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Overview

Take the Lead: Data Champions offers the opportunity for up to 20 community leaders across the UK to receive £3,000 to deliver activities that engage their community organisation’s audiences with the role of data in supporting health and wellbeing, connect with other leaders, develop confidence with using data to support their community and build relationships with data scientists to inform how data is used in research. These activities need to take place at any point between Monday 8 February to Sunday 20 June 2027.

You do not have to have any experience of data, science or research to take part.

Eligibility

To be eligible, community leaders must be:

  • Based at an established UK-based community organisation with an organisational bank account (we cannot fund individuals). For example, you might be your organisation’s programme or project manager, activity leader or founder
  • Available to attend the Data Champions welcome event for the whole day on Tuesday 23
    February 2027 in Bristol in person (attendance is compulsory).
  • Able to deliver Take the Lead activities between Monday 8 February – Sunday 20 June 2027. Activities can be delivered at any point during this period.
  • Able to provide evidence that they could act as a champion for data in their communities, are interested in developing their data engagement skills, can influence the direction of the Take the Lead activities and share insights from the programme with their colleagues and wider community. You do not need to have a specific job title or seniority to be eligible, we are interested in leaders at all levels of an organisation that can demonstrate these qualities.

We are looking for applications from leaders from any eligible organisation, including those who have previously received Take the Lead funding and those that have not.

Leaders based in community organisations who work with one or more of the following priority audiences, based in the UK, are eligible to apply for funding. These audiences have been selected based on HDR UK’s 2025 desk review to understand which groups are less likely to be engaged with health data:

  • People from low socio-economic backgrounds
  • People from minority ethnic backgrounds
  • Older children and young adults aged 11–25 (especially in areas of deprivation)
  • People over 65 (especially in areas of deprivation)
  • People living in rural areas (defined as settlements of fewer than 10,000 people in England and Wales, fewer than 5,000 in Northern Ireland, and fewer than 3,000 in Scotland)
  • People experiencing digital exclusion

What activities could I deliver?

We’re looking for community leaders to deliver activities that engage their community with the role of data in understanding or improving at least one of the following priority health and wellbeing issues:

  • Brain health (for example, dementia, Alzheimer’s, etc.)
  • Cancer
  • Environment and health (for example, access to nature, air pollution, etc.)
  • Heart health
  • Sustainable and healthy diets (for example, eating locally sourced foods, reducing food waste, etc.)
  • Young people’s mental health

We are looking for new and creative ideas to engage your community with data that are tailored to their interests and needs. The more evidence you can provide that your activities are specific and tailored to your audience interests and needs, the better the chance your application has in being successful.

For inspiration, check out case studies from previous Take the Lead projects. Please note, some of these case studies do not reflect the above priority topics as these were not a criteria for the last round.

How to apply

Complete the online application form by Monday 2 November at 12.00, midday.

Guidance for preparing your application form can be found in Appendix 2 of the guidelines and eligibility document linked below.

Read the full guidelines and eligibility document 

 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

  • Data means information.

    Information – data – about your everyday life can help you better understand yourself and the things that affect how you feel. It can take any form – numbers, written words or even images.

    By tracking and reflecting on this data, you may begin to spot patterns in your daily life. For example, you might discover that you sleep better after being active or feel happier after spending time in nature.

    You can use anything to track your data, from a smartwatch to a notebook.

  • Lots of different kinds of data can be used to understand more about health and wellbeing. It can take many different forms, such as:

    • National statistics: Public bodies like the Office for National Statistics and the NHS have lots of data that they use to give a snapshot of health and wellbeing across the UK. They can be a useful starting point for community conversations about data and statistics.
    • Journalling about your health. If you’ve ever kept a journal to track how you are physically or mentally feeling, you’ve been collecting health data.
    • NHS GP and hospital appointments. Data from blood tests, scans and consultations can be used to improve treatments and patient care, and understand more about diseases. Find out more about how the NHS uses health data and how health data is used in research in this simple explainer.
    • Fitness watches and health tracking apps. You can track step count, heart rate, menstruation and lots of other data about health through these. They can be useful to help us keep fit.
    • Personal pedometers and heart rate monitors. Before fitness watches and apps, people tracked their steps and heart rate using personal, clip-on pedometers and monitors. These are still available and inexpensive.
    • Supermarket reward points. These can provide insights into our health and wellbeing through seeing the kind of items we buy and when.
    • Community conversations and surveys. There are many groups that advocate for the wellbeing needs of their communities. Insights about health and wellbeing issues that are important for community members, collected through things like conversations, art, surveys and social media polls, can help groups tailor their health and wellbeing activities.
    • Environmental and social data. Combining health data with data about things like air or water quality and access to green space can be used to understand more about the possible causes of certain health and wellbeing issues in a community.
    • And lots more! Can you think of any more examples?

  • No. We are interested in how communities can explore and use their own health and wellbeing data and other data that is relevant to them.

    • Launch of the funding call: 5 October 2026 at 9.00
    • Deadline for applications: 2 November 2026 at 12.00, midday
    • Notification of application outcome: December 2026
    • Award start date: 8 February 2027
    • Data Champions welcome event: 23 February 2027 (all-day, in-person, Bristol)
    • Data Champions peer learning sessions: Ad-hoc between 8 February 2027 and 20 June 2027
    • Award end date: 20 June 2027

Application support and further enquiries

If you have any enquiries about the process of submitting your application, or require further clarifications about the grant scheme contact procurement@hdruk.ac.uk