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Research into public health including ageing, mental wellbeing and children’s health in Northern Ireland has been given a £9 million boost
The funding has been awarded to the UKCRC Centre of Excellence for Public Health Northern Ireland (CoE NI) at Queen’s University Belfast, which was one of the UK’s first Centres of Excellence for public health research.
The Centre was formed to help create significant improvements in the wellbeing and health of the UK population. Researchers at the Centre have already made an impact by actively involving the policy makers, practitioners and the public in all stages of their research, in projects like the evaluation of the Connswater Community Greenway, in schools-based trials and in the way they disseminate their results in easily understood language.
The new funding will enable the UKCRC team to undertake further research on what shapes the health and wellbeing of adolescents in schools, on developing better interventions to improve public health and on the broader social and economic forces that help us all "age" well.
The Centre was launched in 2008 as part of a £20 million investment across the UK to strengthen research into complex public health issues such as obesity and health inequalities. The latest round of funding has been received from the UK Clinical Research Collaboration (UKCRC), with supporting funding from HSC Research and Development Office, the University of Ulster, Queen’s University, and the Atlantic Philanthropies.
This second phase of funding from August 2013 – July 2018, brings on board new partnerships with the University of Ulster, the School of Education at Queen’s and the All-Ireland Methodology Hub, co-hosted by the University of Ulster and Queen’s University Belfast, in Northern Ireland.
The UKCRC Centre of Excellence for Public Health Northern Ireland was officially re-launched at an event at Riddel Hall on Tuesday 18th June.
Health Minister Edwin Poots who officially re-launched the Centre of Excellence said: “It is a testament to the quality of public health research here that the Centre is to receive further investment for the next five years. I congratulate all involved.
“Going forward, the aim is to build additional strength in tackling the public health issues affecting both the young and the older population.”
The Director of the Centre of Excellence for Public Health NI, Professor Frank Kee, said: “Issues such as obesity and an increasingly ageing population are just some of the factors that are set to impact hugely on society in years to come. Thanks to the funding from all of our sponsors, The UKCRC Centre of Excellence for Public Health Northern Ireland can continue to build capacity in research that will help counter these problems and extend the evidence base that will inform policy and practice in public health.”
Queen's University Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Peter Gregson, added: “At Queen’s we are committed to undertaking research which benefits the community. This funding is recognition of the vital work of the Centre over the last five years. It will ensure Queen’s can continue to work with its partners on an integrated approach to health and social services, help to tackle the inequalities in health in the community and to study the economic, social and biological factors which cause chronic diseases.”