The Trust provides care to over two million people each year through its five main hospital sites: The Royal London Hospital, St Bartholomew’s Hospital, Whipps Cross Hospital, Newham Hospital, and Mile End Hospital. The population served is ethnically, culturally, and socioeconomically diverse, with significant health inequalities, creating a strong platform for inclusive and representative clinical research that addresses unmet clinical need.

Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) is a research-intensive university with a strong focus on clinical and translational research. The long-standing partnership between QMUL and Barts Health enables close integration between academic research and clinical delivery, supporting research translation from discovery through to patient benefit.

Research and Innovation Infrastructure
Clinical research across Barts Health is delivered through a well-established Research & Innovation (R&I) Directorate, operating via the Joint Research Management Office (JRMO). The JRMO provides comprehensive oversight of research governance, regulatory approvals, finance, contracts, quality assurance, and strategic portfolio development. This ensures that research is delivered safely, ethically, and efficiently across all Trust sites.

The JRMO is hosted by QMUL and includes specialist teams covering finance, contracts and regulatory affairs, governance and patient and public involvement and engagement (PPIE). These teams work closely with clinical and academic partners to support grant management, portfolio development, and academic dissemination. Senior research managers/nurse leads within clinical services and Clinical Research Facilities (CRFs) support clinician- and nurse-led research activity across the organisation.

Clinical Trial Facilities and Infrastructure
Barts Health operates purpose-built Clinical Research Facilities at major hospital sites, including Whipps Cross Hospital, The Royal London Hospital, and Mile End Hospital. These facilities provide dedicated space for study visits, consent, consultations, sample processing and storage, and participant follow-up, improving accessibility to research for local communities.

The Trust is further strengthening its early-phase research capability through the development of a new early-phase Clinical Research Facility (CRF) at The Royal London Hospital. This facility will provide expanded capacity for complex and experimental medicine studies, including advanced therapy trials, with ten inpatient beds (including two negative pressure rooms), seven day-case recliner spaces, eight consultation rooms, laboratory facilities, and dedicated pharmacy and utility areas. 

All CRFs are supported by on-site pharmacy and laboratory services experienced in the handling of investigational medicinal products, alongside IT infrastructure integrated with Trust and research systems to enable efficient data capture, monitoring, and reporting. 

Collaborating Partnerships
Barts Health and QMUL share a formalised academic partnership, underpinned by joint clinical academic appointments, shared funding awards, and co-located research centres. This collaboration supports translational research across a wide range of clinical specialties. These two organisations along with Barts Charity established the Academic Centre for Healthy Ageing (ACHA) dedicated to improve care and support for older people through research, education and training.

The Trust also hosts the North East London Clinical Research Delivery Centre (NEL CRDC) working closely with Homerton University Hospital and Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospital and participates in the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) partnership and NIHR Clinical Research Facility Infrastructure Funding. Wider collaborations with NHS Trusts, universities, and research organisations at regional and national levels support shared learning, capacity building, and delivery of multi-centre studies.

Specialist Technology
Research delivery is supported by advanced technology across the Trust, including state-of-the-art imaging, secure patient registries, and digital research tools for real-time data capture. Clinical trial management is supported through EDGE, with access to advanced data infrastructure via the Barts Life Sciences programme. Integration with electronic patient records enables efficient participant identification, recruitment, data linkage, and regulatory reporting.

Team Networks and Cross-Departmental Support
Research is delivered through multidisciplinary teams (MDT) comprising clinicians, research nurses, allied health professionals, data managers, pharmacy, laboratory staff, and PPIE specialists. These teams operate across Trust sites, supported by cross-site CRF workforce meetings and collaborative working groups. Strong links with QMUL academic units support workforce development, harmonised practice, and knowledge sharing across the organisations.

Licences and Accreditations
Barts Health holds key regulatory licences relevant to clinical research, including Human Tissue Authority (HTA) licences for the storage and use of human tissue. Research activity is conducted in accordance with Good Clinical Practice (GCP), Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) requirements, and Health Research Authority (HRA) and Integrated Research Application System (IRAS) approvals. Where applicable, services align with JACIE (Joint Accreditation Committee of ISCT & EBMT) and Care Quality Commission (CQC) standards. These frameworks underpin the safe delivery of complex interventions and investigational medicinal products.

Commercial and Non-Commercial ATMP Experience
Barts Health and QMUL have experience delivering both commercial and non-commercial ATMP trials. Commercial activity includes industry-sponsored CAR-T and gene therapy studies, while non-commercial research has been led through academic and translational funding, particularly within cardiovascular medicine. This experience has built strong capability in recruitment to time and target, protocol adherence, investigational product handling, and safety oversight, positioning the organisations as credible partners for future ATMP research.

More information on Barts Health research infrastructure


Research at Barts

Queen Mary University research

Joint Research Management Office (JRMO)

Academic Centre for Healthy Ageing