University of Southampton to host new NIHR research support service
The Faculty of Medicine at the University of Southampton will be part of one of eight hubs of the newly established Research Support Service from October, the NIRH has announced.
The scheme replaces the NIHR Research Design Service (RDS) and NIHR Clinical Trial Units (CTU) Support Funding, which both end on 30 September.
The hub, hosted by the University of Southampton, is a collaboration between 15 units: in universities (Oxford, Oxford Brookes, Portsmouth and Southampton), local authorities (Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Portsmouth and Southampton), and four clinical trials units (National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit CTU, Oxford Clinical Trials Research Unit, Oxford Primary Care CTU and Southampton CTU).
The hub will be led by Professor Issy Reading, a Professorial Fellow in Medical Statistics in the Faculty of Medicine, with co-director Dr Ly-Mee Yu from the University of Oxford.
It has been awarded £16.5 million over five years and will provide researchers, especially those applying for and in receipt of NIHR funding, with free access to support, advice and expertise. It will help researchers develop and deliver efficient and impactful clinical and applied health and care research.
Together with the new NIHR RSS hub, the collaboration will also host one of two National Specialist Centres for Public Health Research, which will be led by Professor Julie Parkes from the University of Southampton and Dr Adam Briggs from Oxfordshire County Council.
Professor Reading said: “I am thrilled that we can continue supporting researchers to develop high-quality funding applications for health and social care funding. We have supported thousands of research teams since the RDS was formed in 2009; I’m looking forward to developing that support in new and exciting ways as we move into the Research Support Service contract.”
The NIHR RSS has been established following an open and competitive process assessed by research experts and public contributors. More information about the new RSS can be found here .