The Research for Patient Benefit (RfPB) Programme is a nationally co-ordinated funding stream for regionally commissioned research. There are ten regional funding committees to commission local health service research. Budgets are in proportion to the regional population. The programme is run by the Central Commissioning Facility (CCF) to ensure there is parity between the regions. The national budget is £25 million per annum. Individual research projects can last for up to 36 months with a budget of up to £250,000.

Aims

The main aim of the RfPB programme is to support projects in Health Services Research and Public Health. Projects can be either quantitative or qualitative, and should aim to

• study the way that NHS services are provided and used
• evaluate whether interventions are effective and provide value for money
• examine whether alternative means for providing healthcare would be more beneficial in terms of cost and effectiveness
• formally assess innovations and developments in healthcare which will benefit of patients.

Purpose

This national response-mode funding programme supports high quality, investigator led research that is relevant to the NHS. All NHS researchers across England can apply.

The RfPB programme:

• funds research related to day-to-day practice in areas identified and developed by health service staff
• includes high quality academic input
• selects proposals for funding on the basis of the quality of the research proposal and its relevance to the broader NHS

Funding deadlines: