Costing and contracting using National Contract Value Review (NCVR)
The National Contract Value Review (NCVR) is the UK’s standardised, national approach to costing and contracting for commercial contract research. It is mandatory for commercial companies delivering clinical trials in NHS trusts.
The benefits of the NCVR
The NHS is made up of many separate organisations in the UK. NCVR is a system-wide process that enables those organisations to work collaboratively, as one single organisation, to speed up the costing and contracting activities for commercial sponsors setting up multi-site studies. It achieves this by using model agreements and a standardised pricing structure.
NCVR has replaced the time-consuming process which required commercial sponsors to negotiate independently with each site to agree contract terms and prices.
The main benefits of NCVR are:
- Consistency: Commercial sponsors can expect the same approach and service across all sites
- Transparency and predictability: Commercial sponsors have better visibility and understanding of costs and impact on study budgets
- Improved efficiency: Reducing the administrative burden of study set-up unlocks capacity for more research in the NHS
- Faster study set-up: In October 2023 we reported that NCVR has reduced commercial study set up times by a third
- Faster access to cutting-edge treatments for patients taking part in those trials
How does NCVR work?
NCVR is a collaborative process delivered by people (NHS/sponsor/NIHR) and underpinned by two UK-wide tools:
- UK interactive Costing Tool (iCT): a web-based tool through which the UK’s standardised costing methodology is accessed and applied to commercial clinical trials. This tool is used for determining resource requirements for study delivery at a national level, and also for calculating site-specific prices. This tool is managed by the NIHR.
- Model agreements: a suite of standard agreements designed for a range of research scenarios, including a model confidentiality agreement. These are available as templates, with supporting guidance, within the Integrated Research Application Service (IRAS) which is managed by the Health Research Authority (HRA) with the Devolved Administrations.
Key stages of the NCVR process for multi-site commercial studies
1
The commercial sponsor populates the UK interactive Costing Tool (iCT) to reflect their initial interpretation of resource requirements to fulfil the study protocol.
2
The commercial sponsor is connected to an NHS costing expert who will conduct a study resource review to enable agreement by both sides on actual resource requirements.
3
Once approved, the iCT is shared with all participating NHS organisations to generate site-specific prices. This is a pre-defined, UK-wide methodology that ensures full cost recovery and accounts for aspects such as geographical variation, outsourcing costs etc
4
The output from the iCT is inserted directly into the standard financial appendix within the model agreement (your contract with your sites)
Does NCVR apply to all commercial research?
NCVR is mandatory for all commercial trials taking place in NHS organisations and is also available in Primary Care organisations, such as General Practices (GPs).
As independent contractors providing NHS services, GPs (General Practice) are not mandated to adhere to the prices generated via NCVR. However, General Practices can indicate their commitment to accepting NCVR prices by signing up to the NCVR voluntary register for General Practice.
Find GPs accepting NCVR prices
Commercial sponsors can now consult the list of GPs (General Practice) accepting NCVR prices when making your site selection decisions. View the: NCVR Primary Care dashboard.
NCVR case studies
Begin by accessing the interactive Costing Tool (iCT)
To submit your study for the National Contract Value Review you will need to access the iCT. We have a number of resources available to help you get started.
Take a look at Guidance: Using the interactive Costing Tool (iCT) This digital guidance document provides detailed information about how to get started using the tool, the latest functionality updates, and how to provide feedback. It also includes links to a suite of helpful infographics which explain the NCVR process and the different roles of the people involved.
Our 10 step guide to our Study Support Service for the life sciences industry will help you to navigate the different areas of support provided through the NIHR Study Support Service - including NCVR. It sets out what is available, step by step, in a logical order to help you access the right support at the right time to maximise the benefits and minimise delays. It includes essential information and top tips for using the iCT as part of the NCVR process.
If you are interested in where the pricing data comes from, take a look at our supporting information on How the interactive Costing Tool (iCT) calculates the costs of studies at sites. This digital document provides information about the data sources which enable the interactive Costing Tool (iCT) to calculate the costs of studies at sites and how to submit suggestions for the future development of the iCT.
Request NCVR support
If you need help submitting your study for National Contract Value Review please contact the Study Support Service Helpdesk:
If your study is already part of the NIHR Research Delivery Network Portfolio and you need support or help with a specific site, please contact your local Industry Manager for support.
Tariff (price) data
Read information about how the interactive Costing Tool (iCT) calculates the costs of studies at sites. This includes links to the prices (tariffs) data.
Further information
Related links
- National contract value review information from NHS England
- IRAS Help: Contracts and study agreements
- HRA: Model site agreements
- NIHR Research Delivery Network Income Distribution Model
- Eligibility criteria for NIHR Clinical Research Network support for commercial studies
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- Life Sciences Industry Learning Centre for the Study Support Service (on NIHR Learn)
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- Register your study for the Associate PI Scheme
This service is just one of the ways we help life science organisations. Discover our full range of Services and support for the life sciences industry
NCVR is part of UK Clinical Research Delivery – a cross sector programme of work aimed at creating a faster, more efficient, more accessible and more innovative clinical research delivery system. To learn more visit the UKCRD website.