The Pediatric Rheumatology European Society (PReS) aims to promote excellence in paediatric rheumatology through a range of strategic initiatives.

PReSTaR (the PReS Network for Trials and Research) aims to support the development of translational and clinical research by connecting and coordinating clinical and academic centres worldwide.

To further strengthen PReS research activities, this project framework is built on close collaboration between the clinical research sites of the PReSTaR network and the PReS Working Parties.

A call for research proposals is issued on an annual basis.

The grant may support a wide range of studies in pediatric rheumatology, including observational studies, translational and basic science projects, pilot or feasibility studies, qualitative research, health services research, and educational or methodological projects. The grant may also enable the extension of already existing national clinical trials to an international level. This list of objectives, though ambitious, is not exhaustive and PReS and PReSTaR remain open to evaluate new ideas and forms of collaborative research projects.

The awarded project will receive financial and operational support for a total of three years. PReS will provide a financial contribution of €10,000/year (for a total of €30,000), primarily to support personnel, meetings, and networking. Additionally, the PReSTaR Team will contribute the equivalent of €30,000 in workforce, offering technical, administrative, and scientific support for the implementation of international collaborative studies (feasibility, databases, ethics committee submissions, quality checks on data collection, support in the publication phase, etc.).

• Applying PI and co-PI must be members of a PReS WP2.0 and hold a valid PReS membership (please contact presmembership@mci-group.com for further information);
• At least one between PI and co-PI must be aged up to 40 years;
• The kind of support requested to PReSTaR must be clearly described in the proposal;
• The proposed project should involve at least three countries; the partners involved in the proposal must provide a formal letter of support to the PI on their institution’s letterhead with a clear indication of their role in the project;
• Patient associations/representatives must be involved in the definition of the research needs and in the design of the proposal. Their involvement should be clearly outlined in the proposal.

• At least one among the applying PI and CoPI of the project and their home institution should be based in a European Paediatric Rheumatology Centre;
• The applying PI should state whether the proposed project has already received any additional sources of funding from other organizations/entities and how these will be used in the implementation of the project;
• A specific proposal cannot be submitted for evaluation for more than two consecutive calls.

An official project proposal template for the annual Call of the PReS-supported PReSTaR Grants is made available to the research community. All applicants are required to complete this template and submit their proposal to PReSTaR by the specified deadline.

Further details, including submission procedures and timelines, are provided in the official communication launching each call.

Following the submission deadline, all proposals will undergo a peer review process involving selected members of PReS, as well as of the PReSTaR Scientific Committee and Board of Trustees.

Each proposal will be assessed using a standardized scoring system ranging from 1 (poor) to 5 (very good), based on the following criteria:

• Scientific originality and significance
• Relevance to PReS objectives
• Quality and feasibility of the study plan
• Appropriateness of the budget
• Potential for further international development
• Involvement of parents’ and patients’ associations

Reviewers are required to provide a brief written justification to support their scores. Final scores are discussed collectively during a dedicated meeting or teleconference of the PReSTaR Scientific Committee.

All applicants will receive formal communication regarding the outcome of the evaluation.

The selected proposal will be officially awarded, and an award letter will be issued, marking the formal start of the project, which will run for a duration of three years with predefined milestones and reporting requirements.

Throughout the entire duration of the project, the Principal Investigator (PI) and co-Principal Investigator (co-PI) are required to submit an annual report to the PReSTaR Scientific Committee detailing the activities carried out and progress achieved.

Satisfactory progress, as documented in this report, is a key requirement for the release of relevant annual funding instalment.

At the end of the project, a comprehensive final report must be submitted, summarizing the main findings and results, including presentation in tables and figures where appropriate.

All publications arising from the funded projects must acknowledge “PReS WP2.0 (name of the WP2.0) and PReSTaR” in accordance with the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) guidelines. The PI and co-PI will be listed as first or last authors.

The allocated budget is managed by the PI through their home institution. Funds are transferred on an annual basis by PReS, via its official Secretariat (MCI Group), to the PI’s institution, which assumes full responsibility for the independent management and administration of the funds.

This includes, for example, payments to vendors or third parties and the distribution of funds to participating sites. Any alternative arrangements for budget management may be considered only upon prior agreement between the PI and PReS.