The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has announced it will invest in a newly established Research Support Service (RSS), RSS Public Health Specialist Centre, and several new Policy Research Units (PRUs).
Newcastle University has received almost £9 million to lead an RSS Hub and a further £22 million to lead an RSS Public Health Specialist Centre. The funding comes in addition to Newcastle receiving almost £6 million for leading two PRUs.
Pivotal policymaking
The PRUs will play a pivotal role in giving the government, and arm’s length bodies, the best information and evidence possible when making policy decisions about health and social care.
One PRU in Newcastle will focus on how to age well across the life course. Professor Barbara Hanratty, director designate of the NIHR Healthy Ageing PRU, said: “I am delighted to be leading this Unit from Newcastle University. Our collaboration with the University of Manchester and the London School of Economics will provide policymakers with the information they need to make healthy ageing a reality for everyone. With world-leading expertise in ageing and inequalities research, Newcastle University will provide the ideal base for this Unit to make a difference.”
Newcastle will also be leading a PRU in Behavioural and Social Sciences, focusing on evidence to inform government decisions about health and social care. Professor Falko Sniehotta, founding director of the Behavioural and Social Sciences PRU, said: “We will continue to work with our team at Newcastle and our partners at UCL, Warwick and the LSHTM to develop robust, timely and relevant evidence using behavioural and social science to support the development of effective and equitable health and social care policy in England.”
Acting on latest evidence
Newcastle University is also involved in three other PRUs, focused on public health, children and families, and seeking to inform policy in the areas of dementia and neurodegeneration.
Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Scientific Advisor Department for Health and Social Care and Chief Executive of NIHR, said: “The NIHR's new Policy Research Units are designed to provide strong evaluation of policy. This helps government and related organisations to be able to act on the latest evidence when making decisions about health and social care that could impact us all.”