Share your feedback and help us improve clinical research

Last updated on 14 Dec 2022

This opportunity is now closed. Read the latest update on people-centred clinical research.

Clinical research helps to make vital improvements to healthcare that can benefit everyone.

Every day clinical research is being carried out on a specific illness, condition, treatment or therapy, the results of which could help save lives and improve the quality of care for thousands of people every year.

Lots of people are involved in clinical research studies and trials, but we know there are lots of people who have still not benefitted from good clinical research. We want to change this.

The Health Research Authority and our partners want to improve the way clinical research happens, so that more people can take part, in ways that are best for them. We think of this as being more people-centred.

Read more about what clinical research is and why we are focussing on it.

To help us understand what changes could be made so research can be more people-centred, we are asking you to share your views in our survey.

Complete our survey

Our survey asks you about your experiences or views and what you think helps or blocks more people taking part in research.

We will also ask you about six proposed hallmarks of what we think clinical research looks like when it is people-centred.

The survey should take around half an hour to complete depending on how much information you wish to share.

Complete the survey here.

Completing the survey

You can skip any questions that you don’t wish to answer except for the first one, which helps to decide which questions you are asked.

You can type into the survey or upload a document or video. You can also save your answers and come back later. You are not required to give any identifiable information.

Your views will help us to

  • hear what is important to people about taking part in research about their health, treatment, therapy or care
  • find out what makes it possible for people to take part in research
  • find out what researchers can do to improve research for people to take part and what makes it difficult for them to do so

Who should respond?

Anyone can respond. We want to hear from as many different voices as we can to help improve research for everyone. This includes, patients, carers, healthcare professionals, researchers and members of the public.

If you haven’t ever taken part in research, don’t worry you can still share your views. We’d love to know what would be important to you when taking part, and what barriers have been in the way that have meant you haven’t taken part yet.

Other ways to share your feedback

This survey is only one of the ways we are reaching out to people. We will also carry out conversations with individuals, communities or groups and we will be improving the way we engage as we learn from what we hear.

If you would like to talk to us please get in touch by emailing communications@hra.nhs.uk adding 'People-Centred Clinical Research Project' in the subject box and we will arrange a call with you.

How will your information be treated?

The HRA is the data controller for any information shared in the survey. Any examples may be used anonymously in our reporting and in online guidance or recommendations for research teams. We will not share any videos online or link to them in any way.

You should try not to identify yourself or anyone else to us. If you choose to send us identifiable information, we will try to anonymise it, but it may be shared securely with the University of Lincoln. We will not share this identifiable information with anybody else and we will keep it safely and confidentially for two years.

You can read more in our Privacy Notice.

Alternative formats

If you require the information on this page or the survey in another accessible format or different language please email communications@hra.nhs.uk

Find out more

This survey is being carried out as part of the People-Centred Clinical Research project, which is part of the UK Recovery Resilience and Growth Programme (RRG).

You can find out more about the project, the proposed hallmarks and what we mean by people-centred clinical research on our dedicated People-Centred Clinical Research project page.

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