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The official charity of Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

JRC - Joint Research Committee
Opens 30 Oct 2025 12:00 AM (GMT)
Deadline 11 Jan 2026 12:00 AM (GMT)
Description

Joint Research Committee 



The Joint Research Committee (JRC) is primarily concerned with high quality research within  Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital, and has several  key objectives: 


  • To support the development of talented clinical and non-clinical junior research staff at  Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital and thereby  facilitate their career progression to more senior clinical and research posts. 
  • To support innovative preliminary research studies and small scale pilot studies; the results  of which may form the basis for applications for larger awards by the NIHR and NIHR  partners (for example, MRC, Wellcome Trust, etc).  To support research that will result in changes in clinical practice and improved delivery of  healthcare at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital. 
  • To support research that will be presented at meetings and in publications at national and  international level and hence will promote the reputation of Chelsea and Westminster  Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital and capacity to form partnerships at local,  national and international levels 
  • To provide an opportunity for patients to engage in local research with potential benefits to  their care and treatment 

The Committee meets twice a year and researchers are invited to submit applications for  funding. Applications are reviewed on the basis of set criteria using a scoring system and a  panel of internal and external expert peer reviewers.  

All applications will be judged on the quality of the application and the potential benefit to the  NHS and patients. The review process is closely managed and monitored by the Committee,  and the Committee is responsible for all final funding decisions. 

The Committee is chaired by Professor Mark Johnson with a membership drawn from a range  of clinical specialities at the hospital, which currently includes:  

  • Acute medicine 
  • Anaesthetics 
  • Diabetes 
  • HIV / genito-urinary medicine 
  • Neonatology 
  • Immunology 
  • Radiology 
  • Paediatric 
  • Dermatology 
  • Obstetrics and gynaecology  
  • Gastronenterology 
  • Dermatology 
  • Oncology 
  • Multi-professional (nurse/AHP) 

There will be at least one patient / public representative on the Committee. This person is  responsible for ensuring that patient and public priorities are reflected in the process of  selecting and reviewing research funding applications. 

Type of JRC grants awarded  

The Committee awards several research grants:  

  • PhD studentship awards Granted on an annual basis at a total of £90,000.00 for the duration of a three year  programme of study. Funding applied for must be for predominantly staff costs. Consultants  are not eligible to apply for this award. 
  • Clinical research fellowships awards Granted for one year only at a maximum of £60,000.00 These awards are ideal for  researchers who wish to undertake a one year full-time research project. Funding applied  for must be for predominantly staff costs. Consultants are not eligible to apply for this  award. 
  • Small grant awards Granted for one year only at a maximum of £7,500.00 These awards are targeted at pilot  studies, which can ideally be developed into potential full-time research fellowships. These  awards are not designed to “top up” funding for existing projects. Typically small grants are  used to fund consumables, small items of equipment and / or procedures required to  support a small research study. They awards will not cover travel costs or course fees. 

Please note that the availability of above grant awards may vary each year.


Apply

JRC - Joint Research Committee


Joint Research Committee 



The Joint Research Committee (JRC) is primarily concerned with high quality research within  Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital, and has several  key objectives: 


  • To support the development of talented clinical and non-clinical junior research staff at  Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital and thereby  facilitate their career progression to more senior clinical and research posts. 
  • To support innovative preliminary research studies and small scale pilot studies; the results  of which may form the basis for applications for larger awards by the NIHR and NIHR  partners (for example, MRC, Wellcome Trust, etc).  To support research that will result in changes in clinical practice and improved delivery of  healthcare at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital. 
  • To support research that will be presented at meetings and in publications at national and  international level and hence will promote the reputation of Chelsea and Westminster  Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital and capacity to form partnerships at local,  national and international levels 
  • To provide an opportunity for patients to engage in local research with potential benefits to  their care and treatment 

The Committee meets twice a year and researchers are invited to submit applications for  funding. Applications are reviewed on the basis of set criteria using a scoring system and a  panel of internal and external expert peer reviewers.  

All applications will be judged on the quality of the application and the potential benefit to the  NHS and patients. The review process is closely managed and monitored by the Committee,  and the Committee is responsible for all final funding decisions. 

The Committee is chaired by Professor Mark Johnson with a membership drawn from a range  of clinical specialities at the hospital, which currently includes:  

  • Acute medicine 
  • Anaesthetics 
  • Diabetes 
  • HIV / genito-urinary medicine 
  • Neonatology 
  • Immunology 
  • Radiology 
  • Paediatric 
  • Dermatology 
  • Obstetrics and gynaecology  
  • Gastronenterology 
  • Dermatology 
  • Oncology 
  • Multi-professional (nurse/AHP) 

There will be at least one patient / public representative on the Committee. This person is  responsible for ensuring that patient and public priorities are reflected in the process of  selecting and reviewing research funding applications. 

Type of JRC grants awarded  

The Committee awards several research grants:  

  • PhD studentship awards Granted on an annual basis at a total of £90,000.00 for the duration of a three year  programme of study. Funding applied for must be for predominantly staff costs. Consultants  are not eligible to apply for this award. 
  • Clinical research fellowships awards Granted for one year only at a maximum of £60,000.00 These awards are ideal for  researchers who wish to undertake a one year full-time research project. Funding applied  for must be for predominantly staff costs. Consultants are not eligible to apply for this  award. 
  • Small grant awards Granted for one year only at a maximum of £7,500.00 These awards are targeted at pilot  studies, which can ideally be developed into potential full-time research fellowships. These  awards are not designed to “top up” funding for existing projects. Typically small grants are  used to fund consumables, small items of equipment and / or procedures required to  support a small research study. They awards will not cover travel costs or course fees. 

Please note that the availability of above grant awards may vary each year.


Apply
Opens
30 Oct 2025 12:00 AM (GMT)
Deadline
11 Jan 2026 12:00 AM (GMT)