The NIHR is announcing £72 million of funding to establish 14 new Commercial Research Delivery Centres (CRDCs) across England.
The new centres will enhance the speed and efficiency of commercial clinical research delivery, contributing to the health and wealth of the nation. They will work with industry and other research delivery infrastructure to support the UK’s status as one of the best places in the world for innovative companies to bring their portfolio of research.
The CRDCs will:
* build further capacity in commercial contract research
* provide dedicated staff and facilities to conduct commercial research
* provide access to a network of commercially active sites with gold-standard set-up times and performance
* make taking part in research as easy as possible, by supporting the decentralisation of clinical trials to smaller district general hospitals and primary care settings
* increase research inclusion to ensure people from all eligible communities, including those living with the greatest burden of disease, can participate in clinical trials
* support and contribute to a newly convened UK-wide CRDC Network, working as a collaborative partner across the NIHR and equivalent organisations in the devolved nations
A UK-wide scheme
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This £72 million investment over 7 years, beginning in April 2025, is awarded from the £400 million Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicine Pricing, Access, and Growth (VPAG) Investment Programme and partly from NIHR in England.
The VPAG programme is a unique partnership between the UK Government and the pharmaceutical industry to boost the global competitiveness of the UK life sciences sector and stimulate economic growth. It will invest up to £300 million to bolster commercial clinical trial activity and help advance the delivery of new medicines and vaccines to patients.
A total of 20 CRDCs are being established across the UK. In addition to the CRDCs in England, there will be four in Scotland, and a one nation approach in Wales and Northern Ireland. As part of the 10 Year Health Plan, the centres will shift clinical trials beyond large hospital trusts and into community settings, meaning those in underserved regions will now be able to participate in research, boosting access to new treatments in the trial stage.
**Professor Lucy Chappell**, Chief Executive Officer of the NIHR and Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department of Health and Social Care, said:
“Clinical trials help improve lives. Boosting the NHS's capacity to deliver commercial clinical research through these new Commercial Research Delivery Centres will support recruitment across all communities and bring innovative treatments to patients.
"The effects of these centres will be felt right across the four nations, bringing investment into the UK's life sciences sector."
The 14 CRDCs in England are spread across England with ten centres outside of the Greater South East:
* Barts Health NHS Trust
* Birmingham Women's and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust
* Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
* Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
* Guy's and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust
* Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
* London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust
* Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust
* The Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
* Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust
* University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust
* University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust
* University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust
* University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust
Supporting clinical research delivery
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A CRDC Network will be established to coordinate activities across the UK’s CRDCs, providing national leadership, alignment and strategic engagement, and enhancing the capacity and efficiency of commercial research delivery across the centres.
The CRDCs are a critical scheme that supports 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, making the UK a world leader in clinical trials.