Embed, Build, Accelerate – Manchester BRC Director’s blog – January 2026

In this edition I want to focus on Capacity Building (CB) and the wealth of opportunities we offer to colleagues across all our partner Trusts.

Advancing healthcare through research requires highly skilled scientists, clinical researchers, and multidisciplinary teams dedicated to discovery and innovation. Training the next generation of experts and equipping them with the skills to lead world-class experimental medicine and translational research, is essential to developing new treatments and improving patient outcomes.

Building research capacity across our partnerships

Our Clinical Research Investment Scheme (CRIS) is vital in providing protected research time and here we invest in and increase the capacity of research-qualified healthcare professionals.

Congratulations to our 4 successful CRIS candidates from cohort 2 who all began their projects this month; Nasimah Maricar, Advanced Musculoskeletal Practitioner at Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, Gemma Owens, Consultant Gynaecological Oncologist at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (LTHTr), Amin Ali, Consultant Clinical Oncologist at LTHTr and Rudresh Shukla, Consultant Rheumatologist at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT).

Best wishes also to the 6 colleagues starting their new placements with QIAGEN as part of a separate programme, further strengthening links between clinical research and industry.

Continuing our commitment to accessible skill development, our Training Event and Seminar Series delivers regular workshops, covering topics from experimental medicine to research methodology, leadership, and grant writing. These sessions are open to all, helping to build expertise, share knowledge, and foster a vibrant learning environment across Greater Manchester (GM), Lancashire and South Cumbria.

Supporting early engagement with research, our Healthcare Professionals Placement Scheme provided a unique opportunity for nursing, midwifery and allied health professional (NMAHP) colleagues to explore clinical research through short-term placements. You can hear more about their experiences, including Pearl Kadiri, a midwife from Saint Mary’s Hospital (pictured above), in this film which highlights the importance of research and clinical practice collaboration.

Shaping the future of healthcare

PhD students and Clinical Fellows are at the heart of advancing healthcare research, and you can read more about the work of some of our current cohort in our PhDs in Focus series.

It is so important to embrace opportunities to develop the next generation of researchers across our geographical reach of GM, Lancashire, and South Cumbria. I recently attended the second annual Lancashire and South Cumbria research meeting, the theme of which was developing collaborative clinical research.  Alongside other BRC colleagues, we spoke to attendees across primary and secondary care and took part in a panel discussion (pictured below).

Supporting NIHR career progression

Colleagues across our BRC have advanced their careers through NIHR development funding at various stages and through different funding streams. In our new series, (pictured) researchers highlight their career journeys and the impact of NIHR support, with the hope of inspiring others. Find out more on our website or follow us on LinkedIn.

Additionally, our Pre-Application Support Fund, designed to help colleagues develop strong, competitive NIHR Fellowship and grant applications is supporting 14 healthcare professionals, providing mentorship, methodological and academic input. We are already seeing the impact of this investment, with one applicant successfully securing NIHR funding, and several further applications currently under review.

Celebrating Fellowship successes

Finally, I would like to acknowledge several Fellowships that BRC researchers have been awarded recently. These include:

Dr Stephanie Ling, from our Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Diseases Theme (RMD) was awarded the 5-year Medical Research Council (MRC) Industry Clinician Scientist Fellowship. Her project will focus on better understanding of different types of rheumatoid arthritis to prescribe medication more effectively.

Dr William Marshall, part of our Integrative Cardiovascular Medicine Theme was awarded a 3-year Clinical Training Fellowship as part of the MRC Industry Medicines Development Fellowship. He will use real world clinical data and AI machine learning to better understand chronic kidney disease.

Dr Chuan Fu Yap from The University of Manchester (UoM)’s Centre for Genetics and Genomics, and part of our RMD Theme was awarded the Dean’s Prize Fellowship for his project ‘Methods for Inclusive and Personalised Genetic Analyses’ which aims to make genetic studies of common traits and diseases more inclusive for everyone.

Dr Huda Badri, Respiratory Consultant at North Manchester General Hospital (part of MFT), was awarded UoM’s Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health Dean’s Prize, recognising the importance of her research into occupational asthma.

Also, from our Respiratory Medicine Theme, Dr Miriam Bennett was awarded a 4Ward North PhD Clinical Fellowship. Her research is on novel diagnostic biomarkers in asthma, linked to the Rapid Access for Diagnostics in Asthma (RADicA) study.

Dr Chelsea Sawyer, from our Mental Health Theme, was awarded a UKRI AI Metascience Fellowship in 2025. This Fellowship is exploring how AI tools can reduce or remove barriers experienced by researchers with learning disabilities, with the aim of creating more accessible, supportive, and empowering research ecosystems.

These Fellowships are highly competitive, and it is fantastic to see Manchester BRC recognised in this way.

Thank you

Professor Anne Barton

Director of the NIHR Manchester BRC