Police investigating the disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann have been given extra funding in order to follow up ‘significant’ leads in the 10-year search.

Madeleine, who would now be 13 years old, disappeared from her family’s holiday home in Praia da Luz, Portugal, in May 2007 at the age of three, prompting one of the most expensive investigations in history.

Now, London’s Metropolitan Police have received an extra £154,000 ($A264,000) in funding to continue the inquiry until March 2018, bringing the total amount of money spent on the search to more than £11 million ($A18.8 million).

The review, which has been named Operation Grange, was launched in May 2011 following a request from now-Prime Minister Theresa May.

“Following an application from the Metropolitan Police, the Home Office has confirmed funding for Operation Grange until the end of March 2018,” a UK government spokesperson said.

“As with all applications, the resources required are reviewed regularly and careful consideration is given before any funding is allocated.”

It is understood the number of officers working on the investigation will remain the same.

Detective Chief Inspector Nicola Wall told The Sun there was “still important work to do and focused lines of investigation”.

In March, the Home Office granted officers GBP85,000 ($A145,000)  to cover “operational costs” to continue with the investigation between April and September this year.

The additional money was to help police to continue pursuing a “significant line of inquiry” they flagged earlier this year.

In April, Met Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley said the line of inquiry was “worth pursuing”.

“It could provide an answer, but until we’ve gone through it I won’t know whether we are going to get there or not,” he said.

A spokesperson for parents Kate and Gerry McCann, both 49, said they were “extremely thankful” for the continued funding.

–  with AAP