Research Home : research.helptheaged.org.uk : Strategy : Standards :

Help the Aged has the highest possible standards of research governance and has protocols and procedures in place to ensure openness, accountability and academic rigour.

Both funded and commissioned research are subject to clear selection criteria and to rigorous selection and monitoring.

For biomedical research, all applications are independently peer reviewed and then final selection is made by Help the Aged's Research Advisory Council For more details on the selection process, please see How to Apply.

Quality assurance: The Charity requires all institutions which carry out research to have a research governance policy covering general management, research sponsorship, data protection, finance, intellectual property, health and safety and academic misconduct or fraud.

All research is subject to our standard terms and conditions (pdf 66kb). Similarly, the Charity itself conforms to externally agreed standards such as the Department of Health Research Governance Framework and is also a member of the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC) through Research into Ageing.

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Our position on using animals

Much of the research that we fund is carried out on tissue samples or cells in a laboratory, with computers or volunteers. However, these methods cannot replace research involving animals.

The UK has some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world. All institutions carrying out research on animals funded by the Charity are monitored by an Ethics Review Group and must conform to UK law and instructions issued by the Home Office. As a member of the AMRC, Research into Ageing will not fund animal research unless it is essential and there is no alternative.

To read a full version of our policy statement on the use of animals in research

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