This Volunteers’ Week, we’re celebrating the outstanding commitment of our Research Ethics Committee (REC), Confidentiality Advisory Group (CAG) and Generic Review Committee (GRC) members.
Together, they represent more than 900 people who generously give their time to support the work of the HRA.
Our volunteers play a vital role in making sure health and social care research is ethical, safe and has the best interests of research participants, patients and the public at heart.
This in turn enables high-quality research to happen in the UK for the benefit of us all.
As we say a massive thank you to all of our volunteers and celebrate their dedication, we’re taking some time to reflect on the incredible contribution they make to the HRA and health and social care research sector as a whole.
REC members
RECs protects the rights, safety, dignity and wellbeing of research participants. They review research proposals and give an opinion about whether the research is ethical. Members also look at issues such as the participant involvement in the research.
There are 64 RECs in England and the HRA supports 895 REC members.
In 2024, REC members met over 1,300 times and reviewed nearly 4,000 applications and 7,500 substantial amendments - that’s almost 11 applications reviewed every day.
Over the course of 2024, members spent 75,000 hours volunteering their time.
CAG members
The CAG, made up of around 26 members, is an independent body which provides expert advice on the use of confidential patient information without consent.
This includes providing advice to us, the HRA, for research uses, and to the Secretary of State for Health for non-research uses.
The key purpose of CAG is to protect and promote the interests of patients and the public, while making sure confidential patient information is used in the right way.
In 2024, CAG reviewed 144 applications and 194 amendments across 40 meetings.
Members spent around 2,000 hours volunteering their time during 2024.
GRC members
Our GRC reviews a whole range of generic recruitment materials that could be used to recruit potential participants for Phase 1 Healthy Volunteer clinical trials.
Two experienced members, who are former REC members, make up this committee.
In 2024, GRC reviewed 95 submissions and 97 amendment submissions.
The GRC do not have set meetings, the GRC review and advise on documentation whenever a submission is received to the HRA from the many and varied clinical research organisations across the UK that run Phase 1 Healthy Volunteer Clinical Trials. From submission to approval usually takes approximately 4 days.
Thank you
Without our volunteers, the HRA simply could not function. Not only do they play an important role in the HRA, but their vital work is recognised across the health and social care research sector.
We’re pleased to share some messages from people and organisations involved in research which demonstrates just how valuable a role our volunteers are playing.
Neelam Patel, HRA Interim ChairOur 900 plus volunteers are core to the work of the HRA and we are truly grateful for all the incredible work you do and the time you give so freely.
Ultimately, the time you are giving so generously is having a profound impact on the people who are benefitting from health and social care research – it is giving patients extra time to share with friends and family or the chance for a better overall quality of life. Without you, this would not be possible.
Whether you’re a Research Ethics Committee member, part of the Confidentiality Advisory Group, or you sit on our Generic Review Committee, your role is integral to helping the HRA achieve its mission of enabling research that people trust.
On behalf of all of us at the HRA, I would like to say a big thank you to each and every one of you for your passion, dedication and commitment.
Matt Westmore, HRA Chief ExecutiveVolunteers’ Week is a chance to say thank you to those who give their time freely or generously to the UK research sector through their work with the HRA – not just for the time you give, but for the care, thought and expertise you bring to every decision.
Your work is at the heart of what we do. You help make research possible, and more importantly, you help make it something people can trust.
Baroness Merron, Minister for Patient Safety, Women’s Health and Mental HealthThank you to the volunteers for their dedication and altruism. Their generous support ensures NHS research is ethically reviewed to protect participants’ safety, rights and wellbeing.
“I am very grateful for their ongoing dedication and support which helps deliver research that can improve the care, treatment and lives of many people.
Janet Messer, Director of Approvals at the HRAVolunteers play a key role in making sure that people can trust the health and care research that takes place in the UK. Our Research Ethics Committee, Generic Review Committee and Confidentiality Advisory Group members are a special mix of members of the public and people with experience of different aspects of research, use of patient data, and health and care.
Volunteers’ Week is a great opportunity to remind the research community what a key role our volunteers play in helping to make it easy for researchers to do good, responsible research. We know that our volunteer committee members get a lot out of their role, but they give up a lot of their time on a regular basis. So a big thank you from us to them!
Jonathan Fennelly-Barnwell, Deputy Director of ApprovalsVolunteers are as much part of the HRA as our staff, and during Volunteers’ Week it is particularly appropriate to thank them for the work that they do.
I have had the privilege of working with thousands of volunteers over my years with the HRA and predecessor organisations. This experience has helped us shape and improve our services.
Less often seen and understood is the work that our volunteers on the Confidentiality Advisory Group do to help shape national policy and service. They do this by reviewing proposals for important non-research activity, providing advice not to the HRA but to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on lawful use of information to improve public health through routes other than research.
Our volunteers’ expertise and commitment once again is the life blood of improving the health of the nation, and I could not be prouder to work with them.
Dr Janet Valentine, Executive Director of Research and Innovation at the ABPIThe pharmaceutical companies who carry out research and development in the UK, including clinical trials, depend on the HRA. The HRA’s volunteers play a crucial role reflecting patients’ views and enabling the HRA to operate so effectively - including assessing research applications from an ethical perspective and reviewing clinical trials recruitment materials.
We thank them for volunteering their time to ensure research can translate into patient benefit as soon as possible.