NIHR calls for REF to recognise applied research

Applied health research should be given appropriate prominence in the Research Excellence Framework, one of the UK’s main funders of health research has said.

The National Institute for Health Research said on 5 November that it was willing to work with Research England, one of the four UK higher education funding bodies responsible for the assessment exercise, to ensure that the ethos of applied health research is understood and embedded in the evaluation process.

In its response to a consultation on draft guidance and criteria for the exercise, the NIHR said the next iteration of the REF should provide greater definition and clarity around how institutions taking part in the exercise could use public engagement and involvement as evidence of impact.