Integration:
There are currently no RFPs for Translation and Portfolio Integration
Strategy:
We are seeking to appoint a supplier to coordinate and facilitate a process to review the function, structure and ways of working of Wellcome’s Strategy and Programme office. They will capture clear and concise outputs with recommendations for change, securing buy-in from key stakeholders throughout the process.
Eligibility: Supplier must be available to facilitate in-person workshops at our London office
Submission of supplier questions and answers: 19 January 2024
Submission of RFP response: 7 February 2024
Corporate Affairs:
Wellcome's Planning and Insight team within Corporate Affairs are seeking an agency or agencies who are expert in global brand health and reputation tracking, and strategic brand research, to deliver against two workstreams:
- Research and design a global tracking programme and deliver baseline results to track Wellcome’s brand health and reputation across more than 12 countries.
- Deliver multi-country qualitative insights to support the design and delivery of our brand strategy. Specifically, audience response to our beliefs and values, identification of emotive connections and brand journey mapping.
Eligibility: Open to all
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 11 December 2023
Submission of full proposals: 18 January 2024
Wellcome's Communications team within Corporate Affairs are seeking a qualified and experienced agency to provide strategic internal communications advice, content creation and creative assets. The successful agency will work closely with our in-house Internal Communications team to enhance our activities across Wellcome and Wellcome Collection, in line with our beliefs and values and brand guidelines, to effectively engage our employees on a range of issues.
Eligibility: Open to all
Submission of expression of interest and questions: 11 December 2023
Submission of full proposals: 15 January 2024
Culture, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (CEDI):
There are currently no RFPs for CEDI
We aim to make our contract opportunities open to all organisations, however there will be instances where we provide eligibility criteria based on the specific nature of what we are looking to procure. Please see each opportunity for specific eligibility criteria.
We do not contract with suppliers connected to the tobacco industry. For clarity, we define the tobacco industry as any company, entity or organisation (or groups or combinations of the same) whose business other than for an insignificant part (less than 10% of its revenue), is the development, production, promotion, marketing, or sale of tobacco in any country of the world. The term also includes any companies that are a subsidiary or a holding company or affiliate of the above. This also includes E-cigarette companies and non-tobacco related companies which are fully or partially owned by the tobacco industry.
Diversity and inclusion are central to our strategy. We want to make sure everything we do – and everyone who works with us – upholds these principles. Our intention is to work with kindness and consideration and to value the wellbeing of everyone involved in the collaboration. If you require any reasonable adjustments during the application process, please let us know.
Please send in your proposals electronically and refer to the individual RFP documents above for specific timelines and response requirements.
Grants: When funding someone to do something where Wellcome expects to receive nothing in return (except acknowledgement and progress reports), this will normally be through a grant.
Contracts: When funding someone to do something where Wellcome expects to receive something in return (such as goods, services, rights or other benefits), this will normally be through a contract.
| Grant | Contract | |
|---|---|---|
| Our rights | When we award a grant, we have no right to receive anything back – except acknowledgment of our funding and reports as detailed in the grant conditions. We can require that the grant is spent on the agreed activities, but we can’t direct how those activities are carried out. We can demand repayment if grant money is spent on something else, but not if we simply don’t like the outputs. We can terminate a grant, cancelling any future payments, at any time and for any reason in line with the grant conditions. |
When we award a contract, we have the right to receive what we are paying for as specified in the legally binding agreement. Depending on the exact terms, we will be able to require a certain level of quality and punctuality. If the supplier falls short, we may be able to make them do the work again or refund the money; we might also be able to sue for compensation. A contract can be terminated only in accordance with its provisions, which may require us to give a specific notice period or make payments even after termination. |
| Tax |
We generally won’t need to pay VAT on a grant. |
VAT is added to all UK invoices. Overseas taxes are charged as applicable. |
| Process |
Grants are usually awarded as a result of an application process, with appropriate types of review and approval. Most of our grants are awarded under our funding schemes. |
Contracts are usually awarded as a result of a procurement exercise. |
We don’t want your proposal to be limited in scope and ambition. However, there may be cases where a set budget is necessary and if so, we do expect you to submit a proposal that is within that.
This is a contract and not a grant. It should be costed as part of the supplier's budget in order to complete the activity on time and in full.
We can pay in various currencies please ensure this is clear on your proposal.
The main VAT requirement is to account for reverse charge VAT at 20% on any B2B (business to business) services received from overseas. This is to provide a level playing field for all businesses, that is UK VAT is payable on services regardless of where the supplier is based. In the case of a UK supplier, the supplier will charge UK VAT at 20% on its services. Where the supplier is based abroad, no VAT is charged by the supplier but the responsibility to account for VAT is shifted to the recipient, who then accounts for the VAT as if the supply was made in the UK.
We always endeavour to provide feedback to suppliers who make it through to the interview stage. Some panels may also provide feedback at earlier stages, but this is at their discretion.
Unless specified on the RFP all contract opportunities are open to all organisations including individuals.
If the lead organisation is working with a sub-processor (collaborator), that sub-processor does not have to complete the Third-Party Risk Assessment form.
The lead organisation must however tell Wellcome who is their sub-processor and send us their independent security certificate and/or security audit report for review as required in the Third-Party Risk Assessment form.
We cannot contract to any countries on the UK government financial sanctions list.
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Please do not use this address to submit expressions of interest or proposals. Please refer to the email address provided in the relevant contract opportunity document as to where these should be sent.
Here, you can find some of our previous RFPs that have now expired, including an overview of each project, to enable suppliers to understand the format and structure.
The Strategic Partnerships team is seeking an individual consultant to provide dedicated expertise on Climate and Health partnerships work as well as support Wellcome’s wider Strategic Partnerships function.
Eligibility: Individual consultant with partnerships expertise and strong understanding of the climate and health research ecosystem
Initial response deadline: 7 July 2022
Wellcome would like to partner with BIOVAC to commission a report, based on a literature review/landscape analysis, on how to build an enabling environment for the African continent to increase its end-to-end manufacture of vaccines. We are interested in understanding what the barriers to vaccine development and manufacturing on the African continent are and what strategies and actions can be taken to increase the manufacture of vaccines.
Eligibility: Open to all countries
Initial Response Deadline: 27 June 2022
Wellcome’s Discovery Research team aims to design new funding activities to reduce barriers that are slowing down and/or blocking progress in the field of Bioimaging. Wellcome has a history of supporting innovation in bioimaging and our current portfolio of investments has supported work that ranges from new tools and technologies to infrastructure and data repositories. We want to progress our work even further and identify new key areas where Wellcome investments in bioimaging methodologies, equipment, tools and technology development (across the scales of life, from atoms to humans) will afford field-opening, filed-shaping and field-advancing opportunities.
The purpose of the RFP is to commission a delivery partner to provide critical insights on the following fundamental questions:
- What are the nascent technologies/methodologies in the field of bioimaging that will enable researchers to formulate new hypotheses and address new fundamental questions for life, health, and wellbeing?
- What are specific barriers (in terms of technology, methodology, hardware, software, and access) that are limiting progress in the field of bioimaging in both High-Income Countries (HICs) and Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs)?
- Who are the key leaders on an international level that are driving development in the field of bioimaging?
Wellcome is intending for this piece of work to equally cover both, the UK/HIC and LMIC landscape, addressing the different needs in both settings.
Eligibility: Open to all countries
Response deadlines:
Expressions of Interest – 20 May 2022
Full proposals – 6 June 2022
We’re looking to appoint a bold and creative agency/consultant to determine how we can best use photography to advance our brand and strategy. As well as reviewing the effectiveness of Wellcome Photography Prize as a vehicle for our brand, we need to better understand how our audiences respond to photography and how to ensure the imagery we use reflects our commitment to diversity and inclusion.
Eligibility: Open to all countries
Initial response deadline: Closed
We’re looking to commission a team to identify and evaluate the properties, strengths, and weaknesses of selected measures for depression, anxiety and psychosis and to produce a toolkit for their use by researchers, funders and journals. The team will also produce an implementation plan to encourage the uptake of common metrics by key stakeholder groups.
Eligibility: Open to all countries
Initial response deadline: 5 May 2022
Download the full RFP [PDF 573KB]
Watch a recording of our webinar from 11 April 2022 to find out more.