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Research Ethics Committees (RECs) review research applications and give an opinion about whether the research is ethical. They look at areas such as the proposed participant involvement and are entirely independent of research sponsors (that is, the organisations which are responsible for the management and conduct of the research), funders and investigators. This enables them to put participants at the centre of their review.

If you are an investigator designing a clinical trial you will need to make early decisions as to which outcome measures to include.

We are an organisation committed to collaboration – listening to and working with others to identify and make improvements to the health research environment.

It is a source of real pride across the HRA to see how many health research studies the HRA has reviewed. Since we fully implemented HRA Approval last March, more than 5,000 applications have been approved by our expert teams.

Janet Wisely is to step down as Chief Executive of the Health Research Authority. Janet has experienced an unexpected and life changing health situation, which has meant significant adjustments. After careful reflection and discussion with her family and colleagues, she is now stepping down after concluding that she is unlikely to recover the mental or physical stamina that is required for that very demanding role.

There are more than 80 NHS Research Ethics Committees across the UK. They exist to safeguard the rights, safety, dignity and well-being of research participants.

Participation in research is where someone takes part in a research study, for example, being asked questions about their health condition or testing a new treatment in a clinical trial. People may be asked to consider joining a study by their GP or come across an advertisement to join a trial on a noticeboard or in a newspaper.

We are an arm’s length body of the Department of Health (DH), which operates within a Framework Agreement with DH and the Care Act 2014 which governs its functions.

For all clinical trials and clinical investigations (including CTIMPs, device studies, etc.), it is expected that a signed agreement between the sponsor and the host organisation will be in place before the research commences at the site.

We carry out user-testing with a wide range of people and this helps us to improve the user-experience for everyone.

Three research ethicists with close links to the Health Research Authority have been recognised in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours for a combined total of nearly 45 years’ service to Research Ethics Committees.

HRA presentations were well attended at this year’s NHS R&D Forum Annual Conference which took place on 23 - 24 May 2016 in Stratford-Upon-Avon.

The Four Nations meeting is a discussion forum between the Health Research Authority (HRA), the Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland (HSC), the Chief Scientists Office in Scotland (CSO) and the Health and Care Research Wales.

We have a growing programme of eLearning modules designed to support our staff, the research community, Research Ethics Committees (RECs) and Confidentiality Advisory Group (CAG) members.

There are many ethical and legal issues to consider when involving children and young people in research.