Our Future Health goes live in Huddersfield

News – 5 October 2022
From 5th October, over 20,000 appointments are being rolled out for people in Huddersfield to join Our Future Health, the UK’s largest ever health research programme.

About the programme

Our Future Health aims to transform the prevention, detection and treatment of conditions such as dementia, cancer, diabetes, heart disease and stroke. With up to five million volunteers right across the UK, the goal is to create one of the most detailed pictures ever of people’s health.

Working in collaboration with NHS DigiTrials, the programme is sending letters to people over 18 living in Huddersfield giving them the option to take part. Volunteers will give their consent to join the research programme and provide secure access to their health records, complete a questionnaire and book an appointment.

Joining Our Future Health

At their appointment, volunteers will have a blood sample taken, plus some physical measurements. They will also be offered information about their own health, including their blood pressure and cholesterol levels. In the future people who join the programme will be given the option to receive feedback about their risk of diseases and also the opportunity to take part in cutting-edge research studies.

Volunteers’ data will be held securely in trusted research environments that meet strict security criteria and will be anonymised.

Andrew Roddam, CEO of Our Future Health, said:

“We’re really looking forward to people joining Our Future Health at the Kingsgate Shopping Centre in Huddersfield. They have an opportunity to be part of something that could transform healthcare in the UK.”

Sign up

Members of the public can register to join Our Future Health.

Notes:

Appointments in Huddersfield will take place at: Unit 9, Kingsgate Shopping Centre, King Street, Huddersfield, HD1 2QB

13 of the UK’s leading health charities are affiliates of Our Future Health: Action Against Age-related Macular Degeneration, Alzheimer’s Society, Asthma + Lung UK, Blood Cancer UK, Breast Cancer Now, British Heart Foundation, Diabetes UK, Kidney Research UK, Pancreatic Cancer UK, Parkinson’s UK, Prostate Cancer UK, Royal Osteoporosis Society and Stroke Association.

The delivery of Our Future Health appointments will be supported by Acacium Group and Pharmacy2U. They will provide the workforce and facilities needed to create capacity for appointments for blood sample collection and physical measurements. They will not have access to the participant’s healthcare records or the main Our Future Health database which holds all participant data.

About Our Future Health

Our Future Health is a collaboration between the public, private and charity sectors. It aims to be the UK’s largest health research programme, bringing people together to develop new ways to prevent, detect and treat disease.

Our Future Health is committed to the highest standards, policies and processes that protect participants’ confidentiality, whilst maximising the opportunity to help researchers to tackle serious diseases. Participants’ data will be de-identified and held securely in trusted research environments that meet strict security criteria. There will be a robust and transparent access process to ensure appropriate research access to Our Future Health data and samples for registered researchers. All researchers will be held to the same standards.

Our Future Health is a member of the UK Health Data Research Alliance, the independent alliance of leading healthcare and research organisations establishing best practice for the ethical use of UK health data for research at scale.

Our Future Health is a company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales (number 12212468) and a charity registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales (charity number 1189681) and OSCR, Scottish Charity Regulator (charity number SC050917).

Opt-out from receiving an invitation – People who have previously opted out of sharing health data for planning and research purposes, by submitting a National Data Opt-out, will not receive an invitation letter to join the programme via NHS Digital (who host the NHS DigiTrials service). People who do not want to receive an invitation letter from NHS Digital can opt out by completing the form on the NHS DigiTrials webpage.

About NHS DigiTrials

NHS DigiTrials, hosted by NHS Digital, offers data services to support clinical trials. We help reduce the time, effort and cost of developing new drugs, treatments and services, bringing benefits to patients, the public and the NHS.