Tessa Jowell AHP Research Fellowships

The Tessa Jowell AHP Research Fellowships support Allied Health Professionals to develop the skills, confidence and protected time needed to lead high-quality applied clinical research in neuro-oncology.

Allied Health Professional roles are essential to helping people with a brain tumour live well, yet too few have access to the research training or time needed to build the evidence base that informs rehabilitation and supportive care. These Fellowships aim to change that.

Designed in partnership with AHP and neuro-oncology leaders, researchers, NHS centres and patients, the programme provides up to four years of part-time research funding alongside continued clinical practice. Fellows develop expertise in research design, analysis, patient involvement and implementation, while carrying out projects that directly address service gaps and unmet needs in rehabilitation and supportive care across the UK.

The first application round was opened in 2025, with 13 applicants having submitted Expression of Interests in late summer and four candidates selected to progress to the project refinement stage.

The Fellowship application process is designed to support AHPs at different stages of research readiness, from those with early research exposure to those with more experience looking to progress towards clinical academic careers. The application process itself forms an integral part of this, offering structured guidance as applicants develop a research question, design a feasible project, and build essential skills in proposal writing.

The process runs in three stages (see Figure 1):

1. Expression of Interest

Applicants submit a short proposal outlining their project idea, why it matters, how it could improve patient outcomes, and how it could be delivered within the Fellowship timeframe.
During this stage, applicants can attend Q&A sessions and receive signposting for early project development.

2. Proposal Discussion Meeting

Shortlisted applicants meet the Fellowship Committee to discuss their idea in more detail. This informal discussion helps identify support needs, research gaps and the feasibility of the project, with a comprehensive feedback reports drafted in consultation with the committee.

3. Proposal Refinement

Up to five candidates receive 2.5 months of tailored support to strengthen their proposal, including expert input, PPIE co-development and comprehensive support from the TJBCM team, including access to anonymised CoE data . Two Fellows are ultimately selected.

Even if not selected, applicants complete the process with a well-developed project, enhanced research skills and a clearer pathway to future funding – helping to build long-term research capacity among AHPs in neuro-oncology

The application process is organised in three phases described below:

Project Development Process of the Tessa Jowell AHP Fellowship Programme 2025/2026

AHPs work across the patient pathway and research interests span from diagnosis to end-of-life care. The Fellowship consequently offers a broad scope of accepted research areas, relevant to neuro-oncology pre-/rehabilitation, supportive care and quality-of-life improvement. The key aim of the Fellowship is to enable AHPs to engage in applied clinical research to generate evidence for AHP service provision, while supporting professional growth and advancing longer term career goals. Research proposals are therefore recommended to focus on projects which will enhance the understanding and improvement of clinical practice, service delivery  or patient outcomes, specifically those involving pre-/rehabilitation and supportive care for patients with a brain tumour. Projects may take various forms, including contributing to ongoing research work, participating in a larger initiative, or starting a project that may continue beyond the fellowship. The Fellowship programme offers two pathways tailored to AHPs at different stages in the research:

High-quality, evidence-based Allied Health Professional (AHP) input is essential for addressing the complex needs of patients with a brain tumour. Access to AHP services varies significantly across UK centres, with diverse models of service provision. A lack of neuro-oncology specific research in this area has resulted in limited evidence for rehabilitation for patients with a brain tumour and consequently few guidelines to inform practice. This has hindered standard setting and service harmonisation and led to an undervaluing of AHP roles, which are often not prioritised in funding decisions. There is a need for more evidence in brain cancer rehabilitation to establish best practice guidelines and reduce service variation across the UK.

The Fellowship programme empowers AHPs in their personal and professional development by providing training and support to engage in high-quality research, strengthening the evidence base for brain cancer pre-habilitation, rehabilitation, and supportive care. It seeks to create a new generation of research-active AHPs empowered to improve care for patients with a brain tumour, through practices grounded in the latest scientific evidence

If you are passionate about improving care for people with brain tumours and want to explore how your research idea could support that, we would love to receive an application from you! For questions or more information, please join the Q&A or email lauren.lankhuijzen@tessajowellbcm.org.