Flagged Research Ethics Committees (RECs) are RECs designated for review of particular types of application due to having relevant professional, academic and ethical expertise among the committee’s membership, including expertise acquired through training or previous experience in the relevant field of research ethics.
Recommendations on flagging of particular RECs are made by the Head of Approvals Support in consultation and agreement with the REC concerned.
The Head of Approvals Support is responsible for oversight of flagging arrangements, taking account of the number and geographical distribution of applications in the relevant field as well as changes in the membership of RECs. You can find a list of flagged RECs on our Search RECs page.
In some instances, flagging of RECs is based on legal or regulatory authority for review of a particular type of application, either as specified in statute or through recognition by a statutory authority.