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Your HRA public involvement newsletter

Issue 23, September 2024

Panel discussion at a HRA event

In this month's newsletter

Welcome

• Recent activity
• Your chance to look behind the scenes of how research applications are reviewed in the NHS
• Join our Board
• NICE Listens
• The HRA Policy and Partnerships Directorate
• Key information for people involved in the HRA's work

Public involvement in the work of the HRA

In this section, we give a short update on some of the involvement activity we have in progress and share new invitations to get involved in our work.

Public contributors and HRA staff at an event

Recent activity

Last month, four members of the public contributed to different aspects of the HRA’s work. Activities included:

• preparing to support staff recruitment through involvement in an online stakeholder engagement exercise and an interview panel
• attending a meeting to help plan the development of the HRA's next three year strategy

​We also met with the co-chair of our Community Committee to prepare for the next meeting.

HRA news

In this section, we share news about some of the HRA’s work that we think you may be interested in. You might also enjoy exploring the news and updates section of the HRA website. 

Illustration of a computer screen with an online meeting

Your chance to look behind the scenes of how research applications are reviewed in the NHS

We are offering members of the public the chance to take a look behind the scenes at how research applications are reviewed in the NHS.

Every year Research Ethics Committees (RECs) review thousands of applications for vital health and social care research. These research projects focus on a wide range of healthcare needs, including new treatments for things like cancer, mental health and diabetes.  

When reviewing these applications RECs focus on promoting the rights, safety, dignity and wellbeing of research participants by looking in detail at research proposals and giving an opinion about whether the research is ethical.

We have five spaces a month for members of the public to observe one of our online REC meetings. It’s a great learning opportunity for you to see how meetings work and listen to the issues that a REC considers. You can also see if it is a voluntary role you would like to consider doing in the future.

Find out more

If you would like to find out more about observing a REC meeting please email the public involvement team at public.involvement@hra.nhs.uk using ‘REC observation’ in the subject line of your email. In your email, please let us know if you have any access or support requirements.

This opportunity is not designed for people working in research but feel free to share with public involvement and engagement groups.

Join our Board

We’re seeking three Non-Executive Directors (NEDs) to join our Board.

Our NEDs challenge us, hold us to account, and scrutinise the decisions we make to ensure we're making it easy to do research that people can trust. 

We particularly welcome applications from individuals of ethnic minority backgrounds to bring their experiences and valuable insights to our organisation. 

Applicants should demonstrate a career record of achievements of scale and relevance, with an ability to operate effectively on the board of a high-profile national organisation. If that's you, or someone you know, please take a look at the role description and criteria and share with your networks. 

This recruitment campaign is being managed by the Department of Health and Social Care's Honours and Arm's-length bodies' Public Appointments Unit. The application deadline is midday on 17 September 2024.

Public involvement news from outside the HRA

In this section, we share news of activities organised by other groups or organisations. To find out more about the activity, please contact the organisers directly.

To include a news item relating to public involvement in health or social care research, please email the public involvement team at public.involvement@hra.nhs.uk 

Two people working together whilst looking at a laptop

NICE Listens

A public dialogue is helping the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to ensure its topic prioritisation decisions are grounded in lived experience.

NICE produce useful and useable guidance for the NHS and wider health and care system. Their recommendations help practitioners and commissioners get the best care to people, fast, while ensuring value for the taxpayer.

The public dialogue focused on how NICE should prioritise topics for the guidance it produces: what are the principles it might use to ensure it focuses its resources and efforts on what matters most to patients, carers and the health and care system?

Simon Denegri, Executive Director of the Academy of Medical Sciences, chaired an oversight group that guided and advised on the way the public dialogue was run. Describing the process in a recent blog, he said:

'It’s a way of helping organisations ground their decisions in the lived experience of people and communities and what works for them. The insights gained are always helpful. Occasionally, they are game changing.'

The process was supported by the UK Research and Innovation’s Sciencewise Programme. Sciencewise describe public dialogue as:

'A process during which members of the public interact with scientists, stakeholders and policy makers to deliberate on issues relevant to future policy decisions.'

In total, 56 people were involved, at four locations across England.

Did you know?

The HRA is organised into different directorates. This month, we are shining a light on the work of the Policy and Partnerships Directorate. 

Conference discussion about public involvement

The HRA Policy and Partnerships Directorate

This directorate helps the HRA to be a bold and visible leader that makes it easier to do research that people can trust.  

​We listen, learn and collaborate. We use evidence and analysis to see where change is needed. And we work with others to make it happen. 

​If you’ve worked with the HRA, at some point you’ll probably have met colleagues from one of our three teams: communications; policy and engagement; and public involvement. 

​Our activity can be divided into four areas (all of which support organisation-wide activities):

• ​working well with others to make it easier to do research that people can trust
• ​making better decisions informed by a diverse group of people and appropriate evidence
• ​showing what we are doing to make it easier to do research that people can trust, and to inform and influence wider decisions about health and social care research
• ​supporting great working within the HRA and our Community  

Quick links

In response to feedback and enquiries, we have brought together this section with important information for people involved in our work. 

Key information for people involved in the HRA's work

• HRA Community Ways of Working
• Payments policy
• How to raise a concern

Let us know if you think we are missing any key information. 

If anything in this email is unclear, you have questions, or would like to suggest something you'd like to learn about, please email the public involvement team at public.involvement@hra.nhs.uk or phone the public involvement team on 0207 104 8161.