Grants and Prizes

IPIP poster prize

Infection Prevention in Practice (IPIP) is the gold open access journal of the Healthcare Infection Society, and provides a comprehensive fully open access resource for all those working in the field of prevention and treatment of healthcare-associated infections worldwide. The editors of IPIP will award a prize to three posters submitted to the FIS 2025 conference. The winners will be invited to submit an article to IPIP based on the poster, and open access fees will be fully waived for articles which are published. The IPIP Editorial Team will support and assist the winners with the submission of their article.

During FIS 2025 IPIP editors will look out for high-quality posters likely to translate to articles in the field of infection prevention and control that will influence clinical best practice and reduce the global burden of infection in healthcare.

Eligibility: All abstracts will be considered for the IPIP poster prize.

BIA best case presentation - Tropical Grand Round

There will be a prize awarded by BIA for the best case presentation at the Tropical Grand Round. This will be free publication in CLIP (Clinical Infection in Practice), subject to editorial review.

Grants for FIS hosting and FIS participating society members:

Healthcare Infection Society (HIS) member travel grants

HIS will offer travel grants of up to £750.00 to support the attendance of members who are presenting their Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) work at FIS 2025.

Applicants should apply for a HIS travel grant as soon they have confirmation that their abstract has been accepted. The deadline for receipt of travel grant applications is 1 September 2025.

Funding may be used to cover the registration fee, travel, accommodation and/or childcare costs.

Only members of HIS can apply. Eligibility commences immediately upon joining the Society and non-members can join the Society online.

Travel grants will preferentially be awarded to students, trainees, pharmacists, and nurses and are allocated according to pre-determined criteria which include:

If the applicant has had an abstract accepted for an oral or poster presentation at the conference to present their IPC work (applicants must provide proof of abstract acceptance)
The potential benefit to the applicant from attending the conference
If the applicant has difficulty obtaining funding to attend FIS 2025 or has difficulty covering the costs of childcare
HIS encourages sustainable travel and is committed to supporting environmentally responsible practices. HIS will not routinely support air travel where alternative transport modes are an option. Preference will be given to applications that prioritise sustainable travel options, such as train or bus travel, carpooling, or other low-emission transportation methods. Applicants are encouraged to outline their travel plans and indicate how they align with this commitment to sustainability. ED&I will be taken into consideration in terms of the sustainability goals. Individuals who choose to fly rather than taking a more sustainable method of travel will be asked to provide a supporting explanation regarding this.

For further information and to apply for a HIS Travel Grant, follow this link to the website.

British Infection Association member travel grants

Applications open: 1 July 2025
Closing date: 30 September 2025

BIA are providing up to 8 bursary places to support registration and travel to the FIS Conference for eligible applicants whose abstract are already accepted. One bursary will be ring-fenced for undergraduate applicants. Accommodation costs may also be included, up to £1000 grant limit.

FIS Bursaries will be assessed by the Scientific and Research Committee and awarded according to pre-determined criteria that include:

UK or Ireland-based salaried trainees who are not in a consultant-level post, working on infection-related research. This includes doctors, nurses, pharmacists, trainee clinical scientists, higher specialist scientist trainees, and other healthcare-focused careers.
UK or Ireland-based undergraduates working on infection-related research.
Acceptance of an abstract for an oral or poster presentation at the conference.
Benefit to the applicant from attending the conference.
All applicants will be required to be members of the British Infection Association. Individuals can join at the time of submitting their applications. Membership is free of charge for all undergraduate students, medically qualified doctors-in-training in the UK and Ireland, as well as non-medically qualified personnel including nurses, pharmacists and laboratory scientists.

To apply, please forward by e-mail to admin@Britishinfection.org

A cover letter/email summarising the potential impact and case for support
Name of conference
Accepted abstract
Letter of acceptance
2-page C.V.

Barnett Christie Lecture at FIS 2025

Applications open: 3 June 2025

Applications close: Midnight, 31 August 2025

Each year the BIA invites applications to deliver this highly prestigious lecture at the conference of the Federation of Infection Societies. The successful applicant will be invited to give a lecture at the annual meeting of the Federation of Infection Societies (FIS) held each autumn.

Award: In addition to presenting this BIA lecture, your attendance at the conference is funded to include, FIS Conference Registration, accommodation and travel. The award winner will also receive £1,500 cash award.

Application process:

A two-sided A4 outline of a proposed lecture plus a short curriculum vitae, listing all publications and other relevant scientific achievements should be sent by e-mail to the admin@Britishinfection.org

All applications will be reviewed by the Scientific and Research Committee and scored according to their body of independent research, its quality, novelty and impact, the quality of the lecture proposal and career trajectory.

Eligibility:

UK and Ireland based clinically-qualified trainees in infection or infection-related specialties who are not in a Consultant-level post.

UK and Ireland based non-clinical post-doctoral scientists within 4 years of PhD and not in a tenured academic or top-grade scientist post. If you are beyond 4 years since awarding of PhD, but have had career breaks (e.g. for maternity, paternity or other reasons), you could still be eligible and should explain the situation in a covering email or letter with the application.

Registering to attend FIS International 2025

Healthcare Infection Society (HIS) applicants should await the outcome of your grant or bursary application before registering for the conference. The early bird registration deadline is 29 September 2025 (23:59). British Infection Association member travel grants will be awarded retroactively.

You must register to attend the conference yourself and claim back the registration fee from the Society which has awarded your grant.

Childcare
If you are considering attending FIS International 2025 and require support for childcare, please email fisconference@fitwise.co.uk

Infection Science Award

If you are eligible for and wish to be considered for the Infection Science Award via a talk in the Microbiology Society Infectious Disease Futures session, please provide a statement when submitting your abstract (max. 150 words) outlining your current position and how the award will benefit your professional development. The judging panel will review this statement alongside your abstract to shortlist the entrants that will be considered for the Award during the session.

All self-defining early career and trainee presenters are eligible for the scheme. As a guide, the Microbiology Society’s Early Career Forum considers you early career if you are an undergraduate or postgraduate student, or within five years of appointment to your first position after your highest degree earned. However, if this does not fit your situation and you consider yourself early career, you are welcome to participate.