6 April 2017 16:40

The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has announced that a collaboration between Liverpool and Lancaster Universities (LiLaC) will be a member of a renewed School for Public Health Research.

The LiLaC initiative is a collaboration between the University of Liverpool and Lancaster University for public health research.

Funding of £20.5 million over five years is available to support the renewed School.

Professor Jennie Popay from Lancaster University and Joint Directorof LiLaC said: “Lancaster's public health researchers have benefitted enormously from collaboration with the academics partners and local practitioners in the School for Public Health Research over the past five years. We are very excited that we have the opportunity to continue to develop our research in SPHR over the next five years focusing especially on providing evidence to help reduce health inequalities."

Head of the University of Liverpool’s Department of Public Health and Policy and Joint Director of LiLaC, Professor Dame Margaret Whitehead, DBE, said: “I am pleased that our collaboration with Lancaster University has, once again, been chosen to continue our work within the School for Public Health Research.

“This partnership highlights the continued importance of using research to tackle unfairness of health inequalities which unfortunately remains a problem for many people.”

The School for Public Health Research was established in 2012 to bring together leading academic centres in England demonstrating excellence in public health research and complement other NIHR funding streams.

It aims to build the evidence base for effective public health practice including what works practically to improve population health and reduce health inequalities and can be applied across the country to better meet the needs of policymakers, practitioners and the public.

The focus of the School is to continue to have a positive impact on public health, policy and capacity building. It will also continue to integrate with the public health landscape including Public Health England.

Following an open competition, the other members of the School include the University of Bristol, University of Cambridge, Fuse - a research collaboration between Newcastle University, Durham University, Northumbria University, University of Sunderland and Teesside University, Imperial College London, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, the University of Sheffield and University College London (UCL).