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New five-year, £15.3 million health and care research programme begins in the North East and North Cumbria

The NIHR Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) North East and North Cumbria (NENC) enters a new five‑year phase from Wednesday 1 April 2026, supported by a £15.3 million investment from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).

The NIHR ARC North East and North Cumbria (NENC) joins a network of Applied Research Collaborations (ARCs) funded across England. The ARCs will work together to support the transformation aims set out in the Government’s 10 Year Health Plan for England, by developing research evidence and driving forward innovations to address some of the UK’s most pressing health and social care challenges.

Read more about the work of the ARCs

Hosted by Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear (CNTW) NHS Foundation Trust, the NIHR ARC NENC is a partnership between the North East and North Cumbria’s six universities (Cumbria, Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland and Teesside), the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board, health and social care providers, the Health Innovation Network NENC, and voluntary and community organisations.

This new round of funding will enable regional partners to build on work already delivered by the NIHR ARC NENC since 2019. This will include working nationally to scale-up successful work from our region and other regions to maximise impact and address health and social care priorities.

The ARC NENC programme will support people from a wide range of backgrounds to be involved in the development and delivery of health and care research that makes a real difference to people’s lives. This will include opportunities for health and care practitioners, patients, community groups and other public contributors.

The new programme will also increase research capacity in the North East and North Cumbria region through funded PhD studentships, research fellowships and Masters degrees, alongside other research training and development opportunities.

New research themes to address key areas of need

This new phase of work will be delivered through five refreshed research themes, which have been carefully shaped to reflect national and local health and care priorities.

The five new research themes are:

• Addressing inequity in health and care systems
• Care improvement and safety
• Prevention including multiple long-term conditions
• Supporting children, women, and family health
• Workforce inclusion and innovation for impact

The NIHR ARC NENC will be Co-Directed by Professor Eileen Kaner, Professor of Public Health and Primary Care Research at Newcastle University, and Professor Ruth McGovern, Professor of Public Health and Social Care at Newcastle University. The wider leadership team includes senior representatives from all six partner universities.

Professor Eileen Kaner, Director of the NIHR ARC NENC, said:

“This new phase of our Applied Research Collaboration marks an exciting new chapter for our region. Applied research is vital in helping health and care systems respond to the pressures they face, and we know that organisations involved in research can achieve better outcomes for the people they serve. Since 2019, we have worked to deliver meaningful research that promotes good health, prevents illness and supports better care. This new phase allows us to build on that foundation, working with our partners to co‑produce relevant and timely research, scale up innovations that work, and strengthen the use of evidence across services. Together we will continue to strive for better, fairer health and care for people of all ages and in all places.”

James Duncan, Chief Executive of the CNTW NHS Foundation Trust, said:
“We’re proud to be hosting the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration for our region throughout this next phase. This investment reflects the strength of our partnerships and our shared commitment to improving health and care through research that makes a real difference. By working together across sectors, and with the communities we serve, we can turn evidence into action, tackle health inequalities, and shape services that are compassionate, effective and fit for the future.”

Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Scientific Adviser to the Department of Health and Social Care and CEO of the NIHR, said:

“This new funding shows the NIHR’s ongoing commitment to developing and delivering high-quality health and care research across the country. The investment will enable the Applied Research Collaborations to continue to bring new treatments and technologies to patients and the public, supporting the aims of the Government’s 10 Year Health Plan to champion innovation and power transformation.”