Events

NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility showcases impact

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A photo of guests and delegates alongside members of the Trust's research team standing outside the NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility at St James, next to a banner for the facility.

NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility, together with city and regional leaders, recently welcomed HM Treasury to showcase how Leeds’ £40m NIHR infrastructure is accelerating national ambitions to tackle health inequalities and position the UK as a global leader in life sciences

The high-profile visit from the Treasury’s Growth and Resilience team began at the University of Leeds’ innovation hub, Nexus, with a roundtable highlighting how the city’s world-leading research and innovation are driving real-world impact.

Director of the NIHR Leeds Biomedical Research Centre, Philip Conaghan, chaired the discussion, where a range of experts from academia and industry, including NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility outlined how Leeds is driving progress through its pioneering, partnership-powered NIHR@Leeds infrastructure.

NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility (CRF) had the opportunity to spotlight how it works with industry, research councils and charities to run more than 100 early-stage clinical trials each year, pioneering new treatments from the five NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility sites across Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust.  It highlighted how clinical research has found that personalising how the pacemaker works improves patient outcomes and how it is at the forefront of novel cellular and virus cancer therapies which is helping to shape the future of cancer treatment.   

A photo of the visitors in the hospital atrium along with key members of the Trust's executive and senior team from Research & Innovation.

As part of the visit, Leeds and the region demonstrated how an outstanding track record transforming care repeatedly attracts national and international acclaim, and how it continues to raise the bar through unparalleled collaboration.

The event concluded with a visit to St James’s University Hospital, with a tour of the state-of-the-art NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility, just one of the five CRF sites at Leeds Teaching Hospitals. As part of this, delegates met with Executive and Senior Leaders to hear about the strength and scale of world-class clinical research at the Trust – one of the UK’s largest teaching hospitals, delivering impact and patient benefits across the region and beyond.   

A photo of clinical team members showing the esteemed visitors around the NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility at St James Hospital.

Professor Chris Twelves, Director of NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility said:  “Together with our partners across NIHR, we were delighted to welcome HM Treasury’s Health and Growth Team to demonstrate the strength of collaborative partnership working and the pioneering work that is delivering impact to our patients, the future of healthcare as well as bringing wider economic value.

“We are proud of our strong track record in delivering pioneering clinical research and this was an ideal opportunity for our visitors to hear from our colleagues who are passionate about transforming the healthcare of the future and delivering impact.”

Read more about the wide-ranging visit via Health Innovation Leeds.

Collaboration at PPI Community Connect 2025 sets direction for more representative research

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A group photo of the PPIE team with the hosts for the event at the Hamara Centre, in front of a stylish neon sign that reads 'HAMARA'.

Our recent Patient Public Involvement (PPI) event was held recently at the Hamara Healthy Living Centre. The PPI Community Connect 2025 event brought together over 86 community members, along with researchers. The event was designed to explore how research can be more meaningful, representative, and inclusive, providing opportunities to share experiences, learn about ongoing studies, and discuss ways to strengthen engagement across diverse communities.

Hosted by the NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Faculty (CRF) and Leeds Teaching Hospitals (LTHT) Research & Innovation department and taking place at the Hamara Healthy Living Centre in Leeds, the event brought together participants who shared experiences and ideas on improving public involvement in research.

The audience heard presentations from researchers outlining current projects, alongside personal stories from patients describing what taking part in research has meant to them.

Guests were welcomed by Dr Helen Radford, Lead for Strategic Leadership at NIHR UK CRF Network and Associate Director of Operations for LTHT Research, and Hanif Ismael, Lead for Patient Public Involvement at NIHR Leeds CRF.

An image of two volunteers with a staff member demonstrating the ECHO cardiac ultrasound machine on a volunteer in the background.

The event showcased a range of ongoing research in Leeds, covering prostate cancer, knee replacement, early detection of lung cancer, and heart health. Alongside these presentations, attendees also had the opportunity to take part in hands-on activities, including an ECHO heart scan demonstration (pictured above), which helped people better understand how research links to real clinical practice.

Contributors, Graham Holland and Imtiaz Chaudary, reflected on their own involvement in research and highlighted the importance of inclusive research.

Attendees also took part in group discussions that explored ways to strengthen engagement, widen participation among under-represented communities, and shape future research priorities.

The conversations touched on topics such as including more community-based sessions, improved multilingual materials, better use of digital and media channels, engaging people at cultural events and public spaces, providing appropriate language support, involving healthcare teams, and offering suitable incentives. and generated suggestions that will inform future initiatives.

Feedback from participants indicated that the event provided a valuable opportunity to ask questions, share experiences, and think about how research and communities can work better together.

One attendee described the day as “Well run, well attended, interactive and informative”, while another said it “was useful and made me willing to engage in research and share the opportunities.”

The organisers plan to use insights from PPI Community Connect 2025 to guide ongoing work on improving patient and public involvement.

For more information, please contact [email protected].

NIHR Leeds CRF at 20th UKCRF Network Conference

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The NIHR Leeds CRF team standing on the steps at the conference.

NIHR Leeds CRF recently attended the 20th annual UKCRF Network Conference in Birmingham, the first to be held jointly with the NIHR Biomedical Research Centres.

Twenty-three of our team members, representing the broad scope of our work in clinical research, joined hundreds of delegates from across the UK to exchange insights and learn about the latest developments in healthcare research. It was an opportunity to create new connections and emphasised the importance of collaboration in delivering world-class research which is truly impactful.

Team members at the conference dinner.
An image of Karl Ward and Helen Radford giving with Karl Ward speaking at the lectern in front of a slide with research colleagues photographed on it.
Four colleagues standing in front of the conference banner reading "Co-operate to Translate".
The NIHR Leeds CRF team standing on the steps at the conference.

Dr Helen Radford and Karl Ward delivered an outstanding session at the conference on the ever-growing role of artificial intelligence in advancing research. Dr Radford also shared valuable reflections into attracting commercial clinical research, and Karl Ward presented our approach for best practice in training and embedding research within NHS teams.

We were also privileged to hear from our patient and public involvement and engagement (PPIE) Manager Hanif Ismail and patient representative Barrow Sawo, who spoke compellingly about overcoming challenges in public engagement, highlighting inclusive strategies for meaningful collaboration.

The team had a great experience celebrating their successes at the conference, where they not only presented their research to peers but also had the opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with other leaders in clinical research delivery. Our thanks to the organisers, we are already looking forward to next year’s conference!

Joint Leeds event marks International Clinical Trials Day 2025

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An image of attendees congregating around stalls at the event.

Our teams recently attended the International Clinical Trials Day event jointly organised with and hosted by the NIHR Leeds Biomedical Research Centre.

An image of a staff member with the clinical research facility.

The event recognised the life-changing impact of healthcare research, and the people who make it possible.

We met with researchers, patients and members of the public at the centre for a day of talks, activities and workshops. Visitors heard from researchers about their work, our patient public involvement and engagement team about the work of clinical trials.

An image of a staff member with a stall and brochures

The event showcased an array of cutting-edge research projects, such as managing chronic pain and musculoskeletal conditions, advancing inclusivity for disabled individuals in research, exploring new approaches to treating polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR), and technology in diabetes care.

Attendees also had the opportunity to take part in creative zine-making sessions led by the PMR research team, as well as explore the unit’s imaging facilities during guided tours of the centre’s MRI and ultrasound suites.

A presenter giving a talk to an audience.

This celebration formed part of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)’s broader Be Part of Research campaign, which aims to inspire greater public involvement in health and care research. Every breakthrough in treatment begins with participation, whether through clinical trials, research surveys, or other studies. These individual contributions collectively help drive progress in healthcare.

An image of attendees at the event in the garden with yellow flowers in the foreground.

We want to extend our gratitude to everyone who joined the event and contributed to its success, highlighting the invaluable support of the public in shaping the future of medical research.