Our research
Improving health, transforming lives
Our research focuses on the prevention, early diagnosis and management of common illness in primary care and community settings. Driven by our Department Strategy 2025–2030, we work to relieve pressures on the NHS, advance Global Primary Health Care, and make health systems stronger, fairer and more sustainable.
Our work supports the shifts at the heart of the NHS 10 Year Plan – from hospital to community, from sickness to prevention, and from analogue to digital.
What we research
Discover our active projects, groups and publications across key health domains and topics.
Health behaviours and community health
Understanding how services, communities and environments can help prevent ill-health and support healthier lives.
Digital health, data and AI
Using health data, digital tools and AI to improve care, health surveillance, self-management, research and policy.
Heart, stroke, diabetes and kidney health
Improving prevention, detection and management of major long-term conditions in primary care.
Infection, respiratory and urgent care
Improving prevention, diagnosis and treatment of infections, respiratory illness and urgent problems in community settings.
Cancer
Improving cancer prevention, early detection, diagnosis and care pathways in primary care, with a focus on reducing inequalities.
Global Primary Health Care
Working with international partners to strengthen equitable, evidence-based primary health care.
Health policy, systems and economics
Studying how health services are organised, funded and improved to make care fairer, more effective and sustainable.
Health experiences and inclusive research
Understanding people's experiences of health, care and research, and working to make research more representative and inclusive.
Public health and health inequalities
Using population-level evidence and partnerships to improve health and reduce inequalities.
Developing and applying research methods
We develop and apply the methods that make primary care research reliable, inclusive and useful – from clinical trials and evaluation to statistics, diagnosis, evidence synthesis, health economics and qualitative inquiry.
Clinical trials and evaluation
Designing and delivering pragmatic trials and evaluations in primary care and community settings, including infectious disease, long-term conditions, behavioural interventions and service change.
Research methods and evidence
Developing statistical, diagnostic, qualitative, health economics and evidence synthesis methods that underpin rigorous primary care research and better health and care decisions.
Centres, institutes and research infrastructure
Looking for a specific research group?
Browse our complete A–Z directory of all groups, units, and research centres.