Inclusive research

Connecting to our communities: Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan for Research

Our research has the potential to improve the health of our local communities and advance the treatment and care for the millions of patients treated in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire every year. We can only realise this potential through the inclusion of ideas, talents and experiences of people from every community.

Our aims

This plan aims to address the challenges and implement a co-ordinated programme of interventions that will ensure equality; ensure our research reflects the communities that we serve; and that our research is open to everyone.

Commitment

We are committed to improving health and saving lives through high quality research which results in better treatments, effective therapies and new technology.

As innovators we will be open to and inclusive of the things which make us different. We will encourage a diversity of approach and ideas in order to find solutions to long-standing health challenges based on the experience of all.

Mission 

We will only be successful when the values of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion are fully embedded across our research infrastructure; when our people reflect the communities that we serve; and when we have removed the barriers to participation in our research for those who are not included today.

To do this we will:

  • improve our understanding of the issues that affect all citizens/ communities through education and training

  • focus our research on reducing the health gap between those who experience good quality of life and those who experience the greatest burden of ill health

  • build greater connectivity between our research and our citizens/communities by reducing barriers which prevent engagement, involvement and participation in research

  • increase local prosperity through our roles as employers, through attracting inward investment and through research outputs that contribute to economically active communities

  • contribute to better understanding of and trust in research through the quality our science.

Remit

This plan is part of a wider commitment to EDI by our organisations. It supports the aims and objectives set out in the following local plans which guide our research here in Nottingham:

  • NUH People First Plan 2023
  • Research & Innovation Strategy 2021–2023 (and its successor strategy currently in development)
  • NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre Delivery Plan 2022-27
  • NIHR Nottingham Clinical Research Facility Delivery Plan 2022-27.

Our organisations

This plan has been developed by the Research & Innovation Department of Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust. It relates not only to the clinical research that takes place in our hospitals, but also to the development of the NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre which is a partnership between NUH and the University of Nottingham, supported by Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and our wider NHS, academic and industry partners.

Read our Plan