Health Data Research UK (HDR UK) was established in April 2018 by a group of core funders. The core funders initially set up HDR UK as the “national health data research institute” with the vision of creating a pre-eminent international UK Institute for 20-30 years. The initial five years investment covered 2018-2023 (first quinquennium). The MRC, as the lead funder, is now co-ordinating all core funders in a quinquennial review (QQR) of HDR UK. This review will assess our impact to date and future vision and be used to inform decisions about continued funding for HDR UK through to a second quinquennium (QQ2). The QQR process aims to assure the core funders of:
- The overall quality, impact, and productivity (past and future potential) of the Institute’s research programmes and the Institute as a whole
- The distinctive contribution of the Institute to core funders’ research portfolios strategic aims and the wider research effort
- The added value from the Institute structure
- The future form of support that is most appropriate
- The future resources required
Major stages of the QQR process
The QQR is a lengthy review process which starts in Autumn 2021, 18 months before the end of the quinquennium (March 2023). The main stages of the QQR process are outlined below:
- Oct 2021- Dec 2022: HDR UK internal review of QQ1 impact and development of QQ2 vision
This process involves consultation with our community, funders, advisory boards, patients and the public to evaluate our unique position and priorities for the future. - Jan 2022: Submission of an Institute QQR report
The report summarises our QQ1 impact and outlines our QQ2 vision. It is used by the Core Funders as the basis of their evaluation - Feb-Mar 2022: Peer Review process
Comments on the QQR report are sought from UK and international referees. Additional stakeholder input is gathered as appropriate. - Mar – Oct 2022: Committee Review
Review committees are established by the Core Funders to provide an independent evaluation of our proposal. The report is supplemented by site visits and opportunity for HDR UK to respond to reviewer queries - Oct- Dec 2022: Core funders deliberations
- Feb 2023: QQ2 Funding decisions
- 01 Apr 2023: Start of QQ2