Research Design Service North West

RDS NW e-bulletin – October 2022

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RDS NW e-bulletin

October 2022

 

NIHR Research Design Service Social Care Research Residential Grant Development and Writing Retreat

15 to 17 March 2023 – Castle Green Hotel, Kendal

The NIHR Research Design Service (RDS) is offering a unique opportunity for research teams across England to attend a three-day residential Grant Development and Writing Retreat in March 2023. The purpose of the Retreat is to give busy professionals dedicated time to rapidly progress their social care research proposal to be submitted to an NIHR programme for social care, such as the Research for Social Care (RfSC) or the Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) programme (not including NIHR personal awards or schemes such as LA SPARC.)

What does the retreat offer

The Retreat will provide a supportive environment for teams of two or three people, to develop high quality social care research proposals.

Those attending the Retreat will have access to a range of RDS advisers and protected time to work intensively on their proposals. Continued support from the RDS will be essential in preparing your application for submission to an NIHR programme for social care research, such as the RfSC or HSDR.

It is encouraged but not essential, for attendance at the Retreat, that a member of the wider research team is a social care professional employed in England.

This year we welcome research teams who are working in the field of Child and Adolescent Health and social care research. Successful applicants will be offered a free place at the retreat which will include food and accommodation and an evening welcome dinner on the 14 March*.

More details on the retreat can be found here.

The deadline for receipt of application forms is 16 December 2022.

*excludes travel to/from Kendal

How to apply

Applications to attend the Retreat should be submitted on a standard application form, available here, and submitted to: rds-nw@lancaster.ac.uk

Applications will be reviewed competitively and places awarded to those with the most promising proposals. Support from your local RDS is available and applicants are strongly advised to contact them as soon as possible. Contact details can be found here.

What people say about our retreats

100% of respondents at the 2022 RDS Grant Development and Writing Retreat agreed that attendance at the Retreat resulted in significant progress on their social care grant application and that RDS provided expert support needed to develop their research proposal further and expanded their understanding of the requirements of the funding programme.

“The Retreat provided the opportunity to learn from colleagues, developing networks, gaining new insight into the links between academia, local authorities, independent organisations. To understand the plethora of insight and issues that affect the world of social care today.”

“Speakers were extremely inspiring however in a manner that challenged thinking, bringing new ideas and opportunity for further reflection.”

“The Retreat gave us the chance to have three days protected time with our care home collaborator which is usually very challenging.”

Watch the video from the 2022 retreat.

NIHR Programme Grants for Applied Research – information session

22 November 2022, 2.00 pm to 5.00 pm – online and in-person

The RDS and NIHR Programme Grants for Applied Research (PGfAR) Programme Team’s free information session presents a great opportunity for applied health, public health and social care researchers across England to hear about how to make the most of their PGfAR funding applications.

Event programme

PGfAR funds collaborative, multidisciplinary programmes of applied research to solve health and social care challenges.

At this information session you will hear from the PGfAR Programme Director and team, successful PGfAR applicants and PGfAR public contributors. You will also find out how the RDS can support you with your grant application and there will be dedicated time for questions and answers.

How to join

You are invited to join us from anywhere in England in person at a central London venue, soon to be confirmed, or remotely via Microsoft Teams. We encourage people to join in person if they are based in London or are able to travel to take advantage of networking opportunities.

Register for the PGfAR information session here.

Looking forward

In January through March 2023 we will be holding regional PGfAR roadshows in Merseyside and the Midlands where researchers will get an opportunity to apply to speak directly with the PGfAR programme team alongside local RDS advisers.

Why not subscribe to this RDS Eventbrite page where we will post more details in due course?

Please note that at any point you can contact your local RDS for support with your application.

You can find contact details at the bottom of the NIHR RDS page.

 

Director – Programme Grants for Applied Research and Programme Development Grants

The NIHR have announced an exciting opportunity to shape the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Programme Grants for Applied Research (PGfAR) and Programme Development Grant (PDG) Programmes as the Programme Director.

This prestigious appointment offers senior applied health, public health and social care researchers the chance to develop the strategic direction of the PGfAR and PDG funding schemes and lead the sub-committees that formally assess applications and subsequently make funding recommendations for large-scale, high-quality programmes of research for the benefit of patients, service users, carers and the NHS.

The deadline for applications is 9 December 2022, 1.00 pm.

Find out more about this opportunity.

 

RDS Resources: A brief guide to public involvement in funding applications

This is one of the numerous resources on RDS Resources.

When you are applying for a research grant, the funding committee will look at how you have involved members of the public in developing your proposal and how you intend to involve them in your research study.

The Research Design Service (RDS) provides advice, support and funding for researchers to ensure patients, service users, carers, and the public are fully involved in research development, design and delivery and dissemination. Public involvement is an important element of all research and can substantially strengthen projects.

This guide looks at what Public Involvement is, how the RDS can help with Public Involvement and why it is important.

Read the guide here.

 

RDS Blog: Real world implementation

Implementation Science tries to understand how to successfully ensure innovations make the journey from ideas through scientific evidence to adoption, where they can start benefitting society.

Implementation needs to be locally adapted and continually optimised to ensure it meets the changing demands and settings of the real-world.

Read the RDS blog to find out more and follow the links to the implementation secrets series.

Read the blog here.

 

NIHR Your Path in Research – Add Research to Your Career

Better research leads to better services for the public. That’s why we want to encourage organisations and social care and public health professionals to play an active role in research, as a way to deliver even better services.

From 31 October our “Your Path in Research” campaign will highlight how people can make research part of their career, starting with a two-week spotlight on Social Care and Public Health. Building on the momentum of the two-week campaign, we will be continuing to promote Your Path in Research from Monday 14 November until the end of the year with a focus on health research careers.

Watch out for #YourPathInResearch on Twitter.

Link and Learn

For Your Path in Research the NIHR is launching Link and Learn, a matchmaking service connecting public health and social care practitioners with researchers in the field.

This is the ideal way for anyone new to public health and social care research to gain unique insight, exchange experiences, ask questions. Sign up as a guide on MentorLoop.

Find out more about Your Path in Research and Link and Learn here

NIHR Local Authority Short Placement Award for Research Collaboration (LA SPARC) Round 2

Application deadline – 24 November 2022

The NIHR Local Authority Short Placement Award for Research Collaboration (LA SPARC) Scheme, Round 2 is open for applications.

This scheme is designed to support individuals working in local authority settings and NIHR Academy members to design and apply for funds to undertake short placements allowing them to move between NIHR and Local Authority settings in either direction.

Individuals can apply to the LA SPARC scheme for up to £15,000 to undertake a bespoke short placement.

Applications are light-touch and will be assessed in open competition.

The scheme supports:

  • individuals based in a local authority setting who would like to undertake a short placement in a part of the NIHR/academia. This may appeal to those who are interested in enhancing their careers, in experiencing research from a different perspective or taking the next step in developing a practice academic career
  • NIHR Academy members supported in a part of NIHR Infrastructure, a HPRU or an NIHR School who would like to undertake a short placement in a local authority/provider of local authority commissioned service setting. This may appeal to individuals who want to work alongside service commissioners and providers to hear the issues and challenges being faced at the local level, to share knowledge and experience and look to co-create research that is better connected with practice, as well as developing partnerships and joint ways of working.

A lunchtime information seminar on the LA SPARC is being held on 1 November 2022.  Register for the seminar here.

Request advice on your application.

 

NIHR Population Health Career Scientist Awards Webinar

8 November 2022, 10.15 am to 11.30 am

Join Professor Trevor Sheldon, Professor Brian Ferguson and Dr Claire Kidgell to learn about the next round of NIHR Population Health Career Scientist Awards (PHCSA).

The PHCSA is a joint NIHR PHR and NIHR Academy run award, open to applicants from across the four UK countries. The award is aimed at senior researchers from a range of disciplines, ready to take the next step to become a population/public health leader and make the transition to reader or professor level.

The webinar will take you through the aims and purpose of the award, providing examples of areas of research of particular interest.

Individual discussion sessions for potential applicants will be arranged after the webinar.

Register for the PHCSA webinar here.

Request advice on your application.

 

NIHR Incubator for Methodology: Patient and public involvement in health data science – challenges and opportunities webinar

15 November 2022, 11.00 am to 12.00 noon

NIHR Incubator for Methodology is holding this webinar to bring together experiences and perspectives on the involvement of patients and the public in data science/data intensive health research.

There is an increasing recognition of the value of large-scale data sources from health and social care settings. Consequently, patients and the public have an important role to play in shaping the how, when and why of data usage. However there has been limited discussion to date around best practices in patient/public involvement in the health data science research arena or the associated challenges and opportunities.

The session will consist of four short talks from invited speakers with experience and knowledge from across research and funding contexts. The webinar will end with a panel discussion and an opportunity for audience input.

Registration is free and open to anyone with an interest in the use of large-scale data in health research. Patient and public representatives welcome.

Sign up for the webinar.

 

Applications for the 2022/23 NIHR Applied Research Collaboration Greater Manchester internship programme are open

Application deadline – 11 November 2022, 5.00 pm

The NIHR Applied Research Collaboration Greater Manchester (ARC GM) is accepting applications for its internship programme.

The ARC GM Internship Programme provides health and social care professionals in Greater Manchester the opportunity to spend 30 days over a four to nine month period with our research teams. The programme presents a fantastic opportunity to gain insights into research, enhance existing skills and develop new ones.

Prof. Michelle Briggs, Clinical Professor of Nursing at The University of Manchester and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, and Clinical ARC GM Capacity Building Lead said:

 “Our Internship Programme provides a supported experience working alongside ARC GM researchers; it also benefits from the established relationships that ARC GM has with all the universities in Greater Manchester and the wider organisations committed to encouraging confidence and competence in research. The Internship Programme provides a firm foundation for health and social care professionals who are interested in developing an academic career combined with working in the health and care environment.“

The programme is based at The University of Manchester. It has been designed to be flexible and inclusive; applicants from diverse backgrounds, social care and public health disciplines are particularly encouraged to apply.

Laura McGarrigle, who completed the Internship Programme in 2021/22 and is now undertaking a Pre-doctoral Fellowship with ARC GM, commented:

“I would highly recommend this internship to anyone in the department keen to develop their research skills and ideas. I feel much more confident, competent and able to see how I can keep going with the path of research alongside a clinical career.”

You can read more about the experiences of the 2021/22 cohort of interns from here. 

Online Question & Answer Sessions for applicants: 31 October at 1.00 pm – email: arc-gm@nihr.ac.uk to book on.

Deadline for applications: 11 November at 5.00 pm.

Start date: January 2023

Further information about the internships and details of how to apply are available here.

 

£50 million awarded to local government to tackle interventions for health inequalities through research

The NIHR have announced a multimillion-pound investment for a series of local government partnerships, boosting local authorities’ capacity and capability to conduct high-quality research to tackle health inequalities.

The 10 pioneering Health Determinants Research Collaborations (HDRCs) provide new research funding to embed a culture of evidence-based decision-making within local government. The HDRCs will help to stimulate economic growth, particularly in some of the most deprived areas of the country and contribute to the Government’s plans to take action for the longer-term resilience of the health and wealth of the country. A further three councils will be receiving development award funding during 2022/23, with the prospect of them becoming full HDRCs the following financial year.

The new partnerships, spanning the length and breadth of the UK, follow a major drive for enabling research to address wider determinants of population health and health inequalities, explicitly responding to the needs of local underserved groups and areas. Examples include facilitating research to better understand and introduce interventions to help with childhood obesity, Covid recovery, mental health and drug use.

Read more on this story here.

 

Repository of research funding and education opportunities for community nurses

The Queen’s Nursing Institute have produced a repository of research funding opportunities and training schemes run by organisations that are open to community nurses.

This is not a definitive list and some of the schemes pause or change periodically.

View the repository here.

 

Events and webinars

NIHR funding opportunities

Request advice on your application.

 

Always check with the event organisers/funder for latest information.