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£5.5 million research fund for healthier working lives
Howard Lake | 26 October 2026 | News
The Nuffield Foundation is making £5.5 million available for research into how disabled people and people with long-term health conditions aged over 50 can stay in, or return to, work.
The Extending healthier working lives programme will run across two funding rounds, with individual grants of up to £750,000. Applications are invited from researchers and their partners, including employers, employment support providers, people with lived experience and health professionals.
What the funding will support
Projects should either expand what is known about delivering and scaling effective support, or produce new insights that can inform action. The Foundation particularly welcomes proposals centred on the needs of people at greater risk of poor health, leaving the workforce early and financial disadvantage.
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Older workers bring valuable skills and experience to the workplace, and good-quality employment helps people keep earning, maintain their living standards and build their pension. Long-term health conditions and disability can make it harder to stay in work, particularly where appropriate support is not available.
The scale of the challenge
The Foundation points to 2.8 million working-age people who were economically inactive due to long-term sickness in 2024/5, putting many at risk of financial hardship. Over half of them were aged between 50 and 64.
Dr Catherine Dennison, Programme Head at the Nuffield Foundation, said:
“We’re all expected to work for longer, but too many of us over 50 find it hard to stay in employment because of long-term health problems, with serious consequences for our finances, well-being and the wider economy. This funding will build stronger evidence to support and scale solutions that enable more people to stay healthy and in good-quality work for longer.”
Partnership with Arthritis UK
The money is drawn from the Foundation’s Oliver Bird Fund, which was bequeathed by Captain Oliver Bird and supports research on health and disability. Arthritis UK is partnering on the programme and will provide up to £500,000 for projects with a focus on musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions.
The fund has backed MSK research before. Its third round of awards committed £2.4 million to five new projects.
Deborah Alsina MBE, Chief Executive at Arthritis UK, said that over 27 million working days are lost each year in the UK because of MSK conditions. Half of people with arthritis have told the charity their condition affects their ability to work, and of these, 39% have stopped working because of it.
She added:
“Without better support, we risk losing invaluable knowledge, skills and experience from our workforce. Helping people with arthritis and other long-term health conditions stay in employment or return to work that suits them would make a real difference to their lives and benefit the wider economy.”
Deadlines
Outline applications for the first round must be submitted by 14 January 2027. The Foundation will also accept applications in summer 2027, with exact dates to be announced. Full details and the application process are on the Nuffield Foundation‘s website.
What this means for charities
This is a research fund, not a service delivery grant, so it will suit charities that can work alongside a university or other research team rather than apply alone. Organisations supporting older people, disabled people or people with long-term conditions are well placed to contribute delivery experience and access to people with lived experience, which the Foundation explicitly names among eligible partners.
With the outline deadline just under three months away, charities interested in taking part may want to start conversations with potential research partners now and read the Foundation’s guidance closely. Those with an MSK focus should note the additional ring-fenced support from Arthritis UK.
- Nuffield Foundation opens £500,000 fund to build evidence on youth employment skills (8 September 2026)
- Nuffield Foundation offers grants up to £500k for racial diversity research (27 May 2026)
- Nuffield Foundation commits £150mn over five years to tackle UK’s biggest social challenges (24 July 2025)
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About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.