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Grants available VicHealth is calling for applications to undertake a two-year research project relating to the strategic imperatives outlined in the VicHealth Action Agenda for Health Promotion.

There will be a two-stage application process: the first stage is for expressions of interest, and those successful will then be invited to submit full applications. Applications will be rigorously assessed before funding is offered. Funding and projects are expected to commence March/April 2015.

A share of up to $200,000 over two years is available for each project. Up to three (3) projects will be funded in this round.

Further informationIf you have queries after reading these guidelines please email Emma Cook on ecook@vichealth.vic.gov.au or telephone (03) 9667 9014.

If you have any problems using the online application form please contact our help desk on 03 9667 1380 or email helpdesk@vichealth.vic.gov.au

VicHealth Innovation Research Grants 2014 Guidelines for applicants

Important informationStage 1: Expression of interest (EOI)

Opening date Monday 3 November 2014 – 9am

Closing date Friday 14 November 2014 – 11pm

Notification of shortlisted applications by

Friday 28 November 2014

Stage 2: Full application

Opening date Monday 1 December 2014

Appointments with VicHealth staff to discuss project applications

Monday 8 December to Thursday 18 December 2014

Closing date Monday 5 January 2015 – 11pm

Notifications February 2015

Commencement of funding

March/April 2015

Submission of applicationsApplications must be submitted from researchers at an eligible administering institution in Victoria using the online application form available on the VicHealth website.

Acknowledgement will be by return email. Please call (03) 9667 9014 if you do not receive a confirmation email.

Late applications will not be accepted.

Before applying, please ensure you have thoroughly read and understood both the

• Terms & Conditions• Guidelines.

02 VicHealth Innovation Research Grants 2014 Guidelines for applicants

Grant information, criteria and process

About VicHealth VicHealth is a pioneer in health promotion – the process of enabling people to increase control over and improve their health. Our primary focus is promoting good health and preventing chronic disease.

About VicHealth Innovation Research Grants VicHealth Innovation Research Grants provide an opportunity for research teams to trial an innovative idea, research a new concept or methodology, or to develop better supporting evidence relevant to the theory, policy and practice of health promotion.

Through this scheme, VicHealth aims to support the development of new knowledge and approaches related to our five strategic imperatives – healthy eating, physical activity, tobacco, alcohol and mental wellbeing.

This scheme funds researchers to undertake a two-year research project addressing specific research priorities related to the VicHealth Action Agenda for Health Promotion.

Successful applications must demonstrate the capacity to generate research findings that are immediately useful for health promotion policy and/or practice.

VicHealth prefers to support cross-disciplinary teams working on practical problems that have the potential to generate large health gains for Victorian population groups.

The project could also inform the development of a larger scale project for consideration by research funding bodies in the future.

This grant is a highly competitive funding round and applications that meet the criteria will be rigorously assessed before funding is offered.

The funding available for this round will allow a maximum of three (3) projects to be funded for up to $200,000 over two years. Funding and projects are expected to commence in early 2015.

VicHealth has committed itself to collaborative knowledge processes at the level of production, synthesis, translation and transfer. There is an expectation that successful applicants will engage with knowledge translation activities at VicHealth.

Please note the VicHealth Innovation Research Grants will be removed from the Australian Competitive Grants register from 2015 due to VicHealth no longer meeting the criteria.

VicHealth Action Agenda for Health Promotion Applicants are advised to read the VicHealth Action Agenda for Health Promotion to ensure their application is aligned with our approach, goals and priorities before applying.

To be considered for funding, projects must be aligned with VicHealth’s focus on primary prevention of chronic disease at a community or population level. Projects addressing disease treatment or management will not be considered.

VicHealth’s research priorities Projects must address one of the priorities outlined below.

Healthy eatingVicHealth wants to help tackle the crisis of overweight and obesity in Victoria, the burden of which is unequally spread across our community – those who are better educated and have higher incomes enjoy relatively better diets and lower rates of obesity compared with more socioeconomically disadvantaged groups. It is essential that we advance our understanding of how to help more Victorians adopt a healthier diet. VicHealth welcomes submissions exploring promising interventions to support healthier food choices, and/or support the substitution of sugar sweetened beverages for water, particularly among socioeconomically disadvantaged groups.

Physical activityVicHealth wants to explore new ways of engaging people in sport and physical activity. New digital technologies present unique opportunities to advance our understanding of the barriers and enablers for participation in sport and physical activity. Digital technologies are increasingly being used to track and measure a range of health behaviours, including the generation of real-time data related to physical activity and sedentary behaviour, but are used by a relative minority of the population. VicHealth welcomes submissions that will advance our understanding of how digital technologies could be used to help more Victorians engage in physical activity, particularly those who are inactive or somewhat active, including through participation in sport and/or walking.

TobaccoDespite significant reductions in the rate of Victorians who smoke over the past two decades, tobacco smoking is still the leading single preventable cause of disease and death in Victoria and remains common among some disadvantaged groups within the population. VicHealth welcomes submissions for research investigating tobacco smoking, cessation and harm reduction among groups with high smoking rates.

Health promotion is a powerful, cost-effective and efficient way to maintain a healthier community. It enables people to increase control over and improve their health. Rather than focusing on people at risk for specific diseases, health promotion involves the population as a whole in the context of their everyday lives. Activities are geared toward promoting health and preventing ill-health.

03 VicHealth Innovation Research Grants 2014 Guidelines for applicants

AlcoholAlthough the majority of Victorians drink responsibly, the harms associated with risky levels of drinking are borne by all of us. VicHealth recognises the potential for all members of the community to gain from an improved alcohol culture in Victoria and overall decline in drinking. Through our current focus on alcohol culture change, VicHealth is seeking to improve knowledge of effective interventions to address risky drinking and drunk behaviour, with an initial focus on addressing community attitudes to drinking. VicHealth welcomes submissions for research aiming to investigate organisational, community or population-level opportunities to address drinking cultures, risky drinking and drunk behaviour.

Mental wellbeingVicHealth defines resilience as the capacity to respond to adverse events without a significant decline in mental wellbeing. Evidence suggests resilience can be cultivated when children and young people have the opportunity to acquire social and emotional skills and live in supportive and protective family, school and wider community contexts. Despite the availability of resilience-building programs for schools, their implementation is inconsistent and subsequent outcomes poorly understood. VicHealth welcomes submissions aiming to examine ways to increase the uptake and quality of resilience programs in schools and to determine the impact of such programs on student mental wellbeing.

Eligibility criteria This funding is open to researchers based at Australian not-for-profit organisations such as universities, research centres, government or non-government organisations. The researcher may work in partnership with community organisations.

The research must be conducted in Victoria, about Victorians, although the administering organisation can be based interstate.

These grants are for both established and early career researchers who hold a PhD or equivalent postgraduate qualifications and/or have a research history.

Funding will not be granted if any of the researchers and/or their host organisations are in receipt of any support from the Australian Tobacco Research Foundation, or other like bodies.

Funding will also not be granted if any of the researchers and/or their host organisations are in receipt of funding for research purposes from the alcohol industry or any of its organisations.

In the interests of equity, funding may be prioritised towards applicants who are not currently in receipt of VicHealth funding for any other project.

Please note that Research Officers, Research Assistants, and current PhD students cannot usually apply as Chief Investigator for these grants.

Application criteria Research applications must:

• align with at least one of the strategic imperatives outlined in the VicHealth Action Agenda for Health Promotion

• address one of the research priorities identified by VicHealth • complete an expression of interest (Stage 1) and if

successfully shortlisted, complete a full application (Stage 2).

In addition, VicHealth will view favourably research that addresses health inequities. See Fair Foundations: the VicHealth framework for health equity for more information.

What will not be funded VicHealth will not fund:

• biomedical and clinical research that does not have a clear link to health promotion. In particular, we will not fund laboratory-based science or health services research unless there is a strong rational for its relevance to health promotion

• research which is unrelated to the research priorities listed in these guidelines

• capital works (e.g. buildings or maintenance or purchase of major equipment, purchase and lease of land/vehicles)

• commercial activities or individual persons• core organisational operating costs• projects that are considered by VicHealth to be the funding

responsibility of local, state or federal government (e.g. population-based surveillance)

• organisations that accept any form of sponsorship or support from tobacco companies, or research income from the alcohol industry

• projects that have commenced or have already been funded to commence

• videos, films, publications, conferences or travel in isolation of the specific project.

ProcessThe 2014 VicHealth Innovation Research Grants will be conducted via a two-stage application process. We are not seeking fully developed research proposals in the first instance.

Stage 1: Expression of interest Applicants can apply online by completing a short EOI which will cover:

• administering organisation details• project contact/Chief Investigator• project title and timelines• research team • relevant VicHealth strategic imperative and research priority • project summary• innovation component of the research.

Stage 2: Full application Shortlisted applicants will be required to complete a full application which will be rigorously assessed before funding is offered. Funding and projects are expected to commence in early 2015.

Applications for Stage 1 and Stage 2 will be via an online application form on the VicHealth website.

04 VicHealth Innovation Research Grants 2014 Guidelines for applicants

AssessmentVicHealth will be assessing your application against the selection criteria described in these guidelines.

Stages of assessmentStage 1: EOI applications will be assessed for eligibility and shortlisted by senior VicHealth staff against the following criteria.

Criteria Weighting

Alignment with VicHealth’s Action Agenda for Health Promotion and at least one research priority

60%

Potential significance of the innovation proposed

40%

Successful applicants will be asked to complete a full application to VicHealth via our online application form (Stage 2).

Stage 2: Full applications will be assessed by two external experts who hold a PhD in the specific or broader field of the proposed research project, on the basis of established selection criteria. Conflict of interest processes are managed and are transparent. Stage 2 applications will be assessed against the following criteria.

Criteria Weighting

Potential to deliver significant new knowledge in alignment with VicHealth’s research priorities

40%

Potential practical application and/or policy relevance of the research outcomes

30%

The degree to which the project addresses health inequities

20%

The applicant’s track record in research and expertise in the area of enquiry

10%

A panel will make the final decision on successful applications based on the alignment with the VicHealth Innovation Research Grant criteria and external assessments.

Grant conditionsAll applicants are required to accept the Terms and Conditions relating to the grant.

In addition the successful applicants will be required to enter into a Funding Agreement with VicHealth and are required to:

• produce an annual progress report after the first full year of funding

• complete a final report• complete a 3000-5000 word research summary• comply with VicHealth branding guidelines.

Research summary reports must be suitable for publication on the VicHealth website, within three months of the end of the funding period. Funding recipients may also be requested to participate in VicHealth research forums or further evaluation activities.

Funding agreementsBy submitting an application, you agree to be bound by the Terms and Conditions and the VicHealth Standard Funding Agreement if successful in receiving VicHealth funding.

The conditions of funding within these documents relates to:

• timely completion of the project• appropriate financial management• compliance with VicHealth evaluation and reporting

processes.

For a copy of the VicHealth Standard Funding Agreement, please email ecook@vichealth.vic.gov.au. Terms and Conditions can be found here.

Contacts for more informationFor more information, please contact Emma Cook on ecook@vichealth.vic.gov.au or (03) 9667 9014.

Applicants are also advised to consult the VicHealth Innovation Research Grants Frequently Asked Questions on the VicHealth website.

Victorian Health Promotion Foundation PO Box 154 Carlton South Victoria 3053 Australia T +61 3 9667 1333 F +61 3 9667 1375 vichealth@vichealth.vic.gov.au www.vichealth.vic.gov.au

November 2014 Publication number: P-KN-204

VicHealth acknowledges the support of the Victorian Government