Information > NIHR Programmes > The Policy Research Programme

It commissions a broad range of health and social care research to meet the needs identified by the Department and its Ministers in the course of policy development work. It commissions primary research, secondary analysis, formative evaluations, systematic reviews, and scoping papers of research needs. Current research priority areas include: health protection, health promotion, health inequalitites, specific disease areas, screening, and child and maternal health.
 
Who it’s for

The Policy Research Programme (PRP) funds individual projects, programmes of research, and research units based in universities. 

 
Funding

The PRP budget is currently £32.5 million per annum of which £5.5 million is ring-fenced for work on CJD.

 
Process

Calls for proposals will be advertised on the NIHR CCF website and can be found at the link below. Applications to the Policy Research Programme are made through the CCF.

 
Criteria
The criteria for determining priorities are
  • Ministerial priority and relevance to the goals, aims and objectives of the Department of Health;
  • Size and importance of the problem to be addressed in terms of actual or potential burden of disease and social condition;
  • Well-defined plans for introducing research results into current policy activity or the formulation of future policy;
  • Timeliness;
  • Feasibility of the research;
  • Likely return on the investment in research;
  • Appropriateness and availability of other research budgets.
 
 Further information about the Policy Research Programme.

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