MRFF – 2023 Childhood Mental Health Research Grant Opportunity (GO6518)

This grant opportunity is the first under the $50 million Childhood Mental Health Research Plan, which was developed by an independent Expert Advisory Panel in mid-2023.

The objective of this grant opportunity is to provide grants of financial assistance to support medical research and medical innovation projects that:

• Stream 1 (Aim 1, Objective #1 of Research Plan; Targeted Call for Research): conduct large-scale multidisciplinary projects to build knowledge of the biological, environmental, social, cultural, structural, economic, and individual factors that:
  • contribute to mental illness in children, and
  • keep children mentally healthy
• Stream 2 (Aim 2, Objective #1 of Research Plan; Incubator) conduct small-scale developmental projects to create assessments, treatments, preventions, and/or improve our understanding of the mechanisms of therapeutic change for childhood mental illness and psychological distress:
  • Topic A: for children aged 0 to 5 years
  • Topic B: in settings where children are cared for and/or whom they are cared by (for example, at home, in out-of-home care, in learning environments, in the community)
  • Topic C: among First Nations children by accessing the unique knowledges, strengths, and endurance of First Nations communities
  • Topic D: among children with a disability (including psychosocial disability or neurodisability) and/or long-term chronic disease
  • Topic E: among children who have experienced trauma
  • Topic F: among children experiencing emotionally based school avoidance/non-attendance
  • Topic G: for eating disorders (and their prodromes)
  • Topic H: for anxiety disorders (and their prodromes)
  • Topic I: for depression and/or self-harm and/or suicidality (and their prodromes)
  • Topic J: for disruptive behaviour disorders (for example, conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder)

Intended outcome

The intended outcome of the research funded by this grant opportunity is to improve the health and wellbeing of Australians by:

• Stream 1 (Aim 1, Objective #1 of Research Plan; Targeted Call for Research): building evidence to support the development of effective strategies, interventions, policies and programs for promoting social and emotional wellbeing in children.
• Stream 2 (Aim 2, Objective #1 of Research Plan; Incubator): generating new assessments, treatments, preventions, and knowledge of the therapeutic mechanisms of change that improve the mental health, education, wellbeing, and quality of life for children.

Maximum project periods

The maximum project period that can be applied for each stream is as follows:

• Stream 1 (Targeted Call for Research): 5 years
• Stream 2 (Incubator): 2 years

Funding available

For this grant opportunity, the amounts available for a single grant in each stream are as follows:

• Stream 1: There is no minimum grant amount and the maximum amount available for a single grant is $5 million.
• Stream 2: There is no minimum grant amount and the maximum amount available for a single grant is $1 million.

Other requirements

Applications to this grant opportunity must propose research that addresses one of the two Streams of research. An application may only be submitted to one of the above two Streams only. Applicants must specify the Stream to which they are applying in their application. Applicants to Stream 2 must also specify which of the ten Topics in that Stream (Topics A-J) is the focus of their project.

Grant administration

This grant opportunity is being administered by NHMRC on behalf of the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care.

Further information

Further information is available from Department of Health and Aged Care.