Shaping the future of research through collaboration

On 14-15 July 2025, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Birmingham Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) co-hosted the first-ever joint NIHR BRC and UK Clinical Research Facility (CRF) Network conference.

The event, held at the International Convention Centre in Birmingham, was jointly planned and delivered by the NIHR Birmingham BRC and NIHR Birmingham CRF alongside the UKCRF Network.

While this marked the 20th annual UKCRF Network Conference, the format was expanded this year to include NIHR BRCs for the first time, joining up the discovery science and clinical delivery expertise that together drive the UK’s experimental medicine infrastructure.

The theme of the event, ‘Co-create to Translate: Achieving Impact through Collaboration’ focused on how BRCs and CRFs can work together to design and deliver world-class research that is accessible to all patients.

With more than 900 attendees and representation from every BRC and NIHR-funded CRF across the UK and Ireland, the conference celebrated large-scale cross-infrastructure collaboration.

Across the two days, attendees had the opportunity to hear from a diverse lineup of plenary speakers and participate in interactive parallel sessions covering a wide range of clinical research topics.

These sessions showcased world-leading research developed collaboratively at every stage, and explored cutting-edge co-design methodologies, including the integration of electronic data and AI in clinical trials.

Our Birmingham researchers and colleagues were strongly represented, with the lineup including local plenary speakers Professors Alastair Denniston, Melanie Calvert, and Joht Singh Chandan. Claire Wickett and Laura Chapman from the Birmingham BRC also presented their work on streamlining patient and public involvement and engagement across multiple organisations in Birmingham.

But the scope of the event went well beyond regional expertise: alongside experts from across the UK, attendees also had the opportunity to hear from national NIHR leadership. Gail Marzetti, Director of Science, Research and Evidence at the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and Deputy CEO of the NIHR, and Natalie Owen, Head of NIHR Research Infrastructure at DHSC, gave a presentation on NIHR’s plans to continue delivering impact, inclusion, investment and innovation in healthcare. They also outlined priorities for the research system, including supporting the three major healthcare shifts set out in the NHS 10 year plan, improving coordination across NIHR infrastructure, and making research ‘everyone’s business’.

The conference also offered a valuable opportunity for networking, enabling attendees to build new relationships with peers from across the UK and Ireland, share best practices, and collaborate on innovative ideas.

Patients – or as Dr Jan Idkowiak described them during the session on research co-creation, “our most important stakeholders” – played an active part in the event too, from reviewing poster abstracts to attending the conference and speaking on stage.

Jo Gray, Clinical Manager of the NIHR Birmingham CRF, said: “The conference has been completely inspiring. We’ve had so many interesting sessions delivered by staff from a range of organisations, bringing a whole new dimension to our annual conference.”

Victoria Day, Head of NIHR Birmingham BRC, said: “It’s been brilliant to have BRCs involved in the conference this year. We are an enormous, extensive research community, and we must work together. By doing so, we have the potential to drive and shape experimental research that benefits all patients.”

To close the conference, UHB colleagues passed the baton to next year’s hosts in Dublin, represented by Professor Martina Hennessy, Director of the Wellcome HRB CRF at St James’s Hospital.

Paul Brown, UKCRF Network Director, concluded: “This has been the biggest conference we’ve ever held – and it’s been absolutely excellent. It’s wonderful to be back in Birmingham, 20 years after the first one. We’ve really benefited from having our BRC colleagues in the room this year – they’ve been key to reimagining this annual event with fresh energy and ambition, securing our first big pharma sponsorship, and the quality of the parallel sessions has far exceeded expectations – absolutely top quality.

“With its innovative format, inclusive ethos, and record-breaking attendance, the 2025 conference has set a new benchmark for collaboration across the UK’s experimental medicine infrastructure. We look forward to seeing how the momentum continues in Ireland next year.”