Inclusive research design to become an NIHR condition of funding

  • Published: 24 July 2024
  • Version: V1.0
  • 6 min read

Update added 27 November 2024: This requirement is now live.

View our inclusive research funding application guidance.

To fulfil our mission to improve the health and wealth of the nation through research, and deliver the best research to the British public, the NIHR is changing to ensure that research inclusion is properly funded and executed.

Inclusion is an NIHR operating principle. Good research must include people from the diverse populations of the UK and include more women, children and older people. Research inclusion is an important key to improve health and care for everyone and reduce health and care inequalities.

Research that is intentionally designed, conducted and communicated inclusively, produces rigorous, generalisable, impactful science that benefits the entire population. All research programmes will include costed research inclusion plans and researchers will be held to account for delivering on their plans.

“Becoming a more inclusive funder of research is one of NIHR’s operating principles. We want to shift the dial on inclusion because it results in good science and generates knowledge that has the wider impact of benefiting everyone in society. ”
Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Executive Officer of the NIHR

"Not only is there a strong moral driver to ensure everyone can benefit from improved health and care linked to the research we fund, but there is an economic driver too. 

"With people enjoying more healthy, disease-free years, no matter where in the country they are, or what their background is, everyone can gain from active participation in society, while reducing their reliance on the NHS. 

“We are aware that researchers do not always build inclusion into their funding applications, and often it is a goal that is dropped, or not adequately resourced. While all applicants were previously encouraged to submit inclusive research proposals, we now require this to promote the cultural change needed to embed inclusion fully into the NIHR process once and for all. 

“To do this we are applying the successful experience of the Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement programme that changed the culture in the NIHR by linking progress to budgets and funding. Having inclusion explicitly defined and costed at the application stage, means we can fund research that brings us closer to our mission of reducing health inequalities.”

- Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Executive Officer of the NIHR

The changes to ensure research inclusion

Applicants will be required to demonstrate how inclusion is being built into all stages of the research lifecycle including, but not limited to:

  • the research question and design
  • the participants recruited
  • the research methods
  • data collections
  • analysis
  • dissemination of findings

There will be a significant emphasis on how participant selection is considered. Applicants will provide details of how their research contributes towards NIHR’s mission to reduce health and care inequalities and how it expands on existing evidence. This will be a costed section of the award that must be accounted for.

We have worked with the Health Research Authority to ensure that these requirements align with its guidance currently under development, so that there is synchronicity in the system.

This funding condition will take effect from autumn 2024, for all NIHR domestic programme awards. NIHR infrastructure and global health awards will come on stream from 2025 onwards. It also paves the way for the new specific requirements we will be bringing in next year about accounting for sex and gender in health and research.

From autumn, guidance will be available to all applicants as part of the NIHR standard applications process. Training opportunities will also be available.

What do I need to do next?

If you’re new to NIHR, or could benefit from exploring how you can develop your research inclusively, there are a number of resources available on NIHR Learn Research Inclusion Hub. For researchers based in England, our NIHR Research Support Service (RSS) is on hand to discuss important approaches with you. RSS can also support researchers in the devolved nations, if they are working in collaboration with English partners.

Inclusive research design webinar

If you missed our webinar for researchers and research support staff, you can now watch a recording and access the slides.

NIHR committee members and peer reviewers can sign up for our initial training, taking place on Tuesday 26 November from 2pm - 3.30pm. Register for the 26 November event.

If you miss any of the inclusive research design webinars, all recordings will be made available on NIHRtv. More dates will be made available in 2025. The sessions will be co-delivered by the NIHR Research Inclusion team and the NIHR RSS.

If you’re already doing inclusive research or already engaging with RSS to develop your research inclusively, please continue to do so.

For more information, please take a look at the FAQs section below.

FAQs

For all of NIHR domestic programmes and schemes - this will come into effect in autumn 2024. NIHR infrastructure and global health awards will come on stream afterwards, once approaches have been developed, which take into account the different contexts these awards sit within.

The application process will formalise previous good practice expectations with regards to inclusion, to require all applicants to detail how they will ensure inclusion is built into their research design. Early consideration and articulation of this will be required at Stage 1, with more detail required at Stage 2, including specifying the costs associated with conducting the research inclusively.

No award will be conferred if applicants do not satisfactorily justify their approach to inclusion and any associated costs. RI costs will be monitored throughout the award.

Applicants will be required to detail:

  • how their research contributes towards NIHR’s mission to reduce health and care inequalities
  • how it expands on existing evidence, with a particular emphasis on how the research will respond to gaps in knowledge with respect to health and care inequalities
  • how it has considered inclusion in the whole research lifecycle, including but not limited to: the research question and design, the participants recruited, the research methods, data collections, analysis and dissemination of findings
  • how it considers participation selection with respect to diverse, under-served groups, geography and health and care inequalities

Applicants will be expected to engage with the literature and data on topics such as: existing health and care inequalities, disease burden/prevalence (for different groups, where available).

We will want to see a description of the inclusion criteria and justification for the exclusion of any groups - as well as information on what will be put in place to recruit and retain these participants.

Applicants will also be required to provide information relating to any associated costs in conducting the research inclusively.

We have worked with the Health Research Authority to ensure that these requirements align with its guidance currently under development, so that there is synchronicity in the system.

We will be organising training for researchers, as well as NIHR staff and committee members, to support this formalised requirement. Our NIHR Research Inclusion Toolkit Hub contains supportive resources. For researchers based in England our NIHR Research Support Service (RSS) is on hand to support the development of research projects. RSS can also support researchers in the devolved nations, if the project under development will be delivered in collaboration with English partners.

We are aware that collecting demographic data from research participants remains challenging for many researchers. We are exploring various ways to improve data systems with key partners. We have developed a research inclusion space on NIHR learn which may be helpful in informing your approach to data collection across all protected groups. We highly recommend using a standardised, context appropriate, validated method, where available.

This year NIHR is developing policy and guidance on accounting for sex and gender in research. We will also be considering how ethnicity is accounted for in future.

Successful applicants will provide supporting information throughout the award, to demonstrate how they have and are achieving their inclusive research plans, as part of the NIHR monitoring process.

Do we want to include anything about publishing and communicating results?

If you’re already doing inclusive research or you’re already engaging with RSS to develop your research inclusively, please continue to do so. If you’re new to NIHR, ahead of the changes, applicants can be thinking about and consulting the resources and services listed above and sign up to training dates.

We made a commitment last year to develop an approach which ensures our research community considers sex and gender in their research design, including in the disaggregation of research findings. NIHR is developing policy and guidance on this now, for publication in spring 2025. This is part of a cross sector initiative with the MESSAGE Project which aims to bring the UK in line with best practice standards for sex and gender in research already in place internationally.

We are partnering with the NHS Race and Health Observatory to consider how ethnicity is accounted for in the future.